Welcome to the FRCC guidebook downloads page. Presented are a number of downloadable guidebooks in PDF format. For ease of reference the downloads are organised by the areas covered by our printed guidebooks. Please also consider supporting our volunteer staffed guidebook productions by purchasing your own copy of the area guidebooks in our online guidebook shop.
Terms of Use
By downloading and/or using any of the PDFs below you are acknowledging that you have read and agree to the following terms and conditions and that you acknowledge and respect our copyright. © FRCC 2024
WARNING: Climbing is a dangerous activity that carries a risk of injury or death. You climb at your own risk. You are the sole judge of conditions. You take responsibility for your own actions. The information in these guides is derived from comments and route descriptions contributed by climbers to the FRCC website and other sources, often after the first ascent. Many crags and climbs are new or recent – descriptions, grades, rock quality, fixed gear, access and all other content may not have been checked, cannot be relied upon and you should use it with caution. Do not presume that any of this material is accurate. Neither the publisher nor anyone involved in the publication of this information can be held responsible for omissions, mistakes, nor held liable for any personal or third party injuries or damage, howsoever caused, arising from its use.
BMC Participation Statement: The British Mountaineering Council recognises that climbing and mountaineering are activities with a danger of personal injury or death. Participants in these activities should be aware of and accept these risks and be responsible for their own actions and involvement.
Access and Bird Restrictions: Please check the BMC Regional Access Database and the Bird Restrictions for up-to-date access information.
Fixed Gear: Includes bolts, slings, pegs and any gear found in situ. https://thebmc.co.uk/en/bolts Click the link to the BMC guide: BOLTS: a climbers’ guide…
In the UK bolting and placing of fixed gear is not controlled or monitored. Organisations like the Cumbria Bolt Fund (CBF) are attempting to remedy this. Run by volunteers, equipment from the CBF is specified, sourced and installed following best practice at that time. Many of the bolts have been placed by volunteers operating with the support of the CBF. A record of all this work is maintained. The work is completed competently, although this may have been done several years ago. There are no regular inspections or testing. You will find bolts that have been installed independently, often these are expansion bolts using mixed metals. No specification or quality standards may have been applied to the selection or installation of these bolts; they could fail at any time. To protect the lower offs it is essential that you use your own slings and karabiners.
Recent accidents demonstrate that fixed gear wears out or that the rock can fail. In England and Wales it is accepted that as a climber you alone bear the overall responsibility to understand the risks associated with climbing on fixed gear, and to manage these risks appropriately. You should be aware that using bolted and fixed protection outside is not the same as the gear provided at a climbing wall, where a planned maintenance and reporting schedule is in place. Outside the fixed gear is not maintained or inspected, a route may have become dangerous after it was originally created, where there is galvanic corrosion this could happen in a matter of weeks. Fixed gear, of any type, should not be relied on.
UIAA WARNING ABOUT CLIMBING ANCHOR FAILURES 2024: A recent incident in Leonidio indicates unexpected failure of climbing anchor after only some months/ years in place. These failures, mostly on stainless steel anchors, are due to environmental degradation; corrosion and stress corrosion cracking (SCC). https://www.theuiaa.org/documents/safety-standards/UIAA_Anchor_Failures_2024.pdf
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CLIMBERS: Make a visual check – look for cracks; belay or lower from multi-point anchors using more than one ring or karabiner; back up bolts, abseil points and belays/lower offs; be prepared to abandon the climb.
If a bolt fails: collect the parts and send these to the Cumbria Bolt Fund contact: dan@real-adventure.co.uk, or the BMC. Post the information on social media.
Copyright: The information contained in these PDFs is copyrighted to the FRCC and is provided for non-commercial use. Commercial users, or those wishing to distribute any of this information, should contact the FRCC Guidebooks Secretary for permission – this requirement is waived for those writing routes reports and similar articles for the climbing press.
Please Contribute: We welcome details of new routes, and comments on routes.
Using eBooks: Books are in PDF format. You will be emailed a link to download books that you purchase. Click to download, then open them on your computer, tablet, or phone. They are laid out by crag, then sector or buttress which allows you to print smaller sections. The PDFs are practical, stripped of all non-essential text and images, so you only get what you need. For example, each discrete section of a crag starts on a new page, so you are able to print just the pages that you need for a visit. Many are designed with larger text to be printed at A5 size; typically this is done by printing the download on A4 paper with pages two-up, i.e. two pages side-by-side.
Free Downloads
These PDF mini-guidebooks to minor venues are available to download for free. However, please note that the FRCC supports the Cumbria Bolt Fund. So please consider donating to help develop new climbs and improve existing routes and equipment. Thank you.
Free Downloads
Free Downloads
Free Downloads
Free Downloads
Free Downloads
Free Downloads
Free Downloads
Free Downloads
Free Downloads
Swaledale & North Pennines
Though technically in Yorkshire and Durham, the crags are just over the border from Cumbria. They are not covered in any printed guide elsewhere at the moment and are included here to promote their presence.
Free Downloads