Big Tick 13     Threading Napes Needle

The Needle is perhaps the most  well-known  rock feature in Lakeland and is a symbol of what early climbing was all about. The 55 foot climb to the top of the Needle is graded  Hard V Diff (HVD) and was first climbed in June 1886 by the famous W.P. Haskett-Smith. To its left, in this photograph, is Needle Ridge a V Diff climb, also climbed first by Haskett-Smith in September 1886.

The route up the Needle follows the obvious Wasdale Crack to gain a stance on the right hand shoulder. The next move is the crux and takes you to the steep slab just below the top. The rest is easy,  as they say!

Threading the Needle