Tick Lists
The 1970s saw the appearance of coffee table “tick list” books. The most celebrated of these was the first: Hard Rock, which, while not “State of the Art” gave climbers of the time the incentive to travel. Classic Rock came next before attention shifted to the white stuff with Cold Climbs. The series concluded with Extreme Rock which appeared some thirteen years after Hard Rock.
The book cover images link to details about each book.
Classic Rock by Ken Wilson
This is the tick list for the climber in the lower grades (below VS, though some routes have been upgraded). Perhaps not as historically important as Hard Rock in terms of its impact on British climbing but, other than the walking books, it is the best seller in the series. Perhaps as an acknowledgement to this success the book includes a list of alternative routes to the main list to try and spread the load a bit.
Hard Rock by Ken Wilson
The original book in the series. 60 Classic climbs across the length and breadth of Britain. It has stood the time well since its original publication. The picture shows the cover of the third print run.
There are, to date, six people who have been known to complete all the routes. One is Stephen Reid, see here for an account of his efforts
Extreme Rock By Bernard Newman
A bit of a collectors item this as the original plates have apparently been lost so no reprints are possible. Whereas Hard Rock dealt with the limit of what was felt achievable in the 1970s, this book deals with the explosion in standards through the 1980s. From the hard bold traditional climbs of Scotland, The Lakes and North Wales to the early bolt protected routes at Malham and Ravens Tor, the state of the late ’80s art is here.
The second (2025) edition has a significantly different list: the proto-sports routes have gone, along with some climbs that literally fell down. About 80 routes are common to both editions.
Cold Climbs
A book for the afficionado of the white stuff.
The selected routes may appear dated, especially as it appeared before the explosion in popularity of mixed routes but completing all the routes here has so far eluded the most keen.