★★ Ross Miller Route 19

An adventure route up an interesting section of Tibro. Take some long slings and 14 draws and either a double rope or trail a second rope if rapping (40m rap). Optional #3 C4 Camalot or medium hex, although most leaders will be confident running it out or slinging ironwoods in the absence of gear. There are some run out sections and there are patches of poor rock, interspersed with sections of fun and exposed climbing.

Access: From the old climber's carpark, take the right fork of the Tibrogargan track, heading north. Follow the track until you reach some chairs and a picnic table, after which you'll ascend some steps to find a small trail leaving the main track on the left. Follow this to the base of Candy Mountain. The Ross Miller Route starts directly above this small crag. To access this ledge, head left uphill until the rock face turns back in to form an alcove with a large tree in it. Scramble up the rock on the right-hand side of the tree and traverse right for about 20m. You will find a leftward trending gully with bolts on the headwall directly on its right-hand side. The route begins here.

Route:

1. 25m (18) Up to FH then tricky moves right to 2nd FH, follow the line of FH's avoiding suspect rock as necessary.

2. 25m (15) Typical Tibro face climbing following line of FH's, when you reach the ironwood bushes, clip the abseil re-direct sling and continue up and left to the anchor.

3. 20m (11) Head up the obvious corner directly above the anchor (optional gear) to the tree (sling), continue up the corner to the next tree (sling) then delicately step right and head up to FH on headwall then continue up to anchor.

4. 25m (18) Up following FH's right of blunt arete.

5. 25m (19) Engaging climbing following FH's into corner and out onto top face, continue up to anchor.

6. 15m (13) Climb slabby section following FH's trending left in the second half to anchor at base of head wall.

7. 15m (19) Left off the belay to first FH then cruxy moves for a couple of metres past FH's to anchor avoiding the crumbly holds.

8. 30m (16) Follow the line of well-spaced FH's to anchor, stop to peer into the madness of sport climbing in cave 5 on the way.

There are various descent options, including:

• Continue climbing slightly left and up unprotected but easy climbing and good rock and either rappel left into Cave 5 or down the Caves Route chimney then descend the Caves Route, or

• Traverse right along ledge to scrubby bushes and the 5th anchor of SBB, climb its (unprotected) 6th pitch and walk off, or

• Rap back down the route in 6 pitches:

  1) 30m Straight down to previous anchor (top pitch 7).

  2) 40m Straight down to anchor at top of 5.

  3) 40m Down into free air and then scramble left to anchor at top of pitch

  4) 20m Straight down between the trees then scramble left on the ledge to anchor at top of pitch 2, be careful of loose blocks and small rocks here.

  5) 25m Traverse out right underneath ironwood bushes and clip rope through permanent sling and biner to redirect abseil (missing as of August 2018, rap straight back down to anchor at top of pitch 1 or it may be possible to reach the ground on a 50m rap.

  6) 25m To ground and scramble out the way you came in.

Modern climbers establishing new routes have taken great pains to ensure any new routes do not interfere with the historic routes established many decades ago.

Retro-bolting of existing routes is unacceptable!

New routes shall make use of traditional protection where available.