Old Baldy

Climbers who visit the Coke Ovens can't really miss Old Baldy, since it dominates this part of the valley. The wall itself is actually only about 100m high, although it is perched on top of an 80 odd metre lower cliff line, and hence is an atmospheric place to climb.

The wall itself is surprisingly consistent, with a sustained angle of just under vertical (with local bulges over vertical here and there) and very consistent rock quality. Although some claim that Old Baldy is a big pile of choss, this isn't really true, since the wall itself is made of rock comparable to that found elsewhere in the mountains. Probably the main complaint is that most of the wall is covered with ironstone "dinnerplates", many of which are unsupported by the underlying sandstone matrix. Provided you're aware of this, it's easy to choose ironstone holds that are well supported, and then there's virtually no chance of holds snapping off (certainly on the route below I had no holds snap off, unlike, for example, some of the routes I've done at Shipley Upper).

The guide for the area is the "Rockclimbs in the Upper Blue Mountains (2nd Edition)" guide book.

One of the great things about this route is the amazing amount of passive protection that the crack accepts. Although you could probably do it on wires alone, you'll find that a double set of wires, a full set of hexes and a single set of small (#0.5 friend) to medium (#3 camalot) cams will be more than enough gear. Although double ropes are nice, they are not essential, since the crack doesn't wander much. Extenders are necessary, however, particularly if you choose to link pitches. Needless to say, helmets are an absolute must.

Note: none of the pitons mentioned in the guidebook remain, however it doesn't matter much since the protection is so good.

Pitch 1 25m 17
Don't let the first 12m put you off! Despite being sandy and awkward, this is the only real unpleasantness on the entire route. Although the original first belay is in the cave (BB and natural gear), we continued through the roof (crux of this pitch) and joyfully up 10m or so to a semi hanging belay in the crack.

Pitch 2 30m 15
Continue up the delightful crack until you reach a small stance at the base of a right facing corner (bomber belay off large hexes). Despite being only technically about grade 15, virtually every move on the pitch is at the grade, and with only one hands free rest, this is one hell of a pumpy pitch! Don't forget to sample the mounting exposure!

Pitch 3 48m 17
Another great pitch up the wonderful crack. This pitch is less sustained than the previous pitch (with quite a few more rests), but has two harder sections as well. The first is surmounting the bulge above the right facing corner (one move of about grade 16) and the second is surmounting the bulge right near the top, just below the dirty headwall (this one is solid grade 17 and continues for about 3m or so). Tree belay.

To descend from the route, continue back from the edge for about 30m or so (until the undergrowth thins out a bit) then turn right (facing away from the cliff) and walk parallel to the cliff face until you can't any further (there is a large cairn here). Shortly after the cairn is a series of slippery, leaf-filled gullies that lead down to the half way ledge and the solo gully track that you would have ascended (refer to the guidebook for details on this access route).