I can understand why it is called an edge.  The edge is a sharp line of rock dropping off a heather-covered plateau.  A footpath follows the contours of the edge and many other people were out enjoying the beautiful weather.

According to a UK climbing website, Froggatt Edge “is a virtually continuous face of exceptionally clean and quick-drying rock of the highest quality up to 17m high… The edge is home to some of the best slab climbing in the country.”

I’m still a novice at climbing on rock, and I felt relatively cautious about the bouldering routes I choose, but I found plenty of interesting and challenging spots.

I’d love to spend more time exploring Froggatt Edge.

Quite a few of us scrambled up the crack and made it atop this boulder.

I came back later with my rock climbing boots and found a few other routes.

We also went for a hike up Boulder Pass into the McDowell Mountains.  The pass is the last dip on the left in the range over Dana’s shoulder.

We stopped for lunch along the way and River found a choice spot to eat and relax for a few minutes.

There are plenty of cacti such as this prickly pear and  I think everyone had an encounter of some kind with these thorns.

The really unique thing about Boulder Pass is that water draining from the surrounding mountains has eroded passages underneath the boulders in the stream bed.  It is possible to ascend the pass by climbing under the rocks.

Unfortunately, I was too busy scrambling around myself and helping the kids that I couldn’t keep the camera accessible.  Everyone did some remarkable climbing!

We made it to the top of the pass after some considerable effort.  The kids all had a blast and loved climbing around on the rocks.  We also explored a cave that has been furnished with a wood stove, table, and other accoutrements converting it into a relatively comfortable campsite.  The view over the valley from the pass is quite remarkable.

I walked through this beautiful woodland on my way to an area known as the Plantation Boulders.

It was quite cold on the rock, especially in the wind.  There was a thin layer of ice on this pool.

I ate lunch on top of a rock known as “The Mental Problem”.  From here you can see some of the boulder problems I did on “The Long Block” and “The Photograph”.   I picked up an excellent guidebook, Stanage – the Definitive Guide, which helped me get oriented. 

Here is someone nearing the top of the route known as “Goliath’s Groove”.

In other climbing-related news, River and Sage came to the Nottingham Climbing Centre last week during their half-term break.  River learned how to belay her sister!

Then she had a go at it herself.

They had a great time climbing!

I think we’ll probably all try to get out to Stanage sometime soon.  Climbing outside on the gritstone is terrific.

We had slices of several varieties to sample the different flavors and textures.  We drank cider fresh from the press.  The King of the Pippins variety, shown above, was the base of the juicing operation.

The walled orchard and kitchen garden also hosted a story teller who told a variation on the story about how the apple got it’s star.  We enjoyed checking out all the scarecrows amongst the vegetables.

The gourds and pumpkins were particularly colorful.  These gourds were trellised over the pathway.

There were some incredible flowers still blooming.  Apparently, the walls were built around the garden to protect the plants from wind by providing a sheltered micro-climate.  I’d always assumed that they were deer protection, but maybe that’s just my New England background?  At any rate, it was very warm and sunny while we visited and the flowers seemed to be thriving.

The kids were inspired by the light and color and took quite a few pictures of the blooms.

We had a picnic lunch, ran into some friends, and played some silly games.

It was a lovely way to spend the afternoon.

We had a nice walk through the estate, hiding in the ferns,

and finally ending up back at the incredible tree that is so suited for climbing.

Unfortunately, the service was very slow and we were starving.  It did leave some time to take pictures, though.

And Molly managed to get some knitting done, so it wasn’t time entirely wasted.

The coast at Botany Bay is just amazing.  The chalk cliffs at the back of the beach are stunning.

We discovered that there were lots of little hand and foot holds that enable easy climbing.  The kids decided the sand made a nice, soft place to land and spent quite a bit of time climbing up so they could leap down again and again.

The chalk did prove to be quite soft, not quite what you’d like for real climbing, but it was fun to scramble around a bit.  I’ve been going fairly regularly to the indoor climbing centre in Nottingham, which is fun but not quite the same as being outside on real rock.

We’d heard quite a bit about the geology of chalk in Terry Pratchett’s novels for kids about Tiffany Aiken.  If you haven’t read The Wee Free Men (Discworld) and enjoy smart, incisive fantasies, I highly recommend it. The others in the series are excellent as well. Apparently, the witches in Terry Pratchett’s world cannot perform magic on the chalk since it is not true rock, but Tiffany gets her power from the flints embedded in the chalk matrix. Seeing the flint in Botany Bay and Ramsgate and on houses and walls all through Kent, I really got an understanding of this sort of geology.

It does make an attractive wall finish.  We brought a few pieces of flint and chalk home to add to the growing rock and fossil collection.

These folks also enjoyed the beautiful weather. Here are their summer term outfits for school. It’s starting to stay light until fairly late and tonight they brought their dolls out to enjoy the last rays before sunset.

Sage had a great time exploring this amazing old tree!

It’s hard to identify them at such a height, but the picture above is of River and the one below is Sage.

It looks like I’ll be able to go twice a month to climb while the kids are at school. I’m looking foward to more regular climbing expeditions.

I had a great time, too. One of the dads showed me the ropes as well. I learned how to attach the rope to the harness with a figure-eight knot, the calls between climber and belayer, and how to safely lower the climber back to the ground. I haven’t had that much fun in a while. While it was a bit scary to let go of the wall when I was ready to come down, it was also exhilarating. I look forward to having an opportunity to try it again!

This picture is from a local park where they installed a large artificial rock with lots of climbing holds. Very fun!

We spent quite a while balancing on the fallen chestnut logs here. I’ve always wondered what the forests would have looked like before the chestnut blight eliminated them from the eastern deciduous forests. Apparently, the American Chestnut was even bigger than the European Chestnut. The stand of trees at Calke are amazing; but I can imagine a whole forest of trees must have been even more majestic.

A bit further along, we found this old oak tree with branches that almost touch the ground. It is perfect for scrambling up!

There is a spot where the main trunk splits into several large branches which is perfect for sitting. We ate our snack comfortably ensconced amongst the branches.

River is quite a climber. She asked me to film her as she ascended one side of the tree, crossed through the middle, and descended on another branch on the other side.

Sage managed to get around pretty well too.

I love the light and the changing leaf colors under this beech tree.

This tree is known as the “Old Man of Calke” and is thought to be between 1000 and 1200 years old. There is a hollow space in the middle of the trunk, just big enough for a couple of kids.

River told me she wants to come here everyday!