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TR: Winnie the Pooh (Mt Buffalo) 28-Mar-2012 At 12:45:16 PM hairy1

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In keeping with my interest in getting on climbs I haven't done at Buffalo, we summoned up the motivation to do Winnie the Pooh, a 4 pitch grade 19 on Sewer Wall. Instead of walking in, we rapped from below Beowulf on a 70m rope over the route (which just made the distance), looking for the standard not-often-repeated-route problems; water streaks, moss, choss and dirt. As it happened, besides a little bit of choss on the first (easier) pitch, the rock was clean, dry and solid!

Alice led the first pitch, ~15m grade 16ish - if you were rapping in it might be worth omitting this pitch, as whilst its not worthless, its not up to par with the second and third pitches

pitch 1: pretty straightforward really.

Rapping over the route, I worked out all the key beta for the second pitch - unlocking the crucial body thrutch, off-fist thrutch, chimney sequence off the ledge would be the key. It was gold! I ripped up one arm of my thermal top and have scratches from my knees to my elbows. Hats off to the FA team in 1972, I guess they must have really wanted to survive. Seconding it, the (somewhat) skinny alice found she could get deeper in the crack and squirmed up it in next to no time. The rest of the pitch was described as "easier" but in reality off fist jamming and laybacking up an increasingly steep line is not that easy.

Alice emerging from the crux of pitch 2:

Alice seconding P2:

Having been comprehensively shut down on Cachaphonic crack the day before (well in to the crux "sequence" but well clear of success) Alice was a bit nervous glancing up at the "crux" third pitch. Happily for her she could get her entire left leg in to it, and slimed up it with aplomb.

Alice leading the "crux" pitch using the ever reliable knee jam. Classic bum shot.

We took one look at the fourth pitch (a haven of biodiversity) and elected to scramble up the gully to where we had abseiled in from.

All in all, pitch 2 and 3 are classic (for the genre) climbing up a striking, clean line - especially when viewed from the north wall - probably worth a star each. Wear socks.