I assume gritstone is the slopey stuff that seems to offer virtually no holds and ledges?
Yup, that sounds like the grit. *g*
It's basically a coarse sandstone but saturated with a very high level of quartz and feldspar crystals, so it has incredible friction, which means that you can hold or stand on things you wouldn't even think of as holds on any other rock type, which is good because it's often very lacking in anything you would think of as holds. It also means it tends to grate your skin off, but a lot of people -- me included -- think it's worth it. It feels completely different to regular sandstone. British climbers have been known to refer to it as "God's own rock."
A lot of gritstone is in the Peak District national park, which is incredibly beautiful (and conveniently located just outside Sheffield).
Here are some photos taken on a crappy camera-phone during a couple of my trips there, which also provide evidence that there are plenty of friendly small boulders too:
I fell for the gritstone hard the first time I ever climbed on it; it really is like nothing else, and it does feel like there's something uniquely special and magical about the rock itself.
Warning for shameless pro-grit bias
Yup, that sounds like the grit. *g*
It's basically a coarse sandstone but saturated with a very high level of quartz and feldspar crystals, so it has incredible friction, which means that you can hold or stand on things you wouldn't even think of as holds on any other rock type, which is good because it's often very lacking in anything you would think of as holds. It also means it tends to grate your skin off, but a lot of people -- me included -- think it's worth it. It feels completely different to regular sandstone. British climbers have been known to refer to it as "God's own rock."
A lot of gritstone is in the Peak District national park, which is incredibly beautiful (and conveniently located just outside Sheffield).
Here are some photos taken on a crappy camera-phone during a couple of my trips there, which also provide evidence that there are plenty of friendly small boulders too:
http://common-nature.dreamwidth.org/20012.html
http://common-nature.dreamwidth.org/30724.html
I fell for the gritstone hard the first time I ever climbed on it; it really is like nothing else, and it does feel like there's something uniquely special and magical about the rock itself.