Ascents of After the Sunset as Clean by John Pitcairn

Had an epic. After the Sunset finishing after the sunset on New Year's day, for a 10-pitch day? What a great plan. Got out there at 6pm, still bastard hot, but got on as two ropes of two, following a pitch behind. Cooked like prawns up P1-2, and the P2 topout is now very dirty and uninspiring. By sunset we were mostly all at the bottom of the crux pitch, but Greg had mistakenly gone right after bolt 2 into the Mexican Americans crux, was falling repeatedly and knackered. After discussing the unappealing bail options, I swapped into leading the crux pitch by head torch, then settled in for top belay while Jonno seconded, Greg and Gareth jugged up. Topped out just before midnight, then soon lost the ridge track in windfall. After an hour of nervous random bush bashing near cliffs, we failed to pick up the track again, took a phone topo map bearing toward the kinloch track and bashed over to that for another hour behind Gareth the Sweary Bulldozer, then slunk down to camp, getting in at 2.40am on the 2nd. Camp-to-camp time: an appalling 9 hours 10 minutes. Swim, beer, snacks, more swearing, bed, rest day. More could be written. Type 2 fun.

A fun outing in good company. Had a windy chilly time at the crux pitch belay with little communication possible while events unfolded below. Walked off.

Gave Pete a lead belay. P1 is very nice as a route in itself, as it was originally.

Access for cleaning.

Hand still coping. 3 on a rope, a fun ramble with a nice view of a crux plummet. Gareth got the money pitches. We had left gear at the bottom so abseiled off, which took 1.5 hours for 4 raps on a single 60m rope and was a fairly suboptimal experience with a cramped first anchor and plenty of trees to get the rope stuck in on the way down - definitely walk off.

Pretty good, nicely long, took 3 hours to climb. Perhaps spoiled a bit by the hand line section. P1 is quite delicate, P3 traverse is nice, P4 is soft unless you are short, P5 is great and the crux would make a terrific photo, lots of air under you. Screwed up right at the end and sketchily traversed left to the top of what is probably Fraggle Rock because I couldn't see the anchor above the ledge. Walked off up and along the ridge and back to camp by noon.