Dartmoor Rock Climbing. Irish Man's Wall

IRISH MAN'S WALL
GR 614 918
Irish Man's Wall is a man-made wall, marked on the map. The adjacent crag has taken on the same name. As well as the routes (detailed below) there is also a selection of boulder problems in the area; these tend to be bit lichenous but you if you fancy some quiet climbing away from the beaten track this venue is well worth a look. This venue can easily be combined with trip to the nearby West Mill Tor SX587910 (itself home to a small number of problems and a fine girdle traverse at severe).

Recorded development was instigated by brothers Colin and Eric Milton in 1996 (it is likely the easier lines had been climbed before but left unrecorded) and since then the crags have been visited by the Mike Pearce/ Rob Cook/ Chris Kay/ Gary Crockford team (some of whom could do with washing thier mouths out with soapy water!) and later by Jason "the ghost" Maddick and James "Tog" Tippins.

Approach: If driving on the A30 from Exeter take the first turn off for Okehampton. At the end of the slip road turn L and follow signs for Belstone. Park either in the car park on the L as you enter the village (the more local friendly option), or carry on through to a dead end and potential for parking on the R side of the road.

From here follow the track up onto the Moor then continue up the hill to Belstone Tor. Continue on beyond here until a man made wall (Irishman's Wall) can be seen on your right - the "crag" is found down on the right and is actually 2 crags separated by a 50 yards gap.

Alternatively, for those averse to a little walk, the closest parking can be found be by driving through Okehampton army camp, onto the army roads to Culver Steps (on the East Okement River). Park at top of the track leading down to the river (and Culver Steps) then walk down this, over the river and onto the crags up to the right. Check on the map, and make sure they're not firing!

The routes are all about 20-25ft high.

Starting on the left crag:

Surform Buttress

Surform HVS 5b The diagonal crack at the left hand end of the Tor. FA Eric Milton, Colin Milton 12.10.96

Bank Holiday Bimble VS 5a Climb the overhanging cracks to the right of Surform to gain an undercut fingerpocket. A bold section then leads to layback flakes. FA Chris Kay, Rob Cook Summer 1997

Ann, Jim and Mary S 4a The flake line on the left of the front wall with a hard start. FA Colin Milton, Eric Milton 12.10.96

Un-named Mod The central corner. FA unknown

Meader's Mutterings HS 4b The centre of the right-hand slab. FA Colin Milton, Eric Milton 12.10.96

Caffreys Severe 4b
20ft To the right of Meaders mutterings around the arete is a short vertical wall, climb this direct. FA Jason (The Ghost) Maddick and, James (Tog) Tippins summer 2001

Between the Surform buttress and the next buttress (the Non-Metallic buttress) is a small bay. The following two routes are found here:

Murphys V DIFF 4a
20ft The groove line starting on a brilliant jug. FA Jason (The Ghost) Maddick and, James (Tog) Tippins Summer 2001

Guiness V DIFF 4b
20ft The line of stuck on jugs just to the left of Murphys. These routes were climbed summer 2001, First ascents Jason (The Ghost) Maddick, and James (Tog) Tippins. Summer 2001

The remaining routes are found on a separate buttress about 50 yards to the right:

White Spider Directissmma E2 5c Climb directly up the steep wall and overhang to the left of Non-Metallic Silver.

Non-Metallic Silver E2 5c The best route in the vicinity tackles the overlap on the left-hand side of the crag. Start beneath the middle of the overlap where it bulges slightly. Thin moves lead to vital gear beneath the overlap followed by bold moves to a good hold on the left. Step right to finish. FA Colin Milton, Eric Milton 12.10.96

Leprechaun E2 5c*
25ft The wall to the right of Non-metallic silver. Taking a direct line up and over the overlap via a hard starting move and tricky finish. FA Jason (The Ghost) Maddick and, James (Tog) Tippins Summer 2001

Not Very VD The line just R of the R arete. FA Colin Milton (solo) 12.10.96

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