Routes in Glasshouse Mountains

Climbs the white streaked slab 3m L of prominent corner, just L of Prometheus I. Crap pro, good rock.

Open Project. Puniverse into the Creationism project. Slightly more doable than Creationism. Have at it!

Follows the obvious weakness & 4 FHs, up left of dang fool. Fun moves up to a committing finish. Now with easy to use anchor.

Sit start with right hand on crimp and left hand TBD. Go up? Top out straight above.

Stand start with left hand on the arete and right hand on small sidepull crimp. Work your way at the same mantle as Night Crabber.

Start beneath the corner - it's the final bolted line.

The bouldery crux move from big sloping edges will try hard to spit you off - be warned! 30m to ledge on rap.

Marked 'NRC'. A fluctuating crack which is only reasonably protected. At the roof traverse right into 'CUFA' 's excellent top half.

Stand start bottom right hand corner and then move left. Some cool moves. Also the downclimb.

Stand from rail, trending left

A linkup that avoids the thin start of Dang Fool. Start up DTABH, veer right at first FH to RB, cruxy move to 2nd RB, over bulge to DBB on DF.

Link Up - Climb Voluptuous then at the last bolt head Left into the savage headwall of Dagda.

Starts 60m down past the Mr.Busy pillar. About 15m below right of Reflections.

This route has some poor rock and an abundance of loose blocks and detached flakes due constant north sun exposure. The crux at 30m on first pitch is protected by a single carrot bolt and the belay consists of 2 FH. The second belay is a rusty piton + gear in the crack behind.

The whole route can be rapped, but the tape on the anchors will need replacing. A better option is to exit to the tourist track = an easy scramble or a short bush-bash through thick scrub on the right will lead to the faint knob track.

You will need 2x60m ropes to rap this route. Can be lead on a single rope, if walking off.

Corner system right of No biggie

Tourist Track. Slippery and well worn. From the carpark, follow the NP signage:

★★ West Track (Tourist Track) 3 - 20230413_115159-sr.jpg

up the increasingly steep track, to the intimidating start (colloquially called "Chicken Rock", because many day-trippers choose to turn back at this point). In the V groove, top left corner, the steep start is about a grade 5 or 6 and access here is slightly overhanging:

★★ West Track (Tourist Track) 3 - Chicken Rock

but an easier start can be found down right, about 15m right of a large tree:

David Duffy on ★★ West Track (Tourist Track) 3 - Chicken Rock

up the sloping face, on good holds, about grade 3. Once this hurdle has been overcome, the remainder of the climbing then becomes an easy scramble at about grade 0-2, to the summit.

An excellent alternative to the Hiker's route. This route has frequent red paint marks from base to summit. A well formed downhill track starting just east from the carpark at S26.89052, E152.88797 will lead to the beginning of the route. From here scramble up easy slabs traversing towards north-west following the marks. The track then climbs straight up for the central part followed by a leftward traverse on easy slabs to a small cave before veering right and up to an exposed and highly scenic finish to the summit.

An alternate finish to this route that goes north at the top (but a bit more exposed) is mapped at https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1ULqnVajNBViUxVymtbjh6jbnrcM&ll=-26.89356304264415%2C152.88713100000007&z=17

Marked 'G'. Juggy climbing up the groove to a grass tree blocking the corner. Climb around this and up easy crack to finish. Good protection throughout most of this long route.

Variant start to Cruel to be Kind. (First bolt missing) start up blocky overhanging start to second bolt then links into cruel to be kind shares anchors with DITR.

Sit start on sideways rails. Make your way to the topo.

Sit start with RH sidepull jug and left hand on small undercling. Slap your way up to join into choss face and finish up this.

Start: Prometheus I.

There are a plethora of variants to Prometheus I, this one is an easy stroll up the mountain, to Cave 4. A tad thin on gear on p2.

1. 53m 4 - Same as Prometheus pitch 1,but continue left, following the natural weakness & gully, to a small dirt ledge & bushes. Trad belay.

2. 30m 4 - Continue left, following the line of weakness, then trend up & right, around the Steelwood trees, to a tree belay.

3. 40m 4 - From the belay, head for the right side of Cave 4, into the fern gully, then up the left side of this into Cave 4. Belay from Cave 4.

Marked 'CC'. Hard for the grade. Under-protected up a thin crack line to a ledge. From the ledge, climb crack system to top. A confident leader is required.

As for the first 4 bolts of Acid, but instead of breaking left, continue up the rightmost line of bolts past 3 more FH's to Acid's anchors. Some discontinuous, but enjoyable and intriguing climbing that skirts under the top of the ravine. Worthwhile, and soft for the grade.

Link up. Climb Acid to it's second last bolt, then head straight up through the corner feature that is the last section of BFI, passing a FH to final mantle. Avoids the cruxes of Acid and BFI. The antithesis to Idaho Sunshine.

Left of the bonsai boulder face on nice incuts

R of Zenith. Closed project for now.

Up the luge! A very cool climb up a great feature of the wall

Closed Project. Climbs the steepest and most insanely exposed overhang of the Summit Caves. To access, climb Morning of the Earth and continue climbing past the anchors up the ramp, Clip the ancient FH and continue to the very back of the ramp to find a DBB. From here the mega steep begins.

A bit manky but fun. The first line of FH's on the wall. The start is easier but less fun if going up from the right. Some long draws/runners help with rope drag at the top section

A traverse spanning the entire Andromeda main wall, as well as Legends Wall. Starts and ends on the ground, so it can be climbed from right to left, or left to right. Can be done in a single pitch with an 80m rope if you manage the clips well (so as to avoid unnecessary wandering of the rope, and rope drag). Alternatively, it can be split into two pitches (e.g. belay at Worm Hole’s anchors). As it is a traverse, take special care whether leading or seconding, as a fall could result in a body scraping pendulum. The climb uses 26 bolts from various climbs. Some clips should be extended with slings. To avoid the wrath of other climbing parties, reserve this climb for a quiet weekday with no one else at the crag.

The first ascent was climbed right to left, starting at Absolute Zero, as follows:

1st bolt of Absolute Zero – extended with a 60cm sling 2nd bolt of Graviton 3rd bolt of Mars – extended with a 60cm sling 3rd bolt of Horse Head Nebula 4th bolt of Alien Encounter Anchor bolt of Asteroid Belt - extended with a 120cm sling Anchor bolt of Solar Eclipse 4th bolt of Gravitational Equilibrium 4th bolt of Interstellar Journey - extended with a 60cm sling 4th bolt of Southern Cross - extended with a 120cm sling 5th bolt of Worm Hole - extended with a 60cm sling (Can belay off anchors if climbing in two pitches) 2nd bolt of Coal Sack 4th bolt of More Dark Matter - extended with a 60cm sling 4th bolt of Lunar Eclipse 4th bolt of Event Horizon Anchor bolt of Star Dust - extended with a 60cm sling Anchor bolt of Nebula Anchor bolt of Orbital Tether - extended with a 60cm sling Anchor bolt of Black Hole - extended with a 120cm sling 4th bolt of Dugglebutt And The Bus Of Awesome - extended with a 60cm sling 3rd bolt of TJ Rothschild - extended with a 60cm sling 4th bolt of Mr. Rowland And The 100 weeks Of Awesome - extended with a 60cm sling 4th bolt of The Spitz Roy Massif 3rd bolt of Join The ACAQ And Become A Legend - extended with a 60cm sling 2nd bolt of Old Gramps Reeve And His Bodacious Babe 1st bolt of Do Not Shit In The Woods At High Traffic Crags, then back to the ground.

Sit start as for the Titanium for Legs (sit). Traverse along the lip then mantle.

Marked 'GC'. Hard for the grade. A bold and somewhat under-protected crack climb. This thin subtle corner requires confident crack work. Similar to 'Cantankerous Cantelope'.

Between the Coal Sack crack and Worm Hole. A hard start, up the vertical face, to 3rd bolt, then easier finish to anchor.

Same as for Procrastislider but continue right into Squealer and do it's crux and finish up this.

Right of the bonsai boulder face

Two close together first bolts, then fun, tricky moves off sidepulls to top.

Start: R of Brannigan's Law.

This is the easy alternative to the original Caves Route's Chimney, which, minus the original log, is pretty stiff. Most rock climbers & seasoned bush walkers will choose to climb this unroped, whilst this description is aimed at those roped ascents.

1. 17m 4 Start at the "CR" painted on the rock: climb trending right past the vegetation, then directly up to the DBB belay. A short pitch which provides the opportunity to track anyone you are belaying, or abseil back down & belay them on TR.

   ★★ Caves Route Variant 4 - Caves Route Pitch 1

2. 37m 4 Continue up the ledges, mounting trees, up to the big shoulder & DBB.

3. 36m 4 Head up right from the belay, then left up the concave scoop, to a small ledge with a tree on it, from here, head up the steep, exposed section right to a natural belay ledge & a single clip biner on chains.

4. 48m Unroped scramble up through Cave 1, then left (facing the cliff), to the lh side & belay tree.

5. 49m 4 Scramble carefully over the rock & along the narrow precipitous ledge to the end, then right up the rock slab to the anchors (2 sets of anchors, the higher set being the better for roped parties.)

6. 60m 1 Unroped scramble up the rock terrace, and follow the well beaten path through the scrub to the base of the slab.

7. 55m 4 Climb the slab, directly in front of where the path meets it, to a concave scoop in the rock, from here, head out left delicately on the 45° slab & angle up right to a natural belay ledge

   ★★ Caves Route Variant 4 - Caves Route alternative

   & DBB.

8. 37m 2 Scamble across the sloping ledge, then up the small cliff face at the end to the shoulder & rejoin the original Caves Route.

9. 155m 1 Walk/scramble up the shoulder, through bush & up rock ledges to meet the West Track.

Up the luge! A very cool climb up a great feature of the wall

Sit-start middle of the face and right of Flashlight Assist. Use spread crimps to get to an obvious side-pull. Big moves up and right to a victory jug and mantle. Will be a hard send but high quality problem!

tend left off hikers and head straight up middle of landscape.

Start: 7m R at the end of the vegetated section of ledge.

Superb sequences. The L-trending line of five FH’s featuring sustained sideways slopers. Feels much longer than it is. Now has its own dedicated anchor.

The start of this climb is about 400m to the right of Pilgrim's Progress and is supposedly marked by a large grey gum tree with a heavy top and a badly burnt base. Who knows if it's still there? Two short pitches traverse to the left and a steep 20m wall is climbed directly to a veranda of shrubbery. The climbing continues until a series of small overhangs are reached. Traverse right and then continue up the weathered walls until a short traverse left leads to the south-west shoulder.

Marked 'M'. Desperate bridging up the under-protected flared chimney leads to easier ground. Take many small cams and wires.

The crack corner system on the left end of wall.

Immediately left of the Coal Sack crack system. Follow ring bolts to the anchor.

Low start.

Bugger all gear. Dangerous.

Marked 'BB'. Boulder the start until the crack opens. Climb this under-protected groove to a small ledge. Finish up the corner above.

Left of centipede boulder.

Same as for Procrastisquealer but traverse R and finish up Madder.

Up the luge! A very cool climb up a great feature of the wall

Sit-start left of shield and straight up into the mantle.

Follow seem all the way up.

Marked 'A'. Up the crack then thrutch up the black squeeze chimney to finish. Removes plenty of knee skin!

This is a good route linking the base of Banshee long chimney with the lower Cyclop cave, in an airy diagonal traverse on the right. The first 20m are easy climbing with 4 good placements, passing a carrot bolt. The mid section (crux) is exposed, extremely thin and runout. Below the cave the route gets easier but long runouts are unavoidable. The Cyclop cave offers also a sheltered bivouac if needed.

The obvious right trending line, to the right of Out Of The Blue. Follow shallow crack system and boulder to the ledge aka The Morgue.

Sit start under the roof. Climb your way out and mantle out using the arete and blank slab left of choss face. Multiple ways to start however lower will be harder. Should be a decently hard problem.

First climb Ideas Man (crux) but continue past IM anchors for another 5m to a DBB.

P2) 14 - 40m continue up following line of least resistance passing one FH to DBB.

P3) 16 - 30m continue up faint features with gear and two FH to DBB.

P4) 10m either straight up to DBB or escape right to Zeitgeist anchors.

3m L of NMS, starting up on little platform. Stickclip. Tricky little start, then smooth sailing through mini roof and up blocky wall. 8 FHs, lower-off.

From 'Slow Motion Grass Smoker' 's second BR, step 1m R and climb onto slab. Climb this for 6m then traverse R and up to 'Purple Pack' 's DBB. Very runout at top.

flat hold to gain jug move feet up then stretch to finishing jug.

Start 2m right of 'Roof Climb'. Climb straight to the top staying within the band of rock covered in white lichen.

Stand from grassy start. Mantle on crumbly holds. Sit start might be better

ACCESS:

The start of this climb is on Leftist wall, the obvious wall level with the 3rd pitch of Traxion Action on climbers left. Access the wall by doing the first 2 1/2 pitches of Traxion Action. On the third pitch follow easy ground but keep trending left to Leftist wall before you start up the ridge of Traxion Action. The small tree at the base marks the start of the climb.

RACK:

• 1 set of cams to #3
• 1 set of medium nuts, offsets preferred.
• 8 draws

ABOUT:

This route is a linkup with the first 2 and a half pitches of Traxion Action, and then joining back in at pitch 7. There is a direct top out with a scramble around to the tourist track but the best finish is up Traxion Action. This climb is mixed and runout at times. A great step up from Traxion Action for those looking for a challenge or to improve their skills in adventure climbing.

1. (Traxion Action) 27m 17 Straight up past 7 hangers and 2 distinct cruxes, then move left through two more hangers to anchor.

2. (Traxion Action) 20m 10 Traverse up and left past 1 hanger & 1 rap anchor before climbing through scrub to base of wall.

3. Hard move off the deck, then follow easy ground but keep trending left to Leftist wall before you start up the ridge of Traxion Action.

4. (Oppression obsession starts here) - 40m 16 Head straight up from the tree, just right of the small bush to a hanger. Pass some gear placements, an ancient piton and a few hangers to optional anchor. Option to belay here (30m) but best to follow the ramp up to the left for another 10m to the next anchors.

5. 35m 16 From here climb the headwall following hangers and over bushy ledge to find the next anchor.

6. Up and veering right. Trad placements to be found around the slab below the 3 pillars. A direct finish goes straight up the right hand pillar or follow the better option to join back in to pitch 7 of Traxion Action. To do this traverse right 6 meters below the pillar and past a bomber placement to the slab of Traxion Action pitch 7. Slab moves up slab to final belay anchor.

7. (Traxion Action) 30m 15 Straight off the belay, look for secret holds. Climb with style past 2 hangers to the top of the buttress and carefully choose your belay.

FAs Matt Hunter, Hamish Ousby, Jay

First Contact begins 5m L of Banished For Infidelity. 7 FHs, lower-off.

Fun and thought-provoking