Northumbrian Climbing Guide |
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| Great Dour | What the symbols & colours mean |
| Grid Ref: NT792032 Aspect: N Routes: 5 Max Length: 15 Average Length: 13 | Warning  |
| Altitude: 400 mtrs Walk in: 25 mins Bike in: 15 mins Bike out: 15 mins |
| Click here for StreetMap | ||
The crag is situated on the northern edge of Great Dour Hill above Byrness in Redesdale, 12 kilometres north of Otterburn on the A696. The crag is best approached from the Cottonshopeburn forestry picnic site. Drive up the track and park at the first ford. Walk along the riverside track, plodging through several fords en route until the edge of the forest is seen. Head for the fence on the right and follow it up to about level with the crag, then traverse the hillside to the crag. | ||
General:
This crag runs along the top of the northern edge of Great Dour Hill. Because of it's north facing aspect and position atop the hill, the crag takes a long time to dry out and is a lot greener than most of the other moorland crags in the county. The rock has been quarried in places and in 2002 there was a major rockfall immediately adjacent to the recorded routes, the stability of the routes is now under suspicion - you have been warned, take great care.
Rock:
Fell Sandstone Carboniferous, Dinantian Dirty and loose in places Access issues:
The crag lies just inside the firing ranges, so permission should be sought by phoning 0191 239 4261 or 01830 520 569. This is normally granted as the crag is nowhere near any target areas.
Routes/Bouldering:
Routes:
The routes have reverted back to their pre discovery state and do not look inviting, particularly with the tons of debris from the rockfall in the vicinity.
Problems: The northern end of the crag has a small amount of potential bouldering on excellent, clean rock.
History:
The first recorded activity was by Gordon Thompson in the late 60's, but the best line on the crag, Culloden, had to wait until visits by John Earl and Bob Hutchinson in the 70's. Earl & Hutchinson were unaware of Thompsons efforts and the names and descriptions given here are theirs. |
