Scratchmere Scar & South Lakes Sends

Written by LakesBloc Monday, 19 March 2007 00:00

John Kettle has documented a handful of problems at the small esoteric venue of Far Rocks at Scratchmere Scar in the Eden Valley, a pair of clean, hard sandstone buttresses with soft flat landings. The venue features one outstanding 7 meter high three star problem; The Aspirant 7a/V6.

For how to find Far Rocks see the Eden Valley guide to Scratchmere Scar on the FRCC website. This description should get you up the problem once you're there: The Aspirant a great natural line, baffling start and gripping finish make this a fine proposition. Climb the shallow groove direct to the roof, step left and continue up the groove above. John has climbed a selection of five other problems at the venue between 4/V0 and 6a+/V3.

On the south lakes limestone front; Gaz Parry (who seems to have been everywhere of late!) has been busy at Hyning Wood, Woodwell and Trowbarrow. First up Gaz sent the superb and ubber classic Transgenic without the dubiously attached foot block just right of the central tree (8a/V11). With the foot block this problem got 7c+/8a but Gaz reports that the footblock had become so wobbly that he removed it, the result of which is that only the harder and purer line now exists. At Woodwell Gaz repeated Ryan Pasquil's low left variation to Not Bad Dave (Not Bad Nige) commenting that it felt about 7c+/V10ish. Finally he popped over to Trowbarrow to claim a quick repeat of Neil Kershaw's excellent new problem Texas Hold Em'.

At Woodwell Greg Chapman climbed a new problem on the Anesthesia buttress. The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocalypse (Ft7a+) starts from sitting on the right side of the buttress on a very low good edge. From here slap up and left to the lip and traverse left to the obvious hold in the middle of the buttress, now climb straight up via tenuous moves to the break - line shown in image right.