Next week it looks like this fine autumn weather we have been getting is likely to break. So I decided on another midweek climb, and Rongy was also keen. I left it to him as to where he would like to climb and the first thing that popped into his mind was Wallcliffe. Unfortunately for various reason climbing has been banned there, but the bolts as yet have not been chopped. I however, through work, have a fair bit of dealings with the local government who have been primarily responsible for the closure of that crag ,and so was not comfortable with undertaking a covert mission there:
So instead we ended up at Wilyabrup, which just pipped Castle Rock. The longer routes here are what swayed it, Castle Rock is very different but also very short. Now having been to Wilyabrup a few times of late we decided it was high time to hit Steel Wall. We hadn’t set our heart on any particular routes and would see how the day unfolded. I kicked things off by leading up the first half of Simply Suicide, to allow us to reach the half height ledge. It was greasy and I was cold, one or both of which resulted in me popping off the crux move. Maybe I should have properly warmed up by started on the lower grade first pitch of Sirius:
In the above image, and on the ground below us, you may see the H symbol. Signalling the landing platform, i.e. a piece of cloth, for a drone. Rhys had joined us and wanted to test out his new drone, and that meant we could get a whole new perspective of the cliff and climbing. The reduced images in this post probably won’t do them justice but they still give a great view of the setting in which the Wilyabrup cliffs are nestled. Rongy pulled off the greasy hold moves without slipping, and on arrival at the belay was keen to check out the second half of Delving Devoid:
With the new technology the drone was pretty quiet and didn’t sound like an annoying mosquito, which is what I have experienced with drones previously. You can just about make us out on the mighty Steel Wall, towards the left end. Mere specks on the grand collection of orange and grey buttresses that make Wilyabrup such a great place to climb. Below Rongy is launching up his pitch, this will only be the third time I have seen this line climbed, first by myself with Craig, then Howsie and now Rongy (both with me):
It is very much a traditional climb, a thin seam on small but adequate protection. When I say adequate protection I mean adequate for the more die hard trad climbers. Bold climbing is required. This includes having the knowledge and trust to know when even the smallest of wires, such as the one below, will hold a fall if it needs to. Watching Rongy work his way higher I felt he was being brave to take on this line considering the greasy nature of the rock, but then as I have said countless times that never seems to worry him as much as others or myself:
We scrambled back down and this time already knew where we were heading. As I checked out a route that Rhys was eyeing up, which will get mentioned later, Rongy got on with the usual drill. By the time he had the first piece of gear in I had him on belay. This time we made use of the first pitch of Sirius to get back to the same belay spot that we had used earlier. Steve you’ll be pleased to know that Rongy used the same pink tricam placement as you did, and this time I successfully removed it on second:
From that belay my line was straight up the steep wall. Unclaimed as I called it, has a nervous start to clip the first bolt. I was feeling uneasy with the prospect of hanging on delicately to insecure holds to clip the first bolt, with the prospect of a nasty landing on the ledge if I slipped. Strangely for the start and in fact the entire route I felt at ease, there was no fiddling about working moves and each hold I went for felt good despite at times being very thin. Based on the two grade 18 routes we had climbed today Rongy and I started to wonder if we under-graded the new lines we had recently put up at the Organ Pipes, ah well it is not likely that anyone will ever repeat them:
Another scramble back down to the deck, and now Rongy liked the idea of climbing Pascal’s Route. This was in part as we had bumped into Pascal, for the first time, a few weeks back and in part due to the route now sporting two new bolts. This meant that it was a on full sports route and it also took a different line to Simply Suicide from the shelf upwards. It did however mean he had to climb the first pitch of my first chosen line. A slight breeze began to stir and this helped dry the rock, making the crux moves up to the ledge that little bit more enjoyable:
It’s a great clean line from start to finish, with a reachy crux near the top. One that made Denis falter and slip off years back, so it really is reachy. It was hard to tell from the bottom but Rongy later confessed that he almost misread the moves and came off. I too was super close to coming off at this point, you have to suck into the wall and inch your way up gingerly on poor slopey holds barely big enough to put your finger tips on. By the time I got to the top I was feeling pretty pooped, quite possible a fourth day of climbing within a week was taking it’s toll:
One more time we scrambled down, or it would be more technically correct to say we down climbed. The gulley of Buttress Corner is never too challenging, but you still have to keep your wits about you. A slip would result in a long and bumpy fall. After that last route even this down-climb was feeling pretty tiring, but it was my lead next and I had thought that it would be up Stainless Steel. A grade harder again, but one we are familiar with and feel reasonably safe on. Rhys was however still eyeing up the route we had been looking at before, and so my attentions got diverted to that line:
Rhys’s Rapid Retreat, was the climb that saw the downfall of his climbing. He was having a go at leading this route when he took a near catastrophic fall, and while we carried on climbing that day it was not until a few days later that the reality of what nearly happened hit him. He has never really overcome that. Seeing he was keen to try it I went up that route, only to realise just how tired I was. It was hard work and I made it look even harder. I’m hoping that I didn’t put Rhys off, or did he call it for what it really was? Either way, not being climbing fit, he said he pumped out on the initial steep wall was it was pointless trying to complete the route:
After he decided against following me Rongy cleaned the line. Now while I was climbing I noticed, out of the corner of my eye, someone setting up a rope on top of Steel Wall. As I set up the belay and Rhys was attempting the line the person had wandered down. He then settled into a rock armchair, which would make Lisa jealous, to watch Rongy climb (near the top of the image above). I had an inkling that I knew this figure, which prove correct, and it was non-other than Pascal! How freaky to bump into him twice in as many weeks, when I had not seen him before in some 15 years of climbing here:
We had a chat about his route, and he was very pleased to hear that it had been climbed just that morning. He had organised to meet up with a few other climbers, ones that I had only met a couple of times before. They were however a little late arriving, so after Rongy had led Stainless Steel without seemingly breaking a sweat, Pascal went up next. He practically ran up the route so while I feel it would pretty good to get out climbing with him sometime, I’m not sure if I could keep up:
My turn next, and despite feeling weary I found my own less rushed pace and enjoyed the climb. Rhys had the drone flying this way and that but again I never heard it, as he captured many great angles some far off and some pretty close. Too many to include in this post. I easily passed what some call the crux, as I always have. Then faltering slightly at the next slabby section and went direct, under instructions/directions from Rongy. He’s right it is the best way to go. Then it was only the final headwall, a couple of last pumpy moves and once atop I could feel my body say now I need to rest:
Rhys brought the drone in closer for one last image before that too was brought back down with close to exhausted batteries. We were preparing for the last scramble down, only then to have to walk back up; um when I say it like that you can understand when people ask “why?”. Before we headed down Aaron and the rest of the crew rocked up, to climb with Pascal. During a chat I discovered that he had moved to Peppy Beach six months back and lived just down the road from us. It really is a small world:
Sandbagged 