My climbing stories
Discovering rock climbing was, for me, a transformative experience. I had previously shown very little interest in the outdoor life until I moved to the north-east of England. With four National Parks within reach I started exploring and quickly became entranced. Walking turned into scrambling which turned into rock climbing. Later I tried my hand at alpine climbing and mountaineering.
Rock climbing uses various grading systems to indicate the relative difficulty of a route. Diff, Severe, VS, HVS, E1 are some of the grades used in the British traditional climbing scene. To try and explain what they mean would fill multiple volumes. One of the beauties of climbing is that you can challenge yourself whatever grade you climb. And in the process you will discover a lot about yourself.
The following stories have been written over the years. Often they were written for the newsletter of the climbing club I have been a member of.
The table lists these stories, with a link to each one.
| Story | Link |
|---|---|
| My Climbing Roots | 
|
| That's Me That Is | 
|
| The Pause | 
|
| Rock Idol | 
|
| Thin Wall Special | 
|
| Dreams Of Falling | 
|
| The Magic Heights | 
|
| Joshua Tree and Red Rocks Road Trip | 
|
| Charles and his unbelievable underpants I | 
|
| Charles and his unbelievable underpants II | 
|