The Peak District is one of the oldest national parks and a super bouldering destination in England.
“Bouldering means different things to different people. Some find joy in seeking out intense, hard problems in hidden locations, while others spend sessions with friends, working at their limits to tick mutual goals. Others have a more relaxed approach, ticking as many problems in a circuit as possible, just for the joy of movement and being in a beautiful location. With a variety of crags and easy access all this is possible in the Peak area.”
- Adrian Berry and Alan James (authors of Peak Bouldering)
The main attractions are the seemingly never-ending gritstone crags that run from Wimberry in the northwest, through the eastern and central crags, all the way to Staffordshire. The range and concentration is amazing, with many types of problems to get your teeth into. The climbing usually takes place either on the edges themselves, or sometimes on the blocks dotted around and beneath the crag. Additionally, there is Limestone bouldering with technical eliminates and powerful stamina traverses if you want something a little different.
For this article we will focus on Stanage, Burbage, The Roaches and Limestone areas, but others wait to be explored and there a literally 1000s of problems to try.
4 great bouldering areas in the Peak District
Burbage Valley
Burbage South Valley is an ideal location to start your bouldering journey. If you've been practicing indoors, this is a good area to test your outdoor capabilities for the first time. South Valley offers a range of challenges and lines but nothing too lofty, ensuring good landings. It's the perfect place to build up your confidence in an outdoor setting.
Another location within Burbage with lower grades is Haggar Tor. For bouldering newbies, it's a great place to practice landings more than solving problems. It offers low-level difficulty with lower probability of problematic landings. Just make sure your pads are in place and you bring a spotter along!
For the more experienced climbers, Burbage North is one of the best choices and offers a mix of technical cruxes, including many highballs for the daring. It has a good range in the higher grades and will keep you busy for months with the number of problems on offer.
The Roaches
An added bonus with many outdoor bouldering settings are the views on offer whilst you climb. The Roaches presents awesome views to enjoy and soak in.
If you are an intermediate level boulderer and wish to be on your own, Blister Slab and Twin Flakes boulders are recommended. For more challenging bouldering, check out the Upper Tier Boulders. They offer V4 to V7 problems which are sometimes a little crowded as they sit below the Top Tier of the crag. Lower Tier Boulders, on the other hand, are positioned just on the base of the crag. It is a great area for practicing and mixing up different styles.
Stanage
We can’t talk about Peak District without mentioning the Stanage Area and more specifically, Stanage Plantation. With a host of classics, Stanage Plantation’s gritstone boulders are the most famous of the lot in the UK.
They are situated just under the Stanage Edge. Simply described, it’s a field of problems similar to The Pebble which is known as the origin of the bouldering stage in the district. The Plantation tends to have higher graded problems from V5 and up, with some easier cruxes to keep novices and intermediate boulderers challenged and busy. It is also the area with the best views so a camera is a must. Once your fingers are spent, it’s also worth it to head up to the edge to soak in the beauty and grandness of the crag.
Stanage Far Right is located at the south end of Stanage Edge, and is less crowded than the Plantation. The challenges and problems are on the edge itself, notably lower compared to other bouldering sites in the area. Easier classics below V4 include Apparent North Buttress and Grand Theft Area.
Peak Limestone
The Limestone at the Peak has been put on the map by UK bouldering pioneers - Moffatt, Allen, and Proctor - who started by putting up first ascents at Stoney Middleton.
Before bouldering was a recognised ‘thing’, training for climbing involved lifting weights and endurance exercises. However, a few clever people thought that by climbing without ropes or any other gear, they could achieve the same types of exercises whilst still getting some climbing in.
Stoney Middleton is a wonderful place to climb if you’re looking to try your hand at some of the Peaks Limestone routes. Think a sheer wall of climbing with endless eliminates, and you’ll get a picture of what Stoney has to offer. Conditions are usually stable and it is climbable in the rain as well. Raven Tor and Rubicon are also top crags, but can get a little wet if raining.
Another well-known limestone crag is Blackwell Dale. It is known for several steep small crags that offer boulderers shady but challenging bouldering in the summer. Grade levels range from about 6b to 8a, so you will need to climb fairly hard to have a solid day’s climbing here.
Considerations when bouldering in the Peak District
As with other areas, the popularity of bouldering over the past few years has unfortunately lead to some ground erosion (especially under the popular problems). Using bouldering mats helps to slow this down and is definitely advised. Some of the spots lost their grass a long time ago and we should do what we can to stop this happening elsewhere.
Gritstone is a fairly soft rock and suffers once the surface layer has been worn away. This is usually caused by vigorous brushing and chalk overuse.
General best practice includes:
Use less chalk
Always use bouldering mats
Try not to stray from the popular paths
Brush holds gently and with plastic brushes
Logistics
When should I go?
You can boulder in the Peaks throughout the year.
Crisp winter day can be perfect for sending gritstone projects, but sometimes offers boggy or green/wet walls depending where you go.
Spring offers the highest chances of perfect conditions (not too hot, not too cold or rainy).
In summertime, shade can usually be found at certain crags, or head to the higher moorland boulders for a cooler breeze (beware midges in some places!).
Autumnal foliage can sometimes get in the way at grit areas, but suitable conditions are usually just round the corner.
Which guide should I buy?
Rockfax’s Peak Bouldering (2023) is the latest and greatest in terms of mapping all the bouldering in the Peaks. Topping out at 672 pages, it claims it’s the biggest ever book to bouldering in the Peak District. It covers all the areas from Wimberry in the north, through the Eastern Edges, to the Central Gritstone and Limestone and the grit of Staffordshire.
For another comprehensive look, try the Peak District Bouldering Guidebook by Rupert Davies and John Coefield. The Peak Bouldering guidebook gives one of the most comprehensive looks at the different crags and what they have to offer, and contains over 3000 problems across 500 pages. Problems and crags at the Peak have been revisited, reviewed and revised since the first publication of the guidebook. Davies and Coefield have spent years for more extensive research and updating established crags as well as new popular ones developed over the last six years.
Handy websites
Peakbouldering.info: Peakbouldering is a brilliant resource. It has plenty of videos and pictures of climbs too, if you’re after some cheeky beta.
How do I get there?
A car will make your trip to the Peaks a lot simpler and the guidebooks do tend to assume you have a car to access most crags. That said, trains (trainline) and buses (traveline) do service the area and these do go to some of the crags.