Abseiling In

Abseiling into certain areas, without a doubt, is a real luxury. The climbing is hard enough never mind hobbling around the base of the crag over wet grass in rock shoes, or climbing with your shoes clipped to the back of your harness. Stuff that. It takes a while to get to know the location of routes as the edge bears little resemblance to the photos in the guide. Once it becomes familiar, getting onto your chosen line becomes a cinch.

Ideally a 100m static abseil rope is best, for the big abseils. It'll last a hell of a lot longer and costs about £120. Tiso in Belfast usually stock one or will order one in for you. This takes about a week.

The other option is to tie, two 50m ropes together and abseil past a knot, which can be be a bit of a pain, and time consuming if you aren't slick at it. Practice it well before hand because doing it for the first time 40m off the deck, with your prusik slipping, causing the knot to jam against your belay device, is not fun. I've been there and done that; it is not pleasant.

For any routes in the Ballycastle descent gully, the Grey Man's path, or Marconis Cove, it is easier to walk in. For the other areas abseiling in is the way to go. The distance shown indicates the length of rope required to set up the abseil and drop in. The gear needed is in italics, it's all bomber.

Farrangandoo:: Walking in here is a cinch though an abseil using the two stakes above Pangur Pan is even handier. 50m rope required. For the routes located in the gully (Samson to The Squirt), abseil in as close to your chosen line as possible. The line of Juggernaut provides a good point for the routes in that area. It is tricky to locate though, 70m. (Hexes)
The Prow :: Abseil in using the large block directly above Midnight Cruiser and 10m back from the edge. 50m rope required. (No gear needed, just tie the rope around the large bolder)
Ballycastle Descent Gully - West:: From the Prow to Eithne Inguba, easiest to drop into The Prow and dander around.
Mizen Star/Blind Pew area:: A perfect point to drop into for this area is to drop the rope down the side of Blind Pew, this keeps it clear from both routes. (Nuts) 70m.
Talking Heads area:: A perfect boulder is located directly above this route and can be used for the rest of this section. (No gear needed, tie the rope around the large bolder) A 70m rope is required.
Buttons and Bows:: Its just possible to get in here with a 50m rope.
Cuchulainn area:: A number of large blocks close to the corner of Roaring Meg are very handy indeed. 80m.
Solid Mandala:: It's possible to abseil straight down the route. About 10 metres back there's a good hex and nut arrangement in one crack and a cam back and left of this in another. Also, a large boulder about 15 metres back from these - good if you have the spare rope. Rope runs down nice groove above route. Saves the very awkward scramble from below.
An Bealach Rúnda area:: A good abseil point is down the line of An Goban Soar, which gets you right in there. It's a biiiiiiiiig vertical 90m abseil. (Nuts and a few medium cams)
Bird Hide Block Area:: Find the Bird Hide Block by looking over the edge at the top. Directly above this there is a group of large boulders. Tie the rope around the outermost one, and abseil in. It looks a lot longer but it's a vertical 85m.
Binnagapple:: A delight to abseil into. A large block near Hurricane gets you straight in there. 70m. Another above Toby Jug gets you straight in there. 50m. (No gear, rope is tied around large boulders)
December:: A 60m abseil allows you to hit the start spot on. Set the rope up over to the right hand side of the route (looking down from the top) to avoid it getting in the way of the climb. (Variety of hexes)

Detail is needed for any other areas. Please mail it in.