Rongy and I headed out on Sunday for a bit of fun at Wilyabrup. We decided to get there early, so as we were driving west on Metricup Road five minutes from our destination I could see, in the rear view mirror, the sun starting to inch it’s way above the horizon. The sky seemed hazy and as a result the sun was a deep red. It was not until it had broken free from the horizon that it turned into the more familiar brilliant yellow. We got to the carpark to find four cars and a bus parked up, not taking much notice of them we shouldered our packs and wandered down:
Rongy had hinted on the drive down that we could have diverted and gone to Smiths Beach. However, for those who have experienced that place you’ll understand that it is not the sort of trip you just decide on. You need to mentally prepare yourself for the routes there, whereas Wilyabrup is like a familiar old friend. That said we had talked about how it would be good to jump on those less frequented climbs, and so we started Verbosity which while less climbed is one I’ve done a bunch of times. The rock was a bit damp, which we put down to the early start:
However, as I belayed Rongy up the first route I was watching the waves, and it was clear that while there was only a light wind it was a landward breeze. I could see the fine mist that normally trails behind the waves being blown toward the cliffs. This meant that the greasy feel of the rock that the mist and salt residue leaves was not likely to disappear as the morning wore on. So as we scrambled back down after the first climb I was left wondering what to tackle next, I had in mind to pick something on the Fat Chance Wall as this is probably the least climbed area:
With that I jumped on Slapping the Fat, a climb I have only once many years back done before. The bouldery start with limited gear, and in these conditions, felt very sketchy and I climbed up and down a number of times before committing to the crux. From there I eased into the climb and had a great feeling of satisfaction of having gone for it. As Rongy followed me up we saw the first of many other climbers, in fact on this trip the place was to be the busiest we had seen it in many years. We lost count of how many people rocked up both walkers and climbers:
One of those less trodden routes that Rongy had in mind was Woman Accept If For What It Is. I led this one for the first time only recently so I had a clear memory of how sketchy it could feel, while water was not dripping down the face it was greasy and as such the first half was pretty serious. It was then that I heard a “hello uncle Krish” and Henry, Charlie, Oyukha and Craig appeared. I had to focus on Rongy leading, but once he was in a safer position we had a chat and it only then dawned on me that it was their bus in the car park:
Craig was not climbing, but when they had got up and saw my car there Oyukha said that they should bring down a thermos of tea for us. So it was that Rongy and I had an unexpected but very welcome tea break after a couple of cracking routes. Then it was time to get back to business and I drifted back to the Fact Chance Wall to a climb I have done a few times, but always get super scared on. The perfectly named Blubber Boy is a steep and sketchy slab with some small gear. Despite the conditions I felt more comfortable on it than ever before:
As I belayed Rongy up Mick rocked up with a tour group, and was shocked at the crowds he found. He asked what we were considering next and Rongy had already made his choice which unbeknown to him was one of Mick’s routes. So Rongy got to hear about the line from the first ascentist, not that he gave anything away. Stormbringer is not pushover and has an unspoken reputation, so much in fact that I have never seen anyone climb it. I have only ever seconded Craig up it many years back and since that experience have shied away from it:
The lower section is steep and brutal. Once you leave the comfortable looking stance above you may have reasonable handholds the feet are on smears and the longer you ponder over each move the more your strength gets sapped. On my last attempt I floundered there for ages and Rongy didn’t fare much better this time. The upper wall then seems to offer loads of options for handholds but they are slopey and less than comfortable at the best of times, so it takes time to find the best ones. Today they were horrendous making it even harder work:
After making a clean ascent of the energy sapping first section I then seemed to lose all forearm strength and struggled on the upper section. Eventually making it with my veins popping out. So for the last climb of the session I made the sensible choice to jump on Mid-Wall Crisis, a route that really was new ground. I’ve not being on this line nor either of the two routes that it makes use of. I missed a crucial hold and made one section much harder than it needed to be, which drained me and led to me hanging in my harness to recover before slowly finishing the line:
So on this busy day when there were ropes all over the place, by choosing those less popular lines we managed to avoid the crowds and queues. Despite being less frequented routes they were all great fun, and despite being in less than perfect condition we climbed them in good style, until the last two. At least we both have unfinished business to attend on our next trip down, when hopefully the rock will be in better condition. Which is likely as on the walk out we saw a sure sign on improving weather coming; Pink Fairies and Purple Enamel orchids:
As we walked out at midday a group of eight were walking down to join the throngs. We never understand why people climb so late on hotter days, but in a way are grateful they do. Finally we were back at the carpark and it was packed, all the bays were taken up and cars were lined up on both sides of the road. It certainly seems strange that with all those people climbing today we were still able to find quite spots on the cliffs and stay away from the crowds and off the beaten track on routes that really deserve more attention:
Sandbagged 