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  • #14311 Reply
    Ang
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    The Runnel of Love *** 21 27m.

    Excellent face climbing on thin edges. Start 4m left of the Lizard of Oz at the base of the large tapered runnel at the left end of the west face. Climb the left edge of runnel past nine bolts (fixed hangers) to a dbb. Tim Ball and Ryan ?? Oct 2012

    I played on this climb on Saturday and it is a fun line with nice moves, well protected and no reachy clips or holds. The crux is just after the 2nd bolt and the grade comes from the first half of the climb, particularly as an onsite. The second half eases off a little. Excellent friction and clean rock. The DBB is also fixed hangers. Well done and thanks Tim.

    #14324 Reply
    friend of numbat
    Guest

    ummmmm isn’t that a retro bolt of a scott camps solo ‘Woo Woo Woo’ ?

    Scott probably went into the line from the left(?) as he didn’t want to solo the first few m’s which are the 21 bit.

    Retrobolting at Peak Head is pretty bad form. In fact it’s pretty bad form period.

    You could have left the line as it was… it’s easy enough to top rope for us punters.

    I can’t believe such a premeditated thing such as bolting this route was done without looking at the guide book ???? Surely you must have known…..

    What were you thinking ?

    #14325 Reply
    kym
    Guest

    A three star sport route at peak head wow, can’t wait to try it. I’m not sure of a retrobolt as I haven’t seen it yet.. Tho it would be nice to see people keen on replacing fixed pro on older routes (if they are near-by) which are in obvious need as well as establishing new lines..

    Sounds like a nice safe route and will most certainly get traffic! A few others on that west face look good too but could do with some attention..  I would be very interested to know what the bolts and hangers are? If it turns out a retrobolt with expansions or anything less than 316 it would be a shame…

    In some ways it was a pity the adventure climbing zone ban on fixed pro was lifted. Secret crags, possible retrobolting, sport routes, lines that need rebolting and aren’t getting it. Prob deserves more respect eh? It would be the evolution of the sport, trad purists weep…

     

    #14335 Reply
    Tuam
    Guest

    One to the right, Lizards of Ozz, is a great climb at 17. But its bolts are  old. Both of them. And attached to exfoliating flakes. Be nice to get them relocated.

    #14336 Reply
    Rob
    Guest

    Thanks Ang

    For posting this, something different to try at Peak Head and thanks to Tim and Ryan, if it was actually you guy’s that did the bolting it seems

    Ang was not quite sure however if it was you guy’s I know you had everyone’s best interest at heart.

    Ryan if I get a chance to head down I’ll let you know beforehand to try and catch up 🙂

    #14374 Reply
    Ross Weiter
    Guest

    The bolted routes on W Face should be rebolted so as to be considered safe by todays standards, it is not 1989 any more.

    Whether this one is a retrobolt of WWW solo needs to be established, no point in theorising here. If so, this is bad form, and certainly not FA. I would not theorise about how Scott got into the line as this is pointless also….from what I have heard he can certainly solo 21.

    #14411 Reply
    James
    Guest

    Honestly.. I understand that retro bolting a trad climb is poor form.. But adding bolts to a climb that has no trad options IMO is a great thing.. Especially for a three star climb.  Not all of us are capable of soloing a climb of this calibre and 27m is a nasty fall to say the least. Top roping is for beginners and gym junkies!

    #14416 Reply
    Tuam
    Guest

    Top-roping is a cleaner ascent than those well bolted routes where falls can be taken without inconvenience. Closely spaced bolts are for gym junkies.

    #14473 Reply
    Krish
    Guest

     The clash of sport and trad cultures will continue to clash but as Kym said it comes down to having respect for the first ascentist, and accepting when you are not physically and/or mentally capable repeating their acheivments. I’ve had a mixed route of mine retro-bolted by someone purely because they couldn’t place trad and felt it was unsafe – bit of a slap in the face.

    #17617 Reply
    Ronald Master
    Guest

    I have been living and  climbing in Albany for some years now and do not agree with retro bolting any lines unless the original climber has been contacted.  Replacing existing bolts is ok but if this a retro-bolt then it is not on and they should be be chopped, not to mention putting a new name on it. As Ross said it is conjecture however until someone has a look.  I could use a trip to Peak Head, I will have look in the next two or three weeks.

    I have seen Scott climb and he certainly could have done it. I must say I would not be keen with bugger all pro, but no one is forcing you to do it and there are plenty of other climbs at Peak Head.

    #19381 Reply
    Ryan Watson
    Guest

    Hello.  The description that Ang gave in the initial post is spot on.  This isn’t a retro-bolting of Scott Camps route ‘Woo Woo Woo’.  It is a new line, between Woo Woo Woo and Lizard of Oz, and as Ang wrote starts around 4m left of Lizard of Oz.  If you have a West Australian Rock guide book, you will see the white streak that is the runnel itself, and the climb runs up the left side of that.

    Happy climbing, Ryan.

    #19469 Reply
    kym
    Guest

    Great work Ryan, seems most of us like a bit of drama :/  Heading down next week and hope to get out there. Good to hear you ticked your line Ron! Looking forward to trying it this season, among other sandbags…

    #25191 Reply
    John boy
    Guest

    Hey .went in with a couple of locals today to the west face and had great day on perfect rock.we top roped the climb and Found it a great line with cool moves .it was pretty obvious though to everyone there that it is not a new line .scottys route joins it just above half way and they both fire up the runnel.woo woo woo direct perhaps shame about the bolts on Scotts section .

    #54314 Reply
    friend of numbat
    Guest

    so, i climbed this.

    and, it is a shamefull retrobolt.

    does anyone else notice / care ?!?!?!!?

    Nice job Tim and Ryan.

    #54345 Reply
    kym
    Guest

    Um yes, it’s a worry… Nice line tho a waste of bolts, and expansions on a sea cliff? c’mon lads do some research. What is more worrying is that people will begin to think this practise is acceptable. This is the ACZ. You’re pretty lucky to be able to go bolting, make it count.

    #99742 Reply
    Hammond
    Guest

    The following is from a mail I got from Scott Camps the First Ascentionist of the Peak Head climb Woo Woo Woo. I’m posting it for the information of anyone opening climbs on PH or considering modifying the new line. Probably doesn’t include most of us on this thread. (it may still not be absolutely clear that the new line coincides with WWW)
    Thanks to Scott for taking time to write at such length and in a polite tone (take note everybody else).
    I’ll repeat the bit on West Cape Howe in a note on First Ascents
    (none of this has anything to do with my opinions, and no doubt not everyone will agree with all of it, but as a FA view it should be given careful consideration – ) : Hammond
    *********************************************
    First of all my name is Camps not Camp. (I spelt his name wrong. Not a good start : Hammond)
    Secondly. No intrusion at all I thank you for your email and I respect the fact you took the time to contact me.
    Thirdly I deplore the retro and consumer bolting culture and I do not believe – ‘bolters are acting on their vision as are those who chop the bolts’ – as it will always take far more vision for someone to climb something without bolts than with. But saying this it has never been the bolts that are the problem it’s always been the bolters and the level of respect employed. Unfortunately in the end it seems, the environment suffers along with the ethics and principles of what is right and what someone thinks is right. Should we chop old growth forest down without a thought? Well then should we not preserve some of the cliffs too? It’s the same old prevailing issue, people think they will but unfortunately they rarely do, properly, until it’s too late!

    To answer your query as far as I recollect my route in question Woo Woo Woo pretty much ran straight up the obvious runnel. It’s a shame to think though that now Peak Head is headless with bolts.

    Lastly having employed bolting on a lot of climbs myself over the years I don’t deplore the act of anybody else wishing to use them either but I do find the emptiness climbers have for their so called respect of their beautiful environment very self indulgent. It’s a terrible misconception that bygone up-man-ship in climbing was all about how big your balls were, in essence, it was really primarily about conservation and how one could do things with less impact. I for one hope that in 30 years there will still be crags with very few or no bolts and a culture of real preservation for the cliffs and for what climbing is really about – stepping up to a challenge – not bringing it down to one’s own level. And despite everything we should not forget bold is beautiful after all, and that it’s not the climbs which need the bolts it’s the climbers who need them!
    ————————–
    I will also take the time here to clarify a route I climbed at West Cape Howe back in 1993 ‘Better Than Chocolate’ which I then graded 19. It is incorrectly reported in Shane Richardson’s South Coast Rock guide to the left of its actual position. When it should have actually been described as the shallow finger crack corner immediately to the right of description in the guide, then ascends the middle of the beautiful chocolate wall left of The Mincer. In 2006 I repeated this route and believed it to be more like 21 but was appalled to find it had been mindlessly retro bolted?
    **********************************************

    #103450 Reply
    George
    Guest

    Sounds like they need to come out…

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