Site navigation

Action

Grade search

Leaderboard

Instant PDF

KML KML

Description:© (Ashy)

The best (free) description at the moment is on Simon Carter's webpage: http://www.onsight.com.au/news-blog/articles/88/the-underworld-unveiled

No doubt ACA will catch up soon.

Access Issues: inherited from Blue Mountains

The Blue Mountains are a World Heritage listed area. The Grose Valley, the cliffs around Katoomba and much of the Narrow Neck peninsula are part of the Blue Mountains National Park which is managed by the NPWS. The Western Escarpment - where most of the climbing is - is Crown Land managed by the BMCC. While the NPWS Plan of Management nominates several locations in the National Park where rock climbing is deemed appropriate, the majority of the climbing remains unacknowledged. To maintain access our best approach is to 'Respect Native Habitat, Tread Softly and Leave No Trace'.

Approach:© (Ashy)

Access Glen Rosa as described up on level. 'The Underworld' is the western side of the Glen, and in fact is the "back wall" of the Sporting Complex buttress. Most routes start on the elevated tier. There are some much easier (20ish) vertical routes at the left end, on the 12m wall below the starting ledge of 'Julius Caesar'.

Ethic: inherited from Blue Mountains

Mixed-climbing on gear and bolts has generally been the rule in the Blueies. Please try to use available natural gear where possible, and do not bolt cracks or potential trad climbs.

Because of the softness of Blue Mountains sandstone, bolting should only be done by those with a solid knowledge of glue-in equipping. A recent fatality serves as a reminder that this is not an area to experiment with bolting.

If you do need to top rope, please do it through your own gear as the wear on the anchors is both difficult and expensive to maintain.

It would be appreciated if brushing of holds becomes part of your climbing routine - do it with a soft bristled brush and never a steel brush!

The removal of vegetation - both from the cliff bases and the climbs - is not seen as beneficial to aesthetics of the environment nor to our access to it. Generally it's best to leave all this sort of stuff to the local climbers.

Some content has been provided under license from: © Australian Climbing Association Queensland (Creative Commons, Attribution, Share-Alike 2.5 AU)

Routes

RouteGradeStylePopularity
1 ?

unknown first route, seems to be about a 19. Has not had much traffic and lots of loose blocks...

19
Sport 6
2 * Hazzard County
21
Sport 12m
3 Marcus Brutus*
21
Sport 12m
4 * The Untouchables
19
Sport 12m
5 ** Julius Caesar

Excellent, and unusually steep for the Blueys.

Start: Start towards the left end of the elevated ledge.

FA: G. Collum, 1994

24
Sport 12m , 6
6 ** Gravel Rash

This is the splitter crack out the humungous roofs. Strange that it got bolted, though you also need trad.

FA: G. Child, 1994

25
Sport 15m , 3
7 ** Dr. Dark's Cave

Up GR for about 8m, then head 10m right along the break/wall thing out the huge roof to the lip. The gear is mostly bad old bolts and pitons, with perhaps some trad and 1 or 2 new bolts where the new lines cross the traverse.

Start: Start as for 'Gravel Rash'.

FA: G. Child, M. Taylor, 1993

23
Sport 15m
8 *** assassins

Start: On blunt arete on the right side of the steps.

FA: Z Vertrees, 2010

30
Sport 24m
9 Back to the Underground

Tackles the obvious prow near the centre of the wall, then through the roof and finish along left at the lip

29
Sport
10 ** Mississippi Moonshine

Start 3m right of the prow and climb the black shale tufa feature, then trend left through the roof and back right to finish over the lip. Back jump to clean

FA: V Day, 2010

30
Sport 14m
11 Hashish

Start up Mississippi Moonshine then head across left to join assassins

32
Sport 28m
12 Prohabition

Start up Mississippi Moonshine then step left and finish up the project

31
Sport 16m
13 The River Styx

Bouldery start off the diving board

25
Sport 12m
14 * Tomb Raider

Start up the bouldery start of The River Styx, traverse aout 8m left to finish at a U bolt and fixed wire just up on the head wall.

FA: H Sutton, 2010

25
Sport 16m
15 ** Odyssey

The long traverse starting as for The River Styx, then fiinishing at the anchors of Prohibition. Great jugging along the break.

FA: H Sutton, 2010

25
Sport 22m
16 ** Elmars Gantry

Start: Directly up the blunt arete

FA: E Jurg, 2010

29
Sport 12m
17 Project - Vince
Sport 8m
18 * Public Enemy

Start: Start 4m R of JC.

FA: V Day, 2009

32
Sport 8m
Recent ascents Recent updates Crag chat