Grit E6 If bold E5's are dangerous, bold E6's are deadly. E6 was the top dog's currency during the early 80's, as sticky rubber enabled hitherto unthinkable smearing. Onsights of grit E6's are still incredibly rare, particularly the bold ones.

The E6s
SAFE but technical	High and Dry E5/6 6a/b Bamford A direct on an earlier route The Egg, hard move into scoop but surprisingly well protected (F0.5 in slot) and a scary, dirty exit from it (F0, maybe RPs in break). Not as good as the line looks, unfortunately. Those over 6ft can only claim E5 6a. F6c Camel Hot E5/6 6b Black Rocks Good small Friends protect this little hanging arete, featuring hard slapping (or jump) to sloping break (F0.5s) and then tricky lay-backing up final arete. Quite dirty - needs cleaning or a proper summer. F7a+ Salmon Left-Hand (aka Trout) E6 6b Bamford Can be nearly independent from The Salmon if climbed as follows: from the break (good gear, F2s-3s), move up using both the two-finger pocket on the right, and the larger low pocket on the left (Flexi-Friend 2.5). Some tricky slab climbing direct from here leads to a worrying move to gain the top, via the slight groove, or a big fall. RP's protect the lower wall (as for Jetrunner). E5 for the tall. F7a+ Make It Snappy E6 6b Gardoms Get your camera out! A low swing around from The Crocodile and undercut up for a hole in the break on the arete itself. A good RP4 and F1 in pockets in the break on the left, then a great move to reach up, round and right for a flatty. Some gritstone cunning involving hidden pockets and the top (F2 en route) - the best crux sequence on grit. F6c+ Mothers Pride E6 6c Millstone Links the 1st pitch of London Pride with its 'claimed' direct finish Which way now ... in one long pitch, good value. Has the top pitch ever been repeated? Not at its reported E4 6b! More likely E5 6c. Master of Disguise E6 6b Stanage Arete left of Chameleon from Neil Foster. Well-protected (gear in crack just left of Chameleon's ramp - RP5) and straightforward, but probably very reachy! Skinless Wonder E6 6c Stanage Takes the wall and roof left of Stanage Without Oxygen, complete with awful belly-flop mantel finish. Well protected testpiece. 9 O'Clock Watershed E6 6c Stanage Arete right of Paranoid, climbed on the right. Powerful and little bit scary as your last gear is in Tippler. Probably wise to use a back-rope Rollercoaster E6 6c Ramshaw Nadin mystery route up the short steep wall-cum-prow left of the sandbag HVS offwidth of Imposition. Any more details? Script Of A Tear E6 6c Roaches Solo. Extremely hard slab climb which eases with height. Not a great landing. A bit of a pointless filler-in route really. The Obscene Cleft E6 6c Bridestones Relatively well protected but desperate entry into the flared groove. For a long time a LGP until finally led by John Dunne and later on-sighted by Gareth Parry who didn't know it had been led at all. Desert Island Arete E6 6c Earl Crag Hard problem start (used to be given 6b!) leads to some wide breaks with bomber gear (large friends? Sling on spike), then a runout up the wall right of the arete (easier). Has been onsighted by Gareth Parry (2nd ascent). The photo in the old Yorkshire guidebook is rumoured to be staged. Thing On A Spring E6 7a Roaches, Lower Tier Safe fall-out zone beneath very hard wall climbing up a slight ramp. Repeated by Kevin Shaw (after about 20 falls! Now THAT is keen). Pebble removed since by Paul Clark, glued back on by Justin Critchlow. Named after a truly dreadful Spectrum computer game. Has now been repeated by Andy Turner at E6 7a. Flight of Ideas E6 7a Stanage The left arete of Tower Face, climbed on the right-hand side, is particularly hard from the last break to the top. Good gear in the breaks. F7c. Unrepeated? China Syndrome E6 7a Almscliffe Rob Gawthorpe's finest hour! First climbed in 1980, and only repeated twice (both about 17 years later!) hence this has been upgraded to E6 on the principle that Fawcett, Manson and Dunne must have tried it in the past with no success. Very powerful moves to get feet up and slap round for the pocket, with gear at your feet. F7c at least I would have thought. Just For Today E6 7a Roaches, Lower Tier The very hard slab left of Barriers In Time, with side-runners in Ackit and Barriers. Hard for the tall, impossible for the short? Unrepeated? Against The Grain E6 7a Roaches, Lower Tier Well protected wall climb from Nadin. Has lost pebbles over the years but had now been repeated. F7c Toy Boy E6/7 7a Froggatt Solo. Really hard and reachy crimp linking. "Step L off boulder then up and L onto hold size of little fingernail. No handholds? I can just reach between this and next finger holds hanging off rope." - 6 ft. PAUL CLARK A Little Particular E6 7b Roaches Elegy Direct. Impossible mantel onto slab protected by side-runners either side (chockstone in the crack) and RPs low down. Unrepeated, as no-one else can do the move: a one-armed mantle from hanging - no feet!
SAFE but sustained	Moonshine E5/6 6b Curbar Sustained and powerful laybacking all the way up, and between, unhelpful thin cracks. Micronuts and Friend 1.5 protect but hard to place, though you can easily reverse from the top piece of gear. Very low end E6, more like a butch E5. Barriers In Time E6 6b Lower Tier, Roaches Tricky start (jump!) to reach first break, followed by lovely climbing up the scalloped spur (harder for the short). Good Friends in the second break permit a long, scraping fall to be taken from the hard layback moves above (though you can hit the ledge on the right - talk to Gary Gibson). The last reach will remain in your memory for a long time! Scary. F6c+ Climber: Johnny Dawes © R.Heap Shock Horror E6 6b Rocky Valley, Ilkley One of the best! Parthian Shot for the E6 leader. Good wires behind the hanging block, and sneeky Friends in the horizontal break just up and left are the only gear for the sustained pocket tricks all the way up that blunt rib. The fall from the top is said to be a "privilege". F6c+ Cool Moon E6 6c Curbar Very high side-runners in Moon Walk, small nut near the start and 2 F0.5s en route protect the despo' moves to start (very reachy!) and pumpy climbing to gain the curving crack. Has been soloed without side-runner at E7. F7b Counterstroke of Equity E6 6c Far Skyline, Roaches The slab just right of Wings; F2 in that pocket, a delicate combination of intense smearing and frantic scratching topped off with a dynamic finish. Bon Apettite! Block and Tackle E6 6c Higgar Tor Neil Foster route up left-hand arete of the block, starting up Sander before swinging round onto a jug and good gear in break (Friends 1 & 1.5). Very powerful slapping up the arete follows. Milky Way E6 6b Ilkley Butch crack climbing finishing with a gruelling off-width (often wet). Used to be easier with a chockstone to grapple with. E6 in latest guidebook. Art Nouveau E6 6c Far Skyline, Roaches Brilliant undercutting exercise on rising overlap, protected by small RPs (HB4) which, unfortunately, are very tricky to place - word reaches me now that the main placement has demised - solo only now, I'm afraid. The landing is pretty good. On-sighted by Dawes in the 80s: amazing. The Fall E6 6b Curbar Good but spaced protection with hard moves to reach every gear placement and the top! Takes a very wandering line on the wall left of Profit Of Doom, to finish laybacking the arete. Hard move leaving the first bit of gear, it then eases but gets bold as you head up the arete. Hard for the short. The Crypt Trip E6 6b Stanage Very hard and pumpy climbing between breaks - superb. Way hard for E5! Tricky start (can get F0.5 and F0 in undercut on left) to the first break (F2 & HB4 on left) where you face two dilemas: having a good F1.5 or a good hold, and how to do the huge reach. Once in the next break (F1.5 & F1) one more hard move to gain the pocket and easier climbing. F7b/7b+. Janus E6 6b/c Curbar Tricky climbing up the groove to join Rigid Digit. The gear is small wires, which are frustratingly hard to place - use a small inverted cam at the bottom to hold the first piece and stop all the gear stripping when you fall. Very blind crux to move into Rigid Digit. Northern Comfort E6 6c Roaches, Lower Tier Obvious 'LGP' just above Valkyrie's flake. Was a Nadin project (surprise, surprise!) until Grimer bagged it. Very reachy. Messiah E6 6c Burbage South Bold, steep and exquisite climbing up to the break (F0.5 essential) and desperate above, though might be easier if you're a little power merchant. Very on-sightable, though some mootings that it's more like E7. F7b+. Has been on-sighted! Climber: Readza Master Of Reality E6 6c Hen Cloud A gritstone tufa - and overhanging! This is one of the most outstanding grit routes on the western edges. Good gear on the bottom wall (RP2, HB Tricam 0.5) protects the hard static or dyno (easier for the short!) to the break (wire, F1.5). A brilliant, powerful sequence moves you up the vein. Like cold weather, an absolute must! F7b+ Giggling Crack E6 6c Brimham A violent start gains the crack which widens disgustingly with height. Nearly ascended by Joe Brown in the 1700s until an untimely fit of mirth precipitated his downfall. Would probably still be mascerading as an E2 if he'd succeeded. Head-jam obligatory. I was going to give this a French grade until I realized the French just don't climb off-widths. Climber: Matt Gallagher Wristcutter's Lullaby E6 6c Wimberry The best E6 on grit? A totally brilliant line up a brilliant lump of rock, taking in a technical wall climbing, pebble-pulls and scary roof yarding. RP3 protects the initial crack (pre-placed and pre-clipped on first ascent), medium Friends in the pockets, and rusty old death-bolts in the roof. Amazing!
BOLD and technical	Particle Exchange E6 6c (E4 6b) Roaches, Lower Tier Solo. Here you are, the softest touch E6 in the world. Do it before the new guide comes out! Is likely to be the same as a route claimed in the late 80s, Doug-less at E3 6b! The arete opposite the electricity substation on the BIG boulder near the cottage. An easy crack leads to a tricky rockover on unhelpful slopers. Is pretty safe with a mat. Narcissus E6 6b Froggatt Solo. Soft touch for the grade, as it's been getting too many on-sights recently, and the landing isn't that poor - though it has broken a few ankles before now. A good E4 with a good bouldering mat? Has been on-sighted. Nosferatu E6 6b Burbage South A brilliant route, though perhaps a gift at this grade - nice, slightly dynamic climbing leads to a small pocket (skyhook, stacked RP1 and HB3), and a great rockover move. Can finish up the right arete, but it's much better to put some small/medium Friends in and dyno straight for the top! Has been on-sighted. F6c+ Ou Est Le Spit E6 6b Roaches, upper tier Solo. Compelling little gem of a route. Great moves, terrible landing, insecure. Worth (SOFT NYLON!) brushing the nightmare sloping top before you try the on-sight. Has been on-sighted. F6c. Life Assurance E6 6b Burbage South Very bold slab, short but insecure. Gear in the low break but you should get away with it if you have a very nifty belayer, though hitting the ledges on the right whilst tumbling is not a particularly appealing prospect. I've heard this fall has now been tested - no groundfall. Easier for the tall, perhaps only E5 6a. Has been on-sighted. F6b+ Climber: Noel Curtis Brazil E6 6b Moorside Rocks The blunt arete left of Moorside Crack, using a pocket, a toe-hook and a slopey finish. Nasty cheesegrater-type landing, the thin break at half-height takes an RP2 and RnR1 but they are really shit! F6c+. Hairy Heart E6 6a Froggatt Solo. Easy on a top-rope, but so bold. If you trust your feet, a doddle. Best done in combination with Artless. Has been on-sighted. F6a Catastrophe Internationale E6 6c Roaches, Lower Tier Solo. Hard pebble pulls above a hard landing. Apache Dawn probably uses some of the same holds, and the easiest way to climb this wall is with half of each route. I Bet He Drinks Carling Black Label E6 6c Curbar Solo. This innocuous direct start to Tube Of Fosters utilises everything from egyptians, pockets, slopers, crimps, dynamic slapping and jamming to gain the top. Only short but with a nasty landing to the right - use a belayer to pull you leftwards if you come off. An RP1 (or filed down Wallnut 00) can be fiddled into the small crack, but is too low to protect going for the crack. A brilliantly technical F7a+/7b. Defying Destiny E6 6b Stanage Very technical sequences between breaks and a dirty grovelling finish (easier on the left). When the guide says "uninspiring friend protection" it does actually mean it! F0.5 on the right and a F1 in the middle 'protect' in the second break - neither are particularly great. Possibly easier if you're short. Has been onsighted: by Mike Lea and Graham Hoey at least. F7a when you know the sequence. Slip'n'Slide E6 6a Crookrise Solo. Very hard and bold ramp line, with big reach off smears for top holds and some scary cranking - not to be underestimated! Must have been hard for Fawcett in EBs. Has been on-sighted. F6b+ Ulysses Or Bust E6 6b Curbar Solo. Quite tricky arete that you never do the same way twice (one of those). Landing varies from 'not great' to 'unthinkable', depending where and how you fall off. Flashed by Dawes minutes after the first ascent, first on-sight by Hoey in 1986 who thought it was "only E4 really" - obviously climbing well at the time, Graham! Was E6 when it first came out, and is F7a to top-rope Guillotine E6 6b Ilkley Solo. Very hard and frequently dirty arete that is well worth three stars. Dynamic, fingery, powerful and very blind. Successful on-sighters should be very pleased with themselves. F7a/7a+ Gibbering Wreck E6 6c Gib Tor Solo. The large roof mentioned as a 7a top-rope in the 1989 guide. A bit of a corporate affair: Moffatt toproped it first, either Ben Moon or Andy Brown soloed it first, and Sam Whittaker named it! High-ball problem effectively with mats and spotters. Grimoire E6 6c Cratcliffe Solo. An esoteric gem lurking on the prow below ...Cider Woman. Takes the arete on the RH side. "Short and brilliant!" [Martin Veale, 1st acs.] Weather Report E6 6c Stanage Solo. Crux slap over a bulge on slopers leads to precarious 6b moves. Needs a brushing. F7b Bloodstone E6 6b Roaches Lower Tier Kit under over-lap and low in The Mincer (F4), then the slab direct, easing with height, to join and finish up Kicking Bird. Led by Nadin in 1982 with EBs! F7a Velvet Silence E6 6c Black Rocks Solo. Very hard mantel onto the 'gutter' but just within bouldering height. Very insecure slab moves above this. Not a single pebble on the whole slab! Has been onsighted by an on-form Dawes. F7a+ Committed E6 6b/c Curbar Solo. Very small holds provide a crux start (6c for the short) and tricky (6b) finish, with the ground sweeping increasingly away. Might be only E5 for the very tall. Has been on-sight soloed by Popp, Nadin and Hoey, though not at the same time! Peter And The Wolf E6 6b Hen Cloud Solo. Andy Popp offering up the wall left of Fast Piping. Nice pocket work leads to the finale hard move: undercutting to reach (long!) the break. A Day Without Pay E6 6c Stanage Solo. Short wall above and behind Fina from Mike Lea. Basically two hard moves, above a cluttered boulder choke - eek! Piece Of Mind E6 6b Lower Tier, Roaches Solo. Incredible pre-Fires route from the Woodward brothers in 1977! A tricky arete is followed to a committing step right and slopey finish. Johnny Dawes attempted to on-sight this route, jumped off and only sprained his ankle! Bad landing - nasty - but only one or two nasty moves. Rumoured to have a good Peanut 3 in the low crack, though I couldn't get it to stick, and it wouldn't protect the crux anyway. Has this been onsighted yet? F6c. The Cool Curl E6 6b/c Stanage Hard friction for your feet, sharp pebbles for your fingers, a few Friends for your rope, and some worry for your head. The moves are very reminicent of The Salmon Direct, but you'll probably be ok if you fall off. "Extremely frightning" - 1989 Stanage Guidebook. F7a+/7b Boys Will Be Boys E6 6b Stanage Solo. Balancy wall climbing with long reaches, too far from the ground for much comfort, even though the landing is reasonable (mind the ledge). Crux is gaining hidden finger pocket on the left near the arete. You can go straight up, but this is much more like 6c. Gear arrives after all the hard climbing (Friend 1.5) but is welcome none-the-less. Technical and pumpy - F7a+. A Fist Full of Crystals E6 6b Roaches, Lower Tier Solo. Very unobvious, blind moves to gain height up the central groove and to the top. Thought by some to be perhaps E7 for an onsight, which would make it perhaps the first on grit? However, others feel it is a path! Hey ho... Scarpa Flow E6 6c Stanage An Andy Barker route with a great name up the left-hand side of the overlap and wall left of The Mangler. Tied-off F0.5s under the roof give some protection for hard crank for the slopey niche. Barker's original line moved right and attacked the middle of the wall via some pebble pulling exploits; Mike Lea finished direct up the arete, see Dreadnaught (E7) for the right-hand finish. F7b Big Air (ungradable) 6b Stanage Solo. A unique experience, taking the 2 metres of air above a palm-sweating chasm to a reasonable pocket and quick climbing to the top. Jump is the crux and climbing easier for shorties, while tallies find the opposite. Has been on-sighted. Dog Eye Rib E6 6b+ Hen Cloud Solo, unless you have a RnR1, and hard. It is possible to start direct up the arete, rather than from the block in the gully, via some hard dynamics (6c?). All the pockets are worse than they look, one taking (just) a RnR1. A wonderfully technical slap+stretch for slopies and the finish of nightmares. Has been onsight soloed by Sam Whittaker. F7a+/7b Grace and Danger E6 6c Stanage Solo. Eases with height, but still ankle-breaking. Dyno off undercuts or hard static move for slopey pocket. Easier for the tall - F7b. Charlotte Rampling E6 6b Gardoms Solo. Very hard physical moves above an awful landing. F7b Slackers E6 6b Curbar Solo. Short but bold direct start to Diet of Worms. A long reach to start (the short may have to dyno or come in on the slopers on the left), and a delightful rock-up (easier if you have little legs) lead to an elegant layback up the arete or powerful reach up and left. F4 in break and the rest of Diet which is just lovely! Dreadful landing: it's a good idea to have a belayer pull you leftwards if you come off. Has been 'beta-flashed'. F7a Climber: Readza Desperate Dan E6 6b Ilkley Solo. And I don't care if it's gone up to E7 in the new guide - many people consider this benchmark Yorkshire E6. Hard move to leave the boulder and get established on the arete, more hard balance moves (particularly for the short - reachy) gain some better pockets and the ledge. Could be very nasty if you fell off badly. Has been onsighted. F7a+ish Dragon's Hoard E6 6b Wharncliffe The smart direct finish to Cardinal's Treasure from Simon Jones. A nasty move to reach a side pull just under the small overlap, and a very delicate step up to the break. Used to have an good RP2 placement, but this has gone since FMD made Wharncliffe popular. RP1, RnRs 1 & 2, and very low RP3 provide limited moral support. Might be E7. F7b Benign Lives E6 6b Froggatt Solo. Very hard slab climbing above an appalling landing; E7? Would be hard to on-sight as the slab gives nothing away other than red-herrings. Harder for the short (well I find it impossible, anyway). Filling the gap up with rucksacs and crashmats is just plain cheating, and reduces this to a tick of very much lower magnitude. F7b to toprope.
BOLD and sustained	Ressurection E6 6b Brimham Not a solo. F1.5 at the start and some reasonable wires en route protect most of the ok moves up the twisting grooves to the right of Left Wall, except the long reach near the top of the groove, though there is an RP0/1 here-abouts to offer you some comfort. F6c+. Aretenophobia E6 6b Hen Cloud The stunning blunt rib left of Chameleon, with a side-runner placed in that route on lead, to protect the start. Not sure whether this should be in the SAFE catagory? Epiphany (LH) E6 6b Froggatt A bit of an anomaly this one: first climbed on the RH side by Phil Burke in the early 80s, has since seen attention and the LH side climbed at E6 6b, probably first by Ben Heason during his on-sight solo (with a direct start)! Ok Friends in the break at half height - feel distant when high up the arete - harder for the short. F7a+ for LH version. "When the route was first done I thought you would have been stupid to climb the arete on the left (ever heard of following the line of least resistance). This was before the days of [getting] two routes from 6 holds. I did not claim the line, as it was possible to step right at will, until the final moves. I did however tell Geoff Birtles of the ascent ... I have recently repeated the route in the manner described above and would confirm E4." Phil Burke, Jan '01. Climber: Readza Judge Dread E6 6b Nth Cloud, Roaches Very bold sustained wall climbing. Pre-placed RP1 can be clipped before the crux, but only if it has an extender on it! Jugged Hare E6 6a Froggatt Solo. Very sustained slab climbing and tricky pull up to headwall and gear. Might be able to protect with a tied-down skyhook. Has been soloed on-sight. F6b+ Peas in Mind E6 6a Curbar Solo. The right arete of Peapod. Very insecure fingery climbing with the crux a long way up! Eternal E6 6b Gorple Big, steep and rounded arete - reasonably protected by good gear below your feet when on the crux gaining the slopey top. Has been onsighted. Ulysses E6 6b Stanage Solo. Committing classic arete with crux at the top. Good landing but too far away. Ankle-breaker if you manage to land upright. Has been on-sighted by Dawes; very nearly on-sighted by Foster. Modern crashmat addicts may only claim it as E5, if that. The crux is getting easier thanks to wire-brushing idiots, now a paltry F6c to toprope. Fatal Attraction E6 6b Froggatt Solo? This recently claimed route takes the slab just right of Science Friction and must be barely independent. Darkness Falling E6 6c Stanage Scoop immediately right of Grace and Danger; serious even with low gear in break on right. Unrepeated? F7b Bloodspeed E6 6b Roaches Lower Tier Gear under over-lap and low-down in The Mincer are all that protect you as you shuffle rightwards on smears and minimal handholds, trying not to think of your rope sawing on the lip if you fall. If only you didn't have to look down at your feet! Slightly easier for the tall, but feels like 6b most of the way. F7a+/7b Linden E6 6b Curbar Brilliant face climbing, despite the chips. Very hard move (6b) to leave the block and gain the dodgy flakes (small wires, sling, Camalot 3) then sustained 6a crimpy wall climbing (sequency!) to gain the better holds and the top (very bold) before a flash pump occurs. One of the flakes is rumoured to be lassoo-able from the ground, therefore protecting the technical crux. Definately not one to throw a wobbler on, might be hard for the grade now that placements higher up have gone (did take HB2 and HB3, but I couldn't get anything in here). Phil Davidson on-sight soloed it in 1982 (without sticky rubber?). F7a+ to toprope. Parallel Lines E6/7 6c Hen Cloud Not been led yet without side runners. Looks easy doesn't it? Deceptive gear at mid height (small RPs, aliens) which tends to rip when you fall onto it; well someone has been unlucky enough to break their wrist testing it! F7b+ The Grand Potato E6 6b Baslow The very undercut right arete of the Cave Block. From the obvious slot, power up past a good F2 placement to the top break (F2 and crucial F0.5 - hard to place and very easy to pop out, but has held a short fall). The top arete looks like it should be easy but isn't! F7b Never Never Land E6 6b Ramshaw Classic, physical frightener from Nadin. F5/6 in the top of the crack is the only good gear available. Don't kid yourself a skyhook, RPs and other assorted tiny bits of kit in the really hollow flake will protect the dynamic moves up the steep wall - they don't, as they have been tested in action now. Phew, you've made it the sloping ramp - all your troubles are over, yeah? Wrong! The crux of this route is easily the very last move - a nervy, balance-ridden mantle on the slopey shelf to reach better holds, out of sight, where a fall is not even worth considering. Loads easier if you're over 6'1" - a steady E5 6a tick only, I'm afraid. F6c+ Painted Rumour E6 6a Roaches, Upper Tier Awsome route going all the way up and over the roof left of The Sloth. Loads of psychological gear at the back of the roof, some well-scary yarding to the 'cave', and a spike runner, then the crux - pulling into the vertical using rugosities. No-hands rest possible with your legs jammed in the hole - it's true: I've watched Colin Maddox peel and eat a banana upside down on lead. (The things some folk will do for an OTE photo-shoot). Has been on-sighted by Ben Bransby. Climber: Colin Maddox Wall of Sound E6 6b Stanage F1.5 and medium wire in the crack are good, but much lower than one would like! One crucial, poor nut (placement very poor now) at the top of the crack barely protects the hard moves on crimpy slopers (hint: an ancient Hamitic language?). Finishing direct from them, using the pocket for the right-hand might push it up to E7 I think. Steep F7b Careless Torque E6 7b Stanage Solo. Although the crux is the boulder problem start, the upper arete is not easy and is probably solid 6c and worth E6 in its own right. Has now been relagated to a hard highball Font8a+, thanks to Malc Smith. Still think it would stop the avergae E6 leader in their tracks...!

© J.Read '02