The Atridae

Wet weather options: Pilot Error (at least to the lip) and routes to its R, plus the Flight Deck (but the scramble up to the Flight Deck would be extremely dangerous in the wet). Collision Course Wall would withstand light rain too. Style & Length of Climbs: 10-40m, from vertical to roofing. Available Grades; Best Grades:7-29; 10-25 The Details: One of the closest areas to camp, expect to be sharing it with plenty of others - but for good reason, as there are some stunning routes here. Access: Easy 3-5min walk up from the Pines. Descent(s): There are rap stations above many routes, several of which require 2 ropes or at least a 60m rope. For routes which top out, walk R (NW) towards the Organ Pipes and down the obvious gully which brings you back to the base of Agamemnon.

The Atridae viewed from the Pines. 9 routes marked.

Described L to R.

Pilot Error Terrace

* Pilot Error 10m 21 (OS) Marked in the first photo above. A 2 move wonder, probably put up by Mr Kodak - the photos can make it look pretty amazing (but ask your belayer to duck! :) ). Easily step up to break under roof, past #1 camalot to arete, FH. R hand on nose, L hand out to huge jug 10cm past FH, match, then L hand lunge up to nose - don't go out L! Easy to pull lip to stance on juggy wall. Either top out (belay is a BB plus slung bollards, and the descent is a safe enough downclimb), or just downclimb back to the FH then backclean it. A very popular little route. * Togrul Khan 12m 19 (OS) A nice steep thin corner 20m R of PE. The Mentz/Tempest guide is wrong - this route does not have a rap station at the top! To descend, you either have to do a simultaneous opposed rap, with one climber going down into Cobweb Gully (yuck!), or finish up Strombeante. Anyway, it's a good problem for the first 8m, with some very steep juggy moves off the deck, then tricky fingerlocks/laybacks up the steep conclusion. It's a trade-off between sewing it up and having no handholds left, so think twice about where you put your gear or else it may seem a lot harder!

Pilot Error (* 21) - the crux to the jug on the lip.

Strombeante 7m 22 (OS)
A short, steep and silly sport route starting above TK, with rap chains. It's hard to clip the first RB, and a very nasty fall if you blow it, so take a short stick. A bloody steep little number, about 45-60 degrees overhung the whole way, with no jugs until after the crux, which is a crimpy big reach up into a 2 finger undercling crimp/pocket. At the 2nd RB the jugs appear but the last move is still quite tricky.

** Mesa 23m 9 (OS)
Marked in the first photo above. Starts off a boulder on the ledge about 30m R of PE. Looks ordinary but is a real classic, great climbing the whole way! An awesome beginner's route, steep juggy start, then a surprisingly thin slab, big jugs through a bulge stepping R above a roof, then another steep bulge above on more huge jugs to rap chains - awesome!

The Flight Deck

* Cassandra 40m 18 (OS, 1st pitch)
Marked in the first photo above. Bring your footwork for this good slab. Past #1/2 camalot to bomber thread in break (#6 wire or bigger). Good climbing up vertical section, then cruxy to pull over bulge. Clip highest bolt possible, then delicately run it out up R across ramp to cam in undercling, and another nice move to DRB lower offs. The crappy old carrots have been replaced with ringbolts (Apr03).

Cassandra Direct Finish 20m 22 (RP) As for Cassandra, then follow line of bolts up to holds under roof, and traverse 7m R to DRB. After a one-sit ascent in '98 (with 4 stitches in my big toe!!), I came back for the "alzheimers onsight" 6 years later. Shitty feet underscore a reachy sidepull and two consecutive powerful double-gaston moves, visible in the photo below. Exit R to the DRB of Cassandra. * Pain Street 15m 23 (OS) My hardest Araps onsight (so far) - made all the harder when I fell for the sucker hold and ended up crimping up from there! (Try it this way and you'll see what I mean!) This is not a consumer route - the crux is 2-3m past the bolt and a fall would cause a big swing back into the slab below. Up Cassandra Direct to the roof, clip the RB (which should be 2 feet further out!), then a reachy move gains fairly easy jugging to the lip. Pull up a sequence of ok holds but the last chalked hold - a square nose slightly to the R - is a sucker hold. Instead, powerfully pull a long way up and in (almost turning inside out!) off a R hand gaston to a hidden flake way over left below the new DRB. 20m rap to deck. .

Pain Street - Andrew hanging on the sucker hold realises he has to go back...note the last RB is 2m R of his R knee.

** It'll Never Fly 20m 24 (flash) My 2nd 24 flash at Araps. Starts just L of Orestes - don't use all the chalked holds above and below the bolt, instead take the good crimp in your R hand, pop up L to a poor crimp and again to a better L hand crimp. R hand to good pinch at top of "triangle", match then up R to 'rail' - not as good as it looks. L hand crimp, big reach to R hand sidepull, then into big holds. These lead easily L until 2 big span moves past the 4th bolt gain the arete - the last hard move faces quite a winger. Easy up arete (#2.5-3.5Fr), and back R to the anchor. *** Have a Good Flight 17m 25 (L) The draws were on so why not? Got through the crux, feels ok, I'll be back. Have a Good Flight - some strong Pom finishing the crux. Note the winger potential!

*** Orestes 20m 24 (flash) My 1st 24 flash at Araps, but admittedly very soft for the grade when someone else has already fiddled all the pro in! Outstanding sustained stemming moves on insecure hands and feet leads all the way up the gorgeous corner. The corner steepens right up as bigger holds arrive, making sure you're well pumped for the so-steep-its-almost-a-roof traverse 5m R. Fortunately nearly all the holds on the traverse are pretty big - the only tricky bits are getting past the big wobbly white choss blob at the start, and then pulling into the belay cave at the end. Oh, and before the ethics police come to hunt me down, I also seconded it clean while hammering out all the welded wires (which felt a grade harder than flashing it!). A complete megaclassic. Orestes - me avoiding the killer choss blob at the start of the traverse.

* Plimsoll Line 15m 22 (YP)
Glad I sandbagged my partner into leading this one, it looks really quite bold. There is lots of gear - its just that a lot of it doesn't inspire much confidence. The climbing is tenuous thin stemming, ok for 22, but quite sustained which helps to freak out leaders! Rap off.

Atridae Front Wall

*** Surface to Air 40m 17 (RP) After seconding this in '97, when my leader went off route (going L of the blank top face instead of R), I only thought this climb was sorta ok. Having since done it on lead (another "alzheimer's onsight") and finishing the proper way up the L side of the Muldoon arete, I now think it's a classic! Marked in the first photo above. Scramble up from the L to the base. Some tricky moves off the deck before any pro, then step R under bulge. Over bulge on jugs and up to ledge beside Muldoon's first belay, and below smooth wall. A tricky thin semi-mantle off the ledge, then delicately step R almost to arete and up a wonderful line of holds just L of arete to top. Belay off DRB just R and rap 30m. *** Muldoon 43m 13 (OS, alt) Marked in the first photo above. "An absolute classic up the arete of the main face." Yep, pretty much. 1) (** 23m 13) Up corner, L across slab under roof past pins, then crux is pulling around onto the wall. Continue up lovely thin crack to ledge, great belay off wires. 2) (*** 20m 13) Step R from belay, then delightful positions up R side of steep arete. Rap 40m off rings just to the R. Muldoon - happy little vegemites at the top out. The back of the Bard Buttress and the Bluffs are in the background, with the Pines down R.

Muldoon - Damien cruising through the crux on pitch 1, belayed by yours truly. Surface to Air starts up the blank wall around to the left.

Muldoon - the mysterious KP caught in all his glory, mooning the Pines.

Muldoon - Sarth Efricans crankin' up pitch 2, viewed from the top of Clytemnaestra Buttress (ie from the top of Collision Course Wall).

Collision Course Wall

The Atridae viewed from the top of the Organ Pipes, showing Declaration Crag, Colosseum Wall, Pilot Error (21), Muldoon (13), Collision Course (22) and Electra (19) marked (along with the Flashing Blade (25) which is actually in Organ Pipes Gully and dangles out the lip of the roof). Note the major trench of Wizard of Ice (20) up the wall R of Collision Course.

Collision Course Wall, with Agamemnon chimney obvious on the right.

* Smooth Journey 40m 15 (OS)
An outstanding traverse of the fantastic Collision Course Wall, 25m up R of Muldoon, and clearly visible in both photos above. It is truly excellent!! Unfortunately it's followed by too much easy "getting off" climbing which keeps the stars down. However it would almost get the 2nd star if (unlike me) you be sure to go to the DRB rap anchor above Collision Course (take a good close look for it in the guide and before you start). Anyway, start up just L of Agamemnon to a great thread at the start of the pockety traverse line - extend it a lot. Step down L, across a move then solid moves up to rejoin the pockets. More easily L past more pockets - big cams and big hexes. A steep few traverse moves past a blankish section for the feet is the crux, followed by an enormous undercling and bomber thread. Step another move or two L to the arete, then an ocean of jugs makes for fairly uninteresting climbing for 25m up the arete.

*** Agamemnon 40m 11 (YP)
The fantastic conclusion is guaranteed to bring a smile to your face! The huge obvious chimney, visible from the pines. Do it as a single pitch, there's not much drag if you extend your gear. 1) (18m 10) Up the blocks on the L, then where it steepens step R across the chimney and up to belay in shady chimney. 2) (*** 22m 11) Chimney up a few metres (gear in crack), then at jugs step onto face and climb crack up and out towards daylight. When it ends (#3 cam), screw up your nerve, and stem up to glory - you have to face out and move to the very front of the chimney, otherwise it's a pike! Before topping out, take a moment to enjoy the situation, it's awesome. Also marked in the first photo above.

Agamemnon Ben wandering all over the chimney - easy if you're tall!

Agamemnon & Electra - Francis shows how its done on pitch 1 of Electra (19), with the excellent chimney of Agamemnon obvious on the L.

* Necrophiliac 25m 16 (OS)

Marked in the first photo above. Teaches you the true worth of a hand jam! Take some big hexes for the start, and keep a #1 camalot for the crux, but don’t put it in the crucial spot!! Wander up, and where crack falls left, squeeze a left toe onto the face, pull up on the slimy thin jams, and then onwards to ledge. Wander right to top out. Has a reputation for swallowing cams. Despite being downgraded to 14 (!!) in the Mentz/Tempest guide, I consider this route solid 16 - grade 14 leaders beware! . . . . . . . .

Necrophiliac - the awesome crux off a thin smooth jam . ..

© 1998-2006 Will