A Review of Mick Jagger's Face (for mountaineers)

Climbing Mick Jagger’s face doesn’t come with the same level of kudos as, say, a Barbara Streisand or Sarah Jessica Parker, simply because his nose isn’t as steep or tall, yet it was no surprise that experienced climbers voted him as their top choice for Challenging Terrains in this year’s Rockface Magazine survey. For years, the breaks and bulges that form Jagger’s cheeks, forehead and nose have provided a stern test for all comers.

The approach itself, along a neck that is fast losing its stability, is graded as Hard Very Difficult, with very few pathways available for beginners or intermediates. This means that, whilst countless travellers have famously explored Jagger’s body, his face remains a place that most people fear to go. Climbers are urged to negotiate the steep but steady Adam’s Apple Boulder rather than attempt the sagging and unpredictable outskirts.

If you can avoid being swallowed up by one of the folds in Jagger’s neck, you will discover, first-hand, the terrifying beauty of one of the most untouched faces the world has to offer. It really is a rock climber’s wonderland. No matter what your speciality - climbing, traversing, bouldering, bridging or abseiling - Jagger will push you to your very limits. So what makes this face so notoriously dangerous? Whereas other faces incline gradually and seamlessly towards the tip of the nose, Jagger sports an unprecedented magnitude of extreme downclimbs. To get anywhere, you will first have to conquer a series of huge, life-threatening drops before climbing up the other side.

Advice to newcomers would be to keep a map close at hand. Whilst most faces are symmetrical and easy to negotiate, Jagger does not follow any such logic. You might think you are ascending to the nose, but if you are not careful, you will find yourself deep inside one of the crevices of his eyebags. Thanks to his tough, leathery skin, it really is hard to know where you are half the time.

This location is a Must for all serious climbers and a Must Avoid for everybody else. Go at your peril.