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Davy Jones' Locker and the Sea Caves
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ACCESS
See the Ogmore Crag Familiarisation Page.
Check out the position/state of the stakes buried in the grass above before proceeding. To the right is the huge, atmospheric, sandy-floored cave of Davy Jones Locker. At all but the lowest tides the point to the right (east) of this cave is impassable.
File:Daveyjones.jpg
Davey Jones' Locker
The Routes
- Fast Luck 27m E2,5b *
Start at the buttress 15m left of Davy Jones’ Locker, below an obvious corner high up. Climb up easily at first then move boldly over to gain the corner and follow this to the top. - Delirious 30m E6,4b,6b
A gruelling route still one of the most serious undertakings at Ogmore. Start on the left side of the cave housing Davy Jones’ Locker, left of a chimney.- 9m Climb the groove and rib to a good ledge.
- 21m Pull into a short right groove and follow it strenuously to good spikes, then diagonally right to a large roof. A long reach, TR, leads to heel hooks along the lip and over it to a bulging wall. Finish straight up this.
- No Fakin’ It 25m E7,6b **
Another last minute deep water solo addition, with an ambiguous description. Traverse right from an unspecified point into a right facinf corner. Above and right is a ceiling. Use a fingerjam in the corner to extend for a pocket way out right on the lip. Swing right to the ledge of Twenty First Century. Immediately left of a short overhung scoop and left of the end of the ledge use a finger pocket to get through the overhang and climb the overhanging wall to gain ledges about 2m left of Skullthuggery. - Twenty First Century 45m E5,5c,6a **
A tremendous route. Start just right of Delirious and left of a slanting chimney in the left retaining wall of the cave. An extra rope left at the top to back up the belay stakes would be wise.- 24m Climb a groove left of the chimney, swing left to a ledge at a break, climb steeply to a slot below a roof and pull over on jugs. Move up right, PR, and rightwards along a traverse line to a good stance on the edge of the cave.
- 21m Traverse left at a higher level and climb a short groove, PR, over a roof on jugs and straight up the wall. Move out and out, passing a lot of very rusty PRs, until it is possible to pull over to easier ground and the top.
- Skullthuggery 45m E6,6a,6b **
Start as for Davy Jones' Locker at low tide or abseil down Twenty First Century and clip its gear.- 24m Follow Davy Jones' Locker to the top of the corner, swing up left and walk to the stance of Twenty First Century.
- 21m Cross the ceiling above the belay rightwards PR, to gain a ledge. Climb direct passing 2PRs, then when the good holds run out make fearsome moves to overcome the final roof, PR. Move leftwards, taking care with the loose rock on the easier finish.
- Davy Jones' Locker 51m E7,6a,6b ***
Those who are widely travelled enough to have walked into the bowels of the great sea cave of Davy Jones' Locker will agree that the cave roof represents one of the most spectacular challenges in Britain, taking one of its biggest free roofs. Start from the rear left of the cave at low tide. Retreat is cut off within 3 hours, so timing is important to ensure that the second climber is battling his way across the final roof as the sea thunders into the back of the cave.- 27m Climb fairly steadily up the face right of a rightward-trending crack line to a deep break. Pull up a short groove to good holds on a beak of rock. Make committing moves into the roof capped groove above and traverse rightwards, on the lip of the first low level ceiling, to the "keyhole". Spare a thought for the late Charlie Heard who was benighted here on his own during the first ascent.
- 24m Cross the first 2m ceiling, PR on the lip, and grapple greasily around to jugs, TR. Above is an aven where a no hands rest may be gained. Drop out and with deft handwork extend around the 2m ceiling to move awkwardly up to another aven, The Aven Haven, for another no hands rest. When and if recovered, fight across the 11m stepped roof on jugs. Keep enough strength for the final stretch, many PRs. From the lip scramble up to the top.
- Superstitious 21m HXS,6a ***
Climbed on Friday the 13th. Possibly the largest free roof ever soloed, 18m of pumping arm work from right to left across DJL’s cave. Be warned there is a boulder below the last few metres. From the small rectangular blosk in the arete climb up and left to the roof proper. There is a hanging flake on the lip to the left. Gain this then move left for a few metres before taking a higher set of holds left to a yellow scar in a wilderness of overhangs. Keep lowat the scar and immediately left gain the horizontal above. Continue left, then on finger jams make a final grope to the penultimate roof. Swing left for another metre or so, then enter the hanging corner on the lip of the cave. Climb the corner to top out on ledges on the right. Pre-placed rope handy to avoid rubble on the top out. - A.F.A.! 20m E6,6a ***
Approach as for Terrorism. From the left-most of the foot-ledges on the nose, reach over a roof to the right-hand end of a handrail on a hanging flake. Follow these leftwards above the main roof for 3m, then pull up to a slight niche. Make a long move up to flat holds and keep locking up to a prominent leftwards pointing spike. Exit diagonally right. - Terrorism 20m E6,6a ***
From the Hatch traverse easily left for 6m onto the arete at the right hand side of the Davy Jones’ cave. From a small rectangular block in the arete, climb up and slight leftwards through small roofs and bulging rock to easier ground at a left facing block hold at 10m. Finish carefully up a broken groove. - These Dangerous Seas 20m E5,6a *
From 1m right of the initial block on Terrorism, climb slightly rightwards to a series of small, spaced jugs leading to poorer holds below a black slab. Take a central line up this slab and finish on the right with care. - Automatic 24m E4,6a *
A fine strenuous route. Start 3m left of the overhanging crack of Fast Reactions at the right edge of the cave. Pull over the first roof to an obvious jug, pull over the next roof, missing PR, and trend leftwards over the bulges above to a slight niche. Continue more easily up the wall. - Fast Reactions' 26m E2,5b *
Start from the ledge at the bottom of the corner crack of The Hatch. Climb a strenuous leftward-slanting overhanging crack splitting a series of small stepped roofs. - The Hatch 24m HS,4a *
Gain the obvious corner and climb it direct. - Here Comes The Rain 24m VS,4c
As for The Hatch to a ledge, traverse right along the lip of the overhang, then climb the arete. - One Cool Vibe 24m E3,5c
This attacks the same arete as Here Comes The Rain, but from the right-hand side. Start 6m right of The Hatch. Climb rightwards on ledges then back left to the arete, continue straight up keeping just right of the arete to exit slightly leftwards. - Crushproof 21m HVS,5a
Start 7m right of The Hatch, just left of a jutting prow. Climb the wall over an obvious flat block and continue direct to easier ground. Belay well back. - Cold Steel 21m E2,5b
Start below the overhanging prow right of Crushproof, left of an overhanging crack. Climb to a ledge and pull past the first overhang. Move right to a bottomless groove. Climb direct until the angle eases and the top is reached.
First Ascents
- R.Thomas, G.Royle 00.00.1984
- M.Crocker, M.Ward 16.03.1986
- M.Crocker solo 16.06.2003
- M.Crocker, R.Thomas 19.10.1986
- M.Crocker, R.Thomas 00.00.1989
- G.Andrew, C.Heard 25-26.03.1978
FFA M.Crocker, R.Thomas 00.00.1989 - M.Crocker solo 13.06.2003
- M.Crocker solo 21.07.2002
- M.Crocker solo 16.09.2001
- M.Crocker solo 16.09.2001
- M.Crocker, R.Thomas 27.12.1985
- A.Sharp, P.Lewis 00.0.1977
- P.Littlejohn solo 00.05.1975
- M.Ward, M.Crocker 16.03.1986
- M.Crocker, R.Thomas 27.12.1985
- A.Sharp, J.Harwood 20.08.1977
- P.Littlejohn, A.Davies 16.03.1980
