Fair Head or Benmore (; The Great Cliff) The name may derive from the Proto-Celtic root *bogd, "bend".

Fair Head (and the neighboring Murlough Bay) are classed as an area of special scientific interest (ASSI), and are on the register of Antrim ASSI.

Geology

Fair Head is a sill of Palaeogene age that is the thickest and most extensive of the various sills from the plateau lavas of northeast Ireland. A sill is a tabular body of what was once molten rock that was injected into horizontal rocks (usually well-bedded sedimentary strata). Fair Head is not regarded as an ideal crag for novice climbers, and the long nature of the routes (averaging over 50 metres, with many up to 100 metres), the requirement for long and intimidating abseils for access in many areas, and the high concentration of E-grade climbs, means that it is ideally a crag for intermediate and even more for expert-level climbers. An annual Fair Head Climbing Meet is held over the first weekend of June for all climbers.

The cliffs abound in well-protected steep crack climbing, between one and four pitches in length, with routes that range from under to over . Many of the cracks involve hand-jamming (and even full-body jamming), and some climbers tape their hands to protect the skin from the "Fair Head rash". and is compared to Stanage for the scale of routes, particularly at E-grade. Climbing ranked Above and Beyond (E6 6b) in its top-5 E6-grade climbs, The individual sections can have a very different feel and character, ranging from dry westerly faces to cold dark northerly faces. The main sectors (and subsectors) are (east to west):

  • Small Crag is a 10–20m high sector with almost 70 climbs, most of which are at VS to HVS grade, which stretches for 1-kilometre above a forested hillside; the difficulty of access means that abseiling in is recommended. Together with infestations of midges, this makes the sector unpopular, in spite of the quality of climbing. Further east is the small The Middle Crag with a handful of 20–25m E1 climbs accessed by abseil from in-situ stakes.

:* Grey Man's Path has almost 30 routes but is less popular, despite its easier access via the gully, as the cliff is windy and the rock slow to dry; the section is noted for Burn Up (HVS 5a, 5a), described as the "hall of fame HVS of the crag" and which has a dramatic "throne belay".

:*An Bealach Rúnda area (including Terraces) is over 30 routes, some requiring body-jamming and multi-pitch route finding, accessed via a 90m abseil down An Goban Saor; An Bealach Rúnda (E1 5a, 5b, 5a) is one of the most popular climbs in Fair Head, and The Big Skin (E8 6c). Below and Behold (E7 6c), and Rathlin Effect (E9 6c), the crag's first E9.

  • Marconi's Cove is a small crag about 500m away that gets a lot of afternoon sun, and contains about 30 shorter (by Fair Head standards) 20–25m single-pitch climbs from VS to E3, on more open face climbing, with Soundman (E3 5c) and Distant Voices (E3 5c) being the most regarded.

Access

Fair Head crag is on private property and is part of the McBride family farm, a working farm the McBride family has operated for over three centuries, but access is given. with a concentration in the boulder fields that have accumulated in Murlough Bay area (east side of the crag) and at the base of the Ballycastle Descent area (west side). These dolerite boulders have fallen off the cliffs above and the general required style is described as "steep, crimpy and powerful", with a caution that excess bouldering mats are needed to handle the poor landing areas due to the density of the strewn boulder fields.

In 2020, Hunter created the first route by adding a sit-down-start (SDS) to Dan Varian's problem, Blondie. Classic extreme problems include Varian's Blondie and Glen Ross , which Varian describes as one of his best-ever climbing moments. and also Ricky Bell's Gentleman's Arete , and Spindle SDS on the distinctive Hanging Rock boulder. Extreme highball bouldering problems include The Big Black (E7 6c), and Ricky Bell's 2015 free solo of the boulder slab Long Runs the Fox (E9 6c) in the Murlough Bay.

In 2012, Irish climbing author David Flanagan, ranked Fair Head as one of the best bouldering locations in Ireland, just behind Glendalough in Wicklow. In a 2017 video review for Rock & Ice magazine, British boulder Dan Turner called it one of the best locations in the British Isles, and "Britain's answer to Magic Wood in Switzerland".

Fair Head is used as a location in Season 7 of Game of Thrones, in Episode 3 "The Queen's Justice", and Episode 5 "Eastwatch".

Filmography

  • Ricky Bell and others in Ailladie (Clare) and Fair Head (Antrim):
  • Ricky Bell on Below and Behold (E7 6c) on Rathlin Wall:

See also

  • Ailladie, major rock climbing limestone sea-cliff in County Clare
  • Dalkey Quarry, major rock climbing granite quarry in Dublin

Notes

References

Climbing bibliography

  • Irish climbing.ie, Fair Head Online Database
  • UK climbing.com, Fair Head Online Database
  • Fair Head: Possibly The Best Trad Crag In The World | Climbing Daily Ep.950, EpicTV (June 2017)
  • Ricky Bell solos Long Runs The Fox E9 6c, EpicTV (June 2015)