Slawston Bridge
Hallowed patchwork
Hallowed patchwork
The childhood training ground of both Johnny Dawes and Jerry Moffatt. The bridge is located close to Leicestershire-Northamptonshire border near Slawston and is the only decent climbing venue around these parts. Its two walls are composed of a mixture of gritstone, ironstone and blue bricks; nobody knows why it was built like this and no other bridges on the same line are built like it.
The bridge is 7 meters in height and has belay stakes at the top. Though the landings are grassy, you will want a pad for the up-problems, which range in difficulty from f3+ to f6C+. Make sure to walk around and inspect the top-outs on your first visit. The traverses of the two walls are the real attraction, with Tetrion Traverse f6C+ on Pipe Wall being the classic of the crag.
The bridge is 7 meters in height and has belay stakes at the top. Though the landings are grassy, you will want a pad for the up-problems, which range in difficulty from f3+ to f6C+. Make sure to walk around and inspect the top-outs on your first visit. The traverses of the two walls are the real attraction, with Tetrion Traverse f6C+ on Pipe Wall being the classic of the crag.
Topo with Font grades has been made by UKC user Spidermonkey09 on UKClimbing.com, and can be downloaded below. An older topo with English technical grades can be found on the archived version of LeicestershireClimbs.co.uk. Alternatively you can download a PDF version of the archived site below.
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Parking: Green Lane, Ashley, Market Harborough LE16 8HD
Approach: Get out of the car. You are here.
Approach: Get out of the car. You are here.
As often as possible we'd cycle 40 minutes from school to 'The Bridge' at Slawston. Two stories high, of engineers' brick, seemingly studded intentionally for purpose with a great variety of rocks, cut through diagonally and with slabby flanks, the topless railway cutting made a perfect playground on which to cut our teeth... Just to hear the phrase "The Bridge" makes me smile.
- Johnny Dawes (2011)
The best climbing in Leicestershire... the bridge became a haven, somewhere to escape.
- Nick Bullock (2012)
Even Slawston Bridge has its ethics. On the first ascent of the traverse of Pipe Wall a hold was chipped. When the route was subsequently done "clean" the offending pocket was filled in with Tetrion (exterior grade, of course). Hence the name, Tetrion Traverse.
- Leicetershire Climbs (1993)
