2002 – Rocklands – South Africa – by Fred Nicole – 8c/V15
Monkey Wedding is a boulder problem in Rocklands, South Africa, first climbed by Fred Nicole on 20 August 2002. Although Nicole originally proposed a grade of 8B+ (V14), later repeats established a consensus of 8C (V15). As a result, Monkey Wedding is now widely regarded as the first consensus 8C boulder problem in history, making it an important milestone in the evolution of bouldering grades.
Overview
| Name | Monkey Wedding |
|---|---|
| Location | Rocklands, Western Cape, South Africa |
| First Ascent | Fred Nicole |
| Date | 20 August 2002 |
| Current Grade | 8C (V15) |
| Original Grade | 8B+ (V14) |
The First Ascent
During the early 2000s, Fred Nicole was establishing many of the world’s hardest boulder problems. After introducing the first consensus 8B+ with Radja in 1996 and proposing even harder grades for Dreamtime, Nicole continued pushing standards during a visit to Rocklands.
On 20 August 2002, he completed Monkey Wedding. At the time he suggested a grade of 8B+, reflecting his conservative approach to grading difficult first ascents. The problem remained unrepeated for nearly eight years, leaving its true difficulty uncertain.
From 8B+ to Consensus 8C
The first repeat came in August 2010, when Paul Robinson climbed Monkey Wedding after an extended effort. Robinson proposed upgrading the problem to 8C (V15), believing it to be significantly harder than existing 8B+ problems.
Subsequent ascents by many of the world’s strongest boulderers supported this assessment, including:
- Paul Robinson (2010)
- Adam Ondra (2011)
- Daniel Woods (2012)
- Nalle Hukkataival (2016)
- Shawn Raboutou (2016)
- Dave Graham (2016)
- Charles Albert (2017)
- Alexander Megos (2017)
- Aidan Roberts (2018)
- Giuliano Cameroni (2019)
Today, nearly every repeater has agreed that 8C (V15) is an appropriate grade.
Why Monkey Wedding Is Historically Important
Monkey Wedding occupies a unique place in bouldering history because it became the first boulder problem to achieve broad consensus at 8C.
Earlier, Dreamtime had been proposed as 8C by Fred Nicole in 2000, but later repeaters generally downgraded it to 8B+, preventing it from becoming the first accepted problem at the grade. Monkey Wedding followed a different path: it began with a lower proposed grade before later repeaters demonstrated that it deserved the higher difficulty.
This distinction makes Monkey Wedding the first problem where the climbing community broadly agreed that the 8C grade was justified.
The Climb
Monkey Wedding is located on the A Question of Balance Boulder in the Roadside area of Rocklands.
The line starts from a sit start beneath a corner and follows a series of small rails, pinches and sidepulls before finishing up a seam.
Many climbers have commented that the sharp sandstone limits the number of serious attempts possible during a session.
Rocklands and the Rise of Hard Bouldering
Monkey Wedding also helped establish Rocklands as one of the world’s premier destinations for elite bouldering.
Only two days before Monkey Wedding, Fred Nicole climbed Black Eagle Sit Start, another line now considered 8C. Within a few months, other landmark problems such as Viva l’Evolution and Walk Away Sit Start appeared in Europe, signalling a rapid increase in the upper limits of bouldering difficulty.
Today, Rocklands remains one of the world’s most important bouldering areas, attracting climbers seeking both classic moderate problems and some of the hardest ascents ever established.
Legacy
More than two decades after its first ascent, Monkey Wedding remains one of the benchmark problems at the 8C level.
Its significance extends beyond its difficulty. The problem represents the point at which 8C became an accepted and repeatable grade, providing a reference for later testpieces around the world. For that reason, Monkey Wedding is considered one of the most historically important boulder problems ever established.
Sources
https://hardclimbs.info/climbs/monkey-wedding/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_grade_milestones_in_rock_climbing
https://www.thecrag.com/en/climbing/south-africa/rocklands/route/18549223