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ABOUT THE CLIMBING |
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The Barn
Milne House Millers Dale Derbyshire |
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Nestling in the heart of the Peak District |
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Beautiful Self Catering Holiday Cottage
01298 872338
Sleeps Six
Stunning Location
18th Century Barn
Overlooking River Wye |
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Within the Peak District there are two main rock types - gritstone and limestone and these, despite both being of sedimentary origin and of a similar geological age, are about as different as you could imagine. Gritstone - Long thin ribbons of high, exposed, black and rugged rock that rim the high moors surrounding the Peak District. For many years this was quarried to make millstones, its hard abrasive nature is exactly the reason it makes such a great climbing material. The main gritstone edges have generally short traditionally protected routes following cracks and walls on the many varied buttresses; typical of these are Stanage, Burbage, Froggatt and the Roaches. There are also an impressive set of gritstone quarries, of which Millstone is the best example. These tend to have slightly longer routes and often the climbing is on small sharp holds in direct contrast to the natural edges.
Limestone - Scattered tors, towers and edges, often hidden in deep wooded dales, the limestone cliffs have both trad and sport climbing on cliffs that are taller than is the norm for gritstone. The fine grained rock tends to polish relatively easy so the most popular climbs have become harder over the years. High Tor is doubtless the areas premier crag though Wildcat, Stoney Middleton, the Manifold valley and Cheedale have plenty to delight the climber. Limestone has been quarried for centuries and the whole area is peppered with abandoned holes in the ground. In recent years many of these have been developed to provide sport climbs across the grade spectrum, Horseshoe and Harpur Hill are well established and recently other venues such as Intake and Hall Dale quarries in the Matlock area have been added to the list.
Bouldering - Both rock types have plenty to offer the dedicated boulderer from the delightful fields of boulders below Stanage, Burbage and Curbar to the savagely technical walls at the base of many of the limestone cliffs. Raven Tor, Rubicon and sections of Stoney Middleton have been popular for years and have the polish to prove it! Gritstone bouldering tends to be short and highly technical, relying heavily on the rocks superb friction whereas limestone is home to some real tendon-stretching stamina-fests. Although of thought of as the preserve of the expert, gritstone in particular has much good lower grade bouldering, ideal for honing technique.
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