Month: May 2021

Bunny Bucket Buttress

| flynny101

Last year Madie threatened/promised to drag me up Bunny Buckets Buttress. It’s kinda the big easy of the Pieces Pass area. A mega classic grade 18 that wonders up 310m of the Grose Valley clifflines.

Unfortunately I had a series of tendon injuries and just felt I’d be a liability.

I haven’t done a lot of climbing lately but was starting to feel good again. I mentioned to her that I’d be keen once I get a bit of endurance.

OK we are doing it Saturday, Says Madie. You and me on Bunny Buckets, Leo, Lucie and Felix will go up next to us on Randy Rabbit Ridge (a grade 20 that basically parallels BBB)

OH shit!! I’d done 8 pitches of climbing in the last 6 weeks. Bunny Buckets was 8 pitches one after another, 5 of which were right at my climbing limit at the moment. Not to mention most of the pitches were longer than any pitch I have done lately…

I admit I had a bit of a anxiety attack at the thought of not being up to it. I lost sleep worrying about it. I’d hate to be one of those people who claim they are better than they are then ruin everyone’s day by not being as good as they thought

Shut up brain. Suck it up! This is an awesome opportunity. No more excuses. I’m in.

I tend to get real nervous leading up to a trip right up until I get out of the car and get walking but after a crappy day at work on the Friday I slept like a log and I woke up feeling calm and excited for the day

The car park was packed. Don’t they know how cold it is? There are a few abseil routs down, We pick the fastest one and pass one group on setting up on the other. We then meet Lucas and Ben at the bottom, they graciously let us go first and somehow weren’t put off be my floundering about pretending to be a rock climber.

I’d have to say I had a moment halfway up pitch 3 where I was struggling with a move and started second guessing myself and it took Leo shouting encouragement/threats from across the void to convince me to push on. I tried again, got the move easy and continued on.

In the end I hang-dogged the first 3 pitches, took a swinger on the traverse where had to resort to ascenders to get back on route and, I climbed ugly but I got up with out needing to be hauled (TBH I think Madie was taking a lot of my weight at times) and I couldn’t be happier.

The second last pitch was a glorious vertical wall. Once again it was right at the upper end of my skill level but more to my style than the lower pitches at that grade. I was shot, muscle fatigue had well and truly set in. I’d struggle up 2 or 3m clip my safety to the bolt and hang, resting for what seemed an eternity then I’d go again. But I loved every minute of it.

My mates really are awesome.

  • Walking in. Surprisingly not nervous a all
  • Madie Leading up Bunny Bucket Buttress
  • Me following Madie up and Leo in the back ground leading up RRR. Thanks to Lucas for the photo
  • Leo leading up Randy Rabbit Ridge
  • Leo over on Randy Rabbit Ridge, Thanks to Lucas for the photo
  • Leo crushing Randy Rabbits
  • Leo
  • Me on Bunny Buckets and Leo on Randy Rabbits, photo thanks to Lucas
  • Leo on belay
  • Me and Mads on top of pitch 3, I think
  • I know the views at the top are the same, but they arn’t the same
  • Me and Madie at the lunch ledge. The bucket behind us is full of emergency gear, these climbs have a rep for catching people out and benighting them
  • Madie made the traverse look easy. I took a massive swinger which deposited me below that over hang. Ascenders at the ready
  • Me on ascenders to get back on route after taking a swinger on the traverse
  • Looking down on Leo and Lucie
  • Madie at the top of the chocolate ripple wall. If I wasn’t so completely fatigued by here this pitch would have been magic. Even struggling and needing to rest at each bolt it was fantasic
  • Taking a break and looking down to Lucas at the top of the pitch below me
  • The final push to the top
  • At the top waiting for the others
  • Felix smashed it, Leading several pitchs of RRR
  • Looking down at Felix at the top of the second last pitch of RRR with the mighty Grose valley views
  • Felix on Randy Rabits on the left and Lucas and Ben On Bunny Buckets to the right
  • Atmosphere plus
  • Lucie joining Felix and Leo at top of the second last pitch
  • Felix smashing up the final wall
  • Leo, powerful, graceful and confident
  • Madie offering to take over belay duties to get Lucie up the final wall
  • It was so cold at the top of RRR, Lucie barely able to feel her fingers but climbing strong
  • Who’se hands are they
  • Oh It’s Lucie

“I’m not telling you it’s going to be easy, I’m telling you it’s going to be worth it.” -Anonymous

Surround yourself with awesome people, experience awesome things: Flynny

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Newnes Plateau

| flynny101

02/05/2021

Edwin, Ethan, Russ and meeeeeee

Anyone available to do something on the 2nd? Asks Ed

Sure, says we.

You want to do a Flynny bash to look for a canyon of probably poor quality? says I

And so we find ourselves walking down a long disused fire trail that is barely distinguishable from the rest of the post-fire landscape.

Soon we leave even that vagueness of a trail and make our way due(ish) north down a ridge looking for a short slot. The only thing I’d heard about it was a. “it’s ok for an unpublished canyon on the Plateau” and ii. The last abseil was meant to be “a gooden” (TM)

When I say “unpublished” there is a grid reference in the guide but checking the satellite that GR looks well off what I am sure is the target, so we go with my gut feel and just wander down for a look, find the slot we are looing for and drop on in.

Careful Russ its slippery

The start was pleasant. Straightaway dropping down a small waterfall. We contemplate setting the rope but after a good look I decide to slide. We had considered not taking wet suits…. Glad we did

Almost immediately we were greeted with another drop, one that would require abseiling

©Edwin

everyone safely down, rope and pull cord stowed and just around the corner the bottom dropped out of the creek dramatically.

We set a temporary anchor and throw down 27m or so of rope on a releasable and Ethan volunteers to go first. Its a tricky start and then an awesomely spectacular abseil. I bleed out rope and as Ethan reaches the bottom the end is just high enough off the ground for him to land and dismount comfortably.

Ed follows him down then Russ helps me set the fiddlestick and takes the pull cord.

Russ about halfway down ©Edwin

There are some dry canyons around the edge of the Plateau that have long abseils but it’s rare to get a wet one this high in these parts.

Me taking a seat ©Edwin

And that was it. All over red rover.

Plenty of action for a shortish walk and 150m of canyon

OK, right should get us out. Says I, but left looks interesting.

We follow Ed and Ethan up to the left through the king ferns

©Edwin

All the (short) way up the gully teased us with the prospect of turning a corner into a canyonette that would ramp up through the cliffs

But in the end it cliffed out in a gloriously over hung ampitheatre

We head back down and up the other side. The gully looked like it would go easily but we opted to climb out early

We have lunch on the cliff tops above what becomes a major gully as it makes it’s way towards the Wolgan. Its barely 12.30.

Shall we do sumfink else? says I

After not much deliberation we opt for one of a pair the rest had not done before. I didn’t have my notes or map with me. But how hard could it be?

Last time I remember the scrub leading to the good bit was horrendous and the fires hadn’t seemed to touch this little bit of the forest so I drive a bit further down the road, check google maps, and aim for the most canyony looking bit.

A lovely little meadow gave us a deceptively steep and slippery way down

and we arrive smack bang on the most canyony bit

Only as soon as I see it I remember the most canyony bit was the very end and we’ve missed a few jumps and slides and fun bits.

The boys find a cave ©Edwin
©Edwin

And then it’s back up the hill to the car before it pisses down.

another great adventure with great mates.

How many worlds are in your world? Andy Anderson

They are all worth visiting at least once: me

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