Acknowledgement
Glenn Short, John Smoothy and Mitch Warren.
Access
There are 2 approaches:
1. Walk for 5 mins past The Way of All Flesh (28) at Barden's crag, way past Mind Over Matter (marked) until you reach the grey and black slab with rings on it next to a slightly overhanging wall with routes on the right of the obvious easy diagonal crack (Treebeard Wall).
2. Park at Barden's Lookout carpark. Take the obvious foottrack left looking out from the carpark area, back towards Mt. Vic. Walk for a few minutes to some bends in the track and an obvious metre wide track running off to the right, towards the cliff. Follow it to the top of a short gully with a fixed rope, ladder, rungs and more fixed rope. Down to bottom and turn left. Either way, you will now be at the base of the first easy black slabs of the Historic Wells area. The roped gully is shorter if only visiting this area, but it is not far from Barden's and Damien's Staircase is a cruisy way down.
Tree Beard Area
The following climbs start just past Rod Young's original descent gully, which has been re-equipped with ropes and paraphenalia. (head right, facing the cliff) If coming from Barden's just follow the track to the black slab with the large chains on top, which is way past the rather obvious Mind over Matter.
O The Cat that Fought Back 15m 14 Þ
Left-most route on wall with chossy overhang above. Very weird clip in centre of route. Chain.
Mitch Warren 2011
★ Dirty Beasts 17m 15
First route on the black rock. Chain.
Sam Puchala 2011
★ Boatbuilding for Clancy 10m 17 Þ
Just left of the diagonal easy crack. Ridiculously hard move in centre. Mitch reckons it's 15. DRBB
Roslin Forrest 2011
★★ Back to Back 20m 13
The juggy diagonal crack separating the two short walls. Nice climbing, with great gear. Step left at top around bulge. Lower-offs shared with BfC.
Rod Young, Sue Morton 1985
★ Statistical Scare Tactics 16m 20 Þ
1m right BtB. Nice rock but difficult to stay out of the crack. Take care through the bulge to the anchors. DRBB
Steve Hawkshaw 2004
O Evil Deeds with Good Intentions 13m 24 Þ
2m right. Thin and sharp.
Jacindie Jackson, Mitch Warren 2011
O Ed's 24 12m 24? Þ
Marked by large 24.
Ed Rutherford 2009
★ Starseed 12m 20? Þ
Sam Puchala
★★ Tree Beard 15m 21 Þ
1m R. In front of tree. Originally graded 23, but printed as 17 by mistake, has now settled at 21! Much more civilised, and popular, with the rebolting. Up. DRBB
Rod Young, Ant Prehn 1984
★ Ed's 27 25m? 27/25
Marked. Crimpy and steep. Avoiding the pain by climbing around the hard bit yields a worthwhile 25. DRBB
? 2009
Jack's Wall
Around the corner there is a wall with an undercut arete on the left. The rock should clean up nicely. Jack Taylor, budding local climber put up a few routes here, climbing quite a few grades above his age. Well worthwhile.
★★ Awesome Daddy 13m 17 Þ
Climb at undercut orange rock. Upwards!
Jack Taylor, Damien Taylor 2011
★★ Thanks Mum 13m 17 Þ
2m R AD. More upwardness.
Jack Taylor, Damien Taylor 2011
Casper Area
Further along, again, there is a large hanging roof bumping into a smooth, orange wall with nice rock.
O All the Madmen 25m 26 X
Starts up the short arete meeting the roof, then straight up past rings on left, if you can clip them. Through huge dynos and up wall??? Has repelled some serious contenders. Looks scary. Take Care. DRBB
Rod Young 1998
O Casper 25m 22 X
Marked. Start up corner crack, then through steepness to wall, meander up wall. Great rock but necky, even with gear placed between the rings. Take Care. DRBB
Rod Young, Ant Prehn 1983
★★★ Shabang 25m 22 Þ
3m right Casper. Excellent, well protected climbing. The name is Crunch's geek-speak for "Shebang" - linux command. Very post-modern. Up gingerly to pockets, then technical, pumpy climbing through bulge to wall above. Up ramp on right to DRBB.
John (Crunch) Smoothy, Glenn Short, Henryk Topolnicki 2011
O Quicksilver 30m 23 X
Marked. Poorly rebolted and the crux holds have broken off. Up wall, meeting arete near top. Looks like death. Take care.
Rod Young, Ant Prehn 1983
The Alcove
Around the next corner there is an undercut grey wall with two routes (one on FHs, one on rings) and an, as yet, unclimbed layback ferny crack running up the right hand side. It looks as chossy as it feels.
★ Scooter Fun 22m 22 Þ
15m R Q. Thin. Start on right hand side, at FHs, traverse left, crossing the ringbolted line of CCatMG. Then up, right of the arete with fingery, strenuous climbing up the wall above. A tad chossy in parts but worthwhile. Lower off.
John Smoothy, Glenn Short, Giles Bradbury 2011
★ Chocolate Crackle and the Mischievous Gnomes 22m 20? Þ
2m left of SF, at the line of rings. Straight up through breaks to top of wall. Sam perservered with this one, despite several setbacks. So, it's worth hauling yourself up to see the fruit of his creative labours. DRBB
Sam Puchala 2011
Odie Odour Area
Onto the wall opposite, grey on one side - orange on the other. A crack, Odie Odour (16), runs up the middle.
O A4 22m 10
6m L(?) CCtMG. The scrubby corner! Take some slings for the bushes? George Owen would be proud.
Mitch Warren 2011
O Trick of the Light 22m 18 Þ
3m R bushy corner, in middle of grey slab. Up tenderly, without disturbing Mitch's feats of engineering and up to the cave with the permanent dosser. Lower-off.
Jacindie Jackson, Mitch Warren 2011
O Ed's Weirdness 26m 18 Þ
3m right TotL. Up blocky slabbiness, over OO to DRBB. Rap or up easy slab (6) to top. DRRB.
Ed Rutherford 2009
(The Ledges)
★ Odie Odour 30m 16
Marked. Little orange corner and crack in middle of wall. FH at belay. Up corner, arete and crack to top. Can rap off the DRBB on EW.
Rod Young, Ant Prehn 1983
★★ Funkytown 16m 20 Þ
Starts 4m R OO at DRBB on ledge above track. Obvious crack with block protroding in middle of orange wall. Haul up weakness to bulge, over to chains. Quite a bit of climbing for a short route. Good fun. Chain loweroffs.
Glenn Short, John Smoothy 2011
★★ Bless its Pointed Little Head 20m 22 Þ
15m R further along ledge of FT at fused corner, with long horizontal break running off left up higher. Straight up fused corner, then rightwards through the steepness. Looks good but also looks harder than 21!
Mitch Warren 2011
★★ Movin' on Up 25m 21 Þ
12m R BiPLH along ledge, at DRBB. Quite a bit of climbing. Up through steepness in middle of wall, trending right towards notch at roof. Step around right onto wall at roof and up wall above, following weakness to DRBB. Lower off or rap.
Glenn Short, John-boy Smoothy 2011
★★ Project - Pam 20m Þ
Please stay off. 8m right of MoU, further along ledge. DRBB. Obvious bolted thin crack.
Pam Mort
★★ Offwidth Joy 25m 15
3m R Pam's Project at the obvious corner crack just before the end of the ledge. Needs natural gear. Up into corner, follow crack to ethics-free zone. (off-width with 2 FHs!) Up trench, step out right then back under roof, step left and up to DBB lower-offs. Pretty good. Eats up gear, take large to small cams.
Glenn Short, John (Crunch) Smoothy 2011
★★★ Alive ‘n’ Kicking 25m 23 Þ
6m right of OJ, at end of ledge. Has been rebolted and no longer requires the rap-in or hanging belay. Up crack to line of rings out right, up middle of undercut orange wall. The top of this route is the lookout at the Historic Wells carpark. DRRB.
Mike Stacey, Lorna McManus 1989
The Rest
The following routes are spread out further towards Zap Crag. They haven't seen a lot of activity. These descriptions are taken from the originals, in the guides by Andrew Penney and Mike Stacey. It's a nice walk, if you are keen.
O Monkey Grip 30m 23
30m R AnK. Up wall and roof crack. Bolt above overhang then roof crack to wall, up.
Rod Young, Ant Prehn 1985
O Oliphant Wall 15m 24
Black wall just past MG. Steep wall climbing. Watch out for the old carrots.
Ant Prehn, Rod Young 1985
O Carabine 20m 16
"About 600m" right of OO"!!! Marked. Flake / corner / overhang! Follow crack. Take care.
Ant Prehn, Rod Young 1983
O Driver's Seat 20m 18
"101m (exactly, eh, Rod?) R Carabine. Crack in wall, starts as an overhung peapod about 10m off ground." Up peapod crack to exit (crux) to easier crack above. Rap off.
Rod Young, Ant Prehn 1983
O Pandora 40m 15
Way off in the wilderness, below the electricity towers (Pylon Pt) Follow your nose to the top? Take care.
Rod Young, Ant Prehn 1985
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