The Far North - R&R on the Great Ocean Road and the Great Barrier Reef

After the crash (see last post) I spent a solid week at camp in Arapiles recuperating and just hanging out. I revisited the scene more than a couple times, I spent a lot of time reflection on the accident, my travel plans and just life in general. I was glad to have this time to take a breath and reflect, but after a week I was ready to move on and have some fun. It's pretty rough sitting in Arapiles with a busted hand not being able to climb anything ;)

Fortunately I was due to meet up with my parents in Melbourne. I had a few days to kill yet before they arrived. I was very keen to explore the 'Surf Coast' of Victoria which is west of Melbourne on the Great Ocean Road. Unfortunately, I was still missing a bunch of skin and my hand/the rest of me was probably too sore to surf. I made the tough call to leave the boards behind. Sofie graciously agreed to look after my car whilst I travelled with my folks; we set off to explore Coastal Victoria together so that she could drive Sheela back to camp at Arapiles once I'd met my folks in Melbourne.

The coast of Victoria is beautiful, unique yet very familiar. The cool crisp ocean air, big trees, high bluffs above the sea are all very reminiscent of Central California. I was happy, fascinated and homesick all at the same time. This was one of those beautiful Fall surf days that I left behind just 6 months ago. We drove the coast pulling over from time to time to soak in a beautiful view or check a potential surf spot. I found myself saying this over and over: 'I can't wait to get back here with my boards, it's like Big Sur with point breaks!!'

Halfway down the coast to Melbourne, we stopped for a hike in the Cape Otway National Park. This region boasts a stand of giant eucalyptus which are some of the tallest in Australia. Interestingly, they also have planted a grove of California Redwoods in the area. I guess the climate etc. is conducive to growing big trees! We skipped the redwood grove and went on a hike through a lush forest of giant ferns and gum trees. We saw a few gorgeous waterfalls along the way. The falls and pools beneath were difficult to access so swimming wasn't an option. This was fine since it was pretty chilly anyhow, instead we kicked back and enjoyed the sights, sounds and smells of this serene forest.

The next day we picked up my folks in Melbourne at the airport. It was nice to see them after what seems like a very long time. They were excited to see me and perhaps more excited to be on the other side of the world in a country they had never visited before. We enjoyed a delicious lunch on the warf and got caught up. They were pretty tired after a lot of travel so they retired to an afternoon nap.

The next day was a big one which involved quite a bit of driving. In the end it was worth it and my parents were delighted to see an excellent variety of Australian flora and fauna. We set off early in the morning for the big drive from Melbourne to Cape Wilson's Promontory. The tip of this peninsula is the southernmost point of mainland Australia. Just after entering the gates of the park we saw giant emu's and kangaroo's. After taking some pictures we drove down to some gorgeous secluded beaches on the western side of the Cape. We saw gorgeous red parrots in the parking lot. There was even some nice granite bouldering to be found right on the beach! Next time... Next stop was Phillip Island to see the famous march of the penguins. We watched hundreds of these little blue and white critters waddle up the beach in waves to their little holes. Definitely entertaining. Of more interest to me.. the penguins made their march from a cove inside what appeared to be an epic right reef-point. I asked one of the rangers and sure enough, on a good swell, this spot fires!

I spent the next couple of days touring Victoria with my folks before flying up to Cairns for our boat tour of the Great Barrier Reef. I'd definitely been looking forward to this trip and was very glad that my injuries wouldn't prevent me from partaking in the snorkeling and diving. The GBR is one of the most spectacular spots in the world for snorkeling and SCUBA. I hadn't done a whole lot of research or looked at many pictures; I relished the surprise of what lurked below the bright blue water. Bright and early in the morning we stepped aboard a 60ft steel hulled sailboat along with ten or so other reef-bound tourists. We were given a quick tour of the amenities onboard (which were luxurious by my sailboat cruising standards, but some might feel differently), and then we set off out to sea to see the 'Outer Reef'. The reefs furthest from shore are said to have the clearest water and the most abundant wildlife due to their proximity to deep water.

A few hours later, the crew had us tied off to a mooring ball in the lee of 'Tedford's Reef'. The reef was a crescent of even brighter, light blue water which stretched for a mile in either direction from where we were anchored. In no time at all I was wetsuited up, snorkel and flippers on and swimming eagerly towards the reef. Immediately any expectations I had about the experience and the wildlife were blown out of the water (no pun intended). The water was crystal clear and I could see 40-50 feet in every direction. There were fish of all sizes, shapes and colors all over the place. I hadn't even made it to the reef yet! The reef itself is a fantastic array of shapes and colors and textures. Giant blue cauliflower, bright red and razor sharp pitchforks, mushroom caps, brain looking thingys. It's hard to describe and the pictures can't even do it justice. Although a few of them did turn out pretty well ;)

During our two days at the reef I saw just about every character in Pixar's Finding Nemo. I saw majestic golden turtles, creepy white stingrays, small but intimidating reef sharks and a wide assortment of colorful tropical fish. Let me tell you, as fantastic and colorful as that movie was, it doesn't hold a candle to the real thing. I spent as much time as I could snorkeling around, practicing my freediving technique, finding epic tunnels and canyons in the reef with big sleeping fish and other critters abound. Next it was time to put on the tank. Initially I was a bit hesitant, worried about clearing my ears, getting the bends etc. but given all there was to see I felt like I shouldn't miss out. My SCUBA instructor Zac, from Arizona of all places, was excellent, knowledgable and made me feel extremely comfortable about the whole process. By the end of the trip I had done 3 dives and now I'm keen for more! Some day I'll have to get my SCUBA ticket.

It was awesome to hang out with my folks and see them having such a good time. This boat trip was the perfect blend of excitement and relaxation for all of us to enjoy. In addition to the reef we had excellent food and company and an exciting sail to and from the reef. There was a minor hangup when our anchor snagged a coral head on the last day. The windless winch failed and pulling up the anchor proved to be a rather dangerous situation as the length of the chain flew out of it's compartment and into the water (twice) each time the brake failed. In the end my Dad (a lifelong sailor) helped the crew to position the boat over the anchor. The captain of the ship, jumped into the water with a scuba tank to free the anchor from the reef, and the remaining crew and I pulled 40 meters of chain out of the water. Fitness party!! Whew it was physical and my bad hand hurt like hell, but it was fun nonetheless. I hadn't had an adrenaline fix like that for a few weeks... The sail home was wild, we arrived back at port in Cairns a bit later than expected, exhausted and content. Back in Cairns, we enjoyed one last meal together before my parents flew out to see Sydney and New Zealand.

Lucky me, I had a couple more days to kill in the 'Far North'. I took a bus up to the sleepy, tropical town of Port Douglas. When I arrived in town I went straight to the beach. The water looked a bit murky due to the onshore breeze blowing so I op ted for a run instead of a swim. The beach was long and gorgeous. The southern end formed a nice hook turning the breeze sideshore and there were a bunch of kiteboarders haning out. There was a reef which kept the water dead flat and a very consistent/moderate amount of breeze. It looked like the best place to learn the sport in the world. Boy I was wishing I had a setup at that moment.

That night, I enjoyed some lively conversation at the hostel and a bottle of wine along with some salami and cheese my folks had left me. I woke up the next morning a bit later than planned and caught a bus to Mossman's Gorge. I could only spend a couple of hours, but I enjoyed every moment. I strolled through the lush and bright green rainforest. I took a dip in the clear blue and refreshing river. I've never swum in fresh water that was both warmer and clearer than this. It was a gorgeous swimming hole. Out in the middle of the river, the water moved at a nice pace so that you could swim up river indefinitely, without moving. Somebody threw some bread crumbs into the river and a lively school of decent sized fish came out of nowhere to eat the crumbs.

In the end my trip to the 'Far North' was exceptional, unique and far too brief. I think with the right gear I could spend months up there exploring the reef and the jungle and not get bored. I would recommend a stop here to anyone traveling this side of the world.

Check out this video! http://youtu.be/cWZytRRTjaY

And these photo's: Click one to expand/ see a slideshow.

Pumping surf way out to sea near the 'Twelve Apostles'

Sofie leaning on a leaning tree

Small lines wrapping into Winkipop near Bell's Beach

Chillin' Hard in Mossman Gorge Queensland

Swimming hole in the jungle

shark

Zac the SCUBA-MASTA

Turtles can be hard to spot!

The colors are magical!

Our awesome hosts

Crashing back to earth

It's been a while since I've posted. As a few of you know, I had a nasty climbing crash a couple weeks ago. Don't worry, I came out alright. I'm incredibly fortunate the consequences weren't worse. I wrote the following account the day after the crash. I was freaked out and ashamed. My injuries are healing and I'm slowly coming to terms with what happened. I'm eager to get back on the rock, but I won't rush it. When I wrote the following, the wounds were fresh and my mental state was fragile. I feel like this was as honest an account as I could have written.

Crashing Back to Earth

looking up the gully the day after

I hesitate to write this passage for a few reasons. Mostly, I'm embarrassed that I blew it. I don't want to worry my mother and other loved ones more than I already have. I don't want my friends to think I'm reckless or to be afraid to climb with me. However, I also want to be candid and let everyone know what happened so they can learn from my mistakes.

The last few weeks I've been climbing a LOT in the Grampians and Arapiles. Lots of routes: sportclimbing, tradclimbing and occasionally freesoloing the Bard. I've been feelin fit and solid and confident. Too confident. I climbed through more than a couple sticky situations and escaped injury by simply hanging on (remember The Wraith from the last post?).

Yesterday, I decided to take it easy and cruise some classics with my friend Jane. Almost a rest day I thought. We started up the Bard with a light rack. I wasn't worried about running it out since I'd done the route so many times. We were stuck behind a slow party so I decided to take a variant pitch called Checkmate 17/5.8 a few grades harder but still well under my limit. I stuck in some gear and started running out a cruxy layback. No worries, I got to some jugs and started to think about gear. In the blazing sun my palms started sweating and oozing the sunscreen I'd put on 15 minutes earlier.
Chalk didn't help, my feet were bad and no matter how hard I gripped my hands were sliding off the holds. I had to go; facing a bad fall I ran it out further to a good stance and breathed a sigh of relief. No worries, I escaped like I have been; by not falling off. We cruised the rest of the route and went back to camp; we had an epic lunch followed by a couple beers and hackysacking. Spirits were high.

Jane was keen to get some more climbing done. I was down for a couple more easy routes. We casually made the short stroll to the crag Organ Pipes. I was feeling loose and made the walk with a small cup of wine in hand and no helmet. We picked a classic 2-pitch moderate which I quickly sewed up safely with gear. I placed more than usual b/c I was feeling a slight buzz from the wine. We topped out safely no drama an hour or two later. Too easy mate.

I was feeling tired, but felt like I should take Jane up one more climb since it was her last day in Araps. On our descent we passed by Lemmington 19/10a. Eager to add another worthy onsite to my stupid ticklist, I felt like I had to sack up and hop on it instead of something easier despite feeling a bit drowsy. It had been a couple hours since my 3 drinks at lunchtime so I felt like I should have been dead sober but I felt just a bit wierd. I pushed my doubts out of my mind and focused on the climb which starts just above a very steep gully.

looking down the gully

There was a bolt at the base of the climb for the belayer. Sweet, I tethered Jane to it (with a doublelength dyneema sling); she put me on her ATC; I felt good about her stance. The climb starts by traversing above the belayer to a small ledge above the void created by the gully. After doing our safety checks (knot/harness) I set off an cruised the traverse to the ledge. I opted not to place a piece in the traverse, since the climbing was secure and I wanted to save a cam and was worried about ropedrag or something. I figured a piece that low wasn't going to keep me off the ground anyways; best to just not fall. What happened next is hard to explain. I was stood on the ledge after the traverse, with a hand on the wall not holding anything. I reached with my left hand to grab a piece and just lost my balance. I felt myself go backwards and I couldn't find anything to grab.

I was horrified because I knew I was over the void an that I didn't have any gear in. I was going to hit the ground hard. I spotted the landing and hit it with my feet. I rolled out backwards down the gully. I felt the rope slow my fall a bit on my harness, but then I was falling again and fast, upsidedown, I was screaming terrified. I put my hands out to protect my head. I rolled and bounced up into the air, and then again, then maybe one more time. Best I can describe it was like a snowboarding tumble, where you just keep flipping with your hands out, except I was not over snow. I finally stopped, fetal in the base of the gully 40+ feet below the climb. I was still screaming, terrified that I had broken everything in my body. But somehow I hadn't. I stopped screaming and started groaning. I wiggled my toes and fingers. I hurt, but I was fine.. ish. I was about to get up and walk it off when some fellow climbers (rescue trained; one was a doctor) came to help. They implored me not to move and held me down. I wanted to get up and walk it off; I wanted to pretend like it hadn't happened. It was too late for that; better safe than sorry, sometimes you can't feel a broken back. How could somebody fall that far and not break their back?

Thanks to the help of a bunch of awesome climbers and some rad paramedics, I found myself in the hospital some hours later (via ambulance and backboard). Xrays showed no major injuries. My hand is swollen, my ribs hurt on one side. I'm missing a bunch of skin. All things considered 'I'm one lucky bastard'. I've heard that so many times already. It's true. My belayer Jane copped the worse injury I reckon. She slammed into the wall, dislocated her shoulder and got flipped upside down, which is why she wasn't able to arrest my fall. I don't blame her. I should have had a piece in above her.

How many things did I do wrong? So many; soo many things. 1. Gri gri's and helmet's are a good idea. 2. Booze and trad climbing don't go well together. 3. Getting a piece in from the ground/belay is never a bad idea; if you are worried about rope drag you can always have your belayer unclip it once you have more gear in. 4. Most importantly, make sure your head is right before pulling on. Don't let ego get in the way of your intuition. I didn't feel like doing that climb. Begrudgingly I let my ego win; one more 2star 19 for the ticklist. That's totally meaningless but the potential consequences aren't.

I'm sorry for everybody I hurt (mostly Jane), let down or scared in the process. All I can do is promise I've learned a lot in the process. Not everybody get's nine lives, but I certainly feel like I've burned one here. Trying not to roll the dice in the future.

END

Well now that we're are all scared shitless, here are some sweet shots of all the epic rockclimbing we did pre-crash and a couple shots of post crash Araps life.

cruisin around the gramps

Inspector Gadget 24***

Vlad attempting the jump onto Super Mario Bros 25

Epic 24 at The Gallery

Sunset at The Gramps

The damage, healing underway

No climbing = chess (and beer)

The Arapiles

What can I say? Bombproof featured orange stone, endless, unique, well-protected gear climbs all a stones throw from a cheap/free campground. Does it get better?

Suffice it to say I've been having a blast here at the Arapiles. I just two weeks ago but it feels like I live here. I love my campsite. I love going climbing whenever I feel like it. Cooking, slacklining n plain chilling the rest of the time.

When I first arrived Sofie and I cruised up the classic grade 12/5.6 4-pitch route called The Bard. Great belay ledges, steep exciting climbing on big bomber features. I soaked up the exposure and enjoyed the views. We were without a nut tool (lost a week or two earlier) so we got a nut stuck. I wandered around camp and asked a friendly climber if I could borrow one. The sunset was beautiful and the time felt right for my first free solo. I did my best to remain calm as I cruised up the first pitch to retrieve the stuck nut. I took deep breaths and kept my feet solid on the wandery and polished slab. I sighed with releif when I reached the ledge and started to work on the nut. The relief was short lived as the nut was pretty stuck and that pretty sunset was getting dimmer. A long 5 minutes later the nut popped free and I stuck it onto the sling I carried over my shoulder. Running low on daylight I down-climbed the pitch which was exciting but I felt really solid.

I remembered an Alex Honnold interview where talked about how when he's soloing he shifts his focus from fear/ego to just climbing really perfectly. Not just well enough not to fall, but as perfectly as he can. I found that when I did this, not only did it calm me down but I felt safer. The next evening I walked back over to the base of The Bard with a mat, stretched out, ate an orange and climbed 300 feet to the top of the Bluffs (one of the tallest formations @ the mount) and enjoyed a beautiful sunset when I reached the top. I descended the semi via ferrata Ali's Decent and arrived back at my mat about 45 minutes from when I started. This was one of the coolest experiences of my life and something totally new to me. The headspace I achieved on this solo has helped me to really feel solid on the rock while leading on gear since then.

After a couple days cruising moderates with Sofie, I was ready to start ramping it up and pushing the grade just a little bit. I set my sights on the exciting but well-protected Tannin (19/5.10a). My goal was to keep it mellow while learning to place small gear on face climbs. I failed... I was a little too psyched and just missed my line. Instead, I found myself on the thin and frightening line to the right called The Wraith (21/5.10d). By the time I had realized what had happened I was through the crux and run-out over small gear. It was getting dark and Sofie was getting nervous. 'Chains... get me to the chains up top was my thought'. I was pumped, but I turned off the fear and just kept climbing, finally I found some good gear and pulled through to the top.

I was sweaty and shaken when I reached the ground. On one hand I was proud of myself for the onsite (which was near my limit), pushing through the fear and for just not falling. On the other I was disappointed... How could I miss my line? It's so obvious, how could I sandbag myself so badly? I took a day off to kinda think reflect on my mistake. Fortunately there are plenty of sweet boulders around camp to stay busy. I returned calmer and more focused the following day and cruised my intended route Tannin.

Since that misstep on The Wraith, I've been as solid as ever. I've onsighted nearly every 21 and under that I've tried. I came really close to an onsite of the sustained and slippery Squeakeasy (22/5.11b in the photos below). After the crux a short runout I was desperately pumped; I sunk in a bomber nut, climbed a bit farther and relaxed on a knee scum. Unfortunately I relaxed a bit too much and the kneebar slipped and I took a long but safe winger. I was gutted to learn that there was a jug just one move farther; I just needed to keep fighting!

The other day a crew of us made the obligatory trip up to Kachoong (21/10d). This is the most photographed route in all of Oz, for good reason. I got caught up taking photos and it was a bit late by the time I hopped on. I was super excited and nervous as I pulled on. Not scared, just nervous. This was 'the route' I came for, I didn't want to blow it. As stepped out onto the exposed wall below the roof I struggled to keep my heart rate down. When I reached the roof, my mind went empty and I got into the zone. I leaned out and stuck a bomber cam into the flake in the roof, then swung out onto the jugs and stuck in another smaller cam farther out the roof. I felt really solid climbing the roof on huge holds with good feet. I reached the lip and cut my feet loose and swung up a heel. I relaxed, chalked up and then finished turning the roof. I was really psyched! The exposure and the climbing really hit the adrenal gland.

Immediately my mind turned to Taste of Honey (22/11b) which is the stout megaclassic in the same area. My strong French buddy Vlad had just given it a go and come close but hung at the crux. I really wanted to fire the thing but the crew was ready to wrap up the day. Sofie was cold and I couldn't find an alternate belayer :(. Fortunately I think I just might get another shot ;). Til then, stay psyched homies!

The bluffs, Bard goes up the right side of the formation

Camp life

Vlad is a great cook, he used to sell crapes on the beach in NZ

Comic Relief 21/10d

Kachoong 21/10d

Starting up Squeakeasy 22/11b

Sof gettin ready to float Squeakeasy

NSW South Coast Roadie

South Coast Roadie

The last couple of weeks have been a been pretty sweet so I thought I should inform the blogosphere about the wonders of Southern NSW. I left the blueys on a high note after sending a couple of killer sport climbs that I had tried at the beginning of my time there. Sofie (my new climbing/roadtripping partner in crime) and I descended the misty blue mountains aiming for the coast. We landed in a small town on Port Hacking called Bundeena just south of Sydney. There is a large coastal national park that surrounds this town. Sofie set of on an epic coastal trek while I swam around in the beautiful blue waters of Port Hacking.

Sure beats the cubicle view

We reconvened some 15k or so south (Sofie has a lot of energy even on rest days!) and then headed down the coast towards a sportclimbing destination called Nowra. After passing this awesome headland with hangliders and parasailors, we stopped at a little coastal nook called Coalcliff. I surfed some small clean little peaks with no leash a stones throw from a nice sandy little beach. Around sunset, some local groms and loggers paddled out and shared the waves. The vibe was really mellow and awesome. I asked the lifeguard at the end of his shift if we could camp out at the beach. He says, 'Not really, but once I'm gone mate, nobody's gonna bother ya'. Needless to say we stayed... I woke up to a beautiful sunrise at an empty beach. I crawled outta my bunk grabbed my board and surfed some more fun little beachbreak nugs then feasted on some delish breakie.

Awesome parasailing and hangliding spot, looked fun as!!

Me n Sofie on the road

We played around in the ocean some more and tried to get Sofie standing on a couple waves using my finless shortboard which was pretty entertaining. Then rolled to the spectactular seacliffs at Pt. Perpendicular in Jervis Bay. I can't tell you how beautiful this place was. I'll let the pics do the talking.

Pt. Perp lighthouse

Jervis Bay Sunrise

After this we made our way down the coast to Nowra. Everything I had heard about Nowra was that it was a greasy little sport crag in a shit redneck/bogan town. What I didn't know was that the climbing overlooks a beautiful lazy brackish river with some pretty great fishing! The campground sits right across the river from the main area and offers free canoes, tennis rackets, courts and cheap hot showers. The setup was epic and we stayed longer than anticipated.

My first fish!

The climbing was better than expected too and I found myself climbing until I was wrecked day after day. Nowra has a diverse array of routes: nice edges on vertical walls, thuggy intimidating roofs with awesome features and jugs, steep pumpfests on good pockets. After spending the first few days doing a tour of the classic easier stuff, Sofie picked out a neat looking 24/12a called Pale Yellow Underwear. I was more psyched to try other lines, but Sofie was keen to hop on it. Turned out to be a radical route with really interesting moves up the wall before culminating in a radical dyno. I came close to sending the first day, but just didn't have the juice to stick the dyno on the link from the ground.

We took a rest day the next day and checked the waves at nearby Werri Beach. There was nothing doing on this day but a major swell was forecasted for the next few days. I went to bed that evening psyched and was planning on a big day of surf and project sending. Turns out the river got the best of me; I woke up the next morning feeling a little bit feverish and my foot was throbbing. A barnacle cut I had gotten on a rock in the river had become infected and I needed some anti-biotics. Fortunately the ER experience was pretty simple and I got in and out of there quickly (and fo' free...). Unfortunately this meant I was out of commish for a few days... missed the swell entirely and my climbing project was a bit derailed. After a few days, the road was calling and we needed to get going. On our last day, I was feeling well enough for a few climbs and once I warmed up I was even feeling pretty good and managed to send a popular 23/11c called Still Life. We were leaving the crag and walked past my project... I couldn't not give it a go:

I was soo close!! If I were feeling 100% I reckon it would've gone but alas it remains unticked and our roadtrip continued. Over the next few days we explored a bit of coast south of Nowra down to Bateman's Bay. The swell was really small, so I wasn't getting any waves and was kinda bummed. We spent our time fishing, swimming and snorkeling instead. I even bought a fancy snorkel it preparation for my trip to Cairns and the Great Barrier Reef in May.

The best snorkel spot we found was just south of Bateman's Bay and called Broulee Island. I saw all kinds of fish, rays and even a 6ft shark!! The shark was just a toothless sleeping bottom feeder but it was exciting nonetheless. Turns out there's an epic right hand reef/point that wraps around this island. The setup was insane, quite similar to El Capitan in Santa Barbara. While chatting up a local spearfisher/surfer I learned that the spot 'Pink Rocks' had been all-time on that swell I missed a week ago (damn...), but I also learned that another swell was coming in a few days which was forecasted to be similar in size. I decided to stick around the coast an extra few days to catch the swell. It was a bit smaller than forecasted and the spot was just starting to work, but with just a few guys out at this epic setup it was hard to complain. I surfed in the cold rain for as long as I could handle. I came to the beach shivering and feeling weak to swap my shortboard for my smallish wave board. I was on the fence since I was so cold, but decided to jump off the rocks and catch a couple more. Sure enough a couple of proper shoulder high sets came through and I got a couple epic rides all the way around the point into the cove. They just might've been my best rides of the trip so far!

That said we left the coast on a high note and made our way up to Mount Buffalo with the intention of sampling some of the only Australian granite climbing. Weather prohibited us from climbing but we still went on a few cool short walks and hit an epic swimming hole (during a breif sunny spell). This part of the country is really unique and beautiful. Definitely worth a visit! Check out some photos:

Mt. Buffalo

Leaving the Blueys!

Leaving the Blueys!

It's been a while since I've updated the blog, eh? Probably because not much has changed. I've spent the last month in the Blue Mountains climbing pretty much as much as my body could handle, I spent most of the leftover time chilling and playing pool at the Katoomba Backpackers hostel. Aside from the weather, my time in the Blueys was pretty fricken awesome!

Dom and I climbed hard rain or shine right up until he left a couple weeks ago. We were fortunate enough to get a decent weather window to do a multi-pitch sport climb called Rutger Hauer (23/5.11c) at Peirce's Pass just before he left. To get to the base of the route, we had to Absail ~100m to a ledge in the middle of a 200m wall. Locating the rap anchors turned out to be the crux of the day; after wandering around the top of the escarpment for the better part of an hour we finally located the rap station and it was smooth sailing from there. The first rap was pretty wild, a 50m hanging rappel straight down to the next station. Spinning around in space 100+m off the deck was enough to put my stomach in a knot. 

I'll try and put together a quick vid, but here's a few photos from our day:

After Dom left, I met a German climber Sofie who has been backpacking around OZ since October. She's fresh outta high school, but already a backpacking veteran and a strong climber to boot. The last couple of weeks we have been touring the various sport crags that stay dry in the (constant) rain and mist. Fortunately, there are a few, so we have still managed to get some stuff done. We had an epic sesh at 'the Freezer' and we both sent the epic pumpfest Good Big Dog 24/5.12a. On a dryish day we also visited the classic trad/mixed crag at Mt.York. Sofie was psyched and danced up the beautiful wandery slab Exhibition Wall 21/11a, while I hopped on and flailed up some thin/sandy 22 slabs. I ticked a classic pumpy mixed route.The weather finally cleared (breifly; a thick arvo thunderstorm moved in...) on our last day in the Bluey's and I sent some projects on my favorite wall in the mountains, Upper Shipley.

This is the first time I've ever been able to sport climb outside so consistently; despite the conditions, my climbing has improved dramatically (in the Blue Mountains enduro/reachy style), and I've sent some super quality routes at my hardest grades ever! Highlights include: Splitwave 23/5.11c (epic Jug haul with an awesome roof); Good Big Dog at the Freezer 24/12a (Flash; soft; long enduro pumpfest on nice rock with a great deadpoint crux right at the end!); Lardy Lady Lats 22/11b (Stiff; nice techy slab to a wild bouldery sequence through an overhang at the top); Hot Flyer 23/11c (Just next to Lardy Lady; similar but with a longer and more sustained bit through the overhang up top).

Sofie made a last minute change of plans and decided to join me for a roadtrip down the South Coast of NSW (stopping by Point Perpendicular, the thuggy sport climbing in Nowra and hopefully a few surf spots ;) ), potentially through Mt Buffalo, then on to the famed Grampians and at last Arapiles (the 'World's Best Crag'). To be continued!