Watch House East

Watch House East

Contents

Gower

Shire Combe To Watch House East

GR SS 549 872

TIDAL STATUS

Virtually non-tidal.

BOLTING POLICY

Sports climbs allowed. Retrobolting permitted with usual caveats.

PREAMBLE

This is the steep buttress well to the east of Watch House Slabs and just around the corner from Foxhole Cove. The cliff is barrel-shaped and has an obvious depression in its upper section, with a wide corner crack leading up right. To the right, the crag is severely undercut and a groove line running up to the left gives the line of Clip Joint.

ACCESS

From the B4436 follow the offshoot into Southgate and continue to the National Trust Car Park by a roundabout at the end of the village (GR554873). Park here and follow the private road along the cliff top westward (right when looking out to sea) until a wide path breaks off left, just before its end at Number 18 (The Watch House). Follow this path for 200m until an iron stake is seen on the left (and opposite a water tower well over to the right).

Continue along the cliff top for 70m until a rocky ridge runs down and left, where the aspect of the underlying slopes changes from south to south-west. Scramble down here to reach a wave-cut platform. Follow the path back eastwards. Watch House East can be more efficiently reached by walking onto the beach (2 hours either side of low water) from Fox Hole.

DESCENTS

Routes have individual bolted lower offs.

THE ROUTES

Routes are described from left to right.

1. Left-wing Rebolt – Fr.6b
   Currently the most left hand start. After the second bolt, break left to climb the arête on good holds.
   
   
2. Strain Drain - Fr.7a
   Start as for Left Wing Rebolt and Straining Pitch but take a line between the two at the rail.
   
   
3. Straining Pitch – Fr.6b+
   Start as for Left Wing Rebolt. Climb steeply to good holds, step right to a crack and continue steeply to a ledge. Straight over the top overhang to finish.
   
   
4. Touch and Go – Fr.7a+
   Takes a line right of Straining Pitch through all four overhangs. Fine varied climbing but with a hard crux. Start as for Jump to Conclusions and trend delicately left to join Straining Pitch for one move before breaking right and crossing the second overhang (crux).
   
   
5. Jump To Conclusions - Fr.7a
   Start 6m right of Straining Pitch below a brownish overhang at 10m. Climb to below the overhang pull up leftwards using a crossly hold and lurch/jump/dyno to a large hidden jug up and left. Straight up more easily to the right arête of the diagonal groove, reach large holds and the lower off. Hard to on-sight.
   
   
6. Pump Action – Fr.7a+
   Start 3m right of Jump To Conclusions at a prominent red and white stratified niche. Climb this to ledge, step right and continue steeply, to a large pocket below an overhang; over this to reach good finishing holds and a further niche. Step right and climb a groove and corner crack to reach the lower off in a small rock outcrop.
   
   
7. Clip Joint – Fr.6c
   Start where a red-tipped rock meets the cliff. Climb an overhanging crack with increasing difficulty to reach a good incut. Move right to reach a chockstone and bridge up the groove onto a slab. Continue up a rounded arête to the lower off.
   
   
8. No Rest For The Wicked – Fr.7a
   A line right of Clip Joint without touching the boulder.
   
   
9. Too many Fingers – Fr.6c
   Takes the diagonal line of pockets at the right side of the crag, starting from the big boulder. Swing right at the top to finish on the ledge.
   
   
10. Nia Miss – Fr.5+
    Start on the upper ledge at the right side of the crag at a bolt belay. Step round the corner, and creep leftwards and upwards across the slab, with amazing exposure, to finish on the lower offs of Pump Action or Jump to Conclusions.
    
    
11. Unfinished Project
    The Road To Nowhere and Hue And Cry (traverses) can probably be done in some fashion using existing bolts but haven't done them since the crag was bolted any threads mentioned have long since gone.
    
    
12. The Road To Nowhere - E2,5b
    The obvious lower right to left traverse line. Not as innocuous as it appears. Start at the niche of ;;Pump Action. Climb to an undercut area of white rock and follow the traverse line by horizontal techniques until it is possible to become vertical again. Teeter up to the second bolt on Straining Pitch, before continuing up the hollow flakes to reach a rounded spike, where a grass cornice abuts the crag. Abseil off a sling around this. 21m
    
    
13. Hue And Cry - E2,5c
    A half-height traverse. Above the rounded spike at the end of The Road To Nowhere is a TR. Start from this thread, reached by abseil. Move right to the layback crack of Straining Pitch and follow this to good holds. Descend rightwards to the ledge of Jump To Conclusions and continue steeply right to the slab of Clip Joint. Finish up this. 21m
    
    

FIRST ASCENTS

1. Danny McCarroll, John Bullock 2009
2. A John Bullock, Danny McCarroll 21/10/12
3. J.Bullock, G.Evans 00.00.1989
4. Danny McCarroll, John Bullock, Oct 2010
5. J.Bullock, M.Kydd, G.Evans 02.09.1989
6. J.Bullock, R.Thomas 00.00.1989
7. J.Bullock, G.Evans 16.05.1989
8. A.Berry 00.00.1995
9. Danny McCarroll, John Bullock 2008.
10. John Bullock, Danny McCarroll 2008.
11. Danny McCarroll
12. G.Evans, J.Bullock 16.05.1989
13. G.Evans, J.Bullock

Sabina Eckard on the crux of Jump to Conlusion

Chris Wyatt on Straining Pitch