200 years since a shepherd climbed Pillar Rock, and the Beacon's putting on a show about it from 31 October Pillar 200 climbing exhibition opens at the Beacon in Whitehaven on 31 October
Marra Mode is how we'd tell you this in the Co-op. Switch it off for the straight version.
Two hundred years ago a shepherd went up Pillar Rock just for the challenge, and that's reckoned to be where rock climbing started. The Beacon has an exhibition on it from 31 October.
This one's for climbers, fell walkers, families after something to do now the nights are dark, and anybody who knows Pillar Rock from Ennerdale or Wasdale.
Pillar 200: 200 Years of Climbing in England and Wales opens at the Beacon on Whitehaven harbour on Saturday 31 October and stays till February 2027. It's the first time the Beacon has done a show about climbing, and it's in the Light and Dark Gallery.
The Mountain Heritage Trust is behind it. It starts on 9 July 1826, when a shepherd called John Atkinson went up the Old West Route on Pillar Rock. That's reckoned to be the first climb anybody wrote down that was done just for the challenge of it, so you could say climbing in England and Wales started on our doorstep.
Then it walks you through 200 years of it with photos, stories and kit. There's stuff from the Mountain Heritage Trust, the Fell and Rock Climbing Club, Stephen Reid who started Needle Sport, the gear firm DMM, and the Abraham Brothers, the Keswick photographers. The gear bit goes from pebbles and old machine nuts jammed in cracks right up to early camming devices, ropes, boots and climbing shoes.
Cockermouth Mountain Rescue, the nearest team to the Beacon, has put in a bit about what they do on the fells.
The curator, Ian Smith, said the Pillar Rock climb "will be the launch pad to feature other routes and climbers through the subsequent decades", and he's got the likes of Joe Brown, Ron Fawcett, Jerry Moffatt, Glenda Huxter and Lucy Creamer in there.
What you can do: check opening times and prices on the Beacon website or ring 01946 592302 before you go. Wildlife Photographer of the Year is on there as well until 31 January.
Pillar 200, an exhibition marking 200 years since shepherd John Atkinson climbed Pillar Rock above Ennerdale, opens at the Beacon Museum in Whitehaven on Saturday 31 October and runs until February 2027.
This is for climbers, fell walkers, families looking for something to do in the dark evenings, and anyone who knows Pillar Rock from the Ennerdale or Wasdale side.
Pillar 200: 200 Years of Climbing in England and Wales opens at the Beacon Museum on Whitehaven's harbourside on Saturday 31 October and runs until February 2027. It is the Beacon's first exhibition about climbing and mountaineering, and it is in the Light and Dark Gallery.
The exhibition is put on by the Mountain Heritage Trust. It starts on 9 July 1826, when shepherd John Atkinson climbed the Old West Route on Pillar Rock. That is regarded as the first recorded ascent made simply for the challenge of climbing, which makes West Cumbria's own crag the starting point for the sport in England and Wales.
From there it follows two centuries of climbing through photographs, stories and objects. There is material from the Mountain Heritage Trust, the Fell and Rock Climbing Club, guidebook writer and Needle Sport founder Stephen Reid, gear maker DMM and the Abraham Brothers, the Keswick photographers. The equipment section runs from the pebbles and machine nuts early climbers jammed into cracks to prototype camming devices, ropes, boots and climbing shoes.
Cockermouth Mountain Rescue Team, the nearest team to the Beacon, has contributed a section on its work in the fells.
Curator Ian Smith said the Pillar Rock climb "will be the launch pad to feature other routes and climbers through the subsequent decades", naming climbers including Joe Brown, Ron Fawcett, Jerry Moffatt, Glenda Huxter and Lucy Creamer.
What you can do: check opening times and admission on the Beacon's website or call 01946 592302 before you go. Wildlife Photographer of the Year is also on there until 31 January.