Mina Leslie-Wujastyk makes first female ascent of Careless Torque at Stanage

Crescent Arete 5A by Gabe Regan, Not To Be Taken Away 6C by John Allen, Deliverance 7B+ by Quentin Fisher, Brad Pitt 7C+ by Jason Myers, The Ace 8B by Jerry Moffatt... as if by magic some of the finest boulder problems in England are all located at the popular Plantation area immediately below the country's most famous gritstone crags, Stanage Edge. In many respects this short list reads like the Who's who of British rock climbing. Another inspirational problem and climber that must be included in this hall of fame is of course Careless Torque, the lofty arête to the left of Not to be taken away first climbed by Ron Fawcett in 1987. A true highball graded a a mighty 8A+, climbed in the pre-crashpad age when beer towels were all the rage.

This problem has been conspicuous for its lack of repeats and despite 20 years of attempts, in 2006 it had only been repeated 5 times, the 6th ascent being credited to powerhouse Richard Simpson who took things a stage further by completing the first ground-up ascent just a few days before highly talented boulderer Andrew Earl.

Now, 25 years down the line, the highball has finally received its first female ascent at the hands of young British climber Mina Leslie-Wujastyk who worked the problem in impeccable, ground-up style. Her efforts and success are documented here and although she has climbed technically harder problems, her comment indicates how important this boulder problem still is: "It meant a lot to me to climb this line. Not only was it a first female ascent but Careless is so many things; hard, scary, beautiful, historic, classic... I could go on. My best achievement so far? Yes I think maybe it is."

To find out more visit: www.minalesliewujastyk.com