Ascents by Paul Frothy Thomson

2 laps to verify the route/quality. Really interesting, sustained, technical slabbing/face climbing. Now the easiest route to exit the crag with.

Clean repeat. Much better than I remembered it (and much easier)! Essentially 2 boulders surrounded by easy climbing, but both boulders are rad. With some rope management, this is very achievable as a giant single pitch.

Repeat attempt, not clean today. Just the one lap for fitness and to re-remember the beta for Match . I was pretty happy to put together the entirety of the upper crux section with minimal hassle, years after I was last on this. Amazing climbing from about the 5th bolt up!

I really enjoyed this, but its probably not for everyone. Went really easily today, so its probably not as hard as I thought it was. A really funky, fun, steep finale with some very weird moves

Repeat. As I said before, if you stay out of the cave, this is actually quite fun, and the crux is enjoyable.

Clean Repeat TRS.

After chopping the original (crappy) start, re-jigging the bolts in the upper section, repairing a super key broken hold (that was forcing a weird "round the world" sequence, and meant the crux bolts were all in the wrong place), and developing a whole new (gr21) start, I needed to see if my efforts had borne fruit.

In short, this is now one of my favourite routes on the wall. I'd call it 2nd best after Life of Riley. Its rad that with a bit more route development experience, and a bit of time and effort, this route -that has always frustrated me for having a crappy lower half, and a good but poorly arranged upper half- is now one of my favourite sporty sport routes I've put up.

I really hope this gets more traffic now, because it deserves it.

Incidentally, the gr21 Bottom section (25m to the first anchor) is proper good climbing, and would happily stand next to such contemporaries at Cosmic County.

Clean Repeat. Revenge! Had to work at the top, but still managed to punch this straight out today. So much fun.

Clean repeat. Revenge! How did I fall off this last weekend? Still awesome.

Repeat attempt, not clean today. No real problems to the top boulder, but -absent chalk- it took me a bit to piece it together. Essentially, three boulders (each getting harder than the other) with easier climbing and good rests inbetween. The top headwall is super rad.

Clean repeat. Sweet! It's been a decade since I was last on this (when I ticked it) and it was rad to get on it today and just do it straight up, placing draws, without too much difficulty.

One of the best technical, sustained, and consistently clean face climbs in NSW.

Repeat attempt, not clean today. Whoops... The unsend! Totally botched the crux. Otherwise, had a great old time. This route is always so much better than I remember it being

Back-to-back-to-back thinness on positive edges. The technical finale is the best bit. No time for another shot.

Sharp little crimps, but everything is just so much more positive than you expect. A fun little ramble.

Clean repeat. Wow, I forgot what a wild showstopper the finale (through the roof direct) is. Earns the grade for this one sequence, but its a good one.

Clean repeat. Just pleasant, flowing slabbing the whole way. Dreamy!

I fell off the start boulder a couple of times till I found the holds. A very cool finale.

Repeat. Weird, funky, and tough.

Another stacked one. The opening boulder gave me a fair bit of grief initially. I went through it twice, only to bungle easier moves higher up. Complex face climbing.

Repeat attempt - not clean today. In this instance, I couldn't even touch the opening move, but had no real trouble from after it to the top. But for the bouldery start, this route is better, and more arete-y than I remember it.

Really short, but really tricky and unrelenting in my opinion. I came close to falling a few times.

Short, but intense and unlikely.

The best of the routes on this boulder. More technical and interesting than it looked from the ground.

An okay face climb.

2 shots. Couldn't keep it together at the mid-point crux on either lap. A stacked upper half.

An enjoyable, easy start, leads to a brutal, thin and technical finale. Exciting for a slab.

Surprisingly sustained thin moves the whole way. I didn't find the sneaky crimp near the top on my onsight attempt.

A few cool moves when you first come around the arete, then victory jugs to the top.

Repeat attempt -not clean today. Frustrating. I first onsighted this back in 2016, and have never fallen off it since. Today, I got utterly schooled. Some big falls, much complaining, and a pathetic effort. The sun didn't help, but that's certainly not wholly to blame.

Clean repeat. Well, at least I can still get up this one despite weakness and temps. Still a personal favourite.

Repeat. 2 Laps. Truth be told, I fell off the bulge-boulder below the arete on my first lap, but corrected it on the second. A mixed bag of quality, and the arete itself is really easy, but it was still fun enough. Pretty much every hard move is escapable if you stray from the bolts a bit.

Repeat. Been a long time since I onsighted this. Though I found it easy today, I didn't really enjoy it. Very contrived, and on average (grainy) rock. A few cool moves, though.

Repeat. 2 Laps for training. Damn I love this thing

Not clean. Great to have something new to do (all on gear) when you've done everything else here, but it is really contrived (and kinda hard to decide what exactly is "off route").

Regardless, it has some rad, powerful moves. With my busted wrist, there was a single move I couldn't do today, but otherwise it seemed "achievable"... maybe.

Repeat. My favourite route at Windjammer. Felt super relaxed and in control on it today, and got to the top without a pump.

Repeat. I remember this feeling nails, but I absolutely cruised it today. Super obvious, and super pleasant crack climbing.

Repeat. I forgot how sustained this was. With my current form, I just barely squeaked it, to be honest.

Repeat. This is just a really fun climb, and not too hard at the grade. Feeling good on the slow return-to-form after 5 months on the couch.

TRS Lap -seconding Mitch after the FA. Not clean today (2 falls) but given that I'd been on the couch for 5 months to this point, I was happy just to try really hard.

Most of my post-accident re-introduction to climbing has been tame, approachable, conventional crags. Being back on this monstrous monster is the sort of experience that reminds me why I've been trying to claw my way back to climbing so desperately. What a way to come back.

FA. Some great climbing at the start and once you start turning the cave roof, but the escapability into the choss cave, and the rock surrounding it knocks a start off. Might be hard at the grade? Though the grade is contingent on following the line of the bolts on the good rock, and not straying off into the choss.

Ugh. Sand.

FA. A super cool hard start up steep jugs, and a tricky face on great rock... then easier, but less inspiring climbing to the top.

FA. A "Lowers Mountains Classic" (with all the caveats that statement encompasses).

A climb of many components, but the technical finale is definitely a show stopper. No boring bits, that's for sure.

Short'n'sweet. Went direct through the small roof at the start to gain the line of the bolts (rather than heading out right, and traversing in via the corner).

When climbed this way, it's quite sustained the whole way, with lots of interesting thin moves.

First Ascent. Climbed ground-up before it was cleaned/brushed, and it felt like gr21... But after a good session to clean it, it's settled at 18.

An interesting short slab, on mostly good rock, marred only by its escapability.

Curses! The Unsend! (Replete with red-carpet treatment and private helicopter ride to Melboune). Worst route at Araps?

Seriously, though; I have no words for the scale and magnitude and compassion of everyone who came together to pick me up from the lowest day of my life. I owe a lifetime of hugs and beers, it seems

Seconding Jacques. Hardly a proud or inspiring line, but it is a worthy challenge that had both of us grunting with effort.

2nd shot. Exciting send in the summery temps. Glad I didn't attempt the onsight, as that start is diabolical! I think this is borderline X without tricams, but maybe only R with them? Alas, I had no tricams. I loved the oozy, slinky style.

2 short early morning sessions. I really liked this, but there was a single move I never did -Maybe I need crisp conditions to use the slopiest sloper that ever slopered? Beautiful, inspiring rock, and more sustained than I expected for a slab

Headlamp EOD attempt. Great! After the inconsequential start, this is rad and engaging all the way to the topout

2nd shot. Brutally hard through the short crux, but otherwise unremarkable. A good challenge to solve, but on balance I wouldn't say I enjoyed it.