Around the Bloc: Gardom’s North, Peak District
- Wednesday 5th June 2024
John Coefield writes
Mean and green. That’s many people’s experience of the mish-mash of low roofs and rounded blobs that make up the classic bouldering circuit at the northern end of Gardom’s Edge. Albeit an Eastern Edge, Gardom’s is set back from the Stanage-Burbage-Froggatt-Curbar spine and as such enjoys a little more shelter. The boulders are a shade more sheltered and, as they have a more northern aspect, have an unfair reputation for being green and slow drying. But the boulderer adept at reading the weather forecast, in particular the wind, and predicting conditions knows the reality is quite different: they dry fast in the wind and provide shelter when the wind is a bit too much for more exposed venues
Expect physical climbing on tough millstone grit – and expect to feel boxed by the time you’re done. If you’re going home with anything left in the tank, you haven’t been trying hard enough. There are problems in all grades, but the concentration of quality is in the Font 6 to low Font 7. This is powerful climbing on solid, generally clean rock and is home to numerous Peak District classics.
The Problems
The climbing at Gardom’s North is centred around a cluster of boulders and low outcrops at the very northern end of the edge – the first bit reached from the car – and a series of problems dotted on and under Gardom’s Edge itself. It provides a fine circuit indeed.
The Ledge and The Grasper
From the parking, the first rock reached is a collection of low (I’m not kidding) roofs, but if you want to warm up, keep going a short distance to a series of short walls and arêtes on the left that face the road. Little Arête (Font 6A+) is a fine sit start up a double arête, while Ledge Wall (Font 5+) and West Wall (Font 5+) give more technical challenges – a pleasant aperitif before the brutality of the roofs to come. Alcove Nose (Font 6C) steps things up a bit, while over to the right, the high nose of The Grasper (Font 6C) provides the circuit’s highball interest, scraping up sloping breaks, with the ground – and your pads – a distant memory. If you’re going well then Ben’s Bulge (Font 7B) to the left will further focus the mind – if you can trust the leg jams...
The Low Roofs
Wander back up top and laugh at the rules on the low right-to-left traverse of A Tasty Graunch (Font 7A+) before getting stuck into First Roof Middle (Font 6C) and First Roof Left (Font 6B) which follows good holds leftwards to a mantel finish. The former is the harder of the two, with mandatory exfoliation on the top out. There’s harder fare for the lowball enthusiast, including Wishbone (Font 7B).
Mark’s Roof
Below the low roofs is perhaps the Peak District’s most famous roof and home to a number of hard, powerful problems – ideal if you’re trying to avoid wearing out your new shoes. The left-hand line – Mark’s Roof Left-Hand (Font 6C+) – is arguably the pick of the bunch, climbing out from a sloping shelf via small crimps to finish laybacking up a photogenic flake above the road. A Peak must-do at the grade.
The boulder’s namesake, Mark's Roof at Font 7B+, swings out through the centre of the roof with a famous and pretty much unavoidable cut-loose before shuffling left to a heartbreaking rock over to disappointing holds and occasional glory. Many a confident boulderer has rocked up, felt the holds, assumed it’s easy and then hobbled home an hour later to book a physio appointment. Direct and indirect starts and finishes swing left and right, giving hours of fun for the man with two tickets to the gun show.
Soft on the G and Kidneystone
If you’ve seen the classic bouldering film Stick It then the next block should be familiar – both from the cover photo and Ben Moon’s efforts on what was to become 8 Ball (Font 8B). Don’t panic, it’s more amenable from standing – Soft on the G – at about Font 7B, depending on what sequence you suss and your flexibility. You can also get your hands on Johnny Dawes’ Rock Hard Bishop to the right (Font 6C+). Stop laughing.
A short walk further along reveals a fine bulbous block perched above a small quarry. Heartland (Font 7C) climbs the nose, but the pick of the problems is arguably Kidneystone (Font 7B) which climbs out and up the front face. Working out how to release the foot lock is the key to success on this modern classic.
Guidebooks
Gardom’s features in several guidebooks. Peak District Bouldering (Vertebrate Publishing) features all of the problems listed as does the latest guidebook in the shops, Peak Bouldering (Rockfax). You’ll also find Gardom’s in the BMC’s Froggatt to Black Rocks guide and Niall Grimes’ Boulder Britain.
Accommodation, etc
You’re in the Peak, so there’s no shortage of places to stay. The basic Eric Byne campsite can be found at the southern end of Gardom’s, but you don’t work all week to go camping, do you? Check out www.visitpeakdistrict.com for ideas on places to stay. Also at the southern end of Gardom’s, The Robin Hood Inn not far beyond the southern end of Gardom’s serves a decent pint and good food.
This article was originally published in the print version of Climber magazine. Take out a great value subscription and read more articles like this by clicking here