Yorkshire
16 crags listed — gritstone, limestone.
Almscliff
Yorkshire's most famous gritstone tor, a proud lump of rock on a hilltop between Leeds and Harrogate. Steep cracks, burly roofs and superb bouldering on rock like sandpaper; the traditional testing ground of Yorkshire hard men for over a century. Exposed to every wind, it dries almost as soon as the rain stops.
Brimham Rocks
A sprawling wonderland of weird and wonderful gritstone towers scattered across Nidderdale moorland. Hundreds of short routes and problems on wildly sculpted rock, with buttresses facing every direction so something is always in the sun or shade. A National Trust honeypot, but the rocks absorb the crowds.
Caley Crags
Yorkshire's premier gritstone bouldering venue, a hillside of blocks and buttresses scattered through the trees above the Otley to Leeds road. Powerful roofs, technical walls and famous highballs have made it a proving ground for generations of Yorkshire boulderers. The tree cover keeps it cool but means it holds damp after rain.
Gordale Scar
A colossal limestone gorge a mile from Malham, its overhanging walls towering above a waterfall-fed beck. The atmosphere is as intimidating as anywhere in England, with long trad pitches and steep sport routes threading the leaning walls. Slow to dry and prone to seepage, but unforgettable in condition.
Ilkley (Cow & Calf and Quarry)
The famous Cow and Calf rocks and their adjacent quarry on the edge of Ilkley Moor. The quarry's sheer walls hold some of gritstone's most celebrated hard cracks and aretes, including John Dunne's legendary New Statesman. Good bouldering scattered across the moor edge completes the venue.
Kilnsey Crag
Wharfedale's iconic roadside cliff, its huge main overhang jutting out over the valley floor. Steep, technical and fingery sport climbing on bulletproof limestone, with an unrivalled concentration of 8s beneath the famous roof. The steepness shrugs off rain but deep-seated seepage keeps many lines wet well into summer.
Malham Cove
A vast curving amphitheatre of white limestone and the greatest sport crag in Britain. The sun-trap Catwalk gives world-class routes from 6a to Rainman, the UK's first 9b, and the central wall is pure sport climbing theatre. Seepage after wet spells can plague the harder routes, but the cove takes little rain itself.
Adel Crags
Baildon Bank
Castleberg Crag
Craig Y Longridge
Peak Scar
Rylstone crag
Simon's Seat
The Great Flake
Whitestone Cliff