Peter Harding (climber)

Peter Reginald James Harding (30 December 1924 – 24 October 2007) was a British rock climber who was prominent in the development of traditional climbing in Britain during the period following World War II.

[1] By the following summer, Harding was one of the leading climbers in the Peak District, and was beginning to make first ascents of his own, including many routes now regarded as mid-grade classics.

[6] He made numerous first ascents there, the most important of which was Spectre (HVS 5a) and Ivy Sepulchre (E1 5b) in the Llanberis Pass, which would remain among the hardest routes in the area for the next decade.

[3] In his professional life, Harding took an interest in rock-climbing equipment, and a large amount of data was generated from his experiments on karabiners, ropes and pitons in his workshop.

[6] He continued to climb into his seventies, and in 1994 surprised many younger climbers by making a solo ascent of the difficult "Younggrat Route" on the Breithorn.