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Crag & Route Beta

Area	Location	Sub Location	Crag	Links
VIC Buffalo	(General)	(General)	(General)	[ Mt Buffalo Guide \| Images ]

Author

what's a "must have rack" for Mt Buffalo?

rightarmbad

11-Dec-2009
10:53:00 PM

You going to do 'Angels'?


russianSpy

11-Dec-2009
10:58:04 PM

thanks M9,

i've been tossing up whether to just brave it and run around generating my own heat then dive for the sleeping bag as soon as it gets too cold or actually pack warm stuff. So far it's fitting in the backpack, so downbag+down mat+ down jacket should see me through any snow shower.

i am CURRENTLY from QLD, but I'm a mexican originally. and from a slightly colder place before that. but I guess coming from a week of 40deg every day has definitely reset my thermostat...

jgoding

13-Dec-2009
5:31:37 PM

Howdy, some of my suggested routes if you haven't been there much before, are:

Mackey’s Lookout: (see ACA for latest topos etc):
http://www.climb.org.au/index.php?page_id=10&action=area&area_id=1202
Noblese Obliege 13**
http://www.climb.org.au/index.php?page_id=10&action=crag&crag_id=415
A fundamental difference of opinion (16*). Great slabbing in a lovely area. not your usual run out! - need lots of bolt plates.
No Ego similar to above.

The Gorge:
Fantasies Of Gail (15*) in the waterfall area is supposed to be very nice
Home James (20**) – excellent, clean, appropriately protected, easy access. A pommie visitor the summer before last reckoned it deserved three stars
Fat Wall Ordinaire Banana Blasé (16**) – perhaps a bit on the short side, but one of the few routes of that sort of grade at Buffalo that is good quality, clean and easy to access.
Breathless (26***) - reputedly one of Ferret’s very best (and that includes some stiff competition indeed)
Pretty Girls with Long Knives (23***) – reputedly one of the best, maybe even THE best dyke route on the plateau (if you can find it!)
Hard Rain (22***) – Kevin Lindorff’s favorite route on the whole plateau
Beouwulf (18**) a good introduction to buffalo cracks
Vanity Fair (25***) Face climbing at it’s best
Vertical Tai Chi (25**) Classy steep wall climbing
Silk and Satin (21**) having had so many fantastic comments of late (and so many ascents) this surely must be a megaclassic.
Bannisters rush (21**) Sensational sustained well protected corner climbing / laybacking up immaculate rock in an outrageous position! A pants filler!
Where Angels fear to tread (17**) You’ll either love it or hate it!
Ozymandias (270m M4)
Lord Gumtree (284m M7)

The Cathedral: Sultan (20***) Maharajah (17***)
Fire in the foothills (19*) good face climbing with good pro, Shell Shock (19*) good face climbing
Bloodnock (17*) Good and clean and deserves two stars. Do the direct start - it looks really good.
Something under the bed is drooling (19) really deserves at least one star. A bit exiting at the top, but ok.
Edge of pleasure (21**) Just do the top pitch by abseiling in - you will need 2 ropes, as it's about 40m. Fantastic arête climbing on perfect rock, which is well bolted.
Aerial (17*) great face climbing
The Dreaming (23***)
Substance Abuse (24***)

The Hump:
Chickens in Choppers (19**) easy to get to, lovely introduction to slabbing at Buffalo.
Run Free with the Buffalo (19**) more superb slabbing right next to Chickens in Choppers
Cows with Guns (20**) just awesome slabbing. I’ve heard it said by some that this is a 3 star route!
The Initiation (18**) brilliant introduction to crack climbing at Buffalo. (How could this not get 3 stars?)
Icing on the Cake (22**)
Glossip Skins(25*), Glossip Skins Direct(24**)
They Might be Giants
Redbacks (23**)
Whitetails (24**)

The Horn:
The Pintle Left Hand Variant (16***) excellent crack climbing. Not much pro at the top where it’s easier (15m run out on the last bit, which while not hard would be daunting for anyone doing their first grade 16!).
Big Fun (15**) Just plain fun. I've heard of people having trouble finding the start so just take care.
Peroxide Blonde (20**) excellent arête climbing. The bolts are a little spaced to keep it exiting in places.
Hoi Polloi (16*) last pitch only deserves a star- great fun arête climbing, which is well bolted.
The Mothballs:
The biggest thing here (16*) - a tricky start but lovely well protected arête climbing above. Super easy access. Beginner friendly.
Waiting for a princess (19*) – gets grade 20 in the guide but is more like grade 19. A tricky weird bridgefest corner start but lovely well protected slab climbing above. Super easy access.

PS Not sure if you've seen them, but there are some updates to the current (V5) guide here:
http://www.vicclimb.org.au/index.php?location=publications
(if anyone has anything to add in the way of new routes or further corrections please feel free to e-mail me (buffaloguide@vicclimb.org.au or jgoding@aanet.com.au) with them and I'll update the update and send to the VCC to replace on their publications page so all can access).

I hope you have a great trip.

Joe


russianSpy

14-Dec-2009
7:55:50 AM

jgoding, that is wicked, thanks for the tips! =)

(i am just about to start driving, figured I'd just quickly jump in to check other things, so very glad i checked this out!)

thanks for all the replies so far, everyone! looking forward to a great week


gordoste

14-Dec-2009
9:36:02 AM

btw joe, i hope you can admit that waiting for a princess has too many bolts... wasn't it one of the first routes you put up at buffalo? i like the bolt spacing on your mackey's lookout routes MUCH better, you just get high enough to start wishing for a bolt and one appears :)


IdratherbeclimbingM9

14-Dec-2009
11:42:23 AM

jgoding wrote;
>Lord Gumtree (284m M7)

It used to be M6.

I think it still is (especially with modern gear), and don't know why it was upgraded in the latest guide.

14-Dec-2009
9:15:51 PM

On 13/12/2009 jgoding wrote:
>Edge of pleasure (21**) Just do the top pitch by abseiling in

we seem to have this argument every year or 2...

i'm guessing you still haven't done the first pitch then Joe!?

jgoding

15-Dec-2009
6:52:59 AM

Howdy,

yes Waiting for a princess has a hell of a lot of bolts and I won't be doing that spacing again. I had some input from a scardy cat while preparing the route and took it.

M9 - I'm not sure why the grade of Lord Gumtree changed either - I sure didn't do it. Feel free to e-mail Kevin if you like. Perhaps updating the update to include this info once this is confirmed by another source would be useful.

Will - sorry I just cut and pasted out of the Buffalo guide update re Edge of Pleasure - so yep it should be changed to include the first pitch (and yes I should get up there and do it as it sounds awesome!). If you're interested in taking over updating the VCC Buffalo guide update I am happy to e-mail you the word doc and you can add anything new you know about (looks like someone has added a new route at Mackey's lookout left of Geoff Gledhill's massive long moderate route too - but not sure about other developments - I didn't make it up last season as I've been focused on development in the Grampians).

Joe

hipster

15-Dec-2009
12:46:28 PM

A good list Joe, I reckon Pretty Girls with Long Knives is absolutely outstanding, just a great route. So's that Vertical Tai Chi. Can't reccomend Malcolm's route "Running the Gauntlet"(26) highly enough either..easy to get to and a killer line.

On 14/12/2009 IdratherbeclimbingM9 wrote:
>jgoding wrote;
>>Lord Gumtree (284m M7)
>
>It used to be M6.
>
>I think it still is (especially with modern gear), and don't know why
>it was upgraded in the latest guide.

Upgraded...to a free grade of 28! Same with Ozymandias. Aid and climbing are 2 words that should not be used in the same sentence together :-)


IdratherbeclimbingM9

15-Dec-2009
1:05:40 PM

On 15/12/2009 hipster wrote:
>Upgraded...to a free grade of 28! Same with Ozymandias. Aid and climbing
>are 2 words that should not be used in the same sentence together :-)

I understand your sentiment, but think the majority of climbers only climb at grades of less than 28, particularly for multipitch!.
Doing the big aid routes there in clean-aid style is still a worthy objective for many of us, and having them listed with both free and aid grades in the guide/s is a good thing.

Fish Boy

15-Dec-2009
10:15:30 PM

The guide notes that some of the placements are becoming shallower on Lord Gumtree, and also notes the the grade of M7 is for clean aid only. The old guide may have been talking the hammered grade....who cares?


wallwombat

15-Dec-2009
10:26:13 PM

On 15/12/2009 jgoding wrote:

>...looks like someone has added a new route at Mackey's lookout left of Geoff
>Gledhill's massive long moderate route too ...

That would probably be the route me and widewetandslippery put up the easter before last. It's about 14/15. 510m if I remember right. It's called The Bleeding Nun. I added it to the ACA route data base a couple of months back. It could do with a few bolts.


russianSpy

21-Dec-2009
9:31:06 AM

so I've just come back from an AWESOME week of climbing, and one thing I wish I had was - an extra rope! (and my guidebook that I left at home, meaning an extra $60 that had to be forked out, ah well..)

I guess if I read the guidebook a little more before going there, I would have noticed the requirement for 2 rope abseils for a lot of the fun stuff.. ah well, once again, but we had tons of fun on everything we jumped on anyway. definitely coming back. with 2 ropes. and more time.


gordoste

21-Dec-2009
9:42:20 AM

did you use the #4 cam much?


russianSpy

21-Dec-2009
10:35:33 AM

maybe twice...? I didn't personally, but I think I remember cleaning it.. and carrying it for most of the time!

the only cracks we ended up doing really were on the Pintle, Banana Blase, Corner Crack(? a 16 at the Castle, which, funnily enough has a flipped photo in the guide!!! the cracks are leaning the wrong way!), Maharajah, Big Fun and Tears begin to Fall (at the Castle, too), from memory. everything else was slab.

widewetandslippery

21-Dec-2009
10:53:54 AM

russianSpy give us the tick list. Names, numbers, carbon credits used and times you spoke to jesus. Important info.


russianSpy

21-Dec-2009
1:14:38 PM

we didn't do Angels... =(
used up a lot of cc's regardless though =))))


gordoste

21-Dec-2009
2:18:51 PM

cool, sounds like you had an awesome time! did you get any photos? would be great to hear what you thought! maharajah is a great climb!

larryfranklin

21-Dec-2009
4:47:15 PM

hey russian spy, good to here you got home okay. it was great meeting and climbing with yourself and woody. legs are wrecked after O.B. you'll have to e mail me some of those photo's you took..im spewing i forgot my camera!!


russianSpy

21-Dec-2009
9:58:58 PM

I had an awesome time, Stephen, there's no if's or but's about it =) funnily enough, we gave up on phone reception early on so I just accepted that if we met anyone there, it'd be purely by chance. As it was, we were in the process of abseiling down to Banana Blase, just as Larry and Andy were topping out Home James so we chatted for a while and subsequently "gate-crashed" their dinner back at the camp - by the lakeside! Names were thrown around, we all laughed about coincidences (not very hard, since there ain't THAT many climbers) and decided to join forces for Noblesse Oblige the next day. Someone subsequently may or may not have slept in (not me this time!!), but we were back in the car AFTER a swim in the eurobin falls (absolutely beautiful and highly refreshing!) by around 1500 i think..

as for Maharajah- that was the first climb we jumped on as soon as we got there. I absolutely love the majestic look of Cathedrals (especially when looking from the Hump), but having said that, I can't get over how awesome and distinct the Horn looks (and everything in view from there, too). Then we got to the Castle and the surreal walk through the dead gumtrees just left me breathless.. plus we were on the lookout for the promised thunderstorms and after topping out at the Crack Corner had to remain roped up for the short walk across to the rap anchors as the winds were gusting quite heavily by then. but that was all before we went to The Gorge......

I don't even know where to start for where I want to go back to first!
as for photos- yeah, I took some, but being in a party of 2 I didn't get (or take) that much chance for happy snapping.

this was the "welcome to mt buffalo" view on the first night

Woody demonstrating his tanning technique on Big Fun

Andy pretending it's very steep on the "walk in" to Noblesse Oblige

overall, happy as Larry ;)

and Larry, it was awesome to drink and climb with you and Andy, too! i'll sort the photos and send them on soon.
Araps next week? Woody's already there

There are 62 messages in this topic.