New Routes and Onsight Bonanza

Weekend of 7-8 November 1998

Location: Grampians & Arapiles, Western Victoria

Climbers:

Neil Monteith

Nick McKinnon

Marcel ?

Marcel's girlfriend

The past week has been rather full on as Ashley, our other graphics guy, is on holidays. I worked some crazy hours and didn't finish on Friday until 9pm so our weekend had a very late beginning. Nick and I planned to do some new routes at my new secret crag, Hades, in the Northern Grampians. We camped on Friday night at the Plantation Campsite near my other cliff, Lunar Crag. We awoke Saturday morning to a very miserable wet day. Soon enough in typical Victorian style the weather turned sunny and we feasted on Museli in the deserted expanse of the Plantation Campsite. It is a very funny place, its in the middle of nowhere, has no tourist attractions and has spaces for at least 300 people. The camping area itself is similar in size to the entire Arapiles campsite. I have never seen more than one other 'happy camper' at this area. Maybe when Lunar Crag turns into a super popular cliff it will be packed out with international rockclimbing stars!

Nick had never driven along the stretch of road between Halls Gap and Roses Gap so we took it slowly, both of us craning our necks out the window to catch a glimpse of a future secret crag. There is so much potential in this area, the cliffs are only about a 30m walk in if you know to avoid to prickles! Hades is located (hush hush secret secret) about 20km north of Halls Gap along the Halls Gap/Mt Zero Road and is a smaller buttress below the main massif of Briggs Bluff. Brigs Bluff itself seems to have massive potential, it's just the hour walk in that puts people off. The walk in to Hades is relatively straightforward. You just aim towards the obvious bright orange wall and start hiking. Depending on your sense of direction and 'bush skills' this walk can take from about 15min to over half an hour. It all depends on if you try and walk through the dreaded prickle forest. About 3m high and full of the most evil plants alive this section usually requires a committing 'resist pain' methodology. The best technique is face backwards, hide your hands, wear long pants and just push through. The better and far easier method is to avoid this area entirely by skirting around slightly to the north.

Anyway we both made it to the cliff in one piece and proceeded to scope out lines. The last time I was there was in late winter so much of the cliff was wet. This time in was entirely dry and I instantly spotted several more lines that I hadn't seen before. One interesting thing we found was a chalked up route on the far right hand end of the cliff. Only about 15m high and about grade 15 it was very nice. The rock was a super, best of Arapiles type, and the climb looked recently done. The cliff itself is mostly overhung orange sandstone ranging in quality from Brooyar average rock to slick hard quartz Arapiles rock. It is generally in between those styles and is quite Blue Mtns like. Only one obvious natural line exists, a 10m flake which ends in a blank wall. That was our first route we checked out. As I started rapping down the heavens opened. Neither of us got wet as the wall is fairly overhung. The top half of the climb was really nice rough rock (granite like) and looked bold but possible to lead on gear. The bottom half is the flake. It sounded quite detached and the rock and protection was not brilliant.

A possible new route goes up this roof crack.

On the rap down I also checked out an awesome overhung climb which goes up the left edge of a sandy cave. You wouldn't need to touch the sandy cave with your hands but sometimes your feet would touch it. Half of the route is a power underling along a flake with you feet away back in the cave. From the top of the flake it's a power move up on crimpers to some good hold. It should go at around 23. After some small cleaning we decided to check out another line right of the flake.

Nick rapped down as it rained some more. The climb goes up the left side of a cave on big but very spaced holds to a beautiful orange face for about 6m then blasts through a 1.5m roof and finishes up another 6m of vertical. From Nick's first rap down he thought that the top roof move may be impossible as he couldn't see any decent holds. We only had one rope and the top half was wet so we only top-roped the first half and confirmed it was very nice. I worked out that the roof was indeed possible with the use of a vital two-finger pocket. The sun came out so we decided to place some bolts. We set up an unreal mega new routing system. I went up first hand-drilling and placing bolts whilst Nick was a couple of metres below on the same rope doing the mega brushing/cleaning. His weight on the rope also held me into the rock on the overhung start. In the space of two hours using this system I placed five protection bolts and one rap anchor. The climb was also mega clean. It was time for the re-point attempt!

I jumped on first but rested numerous times as I worked out the very sequency cruxes. The climb has practically no rests in its entire 18m length and is overhung for half of this. Two solid roof moves also keep the pump happening. The top roof move is wild and very nice. From under the roof you have two little crimpers. You reach back full stretch to clip the bolt on the lip then reach the hold on the lip, a little three digit crimp, lock this off and get the right hand up to a similar hold. A small dynamic move gains a good set of jugs about a foot over the lip. Above this jug is a very blank section of rock, the two finger pocket move!. Throw your left foot up to a faint heel hook, stretch up with your left hand and grab the pocket, mantle like buggery with your right hand on the jugs below and stand up on the heel hook. You don't get any respite from this move. The next hold is a sloping sideways pocket (clip next bolt) then crimp up to several sloping holds and finally the chain.

Nick got on it after belaying my pathetic attempt (I blame placing six bolts!) and managed to get it first go in great almost onsight. He had only once top-roped up to below the upper roof. We graded it solid 23 and a very hard to onsight. The bottom crux involves a strange leg hook over you hand hold to reach up to a vital hold. Without knowing this move it's a very reachy, very pumpy move at least grade 24. Here is the description.

Subterfuge 18m 23

'illogically, trickery'

Starts 10m right of the flake route, Sandpit. The route climbs left arete of cave then continues up face above. Boulder start to jugs and sling placement. Up arete (FH) to dinner plate jug (FH). Hard roof moves right lead to a good jug. A long move to thin holds gets you positioned on the fantastic orange face. Up this past FH and wires to roof. Over this (FH on lip) to crux pocket pulls to gain last FH. Finish up thin wall to chain.

FFA Nick McKinnon & Neil Monteith 7th November 1998

I jumped on and after numerous attempts finally got the second ascent. It was nearing dark but the cleaned flake route awaited an ascent. I drew the short straw and jumped on. The flake itself creaked under my weight and the protection behind it was crap. It got instantly pumped and after discovering the moves above the flake were quite hard backed off. Not trusting my gear I downclimbed the flake and stuffed up near the bottom. I forgot the first move onto the flake was completely undercut. I was walking my feet down the layback and slipped off falling onto my dodgy wires. Luckily they held. This climb sucked big time! I named it Sandpit and left it for another day (and maybe a couple of bolts). The walk out was a mega epic through the thorn forest and we made it to the car just on dark. That was lucky because my headlamp didn't have any batteries in it as we had them packed away from our Buffalo mission last weekend.

More unexplored rock at Hades.

We decided to go to Arapiles and meet Marcel and his girlfriend. It was freezing cold again and we crashed fairly early.

The next day was spent on Wind Wall, high up in central gully rightside. There were two two star classic 22's we wanted to do. For a rest day it was going to be pretty tough. I won the rock scissors paper so Nick led the first manky pitch of Starless and Bible Black which wasn't that manky. It is a steep hand crack which I found very hard to second. Arriving at the belay ledge quite pumped I was horrified by the start of my pitch. It overhung 45' and disappeared out of sight. I racked up and struggled up the first sequency moves managing to tear a huge hole in my Thai climber pants. Mid climb I fixed them up so I could climb and finished the route getting the onsight. The last moves are an unreal traverse left over serious space with very little foot holds. Like the crux of Taste of Honey but much more exposed.

Nick then did the mega three star Los Endos (as featured in Simon Carters new book). He got it clean with some bold moves and some blind placements. I seconded it clean finding it fairly solid for the grade. It is a huge arete but the route wanders left and right across it. Very nice indeed. In an act of spontaneous climbing I decided to try a 23 just left of Los Endos. The guidebook was down the base of the wall and it started halfway up so I didn't get a chance to read its description. The start was very bold and mega thin. My new found campus strength got me up the 5m runout to a bolt which was hard to clip. A small rest and some wires behind a flake got me to the very hard crux. This was some of the toughest climbing I have done anywhere, bold, very thin and completely unchalked up. Very strange to see no chalk on an Arap's route. It worried me a lot as I climbed higher. I felt really strong, placing a good cam several metres away from gear and on very thin holds. I gained a good flake, protection and jugs to finish by traversing along a good set of holds. I go the onsight!! of a tough 23 on mostly natural gear.

We left early as I had to work (argg!) until 5am the next morning. Climbing all day, driving 350km back to Melbourne then working six hours has meant this week has felt reaaaalllly long.