A CCESS & CONSERV ATION
Southern Sandstone
Adrian Paisey, BMC Access Representative T
he Southern Sandstone crags are formed from very soft sandstone and due to the proximity to London they are also some of the busiest in the country. This in itself is not a great combination however with care and good practice the rocks can be enjoyed while minimising erosion. With the closure of indoor walls during the Covid pandemic, visitor numbers increased dramatically with a lot of the climbers venturing outside for their first time. Brushing and working moves, which might be commonplace indoors, can do real damage and unfortunately this was accelerated in some areas. Other challenges included climbing on wet rock (when the outer surface is more vulnerable) and poor belay setups causing rope groves. A combination of passionate local climbers and BMC volunteers have been helping out by passing on their knowledge when they see behaviour that could cause damage or be dangerous. The result is we’ve seen a marked improvement in climbers looking after the rock by following the Sandstone Code of Conduct in 2021 which will hopefully continue into the future.
R The hangover roof at the BMC-owned crag, Harrison's Rocks.
T
o most of us it feels all too obvious that BBQs are a bad idea anywhere but within our own gardens, but there are a great many people – probably the majority in fact – that wouldn’t think twice. These people aren’t evil, or intending to cause harm – they just want to eat a nice hot meal whilst sitting somewhere lovely. In May 2020 we were in the middle of a heatwave and it hadn’t rained for weeks. The ground was parched and people were flooding into the Peak District. In and around this time there’d already been a few wildfires elsewhere in the country, started by disposable BBQs. It’d been in the national news, the local news and within our outdoorsy circles it felt like
everyone knew – DON’T USE DISPOSABLE BBQS. However, on 30 May the inevitable occurred. Bamford Edge was up in smoke. Awful though it was, it’s clear – looking back – that we actually got a lucky: the wind pushed the fire into the ancient woodland, which stopped it in its tracks. Had the wind been blowing over the crag, the fire would have spread to Stanage and who knows how far beyond. The family who started it clearly had no intention of causing such damage, and I’ve no doubt that it was a shocking experience for them to witness, so how can we help others understand these risks without them having to go through the same thing.
30 | CLIMB. WALK. JOIN.
PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK
PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK
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