Routes in New South Wales and ACT for selected grade

One of the popular classics of the grade. Ringbolts and chalk show the way. All good fun. Lower-offs added 2004 and replaced 2021. This route originally went to a set of chains a couple of metres above the lower offs. The chains are still there. Was grade 26 but was chipped some time after the first ascent.

Absolute classic 25 and for many, their first. Centennial Glen climbing at its best.

Cue '90s era gangsta rap. Originally given a different name, the first ascentionist has requested that it now be known by this name. Excellent steep climbing, and the classic Nowra 25. Start where the undercut roof touches the ground (at a ring bolt).

Sit start low and move through beautiful slopers to roof and finish up jugs. The best problem in the Balkans?

Tsz Ying Yau

Middle route off the 5th access log. Stick clipping is optional since the first bolt was added, but clipping the 2nd is still desperate. Most people batman or silver jug to the second bolt (i.e. the original first bolt) although it can be freed at very thin 25ish. A very enjoyable and popular outing on some of the best rock at the crag. A hold snapped late 2015 making the moves past the 2nd last bolt a little harder, but doesn't change the grade.

Sit start at the small cave. Move right and up to top.

Classic pumper in the middle of the wall - get a ticket and get in line. Start at the enormous permanent cairn. Stickclip essential.

Sit start, pinch, squeeze and wiggle your way up the knife edge arete.

Mauricio Chino

Start just right of the corner (right of the big fallen block). Use your feet or pull some very thin moves.

Classic endurance pumper. Thin start (like everything here) then trend up left for a couple of bolts then back right following the jugs until short flake and heartbreak exploding arms finish under rooflet. The bolts on this route are part new and old - with bolts 1, 4 and 5 still being the originals and probably also suspect.

The crag classic!!

Crux down low but plenty of funky holds and tricky moves to keep you pumping all the way to the top.

A total Nowra classic. Great fun roofing with very cool moves. Pity it is quite short, but at least you get a bit of exposure. This route starts in the exposed cave above the closed Mini Wall. Do not abseil down Mini Wall to get off - scramble off instead.

Ultra classic. Mostly superb jugs to a rest just before the redpoint crux right at the end. Take a ticket!

Roughly translates as "something great is coming". Thin seam crack that gets harder the higher you go. Never fear, there are no jams - it's all face moves and chicken wing gastons. Starts on the right edge of small chossy cavelet in the middle of Ben Trovato Wall. Finishes at first set of double U bolts 3/4 of the way up the wall (extension is 29).

Short intense bouldery little number. Bit of a one-move-wonder ...

Varied and interesting. Rebolting has led to sudden popularity.

The climb finishes at the top anchor after the mantle, then either down climb or lower and rethread at the initial anchor to avoid trashing your rope. If you don’t go to the top you haven’t done the climb!

Great climbing which has always suffered from muddy runoff when it rains. Please brush the route when you are working it to keep the holds in good order.

Through thuggy roof and onto the wall. Move hard right (don't continue up the arete) and continue up the nice pumpy wall.

A classic of the wall. Tricky crimpy start but persevere as the jugs of glory aren't far off but that's when the pump really sets in. Gentle on the flake, it probably needs to be fixed. While the routes to the left stay dry in the rain, the first half of this route seeps.

Obvious crag classic!

Sit start on the right side of the cave. Head left via some funkiness to top out up the ramp.

Ainhoa Martinez Sam May

Start just R of the boulder. The short right-facing corner.

One of the best problems of this grade & style. Start at the back wall and pull straight out the roof, passing the big hole, make a long throw and finish MATCHED on the huge jug.

Jordan Maxwell

Mikha Liem

George Li

Popular steep climbing. Climb up juggy cracks and flakes to the biggest roof at Binary Cave. Crank over this with a bouldery lip move then up great orange headwall. Two long draws in the roof help reduce rope drag.

The plum line of this sector. Start 3m L of SD and climb all the way to the tippy top with the lower-off on the ship's prow.

Den on High Tension

The square arete on the R side of the main wall. Believe it or not they used to dyno from the jug to the top! These days we use our feet and a little thought.

Classic Mountains 25. One of the bestest at the grade. Tricky flake to steep thuggy roof to pumpy headwall - awesome. Start approx 20m left of approach hand-over rope below right trending flake feature.

Starts as for Bachelor Busted Balling Bimbo but breaks left at mid height and and finishes above the crux on Shocked. Was 24 for years but most people feel it's fair at 25.

One of the most obvious 'lines' on this wall and the first route bolted by Monty in the Ben Trovato Renaissance period. Three sustained pitches up the guts of the left side of the wall with comfy belay ledges and phat ringbolts. Pitch 1 can be done alone as a great single pitch 23 if you want to lower off.

1. 30m (23) Straight up to the base of the right facing and left leading big flake. Follow this to final tricky layback finish (this final flake is sounding very hollow, take care (or fix it)). Best to extend bolts on the right of the flake (60cm+ draws), so that your rope isn't pulled in over the sharp-ish edge of the flake. If you are only doing the first pitch use the lower offs before the ledge. Otherwise, continue up to the giant staple.

2. 25m (25) Balancy start then blast straight up the gorgeous orange wall above with final death by crimp section. Belay on ledge at double rings.

3. 30m (24) Pumpy conclusion up the steep wall and corner above with a baffling reachy thin section down low. Either lower off the double rings just below the top or dirty mantle out to belay from a tree.

An awesome route, with an infamous runout finish. This is the leftmost route on the ledge, about 20m R of the chopped access steps. Take note, it's easy to muck this one up. When you clip the final bolt on the traverse, you'll climb left along a rail and see an anchor up and left. This is NOT your anchor (it's the cleaning anchor for Wipe Out's extension). Instead, after the L traverse, hand traverse back right to Sail Away's anchor. See the topo photo for clarity.

Start up juggy rooflet, then some good rock and powerful climbing right up until the anchors.

Go go stop. The best of the harder routes at the Binary Cave Steep bouldery start trending right to rooflet then straight up the gorgeous orange wall on small sloping holds to an easier finish.

The far left hand edge of the cliff. Essentially a one sequence wonder with a tricky V4/V5 boulder problem crux in the middle. Clip the first bolt on "How Much is a Duck Worth" then move left and follow the line of bolts with increasing difficulty to the anchors.

Start just R of Padington. Pull onto traverse line and go 5m easily right along low ledge. From here go straight up and a bit left, continuing past the top break and up the little headwall. It's a bit runout getting to the bolt on the lip of the top roof.

Hug your way up this overhanging block.

Start: Sit

Phillip Booth | Mauricio Chino

M1, R2, L3, R4, L5, M5, R6, M6 Start low and left with your right in the 3/4 finger pocket and lunge for the first hold. A classic although the start holds are often wet.

Classic 25 pumper, crank the steep start then keep pumping up the wall of jugs.

One of the best routes at Tianjara and a classic for the grade! Sustained climbing on bulletproof orange sandstone! Closest climb on the right of chimney, follow ring bolts which replace old hangers. Shared start then trend right at Y split.

The grand classic of this wall. One of the best routes of this style in the mountains. Rebolted 2004.

Great route with a couple of bouldery sections - including a massive reach/dyno depending on your stature. Stick clip. Often has birds nesting in the big break on the right, particularly in spring. Have a look, and stay off if you see signs of a nest.

Start in the back of the cave same as The Low Side but pop out the right side of the roof and up the slopey ramp.

M7,L8,R9,L10,R11,L12,M12

Don't bust a tendon!

🚫 Originally done as a 'no heels' problem.

Sit start on lowest jug (same as for 'L'Homme Obu'), reach the juggy break and head up and right through scoop.

Mauricio Chino

Batman then up right.

Start up Grape Hour into the finish of Grey Power. You move R just before the 3rd bolt of GH. Good luck at saying all these route names and not getting confused!

Start at the back of the cave on the obvious chalked holds. Move out the left side of the roof and continue up the front face via slopey holds (keeping right of the cluster of big jugs).

Start off cairn with committing move, then pumpy steep climbing to left set of anchors on the slab directly above last bolt.

Sit start at small tree on left of cave, traverse right and finish up Hollow Mountain Dreaming. Mauricio Chino

The epic 5 bolt extension past the lower anchor to finish up Sadomastication for last 2m. A great mix of crimps and sidepulls with an ever increasing pump to the very end. Hard 25 or easy 26.

Start on top of boulder as for Dictator in a Deerstalker but step immediately right, then up.

Steep start, follow the corner then up.

Upgraded in the 2019 guidebook. 5m left of MF, just left of small tree leaning against cliff. Steep juggy start up to big roof. Monkey across imposing roof flake then up super headwall.

Fantastic route! Start as for Toyland but instead of traversing along the overlapping flake, push straight upwards towards the anchors. Now the preferred version. There is potential for a small wire to be placed in between the second and third bolts to stop a probable ground fall off not inconsequential moves, it seems the placement is tricky to spot though.

A bit goey at the crux. Start as for Belgian Tourists but step right and up wall and over bulges.

Another of the classic steep 25's at farside.

Start at underclings on the orange blob. Powerful moves up the wall.

Mauricio Chino

5m left of LLL.

Sustained, thin and steep climbing up good looking orange wall. 3 RBs to double BB belay.

Pure Hill GOLD !! Start 3m L of TBDO (just around the corner). Hard moves to start with then sustained moves to double ring lower off. One of the best routes at MtA.

Same as 'Right to Left' but topout as 'Dead calm' / 'Aquarius' instead of finishing on the starting hold of the V4

Start 5m right of Supercal, up the log just to the right of the end of the railing. The crux will have you silently flying. Bye!

Right hand route off the log. Mostly cruisy grade 22ish climbing - then a final sting in the tail at the end. Use a 60m rope!

Ewbank's original aid line turns out to be an absolute cracker of a free route. A very impressive orange face, originally established as a 2 pitch aid route via a bolt ladder up the guts of the wall to the top by John Ewbank in 1964. Mentioned in old guidebooks (including Ewbank's) as "Vespian's Wall" - but was surely meant to be named after the Roman Emperor who built the Colosseum. Soon after bolting it, Ewbank's anti-bolt sentiment kicked in and he chopped the bolts. Nearly half a century later, this free version lets you marvel at the relics. Start 8m left of Guillotine.

1. 25m (25) Possibly the best single pitch on Ben Trovato wall. Tiny hanging arête to start then right and up amazing sustained wall with crux near the top. Clip the first bolt with a stick, or off a kneebar in the break. Ignore the manky chain at 20m and continue another 5m to a new anchor.

2. 8m (14) Continue up and left on easy grey ground past another bolt to cosy foot ledge and DRB. (35m to ground). You can get here more easily via Guillotine p1 if you prefer.

3. 20m (24) Step right to the flake/corner left of the guano, then take the orange streak above the guano. Currently finishes after about 20m, just below an overlap, 3m above a jug rail. This pitch is really good, on fantastic orange rock, tho you need to lower off a single ring. A proper anchor will hopefully appear some day.

The bolted continuation for another 15-20m to DRB near the top is open, help yourself. Will be 27+, and is increasingly let down by the usual deteriorating rock quality up there.

Start with hands on the lowest side-pulls (the right hand is below the lower horizontal seam right at the bottom of the vertical seam where it tapers off), head powerfully up the overhanging arete.

The original problem 'Full Metal Jacket (Original)' uses all the sidepulls and generally requires a high heel hook.

Start 25m right of In Harm's Way at the boulders just before the access ledge becomes alarmingly narrow, slopey and exposed.

1. 30m (25) Rebolted (2006). All U bolts. Wonderful climbing up the orange face to a small belay ledge with a 3 ringbolt belay. The top is a little runout, most people just clip the bolts but you can also place med cams if you wish.

2. 30m (19) This pitch drifts right up the good looking wall on very old carrots, and requires 10+ bolt plates and a rebolt. The ringbolts above and slightly left of the first belay are not it - that's Gem Stone. A 2 ringbolt anchor is on the ledge 10m below the top, but is poorly positioned for lowering off because the rope grinds on sharp ironstone.

Sit start.

Matti Puckridge

Start as for UD (in the middle of the cave), up past a carrot and continue up to the 6th hanger (has mallion attached). Then move left to finish on chain shared with DdF.

last bolt in roof and anchors rebolted 10/02/2019 by Adam Kerz & Phill Lengyel

Straight up the groove, then slightly left and up to a great jug rest. Recover and fire out the airy crux.

Start: Start 2m left of SL at slight groove. New anchor 23/6/2012

The hardest of the three 25s in this section. Climb first two bolts of BB, then go direct up the wall just left of Trigga.

The roof of roofs this end of nowra. Jugs the whole way but getting between them is the trick. Finish out left at the the chain not the new anchors.

Recently rebolted on nice shiney U's. A Sydney Classic on great rock. Start about 3m L of the little tree. Head up right thru scoop (it originally finished up little corner, but now heads further r on jugs thru roof as for Gatekeeper.

Powerful start, then technical on slopers, easy finish.

Around the side of the boulder from Bow You Bastards, start on good holds (past the gaston) and up.

Sit start. FA done in, you guessed it, socks.

Sit down then slap your way up the overhanging slopey nose. Powerful and sustained to what some consider a tough mantle.

Keep off Nylon Happy at the top to earn the grade and another star.

Excellent sustained climbing on a slightly overhanging face. A bit soft for the grade and good for doing training laps.

3 bolt boulder problem. Soft if you can reach the big pocket.

Start low in the middle of the cave. Move up and then join Bedside Manner to finish in the same way.

Same start for Pussy Whipped but head right out the roof.

One for the tall people. Boulder up to bulge, commit for the throw then commit a bit more for the mantle. clip safety bolt and rest forever. tall people grab chipped finish hold, shorties - feet up with a little dead point for finishing hold.

Start: 3m right of 'Glamorpus'

Starts at left edge of cave, on the right side of the orange overhung wall. Undercut start then up slopers to big break. Big reach to next break then hand traverse left across jugs to crux move going back up again. Finish up sustained edges then easier ground.

Start on the right arete of the cave. Follow the lip up to the crack, then straight up this

A great line taking in the whole roof. Has a small cave a 1/3 of the way. Start at the back left hand end of cave, follow rings to first cave, then step out around stalactite and contine on what seems like a never ending roof.

Start Matched on the lower far right jug at the lip of the roof. The separated wall on the right is off.

Traverse using holds on the face above the roof in the reverse direction to the V4 ('Right to left').

Finish matched on the starting jug of the V4.

Phillip Booth

The horizontal roof with a steep finish, move right to anchors.

The line left of Riot Wing finishing high up in the back of the cave. A gymnastic and unusual sequence on some pockets brings beautiful featured holds to the top.

Start on ledge then jug leftwards and up with a slopey crux at the lip of the roof, keep pumping the jugs up the steep head wall.

Crag Classic

Quite squeezy through the bulge unfortunately. Probably climbs best if you can keep your blinkers on and stay really direct above the 4th & 5th bolts, to keep it entirely independent of both neighbouring routes. But its worthwhile whichever holds you use.

Start on the left side of the wall behind the small tree. Climb (don't batman) to first bolt then pull on it (or dyno past it at grade 26). Trend R up jugs to big slot, then trend R over the roof to nice short headwall.

Far left route on this wall where the crazy tree is. Up the tiger striped wall, wandering around to find the holds.

A harder and better way out of the scoop!

Mauricio Chino

Sit start on the big jug in the back of the cave, move left to some pockets and then a big move to a good edge following the line of holds up right to the break.

Phillip Booth & Jordan Maxwell

Another bouldery start past flake. Up the wall to a confounding section under the roof. Breach the roof, then directly up to anchors.

Start as for WBB but head right and up. Hard.