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Crag & Route Beta

Area	Location	Sub Location	Crag	Links
VIC Southwest	You Yangs	Gravel Pit Tor	(General)	[ You Yangs Guide \| Images ]

Topic Date User

Broken Dreams Beta 9-Jan-2016 At 11:51:24 PM harold

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I’m looking for some info on the Kim Carrigan route Broken Dreams at Gravel Pit Tor, the You Yangs done in 1985. Particularly where the route went after the bolted section and horizontal crack. The big question I have is whether or not the top crack of Orpheus has ever been freed. So, I’m hoping that someone who was around back in the 80’s might know how Kim finished this climb, or also where any subsequent repeaters have gone.

The descriptions in the three guides I have are quite confusing and don’t quite make sense.
The Rock guide from the 90’s says “up 4m R of Orpheus (three FHs), then L to undercling. Flake, then finish up Chuck Solids”.
The South West Victoria VCC guide from 2003 says “Brilliant, steep face climbing which falters only upon reaching the trench of Orpheus. Start from the boulders 4m right of the Orpheus crack, following 3 FHs up and leftwards…to the horizontal undercling leading leftwards to the flake, and up this to finish as for Chuck Solids. A more enjoyable but less immediate conclusion would be the arête of Edging Bets”.
And then the more recent Rock Climbs around Melbourne says to finish up the overhanging trench of Orpheus.

Just to describe the route, the first half has three bolts and is some cool, hard, overhanging climbing up some funky side pulls, a pocket and a heel hook (not the usual granite micro edges). A really tricky dynamic move to undercling the horizontal which runs across the whole face. Then a couple metres left is the overhanging trench of the aid route Orpheus. Then a couple metres left is the arête of Edging Bets. Then another 2m left is the third bolt of Chuck Solids.

So if Broken Dreams finished up the Orpheus trench crack, the crack would be the crux. Its 5 metres of 45 degrees overhanging, off fist size, flared and mostly smooth crack. I would think grade 29 or 30, not that I have the experience to have any idea. (And the Ogive at the Gramps is 28). Its just really burly. If the crux was finishing up the trench I would have thought this would rate more of a mention originally.
The description of left to flake and up wouldn’t make sense as how could you confuse ‘flake’ with an overhanging trench. But then there is no really distinguishing flake anywhere – although the holds on the arête and on Chuck Solids could possibly be described as flakes.
As for the description to finish as for Chuck solids in the two older guides – Chuck Solids and Edging Bets share a finish up a seam 2m left of where Orpheus finishes.

Is this the last great crack test piece of the Youies……?