Midweek Meets
Please read the following if you are considering coming along to one of
our meets:
BMC Participation Statement
"I accept that climbing and mountaineering are activities with a risk of
personal injury or death. I am aware of and shall accept these risks and wish
to participate in these activities voluntarily and shall be responsible for my
own actions and involvement."
In 2007, the KMC mid-week Climbing meets ran throughout the year. They were held at
local crags on Wednesday evenings, weather permitting. Crags for each week were
nominated by those keen people who actually got out and climbed the week before.
We also have the lists of mid-week meets (and any reports from them) for these other years:
2003
2004
2005
2006
2008
Midweek Meets from 2007
| February 7th | Yellowslacks |
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The plan was to meet up at at 6:30pm in
Old Glossop, grid ref SK 045 948, to head up as a group 6:45pm.
James, Dave and Al set off at the published time. Clear cold night and below
freezing, got windy on top. We started the search for the main crag much too
early thereby checking out many buttresses and boulders along the hill side
which are worthy of another visit, maybe in daylight hours. Two excellent
routes and a scramble where done on the Main Crag before heading back to
Glossop and the Globe for a swift half and numerous helpings of hotpot.
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| February 21st | Misty Wall, Kinder Northern Edge |
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The same trio as last time: James, Dave and Al. Kevin couldn't be persuaded - something
about having just come back from London. It had been dry all day but the
weatherman was threatening us with rain. Pleasant walk-in and the crag
easily found.
Two contrasting routes, one a green velvety chimney/cave/groove the other a
face climb on perfect grit, cold fingers making progress a little difficult/scary.
Then it was back to the car and Glossop and the Globe for a swift pint and few
helpings of hotpot and it also started to rain.
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February 28th | Ramshaw Rocks |
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This meet was rained off.
As we are in danger of loosing darkness, the next midweek meet will be at
Ramshaw Rocks, to take advantage of the moon rising in the east. Aim to be
there for 7:30pm, contact Al Metelko, James Richardson or Dave Dillon if
you want a lift.
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| March 14th | Kinder Downfall |
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The group will remain anonymous.
A arrived quite early with B and C arriving a few minutes before 7pm.
Contact with D was made by phone who was still some distance away.
A wanted to crack on as the round trip would be some 3 to 4 hours and
hopefully a light weight D would catch up.
Unfortunately when A was selling the meet to B and C the 70 minute walk-in
was confused with 'walking' and as B and C are strangers in these parts
became unhappy with the realisation that the walk was double the distance
anticipated. However good progress was made until the boggy steeper section
on the River Kinder and A became aware that B and C were less then happy.
Confidence in A grew to the point of mutiny, the map came out and A was asked
to point our position on said map. A could see that the Downfall was quite
close, conditions so perfect but hopes of having a belayer were diminishing
fast. A tried to persuade B and C to complete the walk-in and that the higher
path would be a better option for the return and we would also see D's head
torch light from higher up but to no avail.
A's thoughts of going on alone were quickly quashed and all retreated down
stream without incident except there was no sign of D! Back at the car park
there were the same number of cars as when we set off so A checked his phone,
one message from D - 'gone home'. Right then, the pub? We're not going to the
pub said a much happier B and C.
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| March 21st | Winnats Pass |
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Excellent final winter midweek meet. Crunchy patches of snow, perfect rock,
with enough light to climb the ridges without head torches, cave
exploration, pub: Wanted Inn.
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| March 28th | Windgather |
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First summer Wednesday evening saw a good turn out. Members were: Wavey,
Roger Daley, Keen Andy, Scott, Duncan, Vicky, Dave Bish, Katie and James.
Guests were Loretta. Unfortunately the sun disappeared at around 5pm and
was replaced with a thick mist, this didn't stop the KMC though and we were
very industrious with polishing off most of the VD's and S's at Windgather.
After a hotly disputed debate which nearly saw us going to Horseshoe quarry
we were all finally relieved to end up with a decision on Castle Naze for the
next week.
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| April 4th | Castle Naze |
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Attendees: Roger Daley, Keen Richard, Wavey, Trish and James.
Another beautiful spring evening saw a large number of ascents
of the classics at Castle Naze.
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| April 11th | Bamford Edge |
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A fantastic evening at Bamford Edge. Trish, Keen Richard and
James were there enjoying the evening sun.
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| April 18th | Pule Hill (see also the Online Guidebook) |
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[
pule \PYOOL\, intransitive verb: To whimper; to whine. ]
A fine, but breezy (particularly at the top of the crag, where it got quite chilly!)
evening. Keen Richard, Gordon, Wavey Dave, Roger, Midge, Joanne, Loretta, James and
Dave W. all turned out and plenty of routes were climbed - including "Amen",
"Flying Buttress", "Coffin Corner", "Blind Buttress",
"Overhanging Arete", etc., etc.
The usual discussion at the Pub (the "Great Western") about the next venue
was interrupted when a random stranger's car wouldn't start. The Landlord
thought that the tough climbing types would be strong enough to push start it...
Fortunately this theory didn't need to be put to the test, as one of the KMC team
saved the day with a set of jump-leads.
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| April 25th | Anglezarke (see also the Online Guidebook) |
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A good turnout this evening, including: Dave D., Roger Daley, Midge, Joanne, Al, Mark, Gordon, Andy,
Duncan, Beaker, Vicky, Dave W., Loretta and Ann.
The weather was cloudy but there was no real rain, only a mere hint of moisture in the air at one point.
Some people stuck to the few available lower grade climbs but others, in one case sustained by a
"Traditional Lancashire diet of Cheese and Nails", tackled a selection of the harder routes.
The grading of some of the routes was questioned, such as First Finale (allegedly E2, 5c) and Plain Bob
(allegedly S, 4a), with the former being easier than the guidebook said and the latter being rather
devoid of protection for a mere Severe! Plenty of other routes gave good entertainment; Edipol! (HS, 4b),
Nightmare (VS, 4b), Metamorphosis (VS, 4c), plus several of the shorter, easier climbs.
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| May 2nd | Helsby |
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A good turn out at Cheshire's premier crag (including 2 members who thought
they would have nice a quite evening), many starred routes done, only the
Cheshire set were conspicuous by their absence. In true KMC style the pub
that the locals recommended was not found. Only three cars of a rather
large KMC convoy made it to a pub in Daresbury to vote in next weeks venue.
Witches fell at the first round, the next to fall was Cow's Mouth despite the
car park being next to the pub! Chee Tor went once it was realised there's
not a lot below HVS so Denham Quarry just scraped in with 3 votes to 2.
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| May 23rd | Denham Quarry (see also the Online Guidebook) |
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After two Wednesdays of wet weather prevented any evening climbing, a small
turnout at Denham tackled the popular starred routes.
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| June 6th | Tissington Spires in Dovedale |
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A couple of photographs from this meet are in the
Picture Gallery (half way down the page).
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| June 20th | Harpur Hill |
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After heavy rain on the 13th meant that nobody got out climbing that evening,
the Harper Hill venue rolled forward to the 20th. There was a poor showing from
the Club at this excellent venue. However 2 did turn up and 5 routes were done.
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| June 27th | Staden Quarry |
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Four people turned up at Staden Quarry, luckily in a dry evening slot. A few classic
routes were done with the last one finished at 10:30, just before it started to rain.
The pub was the Sun.
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| July 11th | Pot Hole Quarry |
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Only two Karabiners turned up at a very crowded Pot Hole Quarry which was
just big enough that you did not have to queue for routes. After much
deliberation next weeks venue is Troy Quarry.
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| July 18th | Troy Quarry (see also the Online Guidebook) |
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A much better turnout this week, with Dave W., Al, Andy G., Mark A., Gary, Vicky, Duncan,
Rachel, Jane and even the Sun(!!) all putting in an appearance.
Routes climbed included:
"Open Sesame",
"Cracked Wall",
"One Way Street",
"Rapunzle",
"Stacked Deck",
"Left Siamese Twin",
"Right Siamese Twin",
etc., etc.
Not everyone stayed the full course, though. Duncan and Vicky had to go home to pack for
the Alps trip, then the Webmaster mumbled excuses about being to tired and also left early.
By the end of the evening, only three people ended up in the Pub to select the crag for
the following week.
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| July 25th | Blackstone Edge (see also the Online Guidebook) |
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Down to only two KMCers again for this week's evening meet: Mark Ashley and Dave
Wylie (most of the other mid-week regulars are in the Alps). By the time Mr. W. had
walked to the crag (from home!), Mark had already soloed several of the easier routes.
Dave soloed "South Chimney", then followed Mark up "Pendulum Swing"
and "Central Groove".
As neither of the pair fancied attempting any of the gnarlier VSs, it was off to the
White House pub to sample the local beer and pick the crag for the next week.
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| August 1st | Dovestones Edge (Chew Valley) |
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Mark Ashley, Chris Williams, Dave Wylie, James Richardson, Des Chadderton and John Williams
spent a fine evening at Dovestones Edge. Routes included "Nobbly Wall",
"The Direct Route", "Wrinkled Buttress" and "Nasal Buttress"
(leads of this Hard Severe by both Mark and Dave). Newcomers Des and John did routes
further along the crag, then joined the others in the Pub ("The Clarence"). The
consensus was that the Chew Valley is the place to be, so we'd come back to the area
the following week.
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| August 8th | Rob's Rocks (Chew Valley) |
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Another fine, warm and sunny evening in the Chew Valley. Chris Williams, Richard Yorke,
Dave Wylie, Al Metelko, James Hoyle, Kasia Hoyle, Trish Cranston, James Richardson and
Loretta all made the trek up the track to Rob's Rocks.
Antics included:
There are some photographs from the meet in the Picture Gallery.
The post-meet pub was "The Clarence", for the second week in a row.
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| August 15th | Witches' Quarry (see also the Online Guidebook) |
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Duncan, Vicky, Gordon, Andy and Al turned up for a good evenings climb.
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| August 22nd | Wilton 3 (see also the Online Guidebook) |
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The Bolton Gun Club has firing ranges in
Wilton quarries 2 and 3. They have use of the quarries on three days each week, including
Wednesdays. There were no red warning flags flying when the first KMC members arrived, but
there were two Club members at their lockup in no. 2 quarry. However, when we checked with
them, they were packing up and said that there would be no more shooting that evening. That
meant that the KMC could indeed climb in no. 3 quarry, rather than having to resort to plan
B (which would have been Wilton 1).
On arriving next door in Wilton 3, we found that it was infested with school kids - who were
having a grand time being top-roped up several of the easier routes. Hopefully the school had
previously cleared this with the Gun Club... Thankfully, the kids soon finished off and left
the KMC in peace for the rest of the evening.
A steady stream of KMC members, prospective members, guests and hangers-on arrived to sample
the delights of the quarried gritstone. They included Al, Dave W., Gordon, Trish, Jo, Anne,
Duncan, Vicky, Andy, Mark, Rachel, Warby, Gary, Keen Richard and a few others who didn't
make it onto the list. A most excellent turnout for a mid-week evening meet!
Loads of routes got traffic, including "Orange Crack", "Orange Wall"
(soloed by Duncan), "Oak Leaf Crack", "Forked Cracks", "Crack and Slab",
"Central Crack", "Shivers Arete", "Eeny", "Mo", etc.,
etc., etc. Several of the routes proved to be trickier than expected, resulting in some dangling,
with Trish gathering the most air-miles.
The weather stayed fine, but it was very breezy - making it rather cool belaying at the top
of the quarry walls. Climbing continued till after sunset, by which time some people had called
it a night and headed off. The rest retired to the local Pub (the Wilton Arms) where the crag
for the following week was chosen.
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| August 29th | Ramshaw Rocks |
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The attendees where Richard, Chris, Nadia, Ian C., Trish, James H. and Al.
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| September 5th | Aldery Cliff |
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The mid-week meet at Aldery Cliff had the 3 club members again outnumbered by
non-members.
Present were Trish, John Cox, Al, Chris, Gordon, 2xMike, Joe and two others
who came to have a look at the club. It was also the third week in a row
that climbing continued well past dusk, names need not be mentioned.
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| September 12th | Tonacliffe Quarry (see also the Online Guidebook) |
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A superb, warm and sunny, evening tempted out eight KMC members and guests: Dave Wylie,
Mark Ashley, Al Metelko, James Hoyle, Richard Yorke, James Cox, Des Chadderton and Gordon.
There was one other climber in the quarry early on, but he took flight soon after the KMC
began to arrive. There was also a brief Special Guest Appearance by Derek Clutterbuck
(of this very quarry's "Layaway Wall" fame)!
Most of the low and mid grade routes were climbed by the masses, while some of the harder
ones were tackled by Al and Des.
The daylight began to run out before 8pm, but that didn't stop the KMC. Various
attempts on "The Ceiling" (the 5a roof problem) were made - some successful,
others less so - by the light of head torches...
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| September 26th | Heptonstall |
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It had been too wet to go out climbing at Heptonstall on September 19th, but
the evening of the 26th was bright and sunny at this West facing quarry - which
was also nicely sheltered from the cool Easterly breeze.
Dave Wylie arrived at around 5pm and spent about an hour bouldering on (the easy side
of) the Cubic Block. Al Metelko and Andy Grantham then arrived, so attention moved to
the main quarry. Dave led "Fairy Steps" (Hard Severe, 4b, two pitches). While
Andy was seconding pitch 1, there was a short, very light, shower. This was, however, of
no consequence as most of the route and the belay were completely sheltered under the
overhanging top of the crag! Even the top pitch somehow managed to stay dry. By the time
Dave and Andy had completed the route, it was dark. This didn't stop Al, though, who
followed up the as third man by the light of his head-torch. An excellent route at this
fine evening venue.
A short walk into Heptonstall village for a quick pint at one of the pubs. The usual
voting system fell by the wayside, as three people aren't really enough - particularly
if they all nominate a crag... However, general consensus formed following a suggestion by
Al: Den Lane Quarries have apparently been cleaned up and provided with lower-offs, so
they must deserve a visit!
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| October 10th | Den Lane Quarries |
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A good evenings climb was had at Den Lane. In attendance were Andy, Chris
and Al.
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| October 17th | Hobson Moor |
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Garry, Andy and Al did 6 routes. We were entertained by a few local youths
throwing fireworks into the quarry.
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| October 24th | Alderman Rocks |
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Four turned up for Alderman Rocks, a pleasant night's climbing.
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| November 14th | Dovestones Lower Left Quarry |
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Des, Dave and Al ascended Mercury Crack using all the techniques impossible
to practice at climbing walls.
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| December 12th | Wimberry Rocks |
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Highlight of the evening - Al led Squirmer's Chimney in traditional style as
he forgot his harness bringing Andy up on a shoulder belay.
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