please note that this site has been superceded by the SWMC wiki http://www.southwalesmountaineering.org.uk/g_book/index.php/Bouldering
the information is in the process of being copied over
thanks to Alun for all his work on this site

welcome to the gower bouldering wiki

Bouldering on Gower is not well known and rarely discussed, but in fact there is a wealth of excellent problems to entertain both visitors and locals alike. Much like the majority of the trad climbing around here, the bouldering is best in the easier grades, mainly due to the generally slabby nature of most of the rock, and the abundance of holds that limestone provides in general. Thus, the majority of the problems are below V3 - although there are some excellent challenges for the V4-6 climber also.

To use this guide, either click on the links in the side bar or use the google map to navigate. The wiki is open access but you will need a wetpaint account (registering is free and takes seconds) as this stops spam. If you make any changes please update the latest changes on the !news! page. Any comments should be emailed to me via my UKC profile.

Much credit should go to Adrian Berry, who produced the first guide to gower bouldering, and in reality this is merely a work-in-progress update on that, with some photos and a few new problems and areas. The older guide still exists, so if you'd like to see it then take a look. For more bouldering in the South Wales, check out the South Wales Bouldering Guide, which is still updated periodically and is full of good info.

where to go

In terms of quality of climbing, the first time visitor should put Caswell on the top of their list. It is both the most extensive and best area on the whole peninsula. The biggest problem with it is that on a warm summer's day it is packed full of people - though you'll usually have the square and the far-east areas to yourself. For a quick hit in a quiet spot Limeslade is great, and if you've still got beans then nip over to Rotherslade. More dedicated boulderers would do well to head to Oxwich to tick the excellent face and arete problems there, while the ultra hardcore can slug the mats all the way down to Pwll Du and tick some new problems.

grades grades grades

Grades are always a hot topic. The general goal of this guide at the moment is to give info on areas and inspire people to actually get out there and do some bouldering. So, there aren't grades every problem, merely guideline grades for each area, while highlighting/grading particularly good lines. You might point out that Adrian's guide grades every problem, so why doesn't this one? Well, apart from the fact that Adrian's grading was occasionally rather dubious(!), my opinion is that given the lack of really strong lines and the general abundance of holds, the majority of the bouldering fits nicely with the idea of the 'climb this bit of rock anywhere around this grade'.

The nature (and the whole point) of a wiki page is that if somebody wants to come along and grade every problem, draw lines on every picture, do whatever, then great! A wiki guide is a joint effort and any contribution is welcome.


Hwyl am y tro,

Alun Evans