Ascents in Australia as various tick types by Douglas Hockly

Thanks to Neil for the rebolting! I think this took me 7 days in the end. Clearly a sandbag at 28 ; ) (I did actually do about four other 28's in 2004, all in 2-4 days, but this one is an unusual style)

Actually a very good route if you live in Melb and like crimping, aretes and slabbing.

Second bolt is very high - at the limit of my reach and I'm 6ft. Technical climbing which is fun but over pretty quickly. Mostly an access pitch to KN.

Good climbing but greasy rock.

Worth taking gear! While the new bolts are good, the old one on the crux don't look great, and the last bolt is not a ring, it's a FH so if you want to lower off a single ring use the second last bolt. It's also easy to traverse to the rings on Sprung.

Turned out better than originally thought. Maybe 19?

Toproped as, like all of Gordy's bolts it seems, they are non stainless and already rusted to crap.

The 21 version

Three tricky sections.

Thin bit in the first half then R and L up the wall

Don't really remember this, the climbing didn't stand out.

Found this hard, maybe 24?

Looks better than it is. The bolts are practically unclippable.

Second day with a howling wind! I quite like this although it is old-school and wandery.

Really good, 4 x 23ish cruxes, a slopey bulge, a technical footsy traverse, a powerful iron cross, and a technical crank at the end. A great mirror image to Birdman.

Second or third shot, after which it was promptly downgraded from 26... sigh. Boulder problems between jugs.

A great second ascent by Geordie minutes after the first. Good variety - a slippery seam, an awkward balancy crack, a weird traverse, crank through a roof and a headwall that can feel hard enough to be interesting if you're pumped - which I was. Good fun.

I really like the top half, but not the bottom, and the crux is tweaky. Julian Saunders says he's had more business from the pocket on this route than any other hold in Australia. Beware.

Thin and very hard.

Good but not two stars. One or no stars

I find this quite hard, and not that much fun. Others seem to like it.

Two days

Thin and hard start

A bouldery start, then it's a bit uninspiring crossing Scorpion, but the top bit is excellent

Good fun, three interesting sections

Good climbing, bolts are probably suspect and there's a silly #4RP behind a loose looking flake at the top. At the moment, a good one to toprope off the chains.

This is the only route I can think of that I don't think should have been rebolted. The bolts were so obviously rubbish from the day they were put in that it made it quite atmospheric - a bolted death route. Now it's not really worth doing, as the climbing is just average.

The slopey traverse in is crap, the DS much better.

Great climbing, probably 23, bolts need replacing. Takes a small wire after last bolt.

If only it didn't have the rest in the gully.. fabulous climbing. A small cam (green alien? blue alien? I forget) is a very, very good idea to back up (or replace) the peg.

Two star 23 - awesome - to a ledge and then dyno for a thread off slopes.

Add 10 grades if you're short, and 100 if you're Wendy's size

Brilliant! Bolts need replacing.

I've never really liked the bottom half, but the top is good if you go direct.

More like 24?

A great first 8m or so, then just jump off and lower off the ring. Really cool. All big holds so good for the fingers. The second and third bolts are a bit hard to clip and you'd be hitting the ground so I'll try to remember to do this on doubles in the future. Pretty solid for 24.

Doesn't seem that soft to me. I'd worked the crux but not the finish - when I got through I was too pumped to place the wire, ended up just laying one on for the last hold, which fortunately was a jug. Phew.

The bottom has a cool sequence, I remember enjoying the top too.

Interesting climbing but wanders about. It'd be an ugly fall off the crux.

Original is too contrived to even work out where you're supposed to go. Step R at the first bolt, back left and then enjoy the fun top roof.

Okay but not worth a star.

OK, a hard crank then insecure.

Maybe 3 days? Quite good, and not particularly slimy. One slippery hold. Reachy though - there's a move at the start that is about 23 for me and looks 32 for Dave Jones.

Bolts probably need replacing now

Good position, climbing is average

super greasy