Ascensioni in Oceania come Pink point da Paul Frothy Thomson

Pitch 1 only in the baking sun. Still took me 2 shots (today) to get it after I got lost below the crux on the first shot. Stunning climbing the whole way on great rock. This type of movement epitomises face climbing!

Finally! 2nd shot today (in the dark... any darker and it would be unclimbable without a headlamp). PSYCHED! 25th Redpoint Shot total (with 8 other laps to equip/inspect/warmup over the duration). What an epic journey for the tick: struggling with conditions (it was all down to 1 hour of good conditions each day as the sun went down, during which I attacked this), a severe knee injury, 50 other Projects, and the tough approach to the Boneyard (40min walk up a hill + 12m Jumaar + Ledge Life). When it went, it was still a good fight as I struggled to see in the dark. By the end I was only using 3 pieces of trad gear in the crack, and running it out the whole way.

Sorted! 5th day of effort. Fell off the last move of the crux 3 times today. Finally linked through the crux and slipped off an easy move up high. Then sent on the final possible shot of the day. Test piece bouldery crack climbing and crazy steep. The best hard trad route in the Blueys?

Another long haul. 3rd shot today (after punting the low crux on my 2nd shot), on my 6th day of effort on this route. I don't even know how many laps I had in the end . After linking through the crux on my 3rd day, I thought it'd go down fast, but I fell off AFTER the crux 3 times (from mistakes, or flash pump, or poor strategy), and one day in the middle never made it through the crux all day.

A brilliant route, with an unrelenting final 15m of power-endurance steep face-climbing on beautiful rock, guarded by a very gnarly and relatively low percentage lower crux (which proved to very frustrating as I tended to fall off it 1 in every 3 laps). The climbing surrounding these sections is pleasant, but no harder than gr21.

Amazing punchy steep face climbing, and hard to compare it to anything else in the Blueys. Like a steeper Bentrovato wall route, but on better rock... Punchy like the cruxes of Pulse/Zapt, but if the same difficulty of moves continued for 10m (rather than about 4m). The crux of this could be called "10m of madness", and feature some proper funky moves and counter-intuitive sequences. I was proper psyched to tick this after some strategic training. Getting good conditions is very key.

3 days of effort. Fell off after the hardest move at the top at the end of my 1st day, then spent ages never making the same highpoint. Awesome, wandery, run-out climbing, with a decidedly traddy-vibe despite being a sport route. 7 Bolts in 35m is exciting, though. Probably not hard at the grade even without tape gloves or jammies, though this route does suit me fairly perfectly.

2nd redpoint shot today, 7th shot in total (and a few equipping laps). No particularly hard moves, but unrelenting from where it splits from Reigning Steel until you clip the anchors.

Wow! A sustained, complex face climb with classic moves and rock, to a no-hands rest, before a gnarly V6 boulder finale through the top roof. The upper slab is not to be underestimated!

Though I could do the moves of the boulder, I didn't feel that I could put both parts of the climb together in the 2 days I had to try it, so instead I traversed over to the finale of Velvet Morning immediately before the no-hands rest at the top roof, and finished up that (hence not claiming the full grade). Sure, it's the piker's McDougall, but it makes the climb even more sustained, and just as classic as most of the other routes here IMO! Hopefully next time I'll send it properly.

Full disclosure: I also started with the first 3 bolts pre-clipped.

At the start I use a compression/arete-slapping/heel-hooking sequence rather than the crimp boulder. Was heaps of fun figuring it out.

2nd Ascent. 2nd shot. Didn't quite manage the flash with flash pump surprising me on a matched fingernail edge, but went to the top with only 1 fall. 2nd shot felt awesome. This climb was made for someone like me. 30m of non-stop, slightly steep, super-thin technicality on micro-edges, sidepulls and underclings. No real pronounced crux, but trickiness that you could easily fall off on the last move to the anchor (3 x slopey gastons through a steep bulge). Beautiful black and orange rock.

5th shot. Linked into P3 for a single mega pitch belayed from the ground with an 80m rope. 1st shot to get the gear on, fix a static to the belay at the end of P1 and suss the moves. 2nd - 4th shot I was using flawed beta. 5th shot with new beta it all came together for a VERY pumped SEND. Bouldery and shouldery, but rad in its uniqueness and exposure. I enjoyed this quite a bit even on my first lap.

Done and Dusted! First CLEAN repeat of this route! 4th Redpoint shot, 13th lap in total (incl. my Onsight attempt, another ground-up attempt 6 months later, and 7 Top Rope Solo laps when the route was partially wet after the flood). 5th day on, and slightly too hot for ideal conditions... but I went into Warrior Mode in the upper half, and fought and whimpered and screamed through the moves I'd never linked past. I'm bloody glad I didn't blow the final gr23 moves to the roof, or I would've had the biggest whip of my life!

Psyched! 2nd Redpoint attempt (13th lap total, including my various Top Rope Solo laps). Climbed both pitches as a monster 60m pitch belayed from the ground. Took a huge whip off the mid-height pocket-crux on my first shot (after skipping a clip, and falling at the next bolt). Pulled straight back on and linked to the top. The 2nd lap was a battle, but I felt up to the task the whole way. So much varied climbing (even if it is separated by 3 sneaky no-hands rests), with the hardest moves in the last 5m.

Via the batman start (though that start boulder didn't seem too implausible on investigation). Fell off the opening boulder off the ledge 3 times before sussing my sequence. The minute I stuck the boulder I flashed the entire route to the top. Definitely only 25 at my height, and only 24ish to the top once you stick the initial move (which, in itself, wasn't too hard or unpleasant). Sustained with lots of good holds to camp out on and suss the next sequence. A good enduro route.

2nd shot today, 5th total. The first few laps were a debacle trying to cleanup the route, find the holds, and solve the sequence puzzles. But as it came together it was immensely rewarding. Airy and exhilarating climbing (the previous bolt is usually far below your feet before you clip the next one), with complex, sustained technical climbing up an incipient offset seam, though no real "stopper" crux. I absolutely love this style, and this angle, and the equipping: "safe but intimidating". Maybe not particularly hard for 27, but even the original version must have been quite nails for "26".

Done! (But in poor style - pre-placed gear). 9th lap TOTAL. Im nicknaming this climb "7 metres of madness" and for those 7m its all on. Looks 23... climbs nails. Super-complex, varied, long sequences with hideous hideous feet... I havent climbed a crack like it in the Blueys (though im sure theres a few in Indian Creek). Its been a great and epic journey to this point (not the least due to the arduous access), now for the true trad redpoint.

A great companion route to its neighbour, with a similar composition to Wizball, but with a significantly harder start, and less "good holds" to chill out on to break up the intensity. Immaculate rock and just a genuinely well-conceived line.

Cleaning up an old dog. To the 1st anchors only. More memorable technical thinness on water-polished rock, and it didn't feel too hard today... with the exception of the mid-crux clip, that things is nails!

Psyched! After linking to the final hard moves as a warm-up (despite struggling hideously with the pocket crux on 3 previous attempts in the past 8 months), the Send went down in a controlled and collected manner. The first half isn't perfect (all that stops it being mega classic), but is enjoyable when you know how to climb it. The upper half is perfect.

4th shot today, and a couple of laps over the last few years. In previous attempts the crux of this was miles beyond me, today -even on the first lap- it felt good. The send on the 4th lap was unexpected as I was dead tired, but found my inner mongrel and scrapped my way up it. Broken-up steep face climbing, but lots of cool moves inbetween good rests. The headwall is all-time megaarrr.

Good to finally get this done. Not sure how many days I've been on this, probably 4 or 5 over the last year. Up until you gain the hanging dihedral this is awesome gr23ish climbing, then it's on like Donkey Kong to the top. There are two completely different sequences through the crux (even using totally different holds) which both felt the same grade to me, and whichever one I preferred changed each time I got on this. The lefthand version is more powerful, but more "controllable" for me (I like shoulder moves), and suits us tallies. The righthand method is probably the only way shorties will be able to get up this.

Felt strong and dispatched fairly soundly today... still had to crank though. I was dead tired from the yesterday, but the "no expectations" meant I had no monkey on my back, and just treated this like training... then Sent.

2nd shot today, 4th total. Power-screamed my way up this route. I hadn't actually equipped the top half, just left a stash of draws clipped into the last bolt, so I got to send it placing draws and brushing on lead, as the upper 20m was still wet.

3rd shot. Also really enjoyable. Sharper than its neighbour at the start, the moves are surprisingly sustained and really funky. The lower 2/3rd was kinda damp, but fortunately all the hard upper headwall was dry, cause friction was a must. A super gnarly crux that required a different approach due to my lankiness, but with a hellish anchor clip.

3rd shot. On my 2nd shot I ticked the 25, then downclimbed on link to this line and attempted to send both routes in a single push. Came really close. This is a hard one to rate quality-wise. Position and moves are cool, but rock is kinda crunchy, and its quite contrived.

5th shot total (including a few warmup laps). Awesomely steep and exposed up an overhanging prow. Mostly about gr24 steep jugging, with a crazy thin crux down low (must be utterly nails if you're short) and a bouldery iron-cross in the middle.

3rd day of effort (including a day where it was so wet that neither Jase nor I could get anywhere). Steep as all hell, but more of an endurance route with a few funky dynos than anything proper hard. Rad to get it done.

4th day of effort (including a hung-over day where I struggled not to vomit for the day). My ultimate anti-style (dynamic roof-bouldering on pockets) but mega nevertheless. Just like being back in Margalef. My hardest tick in this "particular" style.

2nd shot.

Short, but rather intense. I probably enjoyed this more than I remember, but the moves past the rooflet are bloody hard for me I had to try proper hard.

For added length, on the send I lead down-climbed form the anchor back through the traverse.

2nd shot today, and I had a lap about a year ago as well. Probably soft at the grade.

Aside from the kinda dangerous bolting, and the uninteresting first half, the second act is sustained and demanding face climbing, with a true heartbreaker arete-slapping finale.

With no chalk on this, the first lap today was rather gripping, given the runouts and the very sideways nature of the route.

2nd shot. A really hard face boulder-problem followed by a gritstone-esque sloper headwall that felt way harder on link than I expected. Probably should get done more often.

3rd shot today (and a bunch of laps over many years). Psyched to get this done. For me the crux is the streno slab moves off the no-hands rest, with everything above it to the top being super funky.

EOD and 3rd day on, I was stoked to pull this send out of nowhere.

Sweet! Another boulder-problem overcome with trickery. One day I'll grow a muscle or two, but for now... trickery.

What a journey! Surprise send, after spending the morning on Simmo's route, and only tackling this at the end of the day with a view to sorting out the "send logistics" (with a route this long, steep, and wandery... It's fair to say that it's involved).

There's just so much here to remember, and with it being so steep, you're always on a timer to get it done. Steep, gymnastic, and sometimes quite technical. Would be megaclassic, but the rock is only about as good as Sunny Side Bell, so far from the best the Blueys has to offer. It's almost too hard to sum it up at an experience, even with the copious amounts of hyperbole I can command

2 Full days working the bottom 26/27 arete, and the effort I originally put in to climb Gaze a Gazely Stare (as well as a few repeated laps for fitness and training). On the send, I committed to constant 5m+ runouts to avoid dealing with rope drag.

3 shots. Fell off the last move on my 2nd shot. 3rd day on at Bulla, and I'm feeling proper beat-up now.

Still cleaning up, but the moves are awesome, and this is a way more enjoyable start to Karma Gettin' than Toast is. Steep as all hell, but surprisingly manageable with technique (I found 4 awesome knee-bars ).

Full disclosure: continuing my run of breaking holds off at Bulla on this trip, I actually broke off my anchor clipping hold on the send. D'oh!

Number 2 of 4 of the Crag Classics. A rad, pumpy, jumpy start, then into some weird thin trickery, followed by a steep, juggy, pumpy arete all the way to the top. Features some of the best rock at the crag.

2nd shot today. On the Send it went surprisingly easily, which is rad considering how hideous I felt on the 1st lap (as a warmup). Even radder to have managed yet another Team Send with Tom Collins . Psyched to have managed the trilogy of steep routes at this grade ( TWoAF, Rolling Thunder, Realised Ultimate Reality ) in successive weeks.

3rd shot. Feels quite easy at the grade. The top crux isn't that hard but -for me- could only be climbed with one specific sequence, and any slight alteration to that sequence made it impossible (hence the 3 shots). Short and powerful. Not classic like Los Hermanos, but less intense.

Dream send! Is this the best climb I've ever done? On JengA's gear (all placed on his onsight attempt, and left quite runout). Ticked 2nd shot after 2 big falls on the flash attempt. Consistantly thin (though with an obvious crux sequence), the sideways slopey crimps are draining on the arms, and make for tricky, slippery footwork. I fought tooth and nail for the tick. The juggy traverse to the arete caught me off-guard for the last super-runout techy move to gain the arete. Exhilerated!

4th shot today (7th total, over about 8 months). The 2nd shot went perfectly until my footer slipped on a sandy footer going for the anchor jugs. 3rd shot I sandbagged myself trying to avoid the sandy footer (and completely messing up my sequence), so: 4th shot it is. The dangerous (though not uninteresting) start robs this climb of perfection (and soon becomes tedious). Great technical moves and sharp crimping with a pronounced crux. Doesn't climb much like an arete, but DOES climb rad.

3rd shot today, 6th shot total. Utterly stoked to tick this inspiring piece of rock. Should've gone 2nd shot today, but my smeared foot slipped as I grasped the final mingen crimp before the juggy finale. Like a harder version of Toyland Direct, but better rock and fewer stances. The fluid technicality of the crux felt more amazing after each lap, but the insecure top slab never felt anything other than heartbreakingly precarious. A great test piece.

2nd shot today, 4th shot total. My 1st attempt today placing the draws was a dogs breakfast as I got epically flash pumped, too hot in the full summer sun and stressed with the expectation of a quick send. The 2nd shot was executed perfectly, and was just fun, steep, pumpy big moves between big slopes. I chose not to place the last draw before the anchors for some encouragement not to fall. Did another lap at the end of the day for some photos with Simon Carter.

3rd shot today, 4th shot total. The first 2 shots today were frustrated by the wind blowing horizontal rain straight onto the crux holds, and both shots I fell off the last hold of the crux despite the wet. For the Send shot, I siezed on 30min without rain to do this route in the best conditions I've seen it yet. After sticking the crux, the rest of this climb was Mark and Execute and was never in doubt. Rad! Glad to send this one packing despite rubbish conditions.

Utterly stoked! 2nd shot today, 6th lap total (incl. top rope laps). On the 1st shot I had a random foot slip on the last hard move of the crux, but on the Send it went flawlessly. 13min from setoff to topout according to my phone. So much extreme, tenuous stemming and tiny movements relying on friction and tension to stay on the wall. Stressful and intimidating, but very rewarding. This was the 4th (and last) of my big adventure goals to be knocked off in the past year.

2nd shot. I made a dogs breakfast of the crux move at the 3rd bolt on my first lap today (after being dropped to the ground from above that a few weeks ago -my tailbone is still extremely painful-, the silly 3rd bolt placement meant I balked for a while before I would commit to it), but it was Mark and Execute on the 2nd lap. Most of this climb is great moves on solid-rock, with some funky climbing, but the dubious rock at the top needs a real scrub and the bolt needs moving for it to be classic

Awesome! 3rd shot today. 6th shot this trip. 7th total. 1st shot today I fell off a move down low, then linked to the top. 2nd shot I fell off the same move down low, and this time decided to dial it into submission. 3rd shot I sent it packing at 8pm (having been climbing since 9am) for the hard fought but well-executed tick. This climb is a lot of effort, but damn is it worth it. Sorry Jenga, Skank-tail and Wendy are gone, but Barney is still around.

Finally! 4th shot today. 6th shot this trip. 18th shot over the past year. The most shots ive ever given a climb by a lot, and despite the grade this might be my hardest tick to date (and almost certainly gr27 in reality). Demanding, demoralising, destroying and rewarding. Every shot today I was getting through the crux and struggling above (especially getting into the offwidth). Finally, right on dark it all came together. Soooo psyched!

Finally. 2nd shot today (almost ticked it as a warmup, falling off the last hard move), and it was cruisy and controlled. 4th redpoint shot. 9th lap total (the initial 5 laps I hadnt worked out how to clip the post-crux draw and every lap ended there as I tried different things). Not classic, but fun, and very much not my style, so good to work on something that I struggle with.

Ticked 2nd shot. Pitch 5 (gr26 pitch) only. Likely the 1st clean repeat of this pitch in all the years since it was established. 1 poor foot placement away from the true ground-up, unchalked onsight!!!! Damn! Belayed from orange crush ledge, so I had 6m of horizontal rope out before starting this climb. Well bolted, but the bolts themselves are appalling. Interesting climbing up surprising steepness, with moderate bad rock (which could be cleaned up with some hammer love). As with the rest of this multi, this wasnt as bad as its reputation might suggest.

2nd shot today. 3rd total. Tried to climb this as a warmup today which didnt work well, but cruised it 2nd shot. Short, probably more 25 than 26, but enjoyable climbing. The contrived finish is a bit silly, though I did It properly.