Cut Lunch Walls
The Word: Orange goodness
The Crag Classic(s): Us Esoterics (23) looks very cool.
The Hidden Gem: The Koalasquatsy vicinity is now a real little hotspot of ripping routes.
Best Season(s):A really good option for winter mornings as these walls get sun from dawn. Still, shady summer afternoons would be very nice out here too.
Sun/shade: Sun until early afternoon.
Wet weather options: Many routes will be unaffected by small showers, but there's only one or 2 protected spots to stash your gear (and yourself!) while you sit it out.
Style & Length of Climbs: Vertical and slightly overhung, a few sport routes but definitely bring a moderate rack.
Rock type: Excellent orangey goodness
Guidebook(s): North Grampians, Andrews, p161-162, North Grampians Update, Andrews, p20-21, Grampians Select, Mentz/Tempest p90.
Available Grades; Best Grades:
The Details: The main wall here looks absolutely bloody amazing, but unfortunately it is completely blank. Fortunately there is some superb featuring either side of it which means there are now a couple of dozen really great routes to be sampled.
Access: About 25mins walk. Drive to the Hollow Mountain carpark at the far northern end of the Grampians, next to Mt Zero. 3hrs from Melbourne, 30mins from Horsham, 10mins from Stapylton campground. Follow the signposted trail to Hollow Mountain, which deposits you at the base of the incredible overhanging Sandinista Wall. Follow the monstrous painted arrows L along the base for about 30m to where the tourist trail turns sharply back R up a scrambly chasm which breaches the cliffline. Don't go up here, instead follow the climbers trail left along the base of the cliffs. It's about 400m along the base from here, and first time visitors should allow extra time to follow the trail, as it weaves around boulders etc, but keep in mind that it never gets more than about 20m away from the base of the cliff. From where you leave the tourist trail, the first section of cliff is steep blocky orange/grey rock, this is the rather uninspiring Tupameros Area (although the upper tier looks great). After this you'll scramble around some boulders and emerge below some big easy slabs, this is White Wall. The left side of the base of White Wall becomes beautiful vertical blank stone (breached only by the awesome flake line of Territorial Imperative), and then increasingly overhung and the track hugs the base of this section for about 100m. Straight after the overhangs it becomes possible to easily scramble up a short slab where a tree branch leans over to touch the rock - go up here. Cut Lunch walls is the red walls directly above, you need to weave to your right to avoid the vegetation then back left once you're closer to the cliffs.
Descent(s): Rap off one of the numerous rap stations.
Described R to L.
Cut Lunch Upper Tier
The orange wall on the top right side of the wall has a stack of good looking sport routes but it's a shame you have to climb something else to get up there so you can't bring the kids/family etc to that one.
Cut Lunch Centre Wall
This is the most obvious piece of beautiful orange stone in the centre - unfortunately it is mostly blank. There's a slightly bold 22/23 on the right side, and a new 24 crack (Tranquiliser) and the stunning arete (Wheels of Steel 26) at the far left (see photos further below), but almost no possibility for any routes in between. . . . .
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A view of Cut Lunch Upper Tier (at top right) and Centre Wall (on the left)
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KoalaSquatsy Wall
This is the wall just left of Cut Lunch Centre Wall, and these routes start from an elevated tier. To access the tier you need to walk L along the base for about 50m, then come back up R on a ramp/spine of rock. It's also possible to solo straight up below it but I find this scary even with rock shoes so I definitely don't recommend it with pack etc!
A cramped view of the Koalasquatsy corner and neighbouring routes. Ooh Ooh is the thin crack at far left (with it's short steep second pitch above), while Us Esoterics takes the flake up the wall right of the corner. The beautiful arete on the right is Wheels of Steel (26)
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Although a bit repetitive, I had to include this photo just to show the fantastic aspect of the Wheels of Steel arete. Now who wouldn't want to climb a line like this!? Note my pack at the bottom of these shots for perspective.
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* Koalasquatsy 15m 17 (YP)
A good little corner with insecure moves most of the way. I only barely gave it a star though. It's the corner at the R end of the ledge. Take a sling to rap off a bollard on the ledge below the top (unless you're going to do the grade 21 conclusion - which is meant to be great).
* Ooh Ooh 15m 21 (OS)
The obvious crack about 10m L of K. A lovely finger crack problem for the final 6m to the ledge. It's a shame about the quite chossy start.
Scarfies 15m 15 (OS)
Not recommended - fragile jugs on the runout crux. Takes the face just L of the chimney, about 3m L of OO. Rap off the big bollard above.
More Internet Sites on Cut Lunch Walls Climbing
First things first: make sure you check out the awesome comprehensive ACA online guides to Cut Lunch Wall and Koalasquatsy Wall
Bureau of Meteorology Navigate to "Wimmera" - Horsham's weather is the closest.
Australian Maps Enter "Reservoir" as the road and "Laharum" as the suburb (and Victoria as the state).
Chockstone The best site on Victorian climbing has a good little guide for this area, plus a separate photo gallery.
Neil's Haulbag Photo Essay 1 and Photo Essay 2 - some good shots of the Upper Tier.
Rockclimbing.com also has the guide for this area, plus a slightly different selection of photos.
Victorian Climbing Club New Routes Page - go here to keep an eye out for new routes - there's a few here already!
Parks Victoria Park information, downloadable maps, etc.
Parks Victoria Education Resource Kit A fascinating explanation of Grampians climate, geology, wildlife, vegetation, soils, history, park management, and visitor impacts.
TheCrag.com As always. Record your Cut Lunch ticks here, and see what everyone else is climbing.
© 2005 Will
