Two boys spotted climbing high up Edinburgh rock face 'without any safety equipment'

A picture has emerged of two boys climbing high up a steep rock face in Edinburgh – apparently without the use of adequate safety equipment.

The youngters were seen scaling the Agassiz Rock face near Blackford Hill.

The youngsters were snapped at different heights during their ascent of Agassiz Rock, just to the south of Blackford Hill, and it is thought one of them may have been about 50ft up at the time.

One local resident, who was walking along Hermitage of Braid and saw the youngsters, said: "I was simply concerned by the fact that these boys didn't seem to have any safety equipment and were most definitely not adults."

The picture, taken on Friday, was shared in a local Facebook group to highlight to parents the possible dangers of their children climbing without using the correct safety equipment.

The resident added: "I'd rather find out from Facebook that my kids were doing silly things rather than from the hospital.

"I have nothing against people climbing there if there are correct safety provisions in place or under supervision but this seemed to be just kids with no harness, safety rope or accompanying adult."

A trustee of the charity Friends of Hermitage of Braid and Blackford Hill, said: "We have received a note expressing concern about youngsters free-climbing the steep rock face on the side of Agassiz Rock in the Hermitage.

"Whilst everyone is free to take such potentially serious risks in the natural world, parents might do well to remind their children that rescue, in the event of an accident, is likely to be rather slow and difficult to organise as the location is not immediately accessible to emergency vehicles and mobile reception can not be assured in this location."

The UK Climbing website says that Agassiz Rock provides accessible, moderate-hard bouldering in the city.

Their website says the rock is steep in some parts with the left side of the crag giving “fairly stable climbing” and the right side “loose in places.”

According to Scottish Natural Heritage, the volcanic rock was interpreted by the Swiss naturalist Louis Agassiz, in 1840, as having been eroded by glacial ice.