A nervous child reaches out and lays a slightly shaky hand on the warm rock. It is not so much the climbing that scares him but more the knowledge that two of his friends are now holding the rope on which his immediate destiny depends. He glances back one last time, the instructor is in close attendance giving reassurance, time to go. One last wipe of a sweating palm and then he reaches for a big hand-hold, looks down, places his feet and steps off into the vertical world. The rock shoe's sticky rubber welds itself to the warm limestone as he moves uncertainly up a v-groove. Hand-holds feel sharp and rough to his fingers as he pulls himself upwards concentrating now only on himself and the way the rock is making him balance his body. The tug of the rope is an ever-present reminder of his friends attentively watching him below and confidence grows from it. A difficult section follows which he tackles with determination, buoyed by the encouragement of others whose voices float up to him on the summer breeze along with the scent of coconut from the gorse. Tiring, the rope urges him to make the last few moves to the top. His hands laying away in a vertical crack, the rock shoe sticks again and he pushes on to the top and success…

…lying on the line of the South Craven Fault, Ingleborough Hall has easy access to the best of Yorkshire limestone's crags and crag-lets. Attermire, Twistleton, Giggleswick, and Pot Scars abound with local classic climbs, whilst the 'big meanies' Malham and Kilnsey and famous gritstone outcrops are not too far away. A day at the crags can include many things ranging from pure climbing and climbing coaching to an appreciation of the scenic wonder of the Yorkshire Dales that you get from these exclusive viewpoints. Limestone flora and fauna abound in these areas, some of which are S.S.S.I.'s. Individually youngsters benefit from the physical challenge of vertical rock and the mental reserves needed to face their fears. This is commonly bonded with group inter-reliance and responsibility as students may be encouraged by the instructors to safeguard their peers as appropriate. Less physical students often come to the fore as safe rope handlers, whilst climbing on the whole allows the smaller, lighter child a chance to shine amongst a group of peers whose traditional sporting values are strength and bulk. The Centre is well equipped for these sessions and other more demanding climbing days out, having experienced and qualified staff in combination with all the technical equipment for anything from a days multi-pitch climbing in the Lake District to a weeks climbing along Spain's Costa Blanca. Of course it's not always sunny in Yorkshire and so having a purpose-built climbing wall not five miles from our door is a huge benefit for days when 'liquid sunshine' is promised by the weathermen.