by Mick Ryan click for topo At Cheddar Gorge Dan Jenkin, Gordon Jenkin and Ed Heslam have climbed what is perhaps the longest sport climb in the UK. Castles Made of Sand is 120m, nearly 400 feet, and ascends one of the impressive towers in the Pinnacle bay/Castle Rocks area. It weighs in at 6c (or 6b with one point of aid) and has four pitches: 6c (6b..1pt), 5, 6b, 6a. You can read an account of the climb, with a full route description in the latest Climb magazine (issue 19, Sept 06). Even better news is that you can climb Castles Made of Sand quite soon (don´t all rush at once!). After several years of hard work the Cheddar Gorge Climbing Project conceived by Martin Crocker to deal with vegetated cliffs, rotting fixed gear and a summer ban on climbing has now yielded positive results. As of September 11 you can climb on the Main Cliffs (south side) during most of the year except during the peak holiday periods. Much thanks to Martin, the BMC, the Climbers Club, many volunteers and the Longleat Estate for making this possible. See the details at the BMC website. There is a new supplement to the restored routes which is available for £10 in Cheddar at the Cheddar Caves´ office or by sending a £10 cheque payable to Martin Crocker and two first-class stamps to : 23 Ryecroft, Long Ashton. Bristol, BS41 9NQ (do all rush at once as it helps the route restoration project).
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