Sheigra - updated guide

The tumbling megaliths perched on the Atlantic frontier of the far North West are to me emblematic of Highland bouldering. Characterful and rugged, their searing features draw upon an instrinsic desire to interact with rock. The archetypal arete, the wall climb, the notched roof. These are top quality boulders with a stage presence, a license, thats fits their regal position. 

Robbie Gardiner and Dave Carrington have updated their Sheigra bouldering guide. Robbie tells us a little about his motivation to climb in the area (as if its not obvious!) and fills us in on some recent developments:

I have been travelling to the far North West of Scotland all my life, and there is really no place I would rather be. It seems to me, the further North you go the more beautiful it becomes. Perhaps less spectacular than the Munroes of Skye or Torridon, I find the uniquely characterful peaks of Sutherland stunningly beautiful, and the view on the road to Sheigra along the side of loch Inchard towards Fionaven and Arkle is simply breathtaking.

 

In 2019 Dave and I made out sixth climbing trip to Sheigra, over which time we had documented over 150 problems. The intention was to try to encourage other to come, and our first guide prompted several climbers to make the trip. This has led to development of Sheigra itself, but also Droman Pier just along the road and the Backstage Boulder near Rhiconnich. Most recently, Ullapool based climber Eadan Cunningham has been climbing numerous new lines and it was our real pleasure to meet up with him this trip. Another amazing discovery we made on this trip was the Gneiss bouldering up near Durness on the promontory at Rispond. We climbed some outstanding problems (not least 'RSVP - 7b', an overhanging rising line with beautiful flowing moves) and Eadan has since visited with his brother Calum to climb the amazing looking 'Simple Jack - 7c'.

 

In essence, the far North West of Scotland is just a wonderful place to explore. The rock is simply everywhere, breaking through the thin soil which hangs like a threadbare carpet between mountain, loch and sea. And no better place can be found than Sheigra, where countless clean boulders have tumbled onto a flat stone shelf just asking to be climbed. The rock and the climbs are so varied and plentiful, you could never tire of it. And whilst you wait, you can enjoy the view, where Oystercatchers glide over breaking waves, and curious Otters come for a nosey, and clouds skip across moody seas, and pensive climbers stop to watch and listen for a moment or two.

The updated climbing guide (2020) can be downloaded here.

Robbie uploads videos to his vimeo site here.