Overall
- 9 pitches of 5.9/5.10b/c climbing with about 30m each pitch
- All bolted
- Approach requires wading across the river, only knee deep in March and rocks mostly smooth so ok barefoot. The start is pretty obvious off a blocky ledge to the left of the tree.
- Walk off, ~40 min straightforward walk down
Gear
- 60m rope, or 70m if want to link first 2 pitches or if want to bail
- 11 quickdraws, or 14-19 if linking
L1 / 5.10b / 35m / 9 quickdraws / Start on the left of the small tree on the face. An easy pitch.
L2 / 5.9 / 35m / 7 quickdraws / Very easy pitch with a lot of good holds.
- Link option: P1 & P2 @ 70m – the crux of P1 comes about 25-30m up & is thin, technical & airy. P2 is straightforward & gives no rope drag. Belay ledge is sloping but good.
L3 / 5.10c / 25m / 10 quickdraws / The main pitch, you must to climb before the bolt, but it’s always ok, it’s in good place
L4 / 5.10c / 25m / 9 quickdraws / Start and end a bit hard but very nice
- P3 & P4 @~50m – airy climbing with quite a ways between bolts to an excellent belay ledge. If you don’t feel solid on 6a climbing, cams can be placed often (*maybe* nuts if you’re clever).
After L4, this route is shares pitches with “La classique”
L5 / 5.10a / 25m / 8 quickdraws / Crack and a step on a slight overhang.
L6 / 5.9 / 20m / 6 quickdraws / Progression in a vertical chaos.
- P5 & P6 @ ~45m – We went slightly right, following the “as for Classique”. There can be a lot of drag unless long runners are used at the appropriate places. Not so great sloping stance with 2 new bolts (no chord).
L7 / 5.10b / 50m / 8 quickdraws / A physical dihedral with an overhang on the right at the start then 20m of easy climbing.
L8 / 5.10b / 30m / 7 quickdraws / A small slab with an overhanging crack at the start, then easy. Keep to the right so as not to miss the belay.
- P7 & P8 @ ~76m – these pitches are much lower angle with much further between bolts. Following the bolt line, everything is solid, don’t get too far off route or it can be loose. The rock is also more blocky & can appear loose but all felt solid.
L9 / 5.9 / 30m / 7 quickdraws / Follow the last length of Chibania, pay attention to the unstable blocks.
- From this anchor, we walked to the top in about 10m of 4th class to 3rd class.
Descent
Descent # 60 min: follow the cairns on the plateau, then follow the shepherds track to arrive at the entrance of the gorges.
- The walk down is obvious & easy – the trail down can be seen from the summit. Look for cairns heading away from the face and slightly down & right. At a point where the cairns seem to lead to a cliff, you will find an easy ramp system down & left to the well-travelled trail that leads to the road. Decent took less than 40 minutes.