Climbing in Northern Ireland: Fair Head
Florence, Gérôme, and Adrien explored the cliffs of Ireland for Raphaël Fourau's camera. Enjoy this photo trip report that takes us deep into the mysteries of the legendary crag, Fair Head.
December 6 2017
Rock climbing
Fair Head, an incredible place
The magical cliff-top trail overlooks the sea, and one never tires of the amazing views day after day. Fair Head is not just a crag, but an inspiring and mystical place.
Irish-style climbing
Flipping through the outstanding guidebook at our campsite (surrounded by ruins)! At a new crag with new ratings, we were just a tiny bit lost at the start.
Day 1
Our first day and first time climbing at Fair Head provides us with a more than pleasant surprise: high-quality rock and solid placements for protecting the moderate climbs up this section of the cliff. This was the ideal spot for our first day.
Primal Scream at sunset
"Primal Scream," the name says it all about this major and very committing route. The sparsely protected line requires small pieces in less than confidence-inspiring placements. Mind-blowing, heady, climbing on this perfectly-chiseled rock requires the utmost focus.
Head in the clouds
"Grey Man's Pass," provides access to one of the few approaches on foot to the base of the crag. This stunning and steep gully is where the legendary route "Rockafella" is located.
Rockafella
"Rockafella," our first E7, appears completely unprotectable from below. However, while few and far between, we found solid placements up the entire route. All three of us successfully clipped the top anchor, built with cams of course!
Our well-earned reward
The mess tent that we purchased last-minute before hopping onto the ferry protected us from the wind proved to be a life saver. After a day of hard climbing we happily take shelter, warm up, eat, and enjoy a well-earned drink! !!!
To learn more about this trip, visit www.raphaelfourau.com
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