Rock climbing in the Peak District
Rock climbing is a very popular activity in the Peak District; on warm bank holidays hundreds of climbers can be seen on popular edges such as Stanage or Froggatt. Generally the climbing style is free climbing (as opposed to aid climbing) and the rock is either gritstone or limestone. Climbing has been practised all over the Peak District since the late 19th century; James W. Puttrell is generally credited with starting the practice.
There is a long-standing practice of climbing routes in the traditional style. Rocks are climbed on-sight with the leader placing protection as they climb, from bottom to top, without weighting any of the protection; the second climber removes the protection as she climbs. Almost all gritstone crags are free from bolts and in-situ pitons, and bolting and pegging is forbidden.
The major gritstone crags include:
Gritstone
These are the Ordnance Survey names, climbers sometimes have different names for them (sometimes shortened versions of the standard names, like "Stanage" instead of "Stanage Edge").
