Author |
|
7-May-2013 12:28:16 PM
|
In an ongoing effort to repeat many of the old neglected climbs on Mt Rosea [ie those not in the select guide] and verify the real grades, quality and route descriptions for the on line ACA guide I climbed Mugs Alley last week. We were using the description from the ACA guide but couldn’t find a top pitch that would go at anything like the required grade. In the end we found our own finish further over left.
When I got home I saw that the description for finding that last pitch had been changed from the description in the older published guides. The ACA description for P3 says ‘Walk left to the end of the overhang and a "corner arete".’ The “and a corner aręte” having been added to the original description. This change appears to be authored by Kieran. This change did not help, but perhaps was based on someones personal experience of the route. If anyone can enlighten me as to where the top pitch actually goes I can change the ACA description to make it clearer.
Other than that Mug’s Alley is quite good - sustained, interesting and well protected climbing at about grade 14. For anyone who has done Mixed Climb and is looking for a slightly harder route on Rosea I would recommend it. Climb the first 2 pitches then scoot to the LH end of the big ledge below the roofs to finish up the obvious jam crack [which is actually the last pitch of Holocaust].
|
7-May-2013 12:56:04 PM
|
Can't remember if I've done Mugs Alley, Looking at the description in ACA it looks like I've directly quoted "corner arete" from somewhere else, probably the mid-70s Baxter guide. Certainly confusing looking at the descriptions for the last pitch of a number of climbs all in the small area left of the long overhang but not clearly distinguished.
|
7-May-2013 3:01:43 PM
|
The mysterious "corner aręte" is not in either of the Baxter guides. Perhaps it was in the old Blue Grampians guide which I don't have a copy of.
There are 3 obvious short corners L of the main overhang. The first, which I assume is Tequila Sunrise, does appear to involve climbing a corner and aręte, but looks quite hard and poorly protected. The next leads into a dirty groove but you would not head “Up and diagonally right to cracked groove” as the P4 description says from that start. And any pitch starting up this feature looks like a shocker. The 3rd break is much harder than 13, Jerry failed to lead it and had to retreat off gear. I lowered him down from above to retrieve the gear and he couldn’t even get up on a toprope. As you say that whole top wall is pretty hard to make sense of. Fear and Loathing and Desperado must go up it somewhere. Jerry was probably on the top pitch of F&L. None of which helps with identifying where the top pitch of Mug’s Alley actually does go. I have added the top pitch that Jerry and I did to the ACA description. Its a bit of a combo of Holocaust and F&L and at 14 about the right kind of finish for the route.
|
7-May-2013 8:15:00 PM
|
The "corner arete" was from the blue guide. It's the only substantial difference in the Mugs Alley description between that and the baxter guides.
|
8-May-2013 12:48:24 PM
|
Could you give me the whole description of P4 from the blue guide? I assume it is probably pretty close to Davis and Guild's original description. Sometimes just one word of difference makes things much clearer on the cliff. The 'corner arete' would make me think it was the same pitch as P4 of Tequila Sunrise, but a comment in the first Baxter guide 'Pull up steeply' doesn't fit the start of that pitch!
|
8-May-2013 2:10:11 PM
|
On 8/05/2013 armstp wrote:
>Could you give me the whole description of P4 from the blue guide?
armstp,
this is the excerpt that you're after.
From the little blue book (VCC rock climbing guide to the grampians vol 1, 1968, p.34):
4) (110’) From the ledge pull up over the starting overhang and move up and diagonally right until the groove-crack is reached. Move up this awkward section then carry on up the wall to the left of a scrubby gully until holds lead to and across the corner to the right. Easily on for 20’ and belay. Scramble 80’ to the top.
Regards
Bernie
|
8-May-2013 3:58:39 PM
|
Thanks very much for that Bernie. Could I trouble you just a bit more and ask for the P3 wording too? Does it mention the infamous 'corner arete'?! It is becoming quite a challenge to get this top pitch located.
Phil
|
8-May-2013 7:52:52 PM
|
PM'd you
|