A very long boulder problem. Around 8c+ to 9a as a sport route depending on how many knee bars you find.
Pilgrimage (or The Big Link as it was always referred to) is a historic piece of Welsh climbing. In the early 90s long before the Cave was a popular and recognised bouldering destination an in-form Ben Moon got close to making the FA. The problem was written up in the first Northern Soul despite being a project and its legend grew in Cave circles. In 2004 legendary strong man Malcolm Smith invested considerable time and money (1000 pounds worth of fuel driving down from Scotland) and made the first ascent of the link at 8b+ or F9a.
[1] https://doylosblog.blogspot.com/2013/03/pilgrimage-2nd-ascent.html
7 successful ascents and 1 unsuccessful attempt recorded.
| Climber | Style | Ascent Date | Suggested Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| Malcolm Smith First ascent. | Boulder | worked | 2004 | 9a |
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| Alex Barrows Second ascent. | Boulder | worked | 5th Mar 2013 | 8c+ |
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In the process of working the problem Alex found a lot of knee bars that were not used on the first ascent and which make the problem easier. References[1] https://ukbouldering.com/board/index.php/topic,10607.msg398399.html#msg398399 [2] https://chrislockyer.wordpress.com/2013/03/06/pilgrimage/ [3] https://www.ukclimbing.com/news/2013/03/alex_barrows_repeats_pilgrimage_8b+-67887 [4] https://alexbarrowsclimbing.blogspot.com/2013/03/pilgrimage-2nd-ascent.html |
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| Mike Hart Third ascent. | Boulder | worked | Jul 2016 | |
| Jack Palmieri | Boulder | worked | 1st Nov 2017 | 8B+ |
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| Pete Dawson | Boulder | worked | 12th Aug 2019 | 8B+ (soft) |
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| Kieran Forrest | Boulder | worked | 29th Jul 2020 | 8B+ |
| Dylan Soin | Boulder | worked | Jun 2025 | |
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| Ben Moon | Boulder | did not finish | ||
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Before Malcolm Smith made the first ascent Ben came close to doing it, falling off near the end. |
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