Caves Route

Queenslands own mountaineering-style classic that has introduced the climbing experience to many a gibbering bumbly. This has always been the traditional easy route up to The Scrub (below the summit overhangs). With the recent addition of two rap stations, it provides an easy, safer E-face descent than scrambling. Most of the rock on the route is quite worn making route-finding easy. Many parties rope up for three pitches, interspersed with unroped scrambling. To start, scramble up vegetated ledges following worn track to below wall with gully on L side. Up the gully to top and TB.

Start: 20m R of where the E face walking track meets the rock. Marked CR.

1. 20m (4) Traverse out R and up rock steps with surprising exposure to ledge and mouth of Cave 1. Belay off rap station. Scramble into Cave 1 and up into the big Cave 2. Walk to far L side of this.

2. 30m (4) Traverse carefully out L side of cave until possible to move up to ledge. Up steep wall above with little pro to ledge and rap station on R.

3. 100m (-) From the ledge follow the worn track through the scrub for 100m or so until you hit rock again.

4. 150m (4) Easy option (avoiding chimney). Scamper up L to 'Trojan', then walk R under Big Empty to scramble (easy but quite exposed) to the summit ridge.

This is the true line, but a tree that helped climbers climb the chimney is no longer there. It's now a stern crank (perhaps 15 or so) to get established in the chimney. If you want to do this pitch, walk R along cliff base to below obvious easy chimney on south facing wall. A hard start gets you in the chimney which is easily climbed to top. Follow the ridge W to summit of Tibro.

FA: Bert Salmon, 1926

This is the alternative to the original Caves Route's Chimney if you want to reach the north-east shoulder to climb to the summit. Starting where the track meets the rock at the half-way scrub scramble the small gully and then traverse right, passing the start of "Short and Sweet" until you are on the shoulder. The traverse is easy but needs to be completed on an exposed 45° slab.