The Flatiron

Sun/shade: Sun almost all day
Style & Length of Climbs: Vertical and slightly overhung face and crack routes on byewwwdiful orange stone.
Available Grades; Best Grades: 15-26; 19-26

The Details: This is perhaps the largest piece of the famed "orange stuff" in the southern Vic Range. Unfortunately it doesn't have quite as much in the way of handholds, so in general it's either a crack or blank. Still, there are some cracking routes here and rock doesn't get any better than this, full stop.

Access: 25-30 min walk. 3hrs 45 mins drive from Melbourne. Park at the northern end of Waterworks Track, where it hits a creek. Cross the creek and head up the gully, staying right of the base of the gully at first, then crossing to the left side to blast steeply uphill for the last 150m or so. Once on top you'll hit the old overgrown vehicle track. Turn R and follow this for about 150m to where it fizzles out, from here contour left for about 150m, dropping down into a gully on the northern side of the ridge. Cross the rocky base of the gully and blast straight up the other side for 150m. Once on top of this next ridge, contour NE to meet the base of the crag which quickly forms into an impressive steeply overhung bulgy glassy blank face with a good cave at the base. The routes start on the left side of this cave.

Descent(s): Mostly rap anchors.

A view of the Flatiron from the North (from Flame Wall / Graham's Creek to be exact) with marked sections being Incarceration Area on the right, the jaw dropping central Prow in the middle, and the classy addition of The Pinnacles on the left.

Described R to L.

A more zoomed view of the right side (or Incarceration Area) of The Flatiron, with marked routes being Iron Awe (21) which follows the diagonal break leftwards, Iron Lady (19), the stunning bottom-to-top line of Incarceration (23M1 - marked IN), Jaffle Iron (14), Iron Lung (19 - marked IE), and the fantastic turtle shell wall of Turkish Bath (25)

Me on Iron Lady, during the FA of the second pitch of Iron Awe. The first pitch of Iron Awe was added later and follows the break from further right around in the cave. Fantastic rock.

Here's me starting along the excellent sustained traverse line of Iron Awe. The seams below my feet are followed by the more recent and excellent looking route Permanently Creased (24) ... but too bad it's anchor is a big bad retrobolt of my lovely traverse!! :((

Still going on the FA of Iron Awe, stretching to the next footholds.

And Iron Awe again ... the line is rather obvious. And the rock above and below is even blanker than it looks!

HB wanders up Incarceration first pitch (23) on his way to investigating whether the 4m of aid on the second pitch could be freed (from memory his thoughts were "probably").

HB past the hardest bit on Incarceration first pitch (23)

Forgethisname wanders up the very nice looking Iron Lung (19).

An unfortunately shady view of the jaw dropping central prow section of the crag, which really doesn't do justice to just how impressive the upper hanging buttress really is. Marked routes are Malcolm's Roof (26) which, you guessed it, blasts out a 5m roof about 30m off the deck, and Against the Tide (16) which comes in from the left to finish up the cliff-splitting chimney.

A front-on view of The Pinnacles from the north. At least the shady view highlights the gaps between them. Summit Fever (21) is marked (although it may be a repeat of The Bottom Inspectors which was established in 1991 and then lost to mankind).

A view of The Pinnacles as viewed when approaching them from below the Prow. Summit Fever takes the obvious shaded orange streak on the left.

And a view of the Summit Fever face from the opposite direction showing just how appealing these leaning faces really are. Yum!

More Internet Sites on The Flatiron Climbing

© 2007 Will