For climbers the limestone cliffs at Swanage offer unique climbing experiences in both traditional and sport modes of ascent. Much of the climbing is steep and overhanging, especially in the higher grades. Overall the style complements perfectly the more technical routes found on Portland. Indeed, some of the venues, such as Stair Hole and Blacker's Hole, offer incredible roofs of a scale not breached elsewhere in the Country. However not all the climbs are on such rugged terrain and some of the most popular venues are the bolted quarries at Dancing Ledge and Winspit, plus the gentler sectors such as Subluminal and the Cattle Troughs, which offer beginners the chance to break through.
This database contains all the routes from the 2005 Dorset Rockfax. It is up to date to June 2005 and the grades, stars and page references are all synchronised with that edition of the book.

ROUTES
342 trad routes (D...E8)
276 sport routes (2...8a+)
9 boulder problems (V4...V10)
117 dws routes (HVS...8a)
50 of the Best Routes
Graded List of Routes
List of First Ascents

Crag (click for details)	No. of Routes	Grade Range	Route Type	Sunshine or shade	Approach walk	Other	Page
Lulworth A superb set of roof climbs and also another great deep water solo venue....	82				10 mins		181
Winspit A sport climbing quarry with many great technical wall climbs. Sheltered from...	49				20 mins		205
Seacombe The low walls of Seacombe's eastern reaches are home to some fine little...	9				20 mins		-
Hedbury The Hedbury and Smokey Hole area encompasses four very different crags to the...	43				30 mins		212
Hidden Quarry This delightful area is a recently appraised addition, and, despite an approach...	11				25 mins		-
Dancing Ledge The most popular cliff at Swanage. A sport climbing quarry and some steeper...	81				25 mins		220
Guillemot Ledge A huge wall with several routes which are the longest at Swanage. Abseil...	31				25 mins		230
Cormorant Ledge Cormorant Ledge is a very long section of crag with a handfull of good low and...	4				25 mins		235
Blackers Hole Another varied area with a huge and spectacular cave home to the most...	42				45 mins		237
Fishermans Ledge Fisherman’s Ledge is one of the most popular and important areas at Swanage....	95				40 mins		246
Promenade In recent times The Promenade has been re-equipped and a significant number of...	92				30 mins		260
Cattle Troughs The Cattle Troughs Area is popular with novices and beginners although it is...	26				25 mins		270
Boulder Ruckle Far West A great wall with two or three of mega-routes but also the most serious of the...	8				25 mins		276
Boulder Ruckle West More big routes which are mostly 2 pitch. Better in the E3 to E5 range and...	30				20 mins		189
Boulder Ruckle Central Long 2 pitch routes above a non-tidal boulder beach. Good in the low extremes...	16				20 mins		282
Boulder Ruckle East Probably the most friendly and popular section of the Ruckle. Great long routes...	28				15 mins		284
Boulder Ruckle Far East A good selection of routes in the VS to HVS range as well as a few harder...	18				10 mins		288
Subluminal The low white line of sea cliff ‘under the light’ is the enchanting area of...	74				10 mins		294
Tilly Whim The diminutive caves of Tilly Whim are short, on good rock, and are mostly set...	5				10 mins		-
			What do these symbols mean? Averages, based on the largest buttress at each crag

Tensor II (Guillemot Ledge)
"Lovely committing moves left under the roof on undercuts, and no sign of the san..." 15/Aug

Gorilla Tactics (Winspit)
"Now an all 'staple' route." 22/Jul

Damage Case (Fishermans Ledge)
"a nasty start, followed by a lovely top section; harder but not as good as Calci..." 22/Jul

Shinhead Clash (Dancing Ledge)
"The bolt holes and some glue are visible where the 2nd bolt used to be. Possibly..." 08/Jul

Exuberance (Winspit)
"I'm not sure why this gets a pumpy symbol. It is 6b climbing to quite a good hol..." 04/Jul

Shinhead Clash (Dancing Ledge)
"June 2010 - 2nd bolt missing" 25/Jun

Ancient Order of Freemarblers (Winspit)
"Really nice stamina climbing. It feels a bit easier once it has had a bit on sun..." 21/Jun

The Spook (Guillemot Ledge)
"Great route but the guidebook is confusing about where to go on the second pitch..." 14/Jun

Gates of Greyskull (Lulworth)
"Helpful block at start of Gates has disappeared into sea, makes first move sligh..." 07/Jun

Wall Street (Cormorant Ledge)
"Nice route. Currently got Gulls nesting on the belay so maybe one to avoid for ..." 16/May

Surge Control (Boulder Ruckle Far West)
"Great climbing with 2 cruxes. Definitely a fair bit harder than lean machine, b..." 04/May

Calcitron (Fishermans Ledge)
"Possible new route up the wall to the right of Calcitron at about E3 5c. More in..." 25/Apr

Ledgend (Guillemot Ledge)
"There has been a rockfall in the corner just below the faultline on pitch 1. It'..." 16/Apr

The Vapour Edge (Blackers Hole)
"I'll second that - well worth pre-placing a rope for the top out." 21/Mar

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