Scrambling in Chew Valley..

I was out in the Chew Valley today with Andrew, a day of scrambling esoterica and a revision of essential scrambling rope work.

First up was a visit to the historic Wilderness Gully East, scene of a significant avalanche in 1964 where two climbers sadly lost their lives. This was one of two significant events in the same year which led to the formation of the Peak District Mountain Rescue Organisation (PDMRO).

Today Wilderness Gully still makes a good scramble and is graded anywhere from Grade 1-3 or even Moderate depending on who you speak to. We ignored the numbers and made a quick ascent doing some short pitches on the steeper (and wetter) sections.

While in the area we also had a look at Wilderness Gully West, and made an ascent of Charnel Clough which is more in keeping with many of the classic Peak District scrambles.

Finally we made time to revise a bit of scrambling rope work before returning to the car park at Dovestone Reservoir. And who says there is no scrambling in the Peak District?....