Culm Coast – 25th, 26th July 2026

On the last weekend of July, at the crack of dawn, our Chairman Payl Kingston and I headed for a scouting trip to the Culm Coast, touching Devon and Cornwall.

The Culm Coast has been somehow forgotten. According to various forums, the area fell out of fashion and now sees only few local climbers. A new revised guidebook was recently published, though. The reason why it is off the mainstream? I don’t really know (and I don’t really care either) but I like it that way and I think it’s amazingly cool.

Just bear in mind that it is definitely not for the faint of heart and not for the inexperienced. Most climbs are accessible only a couple of hours either side of the tide. Approach is often sketchy and sometimes requires two abseil ropes. The moves are technical, with delicate footwork and good balance. The rock can be loose and brittle and expect long run out and sporadic protections (gotta be creative with the placements and remember to bring the micros)… so, in the spirit of what trad climbing represents, what’s not to like?!

On Saturday 25th we headed to Croyde Beach and hit Baggy Point, where we climbed Ben 3*** S 4a and Marion 2** HS 4a.

We wanted to climb also Shangri-La but we didn’t have the second abseil rope. So, we tried to access Scrattling Crack but the wind picked up and was too much to rappel down and the rain was coming.

On Sunday 26th, we moved down towards Bude and visited the super isolated, remote and otherworldly Vicarage Cliff. The approach is half of the adventure. The routes are superb and tick all the Culm boxes. The “apline” ridge at the top of the climb adds to the experience. The old tea room by the car park serves the best scones you can possibly eat.

We only managed to climb Sol 2** HS 4a then we had to retreat (and pronto) because of the tide and it was not possible to climb anymore, otherwise Tombstone and Box Of Delights would have been on the menu.

Anyway…. another reason to go back!

And on a 3 days long weekend, one can start at Bosigran and work their way up.

To date, the Culm Coast has perhaps the best climbing venues I visited and I’ll certainly be back for more.