Ascents of A Gaze Blank and Pitiless as the Sun

The sendage wave was rolling and I simply got on. Unbelievable. [12]

Dawn photoshoot dogging. Thanks to JJ ("check out my flick belaying!") and Phil ("oops, self timer again"). I would have done the crux 10 times at least.

Did the top crux for the first time. Repeated it 4 times! Awesome, every move is now done. Only a matter of time eh? Quite some time...

Amazingly good. Rested well on the lip and made it through. Did JJ's drive-by to the arrow off the marbles and snapped one off -- fell. Was feeling pretty good?!?! This was the lap that showed me the route is going to go.

A bit more industrial smoothing on the first kneebar..

Ditched the drive-by method in favour of the go-again. Harder, but more controlled. Stuck this (just) and launched into the crux for the first time on link. Couldn't pull up off R crimp (tired!).

Had to get the draws back, so climbed up and actually went cleanly all the way through into Dreams, which had no quickdraws so had to back off. So, that's a tick, pretty much....

Fell on the lip because I didn't use the top heelhook. Cannot use the dropknee in the corner - twigged my ankle again. But man, that top crux...I'm psyched!

Learnt heaps. Start roof is sorted now, solved middle crux via undercling. Dogged up thru top crux to re-remember the crux of In Between Dreams, which this joins.

4th shot. Felt exhausted on the lip, but kept going, I think to the pinch. Took several shots to do the top crux, but then went all the way to the top cleanly. Great day.

Had to get the draws back, so climbed up and actually went cleanly all the way through into Dreams, which had no quickdraws so had to back off. So, that's a tick, pretty much...

Exhaustion lap. Skin sore - did not tape today. Went home and built a new kneebar-pad-pad insert thingy.

Gear on for the shoot, fixing ropes etc.

Hard work for photos. Lots of waiting for shade, legs going to sleep. Did crux 17 times in a row.

Had to get the gear off. Battle. Sore hands now.

In over my head again. w/Lee

Roof crux done! Had no juice left to try top crux. And actually, there's a bit of a middle crux. Did a crazy Tom Cruise swing-from-one-hand-on-the-lip and clip move. Day sponsored by Makita Industrial Smoothing.

Lee's pre-dawn photo shoot, I had a shot, better than last time but couldn't even dog the crux.

To 5th bolt (on lip) clean = first good link. That gassed me. L-foot dropknee was twigging my ankle so I didn't continue. Need padding on L-knee for arrow kneebar.

Insane-o. Roof crux not done, steep crux not done.