Redpoint

Coordinates: 57°39′08″N 5°46′58″W / 57.6522°N 5.78276°W / 57.6522; -5.78276

Redpoint (Scottish Gaelic: An Rubha Dearg) is a small settlement in the north west of Highland, Scotland. It takes its name from Red Point, a low promontory to the south, which marks a turn in the coastline from facing west to south east as it becomes Loch Torridon.

Redpoint lies about 10 miles (16 km) south west of Gairloch, at the end of the B8056 road. A path leading from the road leads to a viewpoint from which it is possible (on a clear day) to see almost all of the north eastern coast of the Isle of Skye.

The villages of South Erradale, Opinan and Port Henderson are north along the B8056 coast road.

Redpoint (climbing)

In sport climbing, redpointing is free-climbing a route, while lead climbing, after having practiced the route beforehand (either by hangdogging or top roping). Many climbers will frequently try to redpoint a route after having failed to on-sight or flash it, although occasionally a climber will forgo an onsight attempt if they suspect that the route is so difficult that an attempt would be pointless. Redpointing differs from headpoint, in that it is exclusive to sport routes with protection equipment fixed into the rock at regular intervals.

The English term "redpoint" is a loan translation of the German Rotpunkt (point of red) coined by Kurt Albert in the mid-1970s at Frankenjura. He would paint a red X on a fixed pin so that he could avoid using it for a foot- or handhold. Once he was able to free-climb the entire route, he would put a red dot at the base of the route. In many ways, this was the origin of the free climbing movement that led to the development of sport climbing ten years later.