The Old Man Of Hoy

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The approach.

We woke up early to blue bird skies and sunshine. The hike up (and then down) to The Old Man took us over an hour and was very scenic: wide open and green sheep pastures with views down to the beautiful Rackwick Bay in the first half followed by an open, rolling moorland with the sea beyond in the second half. You get the first view of the top of the stack some 20 minutes before arriving at the cliff edge. Once there, a preview of the whole tower, including The Original Route (5-pitch, E1 5b), presents itself.

The hike down to the base took us another 20 minutes and was a good grass scrambling appetizer for the other objectives of the trip.

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The Old Man Of Hoy.

The climbing itself went reasonably efficiently though it does take a route or two for us to warm up to a new rock type, style, etc. The crux pitch 2 was quite physical but with on-demand protection. I was greeted at the third belay by a fulmar sitting on her egg. She was kind enough to let us pass unmolested. I was not so lucky on pitch 4 as I got puked on by at least two other fulmars. By the time Shirley was climbing through, they apparently had no luggies left to launch and she got through unsoiled. The 5th and final pitch was the highlight: an aesthetic crack (all the way through the stack) that’s easier than it looks from below.

Quick raps and soon enough we were back at the base at around 1:30. I was convinced that we’d be spending another night in the tent but Shirley was optimistic that we could make our 4:40 ferry back to the main island. The thought of a hot shower, a warm meal, and a comfy bed were sufficiently motivating for somebody to really bring the hammer down on the hike back. We were enjoying some microwaveable Indian curries back in our Stromness apartment later that evening. It was a fantastic climb – truly deserving of its classic status.

Photos

Starting the approach hike to The Old Man Of Hoy the following morning (May 2024).

The hostel marks the start of the trail (May 2024).

The sign has become almost as iconic as the climb itself (May 2024).

Early on the approach (May 2024).

Green and blue. Settlement of Rackwick Bay in the distance (May 2024).

Rackwick Bay on the left (May 2024).

We had never seen so many sheep prior to this two week Scotland & Wales trip (May 2024).

A bit more of Rackwick Bay and sheep (May 2024).

Danger (May 2024).

Our ride from two days earlier heading back to mainland Scotland (May 2024).

The first sighting (May 2024).

Getting closer (May 2024).

Nearing the edge of the headland and the start of the descent scramble down to the base (May 2024).

The Old Man Of Hoy in all of his glory (May 2024).

Starting the descent hike (grass scramble) down to the base of The Old Man (May 2024).

The entire Original Route is lit up and clearly visible in this photo (May 2024).

Shirley with St. John’s Head in the background (May 2024).

The Old Man Of Hoy from near the base (May 2024).

Shirley on the rubble bridge that connects The Old Man to the mainland (May 2024).

Starting up the first pitch of the Original Route on The Old Man Of Hoy (May 2024).

Some views from the base (May 2024).

Higher on pitch 1 (May 2024).

Shirley starting up pitch 1 (May 2024).

Views from the first belay (May 2024).

Shirley on the first pitch belayed by yours truly. Courtesy of the time-lapse camera sitting on the rim (May 2024).

Arriving at the first belay (May 2024).

Starting pitch 2 belayed by Shirley. Down climb followed by a traverse (May 2024).

Leading the crux pitch 2 of the Original Route (May 2024).

Shirley on pitch 2 (May 2024).

Fixed tat is serves as the belay/rap anchor at the second belay (May 2024).

Shirley following pitch 2 (May 2024).

More of Shirley on pitch 2 (May 2024).

Views from the second belay (May 2024).

Pitch 2 (May 2024).

Enjoying the wide (May 2024).

Shirley nearing the second belay (May 2024).

Solid (May 2024).

Shirley at the second belay on the Original Route (May 2024).

Starting up pitch 3 (May 2024).

Who’s a nice bird (May 2024)?

Pukey little shit (May 2024).

An irate companion at the third belay station (May 2024).

Shirley starting pitch 3 (May 2024).

A different angle (May 2024).

Critical part of the fixed pitch 3 anchor; actually, the slightly less sketchy anchor is a bit higher (I stopped too early; May 2024).

More of Shirley on pitch 3 (May 2024).

Shirley topping out on pitch 3 (May 2024).

Starting the fourth pitch (May 2024).

Shirley belaying me at the start of pitch 4 (May 2024).

Leading pitch 4 of the Original Route. Shirley is in the shadowed dihedral to my left (May 2024).

Views from the fourth belay on The Old Man Of Hoy (May 2024).

Shirley on pitch 4 (May 2024).

And topping out on pitch 4 (May 2024).

Starting up the aesthetic 5th and final pitch of the Original Route (May 2024).

Looking back at Shirley from the lead of pitch 5 (May 2024).

Higher on pitch 5 (May 2024).

Summit anchor (May 2024).

Shirley starting up pitch 5 (May 2024).

Shirley enjoying the climbing (May 2024).

Views from the summit (May 2024).

Higher on pitch 5 (May 2024).

Shirley topping out on the summit (May 2024).

A wanker on the summit (May 2024).

Shirley on the summit of The Old Man (May 2024).

More summit views towards St. John’s Head (May 2024).

Shirley on the summit with the Moor Fea hill in the background, on the right (May 2024).

Shirley & I on the summit of The Old Man Of Hoy (May 2024).

And one more of Shirley on the summit (May 2024).

A slightly closer look (May 2024).

Arriving back down at the third belay of the route (May 2024).

Well, at least there are a lot of pieces. Correct top of pitch 4 (May 2024).

Shirley rapping down to the top of pitch 2 (May 2024).

Shirley on the long, largely free air rappel from the top of pitch 2 all the way to the ground (May 2024).

Back at the base (May 2024).

Shirley scrambling back across the rubble bridge. Clock is ticking: we want to make the ferry (May 2024).

The Old Man Of Hoy (May 2024).

Looking back at The Old Man from the hike up back to the rim (May 2024).

Shirley on hustling on the way back up. We were trying to get back in time to catch the ferry back to the Orkney mainland (and our little apartment; May 2024).