Author |
The Original Route Mt Banks (13) |
|
|
11-Mar-2009 11:00:19 AM
|
Is anyone able to give me any beta on The Original Route on Mt Banks?
There seems to be a fair bit of stuff around on the Grossness area and the routes around there, but nothing on the older lines...
|
11-Mar-2009 11:04:36 AM
|
Hugh,
Purple prose trip report here: http://clambering.blogspot.com/2005/04/return-of-original.html
When you doing it? I wouldn't mind a second trip up it some time.
Rod
|
11-Mar-2009 11:06:56 AM
|
You beat me orwell.
I knew you had done it and was searching for the link while you posted!
|
11-Mar-2009 11:24:46 AM
|
It sounds like a bit of an epic Rod! Hope to have a crack at it this weekend, probably aproach it from the bottom. This trips supposed to be a bit of a training mission, but I would be keen to head out and have a crack at it with you another time.
Are you able to give any description of how to find the base of the climb (I guess a grid ref is a bit optimistic)? Also do you think 2 people moving quickly with minimal gear could get up it in a day?
Hugh
|
11-Mar-2009 11:38:09 AM
|
Mate I reckon you could do it in one day as a pair with light packs. We were a foursome and we deliberately wanted to go at a slow pace and bivvy.
I'll see if anyone from another attempt we made on it - it rained - has a GPS ref for you.
If you're aware of the old abseiler's route off Mt Banks that's the track you head up on. You walk in as if going to Blue Gum Forest from Pierce's Pass and then cross Govett's Creek. I think it took about 90 mins for us to reach the crossing point on the faster rain-affected second time I went to do it.
Also, you need to do a car ferry. Park one at the Mt Banks car park for when you top out and leave the other at Pierce's car park (lower).
The base of the cliff and the start of the climb are on the buttress to the left of the major central gully on Mt Banks (see pic I sent). The abseiler's path goes up a ridge on the right hand side of the gully and then we basically scrub bashed across the central gully - through a hanging swamp etc - to the buttress on the left hand side of the gully.
Since the two times I've been to the base of the cliff the whole joint was burned out. I dunno if the scrub would be as thick as it was but I'd recommend wearing long trousers so that any scrub bashing pain is reduced.
|
11-Mar-2009 12:10:49 PM
|
I think it's 557 802 on the Mt Wilson Sheet 3rd edition MGA 8930-1N and starts off an 'obvious' block to the left of the central gully
GPS coordiates that correspond to this are
56H 255631 6280193
There's also supposed to be an access where you walk from the Mt banks carpark up Mt Banks, vere right at the cliff band (which corresponds to the second band) and walk to the ridge bounding the LHS (north) end of the wall and go down this, via one abseil to the ist ledge, then walk across to the gully and abseil down this (another 100m). I haven't done this,a nd the person who I went with, who had done it, got lost.
With 3 abseils it would take about as long, would be less thrashy, and would avoid the car shuffle
|
17-Mar-2009 1:52:09 PM
|
Thanks All,
That should get us to the base one way or the other!
Hugh
|
17-Mar-2009 3:48:36 PM
|
Good Luck Hugh, it's still on my to do list. There are some colour photo topos floating around by Hayden with info on other routes and variants. I've just got hard copies.
Congrats also on yr recent new route at the Neck, although I think, for historical purposes, you need to add 'jr' to your name on the FA details.
I've done Zerion, on Banks Walls (maybe the 2nd ascent???) which was 'interesting', as it weaves it's way somewhere near Mikl's recent grade 20+ routes..
|
17-Mar-2009 8:53:11 PM
|
WAYPOINT MARKED VERY CLOSE TO THE RIVER CROSSING: This is the point where you leave the Pierce's Pass track to Blue Gum Forest and cross Govetts Creek and head up the hill towards the central gully on Mt Banks:
S 33o35.713'
E 150o21.589'
Google: - 33 35.713', 150 21.589'
|