Ascents as trad by Kurt Doherty having Distinct route

Nice to do this again via a different finish and with Ryan in tow. He did fantastic for his first outdoor climb and first multi. No falls and all smiles. Was originally planning to head up the final corner to keep things as easy as possible, but he was doing fine, so we finished up the bolts instead. I lead the whole route, climbing it in three pitches; P1 and P2, then P3 and P4, then P5 by itself. This time I had wires for the carrots, and a more suitable selection of cams/nuts/offsets.

Was a beautiful day with incredible conditions. Just over 10°C with a slight breeze. Started climbing just after 10am and were finished within two hours, just as the sun was starting to touch the lower section of slab. I linked P1 and P2, then did P3, while Matt linked P4 and P5. Turns out the carrot bolts used throughout the whole route are the broad-head type, so my bolt plates didn't fit. Plus, the flake on pitch two was much wider than the suggested .3–1 cam size, so pretty much all my cams were useless. Meant I had pretty sparse protection on the first two pitches—1 cam low on P1, two trees and the P1 anchor, then one cam for P2—all of which were extended with slings, so rope drag wasn't really an issue when bringing Matt up. The climbing was obviously very easy too, so felt quite solid and safe despite the runouts. To protect the traverse, in lieu of having any wires, I clove hitched slings to the carrot bolts. P4 is definitely the standout pitch, covering a great amount of climbing with jugs galore and a nice gentle steepness. Fantastic morning.

Fairly nondescript climbing overall. Linked P1 and P2, then lead P3, followed Matt on P4 and then linked P5 and P6. In general, there was less gear than I expected in places (based on pitch descriptions). I went the wrong way for P3, going up for two bolts then right instead of directly right from the belay; made things a bit spicy, and definitely sandbagged for Matt. Still, it's an enjoyable light adventure and was perfect for giving Matt some more multipitching experience; it was also just nice to spend the day on a cliff.

Interesting finish. Crack was pretty dirty and the rock felt soft underneath the cam lobes, so not sure you'd want to whip on any gear...but the climbing is pretty casual up to the bolted finish.

Surprise slip of the foot down low. Great climbing. Have definitely lost some of the gains I'd made last season. Still, great to get out on rock.

Last of the day. Interesting up the midway ledge, then a one-move-wonder crux, then a wide section to the horrible, dirty finishing chimney. The ending totally ruined the route. Nonetheless, was good to send another Frog 18, and this time quite a heady one for me.

Good opportunity for Justin to test out his crack gloves. Glad to get this pretty comfortably on lead considering I walked it the other week on second. Such great climbing!

Stoked to get this onsight. Was touch and go there for a little bit near the start but thankfully found a pretty good jamb that let me get some more gear in. Pumped my calves more than anything else. First Frog 19 Probably a good candidate for getting a bolted belay—the tree is getting pretty hammered by the wire wrapped around it...

Incredible. So happy to finally do this on lead. Great way to end the day and a decent fight in places as I was starting to cramp all over Stitched it up real proper...something like 18 pieces of gear, with 15 in the first 2/3 haha. Loving my gear. Totems + UL Mastercams are the best! Managed to place the #00 and #0 Mastercams at the ~2m mark, then another small wire at the ~4m mark.

Didn't find this all that great. Some good movement in places but won't race back to lead it anytime soon. Felt easier than 'Elastic RURP'.

Really enjoyed this. Stoked to do it pretty comfortably. Definitely wouldn't say it's 18 though...think the original guide was more accurate at 17. Not much different to 'Chocolate Watch Band'.

Following Peatey.........why...

Nice enough. Up to checkout Rickety Kate's ledge for Peatey.

I liked using my shiny new Totems more than the climb, but it's definitely worthwhile for the grade.

Great fun, really glad I did this. Got to use my shiny new gear too Would not say the crux is the start—thought it was very straightforward with great feet allowing you a solid stance to place your first pro. Engaging climbing from then on, but obviously over very quickly.

Not the best 14 I've done, but still enjoyable. Super rusty with sizing the gear, so it took me a while to climb too. Rapped down 'How are your calluses today' as Ross was keen to check it out—it looks tough!

Lead P1, second P2. Definitely a classic route with plenty of exposure and atmosphere. Such a beautiful location—if this route was at Nowra, you'd likely do it once and never again, but I would definitely get back on this because the setting adds so much hc to the experience. The quality of the rock is really the only thing that detracts from the route as it's very sandy. Also, the anchor bolts have been chopped at the top of the route, so make sure you have some cams left over to build an anchor.

Quick reccy for the upcoming Glasshouse's Rocktrip. Great route—the middle two pitches are the two standouts, particularly when linked together, while the final two were quite dirty and generally not as enjoyable. We also linked P4 and 5 to get the route done in 3 pitches overall. Could get away with minimal rack; we only needed 3 cams and a hex. Can just get down in 4 raps on a 70m with stretch if you aim for the start of Patience Crack.

P1: Kurt, P2 and P3: Scott, P4 and P5: Kurt

TR setup for FNA camp.

So good. Luke did awesome on the onsight—the magic block and the moves above it are flipping cool, and the finish is a pumper! Simply amazing.

5 star route with a -2 star finish haha Glad to get back on this and do the onsight. Body crack was an interesting experience—didn't hate it, but didn't love it—while everything else was beautiful.

Great line and an awesome show watching Luke have a few battles on his onsight. Started raining lightly as I began climbing which made for some greasy holds and a little added spice.

Access to Plume ledge. Quite enjoyable with a great finish.

Started raining as I placed the first piece of gear; down climbed, waited it out and once Ross had convinced me it was dry, I got back on and sent. Really cool route; pretty stoked to get the onsight and thoroughly enjoyed the top.

Pretty cool climbing. A lot more straight forward than Devil's Wart, so I guess it's on the easier end of 15's.

Great value. Agree with the guidebook on 16, not that I'd have any clue about Frog grades...

Pretty good value for the length. Quite enjoyed it.

Sneaky end-of-Brooyar-Rocktrip-2015 celebration climb. Practically an onsight. Not sure it's the "best" route here, but it's pretty fun. Start is harder than 19 for sure and does spoil it in a way, but also adds to the experience all the same. Stuffed the start, lowered off straight away and went again.

After Scotty's lead. Not too bad for the first 2/3, but the off-width finish was less than pleasant. Quite dirty for the last few moves.

Great to lead this after seconding it with Ross ages ago. Good value.

Gear was pre-placed after Scotty's lead and I was pretty thankful it was. Happy to get the moves reasonably well, but a lot of learning to do with how use my feet and body position when jamming.

Bailed after the second pitch due to the brutal sun. Bit disappointed we couldn't keep going but I was starting to overheat. One to come back for on a cooler, less sunny day!

Lead P1 and 3, Scott lead P2. Pretty great line that felt fairly consistent the whole way. P3 is definitely the standout though had less trad than I was expecting, which was both disappointing and relieving lol.

Pitch 3 is pretty awesome. ~6 hours bottom to top for the three of us, and probably the same for Peta and Scott who went before us. Such an amazing day out.

Way better than Bad Blues. This Trad thing is neat haha. Super keen to come back and give Iron Mandible a go!

First trad lead! Woo! Utterly forgot how to climb for the first 4 or so meters, then gradually woke up and got into the groove.

Not as nice as HDZ, but still fun.