An Interview With Jim Pope
Jim Pope is a professional climber from the UK who recently made the trip out to New Zealand to sample our landscapes and climb at Castle Hill Basin. Jim is an accomplished all around climber, having finished top 10 in Lead World Cups, top 20 in Boulder World Cups and took part in the Olympic Qualifier Series for the Paris Olympics. He is three times British National Champion in Lead and has finished 6th in the European Championships. Outside of the competition world Jim has bouldered V14 and flashed V12, he has sport climbed 34 and 32 onsight trad climbed E10 and has ticked off many famous Gritstone classics, such as Appointment with Death (E9 6c) and Meshuga (E9 6c).
With a resume this accomplished and well-rounded, there was little doubt he was going to not only enjoy the climbing style at Castle Hill, but also go pretty well. And go well he did, climbing some hard things (the second ascent of Alfonso Rising V12/13, five V12s, 11 V11s) some high things (Serge The Psycopathic Seal V6, Here Comes The Muffin Man V6, Canterbury Cat V8) and some things that are both (the ungraded Ambient, The Vatican V12 and The Iron Curtain V11. Jim also nabbed a few first ascents, including a sit start to the Teapot classic Conan (V12, stand start was V9). In all, he climbed 122 boulders or routes in just a few weeks, earning much respect from the locals with his ticks of big ticket items like The Big Show V11, but also esoteric testpieces like Taking Tiger Mountain By Strategy (V7) and Undulation Slab (ungraded) and taking the time to sample old school classics like Nasal Slip V4 and Rambandit (V5).
We caught up with Jim for an interview about his trip and how he liked the Basin experience:
With all the climbing available in Europe or other places easier to get to from the UK, what made you consider New Zealand and Castle Hill as a destination to visit for climbing?
I’ve had lots of friends visit over the years and sing its praises. The area encompasses everything I look for in bouldering, proud lines with cool grips and technical climbing in a beautiful setting, so it was a bit of a no brainer! Visiting New Zealand had always been a case of when, not if, so when I stopped competing this year I jumped straight to it! During my time at Kura Tāwhiti I was always surprised when the locals asked why I’d come, as I thought it was obvious, its one of the best bouldering destinations in the world.
There’s a bit of international and local mythology around Castle Hill, with people polarised about the climbing style and the low friction. Did the climbing match your expectations?
Overall the friction was better than I expected actually! When the rock is cleaned I thought it was pretty grippy, especially on sticky days. I Really liked the element that friction added to the climbing experience, you have to find the right body positions to make holds work, or in some cases just pull harder, but it always needed considering! I also loved how non aggressive it is on the skin, I love to climb lots and hate resting or stopping early because of poor skin rather than being tired. I really enjoyed the climbing style and how much variety there was, but I can see how it’s not everyone’s bag.
Any favourite boulders/routes you climbed on your visit that you’d like to talk about?
I feel like every day I was doing a new 'best I’ve ever done' climb, but looking back on the trip as a whole now that I’ve been back, a few definitely stood out over the rest. Before and After Science (V7) was one I really wanted to try before coming out, and it surpassed my expectations. I’d only seen some photos from afar, so didn’t really realise how pure that bottom arête was, that one was a real treat to climb. I also had a pretty special day at Dark Castle on Taking Tiger Mountain by Strategy (V7). I’m not sure I’ve seen a better slab solo anywhere really, and I had a nice day there by myself sussing it out and then going for it. It’s some of the hardest/most insecure climbing I’ve done at that height, so it felt pretty wild to be up there! To blow my own trumpet a bit I think the sit start I added to Conan (V12) was another favourite, I did it quite fast and its a sit-start to an existing banger so I sort of overlooked it, but It adds some great new climbing and completes the line.
It was great to see a Pope finally get an ascent of The Vatican (V12). That boulder problem seems like it sits in an admirable spot in a Venn diagram of aesthetic line, boldness and difficulty. How was your experience on the problem?
I’ve been using the CHB site for nearly four years prior to coming to New Zealand, and I remember seeing The Vatican as a project on the site and on Derek’s Flickr and thinking how cool it would be to come and do the first ascent, ha ha. Sadly for me Alec McCallum was too quick, but just being able to climb it was incredible! I worked the top section on a rope to warm up then thought I'd check out the bottom moves. To my surprise, I got through the bottom boulder first try and was all of a sudden feeling very high up, with just two Mondos looking very small below me. I got real flash pumped and it was a battle to finish it off, I felt bad for Isaac having to spot me on that one!
Are you more motivated by aesthetic lines, bold lines, or difficulty?
The dream is when you get the perfect amount of each, and that what I think made The Vatican so cool! My favourite thing about The Hill is the abundance of each. You can dip in and out of what you're in the mood for, whilst maintaining the highest quality. I would have days on harder projects, then be in the mood for some solos, then back to some cruising on sculpted classics. It really kept my motivation fresh being able to switch between them all.
There are a lot of established problems at Castle Hill, but also plenty of scope in the Basin for first ascents, how do you balance that out on a trip to an area like this?
Originally I had planned on focussing more on looking for some first ascents, but the existing stuff absorbed me pretty quick! I did a couple of new climbs and it was nice to find a few which I felt represented me and the climbing I enjoy with Conan Sit and Summit Fever. It’s nice to contribute to an area and give back climbs which others can hopefully enjoy. When I come back I’d like to spend more time on new stuff.
You boulder and climb routes at a high level. Did you enjoy both disciplines at Castle Hill?
Definitely! The routes/solos were a lot better than I expected and there were a lot more than I realised. I had spent the winter at home headpointing on the grit so it was good prep for all of those. Like I said earlier it was fun to switch between the two, and you’d miss some of the best moves in the Basin if you just stuck to one.
There’s quite the history of link between the Gritstone and Castle Hill. From John Allen placing the first bolt at Castle Hill, to a perceived overlap in style and people like Toby Benham making a strong impression at both places. How did you find the similarities and differences in styles between the Grit and Castle Hill?
The rock forms very similar features with the rounded blobs and slopes top outs, and the skill sets required for both are really similar. We have lots of arêtes and mantles and squirmy grooves etc … so I felt quite at home out there. The main difference is the friction. The grit is so much grippier we can climb on higher angle blobs or slabs that just wouldn’t be possible on the limestone.
Doing the O.Q.S. and World Cups must have been an intense experience, is it nice to forget about that and just go climbing outside, or are competitions still an important genre of climbing for you?
It’s been really nice to step back from them this year and has made trips like this possible, as the World Cup season sits exactly during the Castle Hill season. I might go back to doing some in the future, but at the moment I’m enjoying what I’m getting from rock climbing.
Did you leave with some projects left unsent? Are we likely to see you back for another trip?
I managed to finish off most of the things I started—which was nice—I definitely felt content with the trip and ready to head home by the end. I’d love to come back for Fatal Flaw (V13) and King Line Hunter (V14), those were two I put some time into that I didn’t finish up. There’s also loads I just didn’t get around to trying so I’ll definitely be back ;)
What was your favourite plant you encountered in New Zealand?
Thats a tough one, I really liked the mixture of hebe bushes and weeping matipo and ferns that made up the gardens on the castles.
Castle Hill is a fairly fragile environment both in terms of the surrounding and the rock itself. What did you think of the hold washing and impact minimisation efforts from the local community?
The hold washing was totally new to me and it was a refreshing reminder to leave places the same or better than we found them, both in terms of the rock and the nature surrounding. I was really impressed by the approach and have taken a lot back home with me. Hopefully it catches on with others as I think all climbing areas would benefit
The local standard of bouldering is a bit behind the world’s best, are we just weaker than everyone else?
Quite the opposite! I think the climbers in New Zealand are some of the best climbers I’ve ever met and are well rounded climbers—because that’s what the rock demands. The local ‘standard’ is a bit behind in terms of grades, but that’s somewhat dictated by the rock. When the rock is so featureless, the chances of something being possible or impossible are so close, and above the 8B/V13 mark, those margins are even finer. It’s pretty similar on the grit, and our grades cap out at 8B+/V14, but that doesn’t put it behind the 'world’s best'. Personally, I’d be more impressed if someone climbs 8B+/V14 at Castle Hill or on the Grit, than if someone does 8C/V15 in Switzerland in a few tries. I’d also like to add that the ’scene’ around Christchurch and Castle Hill was one of the nicest and most inviting of any I've experienced, so a big thank you to everyone for the good times!
On that topic, the local bar has been raised a few times by international visitors, such as Tim Clifford (first V12), Chris Sharma (first V13) and Niky Ceria (first V14). Nevertheless, for an area regularly touted as ‘world class’, Castle Hill Basin still receives relatively few visits from the big names of climbing. Do you think this will ever change?
I think it depends where peoples priorities lie. Big grades are in vogue at the moment, so for a 'CV climber' there’s not many big offerings, It’s more of a connoisseur’s destination!
Thanks to Jim for the interview and use of pictures. He has written about his trip on his own substack here, and you can follow his climbing on Instagram here. There's also a YouTube video about his trip here.
Interview by Tom Hoyle and Isaac Buckley
Main photo: Jim Pope on The Vatican (V12)