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Rock climbing in the Peak District facts for kids

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Rock climbing is a super popular sport in the Peak District! It's especially famous on big rock faces like Stanage and Froggatt. When people climb here, they usually do "free climbing". This means they use their hands and feet to climb, not tools to pull themselves up. The rocks you'll find are mostly two types: gritstone or limestone.

People have been climbing in the Peak District for a long time, since the late 1800s. A person named James W. Puttrell is often said to have started the sport here. The very first book about climbing in this area was called Some Gritstone Climbs. It was written by John Laycock and came out in 1913.

Did you know there are over 10,000 different climbing routes in the Peak District? That's a lot of climbing! One of the most famous climbers from this area is Ron Fawcett. He created many new routes. A climb called "Master's Edge" shows how strong and skilled he was. It's on Millstone Edge, near Hathersage, and goes up 19 meters (about 62 feet) on a very steep rock face!

Gritstone Climbing Areas

Gritstone is a type of sandstone rock. It's known for being rough and grippy, which is great for climbing! The Peak District has many amazing gritstone climbing spots. They are often divided into two main groups: Western Grit and Eastern Grit.

Western Gritstone Crags

These climbing spots are found in areas like Staffordshire, Kinder, Bleaklow, and the Chew Valley.

Eastern Gritstone Crags

These climbing areas are located in places like the Derwent Valley, Sheffield, and Derbyshire.

Limestone Climbing Areas

Limestone is another type of rock found in the Peak District. It's often smoother than gritstone. Because of this, climbers sometimes use special metal anchors called "bolts" or "pitons" that are fixed into the rock. Some limestone climbing spots have many of these bolts already in place.

Popular Limestone Crags

Here are some well-known limestone climbing areas in the Peak District:

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