Wednesday 21 December 2011
Tuesday 13 December 2011
While the rain falls
Posted by Dave MacLeod 2 comments
Labels: davemacleod.com shop, training
Sunday 11 December 2011
Meeting the Queen
Posted by Dave MacLeod 3 comments
Labels: Ben Nevis, winter climbing
Saturday 3 December 2011
Long Hope DVD is here!
Posted by Dave MacLeod 3 comments
The need to pull hard
Posted by Dave MacLeod 0 comments
Labels: training
Tuesday 22 November 2011
Long Hope - Kendal people’s choice
Posted by Dave MacLeod 0 comments
Labels: Longhope route
Monday 14 November 2011
BAFTA for The Great Climb
Posted by Dave MacLeod 1 comments
Labels: The Great Climb
Friday 11 November 2011
Long Hope DVD available for pre-order
Posted by Dave MacLeod 0 comments
Labels: davemacleod.com shop, Longhope route, new stuff
Tip Juice in the shop
Posted by Dave MacLeod 0 comments
Labels: davemacleod.com shop, new stuff
Wednesday 9 November 2011
Longhope DVD is not far away
Posted by Dave MacLeod 0 comments
Labels: Longhope route
Tuesday 8 November 2011
Perfect day in Torridon
Posted by Dave MacLeod 0 comments
Labels: Scottish bouldering, work
Thursday 3 November 2011
New route in Peak Cavern
The other shoot I just finished with Triple Echo for the BBC was even weirder than the Handa adventure! The director Richard Else managed to get special permission to climb in the show cave Peak Cavern near Castleton right in the middle of the Peak District. The idea was for myself and Alan Cassidy to see if we could find a route out of it!
Anyway, we enjoyed our special permission while we had it, in the name of making BBC television. But first we spent two days a bit further north climbing an even sillier cave. The team wanted to see if we could climb our way out of a proper Yorkshire Pot Hole - Jingling Pot. A 60m tubular soaking wet pitch black slimy hole in the ground. Alan and myself didn’t have the faintest idea how to tackle it. I started off climbing in winter boots and gloves which was a mistake and I quickly switched to rockboots even through the water was running down it, over the green slime. I thought back to a day last year climbing Pleasure Done (E3) in Pembroke with Tim Emmett in the rain. That was surprisingly amenable and the limestone had a weird friction even though it was soaking. Jingling might be just like that, but with a headtorch on?! It turned out to be a wee bit harder than that, but we had a great time and emerged squinting in the daylight after one of our stranger days out climbing.
After a hardcore couple of days with the hilti and wire brush, It looked amazing: 7c+, 7a, 7b+, 7b. Only one problem, the first pitch would be 7c+ if it was dry. But it was completely soaking and all the holds were full of slimy wet mud - proper caving style! At least Keith’s floodlights made it feel slightly more like a crag than a hole in the ground. I had a couple of tries, sliding about all over the place. It was actually better not to use chalk for most of the first pitch, it only made your hands feel slimier.
Next morning I set off again. I could see that slipping off could happen on any move, so why worry about any of them? I just kept creeping across the traverse, unexpectedly scrapping my way through to the stance, and we could enjoy the remaining spectacular pitches through the roofs and headwall. What shall we call it? Has to be 'Ring of Fire'! My first new routes in Yorkshire and the Peak -what a weird week!
Posted by Dave MacLeod 2 comments
Labels: Scottish sport climbing, videos, work
Monday 24 October 2011
Johnny Dawes book in the shop
Posted by Dave MacLeod 1 comments
Handa - More dangling above drops for the BBC
The Great Stack of Handa. Photo: Triple Echo Productions
*Update* The programme now has a provisional slot of Nov 22nd at 19.00. Adventure Show special, BBC2 Scotland, iPlayer.
Last month I was working on two great film shoots with the Triple Echo team for the BBC at either ends of the UK. First off it was up north to the Stack of Handa to play the part of Donald McDonald, a Lewis farmer from the 1870s.
Myself, Donald King and Dave Cuthbertson going climbing on Handa. Photo: Triple Echo Productions
Three rather intrepid men from Lewis rode across the Minch in 1870 and made the first crossing onto the stack by rather inventive means. They lugged 600 feet of fishing rope across the island and walked it out across the headlands , pulling it tight until the rope (just) rested over the summit of the stack. McDonald then rather boldly hand-over-handed across the sagging rope without any backup to get onto the stack. The climb up the far side of the rope stack sounded like a fight for his life, the rope basically running almost vertically at that point. With encouragement from his partners, he made it and brought the others over the re-belayed rope in a breeches buoy.
Crossing the fishing rope to the stack. Photo: Triple Echo Productions
It’s hard to see any other reason for them taking the considerable trouble and risk to make this expedition for anything other than the sheer challenge of it. There are plenty of birdy cliffs for harvesting that are a lot more accessible nearby. Therefore, according to Murray writing in the journal, it may be the first recorded instance of an ascent like this in the country.
Cubby following in the breeches buoy. I.e. an oversized nappy! Photo: Triple Echo Productions
Posted by Dave MacLeod 4 comments
Sunday 23 October 2011
On lecture tour next week
Posted by Dave MacLeod 0 comments
Labels: Mountain Equipment
Thursday 20 October 2011
To those about to rock Scottish climbing - TCA Glasgow
The Climbing Academy Glasgow - The UK's Biggest Bouldering Wall from Jen Randall on Vimeo.
Posted by Dave MacLeod 0 comments
Thursday 13 October 2011
Karina's machine mode
Posted by Dave MacLeod 2 comments
Labels: perspective, training
Monday 10 October 2011
Lukasz' workshop
’King of Drunks' V6, Llanberis Pass, Wales. Photo: Richard Enticknap
King Wad E4 6a, Scimitar Ridge. Photo: Paul Diffley
Posted by Dave MacLeod 2 comments
Sunday 25 September 2011
Five new things in our shop
Posted by Dave MacLeod 0 comments
Labels: davemacleod.com shop, new stuff
Preparation for the good conditions season
Posted by Dave MacLeod 0 comments
Review: The Scene DVD
Posted by Dave MacLeod 0 comments
Labels: davemacleod.com shop, new stuff
Sunday 11 September 2011
Arnaud's E10
Posted by Dave MacLeod 8 comments
Saturday 3 September 2011
Centre Court 8b/+ video
Posted by Dave MacLeod 1 comments
Labels: Gore-Tex, Gore-Tex Experience Tour, Norway
Longhope fine art prints
Posted by Dave MacLeod 2 comments
Labels: davemacleod.com shop, Longhope route, new stuff
Monday 29 August 2011
Bongo Bar first free ascent, Blåmann
Posted by Dave MacLeod 4 comments
Labels: Blåmann, Bongo Bar, Gore-Tex, Gore-Tex Experience Tour