UKH

Turn of the Screw (A3)

Disclaimer: I've not done any aid climbing before, don't own etriers or daises etc, very conscious that I don't even know what I don't know about it...

...but...

Sat on the belay for Mike's Mistake, I could see the line of bolts.  The position is so outrageous, it just looked like a proper adventure.  What I'm wondering is, has anyone done it recently?  What sort of nick were the bolts in?  And how likely are you to kill yourself?  (Obviously I don't want to spoil the experience of a potential lead, but death would definitely be a sub-optimal outcome).

I think I'm a fairly steady trad climber, and not a total idiot.  Keen to hear of people's experiences! 

I haven't done the route but I've looked at it in passing a few times, quite a few years ago. At the time it looked as though it was bolted with 8mm expansion bolts, with aluminium hangers, so not very secure ! The photo in the logbook seems to confirm this.

I'd be inclined to try an A1 as my first aid route if I were you. There is plenty of opportunity to get into a tangle, until you work out your technique and this is usually easier to sort out if you are on something just off vertical, in my experience.

Perhaps someone will be able to comment on the state of the bolts from first hand experience.

Andy

I did it a couple of times back in the 60's and the bolts (cup hooks) were pretty manky then. I think it might have been rebolted since then. It was a memorable experience to say the least.

I'll hold your ropes mate.

Thanks Andy, that sounds fairly pulse-raising!

Yeah I can imagine it being a proper faff, maybe a good idea to try out somewhere less serious first.

Cheers,

Euan

Haha, memorable was what I was looking for!  Would be interested to know if it has been rebolted, as otherwise it might be a little too memorable....

Cheers Dred, I may have to hold you to that

If you're short of a partner, I could probs be talked into it, as got an unhealthy penchant for Avon esoterica! The highlight being making it to the Action Man figure, dangling from the fifth bolt!

I have a friend who's done it and reckoned it more like A1/A2 than A3. Apparently some of the bolts were good, but something ripped on them so they aided on a cam in lieu of that bolt/peg

Climbed this in January 2018 in the pouring rain. The curtain hooks are still there but there's bolts next to them so no need to use the curtain hooks (except possibly for the full 1960s experience).

The action man definitely added to the gear faff... Back cleaning in etriers, he seemed to provide just one more piece of string to keep track of / get wrapped around things. All part of the fun!

We planned to aid the whole route so climbed in trainers. This turned out to be an error, as once you get above the roof there's a pitch of bold VS / HVS climbing with barely any gear to aid on. In the rain, in the gathering dark in trainers... Glad it wasn't my lead!

Then you can try Mason's Plank Walk (A2) on the same roof - looks like fun or rather a unique day out - "insert a plank of wood so that it projects beyond the lip......" and so on

Believe the A3 grade is old aid grading rather than N/W A3.

In which case, it gets the grade out of the awkwardness of horizontal roof aiding even if you are going bolt to bolt. If you understand the theory of aid climbing, you’re general physical conditioning is good enough, and you’re prepared to be slow and faffy, a horizontal roof on bolts isn’t the most ludicrous proposition for a first aid route.
 

A New Wave A3 may have successive tenuous moves gear, hook and nailing moves a long way above your last solid piece. Falls would be safe, but large >15m. So, advising someone who to jump on a N/W A3 as their first aid route may just be a little cruel.

However, my understanding of the turn of the screw is that the truly scary part is the unprotectable mandatory U.K. 4c/5a climbing above the lip of the roof which you may be doing in your aid boots trailing all your aid paraphernalia. Only more so the case, since it seems like many opt to solo the thing.

I’d suggest trying to find someone who’s climbed it recently, I think the guy who runs Dicks/Rope Access Ltd in Bristol has been up it. May be worth contacting him...?

In terms of not know much about how aiding actually works and not know what you don’t know. Just try and pick up a rudimentary understanding using free resources, Super Topo have some fantastic free YouTube content. Andy K’s aid basics is good but it isn’t worth the £5 asked for. Higher Education on the other hand is fantastic, but likely beyond your requirements. 
 

Once you’ve got a fair appreciation of the technique, head to a well bolted sport crag and just aid bolt to bolt. Patient and understand belayer will be required.   

Reminds me of happy days at Malham in the early 80’s teaching ourself to aid. Bolt ladders were great fun for short winter days. 

Hi Euan, how's tricks?  We saw a team do it a year or two back.  The second was hanging there for half an hour with little sign of progress, half way out

I'd suggest you try something a bit shorter as your first aid route.  Not tried it myself but knowledge of doing SRT in caves tells me :

1) there will be loads if strenuous faff involved, and

2) you'll spend a happy hour or two figuring out a technique that works.

As they say......enjoy!

I can tell you a bit about the line up the right hand side of the roof which is a separate line to Turn of the screw. The whole line is about 5 moves long, from the start of the roof. When it was first climbed a sling was lassoed around a miners spike before two bolts were placed and then a knifeblade in a block at the lip. Above the lip there was a peg from Turn of the screw which was quite rotten but got clipped anyway and aware of the history of turn of the screw not replaced. There is a niche just above the lip which you can stand in balance in to thread one of the original curtain hooks. From here on it's bold VS to a belay up and right in a corner groove. You really do not want to fall off above the lip, it would be a very bad end. IMO the line is new wave A1+, HVS 4c.   

Once, and being of a similar mindset, I thought I might go at a similar sized aid roof (Rainy Day Buttress at Huntsham) 

Normal pretty slick with rope work, we got in an ever growing tangle of woven etriers and took over an hour to struggle up the twenty foot route, exhausted and with skinned hands.

It was my last aid route. Good luck to you!