Items15The creator’s order
  1. 1HelvellynHelvellynStriding Edge is the gentlest way to find out whether exposure suits you. It is a classic Grade 1 scramble on Helvellyn, and a path on the right-hand side avoids most of the awkward moves, so you can choose how much air to take on. The move most people remember is the crux, a short step down near…0
  2. 2Càrn Mòr DeargCàrn Mòr DeargThe Càrn Mòr Dearg Arête is the walker's way to the top of Ben Nevis, and much the better one. From the North Face car park at Torlundy you climb Càrn Mòr Dearg first, then follow a narrow crest curving round the head of Coire Leis towards the Ben. Uphill on the crest the scrambling is easy Grade…0
  3. 3Sgùrr a' MhàimSgùrr a' MhàimThe Ring of Steall in the Mamores is the best all-day package of easy scrambling and big-hill walking here, linking four Munros in a loop of about 15 km from Glen Nevis. The highlight is the Devil's Ridge south of Sgùrr a' Mhàim, a slender crest with fairly easy summer rock scrambling whose crux…0
  4. 4Pavey ArkPavey ArkJack's Rake is not a ridge but a rising groove across the crag of Pavey Ark above Stickle Tarn in Great Langdale, and it teaches a different skill: moving steadily on a steep face rather than balancing along a crest. It is classic Grade 1 ground. The trough gives good holds and a sense of shelter,…0
  5. 5TryfanTryfanTryfan's North Ridge climbs from the Ogwen Valley straight to the summit, and it is the best Grade 1 here for building rhythm on sustained rock rather than one or two awkward steps. Expect some route finding: higher up a pinnacle can be avoided by trending left, and beyond it you drop into a notch…0
  6. 6Crib GochCrib GochCrib Goch is the knife edge that opens the Snowdon Horseshoe, and it is the most exposed Grade 1 on this list. The moves are simple; the challenge is keeping calm with serious drops on both sides of the crest. You follow the Pyg Track briefly before scrambling on to the ridge, and beyond it the…0
  7. 7BlencathraBlencathraSharp Edge on Blencathra carries a Grade 1 in the guidebooks, but in anything short of dry, calm weather it feels harder than that, which is why it sits after Crib Goch here. The crest rises from Scales Tarn, about an hour from a roadside layby, and narrows to a fine blade. Its notorious Bad Step…0
  8. 8BeenkeraghBeenkeraghThe Coomloughra Horseshoe in Kerry's MacGillycuddy's Reeks is Ireland's great ridge day, and the Beenkeragh Ridge is its crux. The loop takes in all three of Ireland's summits over 1,000 m, Beenkeragh, Carrauntoohil and Caher, with about 1,300 m of ascent in roughly 12 km. The steep, rocky climb to…0
  9. 9Glyder FachGlyder FachBristly Ridge is the natural next step once Tryfan's North Ridge feels comfortable. From Bwlch Tryfan it rears up as an obvious buttress to the summit of Glyder Fach, and guidebooks place it between Grade 1 and Grade 2: towers, a gully with a rock step and the Great Pinnacle Gap, a drop you enter…0
  10. 10Angels LandingAngels LandingAngels Landing in Utah's Zion National Park is the famous exception abroad: from Scout Lookout, a fixed metal chain gives a handhold along the final knife-edge ridge to the summit. For anyone comfortable on Striding Edge the moves will feel manageable, but the drops are vast and the chain is shared…0