Girraween
Yes folks, I logged some frequent flyer points on Airtime Over Pumicestone.
I`m sitting here nursing myself and trying to type this report and feeling very sheepish and sorry for myself.
I was climbing Airtime with Ted Cais who had been eyeing that section of Tibro for more than 30 years. Ted spooked himself down low just above the first bolt when he started to head up to the left on a lichen encrusted smooth ramp. The thing is there is not much gear up to that point so the bolt is crucial for safety.
So Ted arrived at the belay and I monkeyed my way up to meet him. (Ouch, my wrist is really sore, finding it hard to type) The next belay station is not visible from this station and the terrain is quite confusing. I have only seconded this pitch quite a while ago. I have the topo with me but fail to consult it at crucial times.
Off I go, up generally following where I should go, placing gear and then clipping the bolt below the roof, but after arriving at a landmark on the climb I turn to the right and head up instead of to the left.
I know that I am off track and instead of down climbing I foolishly decide to forge on ahead. Reaching up a grab what feels like a decent hold and latch on. it crumbles beneath my hand and spits me off backwards.
Oh no, I have time to think to myself. As this terrain is less than vertical there are lots of sticky outy bits to bump into on the way down. I alnd hard on my heel and that torques me out from the cliff, I`m now inverted. I feel like superman flying down the side of the mountain.
What the heck are those sharp tugs on the rope, oh man, my rope just broke, I think to myself, lucky I`m on double ropes. Why am I falling so far, bump scrape thud, yoink, I`m stopped.
I feel all around my head and neck and think to myself that I must have hit my head on the way down, fortunately not as I observe a couple of huge flappers on the palm of my right hand.
I`m seeing lots of stars about now too.
By this time I have turned myself the right way up and try to stand on my right foot. Ouch, that hurts too, I have lost my climbing shoe and can`t help but notice the huge egg that is rising on my ankle.
Around this time I also notice that I am about 3 metres below my belayer. I think to myself that if this was the first pitch I would definitely have run out of time on this planet.
I give myself a once over and Ted and I decide on a plan of action. Bail is the word. The thing is it will be much easier if I get myself up to where Ted is belaying from. Right ankle is paining me something fierce but that can`t be helped at this stage.
I hang in my harness for a minute and then start my tortured way up to Ted. The worst of it is that I have to make a rather high high step and wouldn`t you know it I have to do that on my right foot. Ouchy, I`m up. We then set up the rap.
One of the first things I say to Ted is that I am glad I didn`t squeel like a pig on the way down. I can remember grunting as my thigh and then my buttock brushed against the blocks.
I am doing it all by the numbers being verrry careful not to make any mistakes at all. I back myself up with an autoblock off the legloop and set it as tightly as I can in case the worst happens and I black out on the way down, fortunately this does not happen and I aly myself down on the ground and admire the swimming stars and a small amount of tunnel vision.
Ted joins me and we do another once over. Around this time I giv Ron Farmer a call on the radio and suggest that he comes down straight away (he and Teds wife Michelle are doing the Caves Route).
I suggest that I should start to make my way down to the car park. I grab a stick off the ground and start to amke my pained way up the scree slope at the base of the wall and soon chuck my stick away as it is more of a hinderance than a help.
I rest at Carborundum Chimney and then I bum shuffle my way down the short slabs on the track. I find that by staying on the balls of my feet I can actually make pretty fast progress so I scamper down the track at a near trot.
Down at the carpark I wit for near on 3/4 of an hour for the others to come down. I meet a couple of walkers and I allay their concerns for me as I explain that the rest of my group will join me soon.
Ron does the triage thing for me and we decide to head into Glashouse Township for some medical supplies and ice. Once there Ron suggest that I need to get some exercise into that foot after icing it down so we head up to Ngun Ngun.
After duely icing my ankle and applying other swelling reducing agents I try to take my medicine of giving my ankle exercise. I am somewhat dubious as to the efficacy of this treatment but I do what the doctor orders and we head up the track. Hey this is working, woddya know.
Slowly I make my way up the steep part of the track past Flat Battery Wall and beyond the cave where Ron gives a talk on the Aboriginal legend of the cave. I decide that I have had enough when I get to the platform above the cave.
After a short lie down IN THE SPEAR GRASS, GRRRRR, I make my way back to the carpark.
What went wrong? Why did I fall so far?
First and foremost is the fact that climbing anywhere on this wall is possible and the confusing terrain leads one into desperate territory. The rock shattered under my hand. I did not read the topo with enough care as I thought that I could thug through relying on memory alone as I ahd been on this pitch before.
What I thought was the rope breaking was indeed gear ripping out. The first piece to go was a shallow HB Offset nut. The second piece to go was a purple Alien in a suspect flared pocket. The third piece to go was a Yellow Alien which I considered to be a bomber piece. It was this third piece blowing that made me think the rope broke I could feel the tugs on the rope as pieces blew but the third piece blew with such a force that I just assumed that my rope broke.
I have never been so glad of having a bolt pull me up. If this bolt had not have been there I would have been in very real danger of splatting on to some large ledges below us.
Why did my gear blow? dunno why the yellow Alien blew but what I think may have happened is that during the time when the other pieces were blowing it was doing a bit of a walk as it got worked this way and that wilst being under load and then being released from that load only to then become loaded again. This may have walked it in to a less than optimal position. I certainly could have placed better gear in this location.
As to the other two pieces, I believ that the Offset Nut being placed so shallow simply blew the rock apart. The large Purple Alien was placed in a pocket that had some crumbley rock within it, this pocket was a little flared to make matters worse. I worked on that placement for a deal of time too so I had thought it better than it subsequently turned out to be.
Ted did say that he did have a small amount of slack out at the time but this did not have any bearing on the accident.
Distance fallen was 20 metres. One thing I learned out of my first big fall is that falling distances are almost exponential with every piece blowing creating much longer distances to fall.
Injuries sustained are,
twisted right ankle
bruised right thigh
bruised right buttock
large egg bruise and fluid on the right elbow, sorta like a hit funny bone on mega steroids
twisted right wrist
two big flappers on right palm
one large flapper in front of right ankle
one small ding in centre of skull
The guys told me several times that these things will sneak up and happen to you the longer you climb. I feel a little reassured by this but I still feel like an eeedeeeot.
The worst aspect about this whole accident though is that I forgot my helmet as I had left it back in my truck which was too far to walk back to.
You guys on this forum know that I am the number one advocate for helmet wearing. This could also have contributed to the accident as it bothered me all morning and could have put me off my game slightly. Fortunately I got out of jail free as I didn`t have any head injuries to speak of from the accident except the real small ding in the centre of my scone. I think I got that when the yellow Alien came rattling down the rope.
I believe that I will become a safer and stronger and more reliable climber through having experienced this fall. I believe that we learn by mistakes and I know that I certainly have learned much out of this and I would hope that others would also learn from my mistakes. It isn`t very often that you get a second chance in a situation like this.There have already been two bad accidents involving Queenslanders this year let`s hope there are no more of them.
I`m sitting here nursing myself and trying to type this report and feeling very sheepish and sorry for myself.
I was climbing Airtime with Ted Cais who had been eyeing that section of Tibro for more than 30 years. Ted spooked himself down low just above the first bolt when he started to head up to the left on a lichen encrusted smooth ramp. The thing is there is not much gear up to that point so the bolt is crucial for safety.
So Ted arrived at the belay and I monkeyed my way up to meet him. (Ouch, my wrist is really sore, finding it hard to type) The next belay station is not visible from this station and the terrain is quite confusing. I have only seconded this pitch quite a while ago. I have the topo with me but fail to consult it at crucial times.
Off I go, up generally following where I should go, placing gear and then clipping the bolt below the roof, but after arriving at a landmark on the climb I turn to the right and head up instead of to the left.
I know that I am off track and instead of down climbing I foolishly decide to forge on ahead. Reaching up a grab what feels like a decent hold and latch on. it crumbles beneath my hand and spits me off backwards.
Oh no, I have time to think to myself. As this terrain is less than vertical there are lots of sticky outy bits to bump into on the way down. I alnd hard on my heel and that torques me out from the cliff, I`m now inverted. I feel like superman flying down the side of the mountain.
What the heck are those sharp tugs on the rope, oh man, my rope just broke, I think to myself, lucky I`m on double ropes. Why am I falling so far, bump scrape thud, yoink, I`m stopped.
I feel all around my head and neck and think to myself that I must have hit my head on the way down, fortunately not as I observe a couple of huge flappers on the palm of my right hand.
I`m seeing lots of stars about now too.
By this time I have turned myself the right way up and try to stand on my right foot. Ouch, that hurts too, I have lost my climbing shoe and can`t help but notice the huge egg that is rising on my ankle.
Around this time I also notice that I am about 3 metres below my belayer. I think to myself that if this was the first pitch I would definitely have run out of time on this planet.
I give myself a once over and Ted and I decide on a plan of action. Bail is the word. The thing is it will be much easier if I get myself up to where Ted is belaying from. Right ankle is paining me something fierce but that can`t be helped at this stage.
I hang in my harness for a minute and then start my tortured way up to Ted. The worst of it is that I have to make a rather high high step and wouldn`t you know it I have to do that on my right foot. Ouchy, I`m up. We then set up the rap.
One of the first things I say to Ted is that I am glad I didn`t squeel like a pig on the way down. I can remember grunting as my thigh and then my buttock brushed against the blocks.
I am doing it all by the numbers being verrry careful not to make any mistakes at all. I back myself up with an autoblock off the legloop and set it as tightly as I can in case the worst happens and I black out on the way down, fortunately this does not happen and I aly myself down on the ground and admire the swimming stars and a small amount of tunnel vision.
Ted joins me and we do another once over. Around this time I giv Ron Farmer a call on the radio and suggest that he comes down straight away (he and Teds wife Michelle are doing the Caves Route).
I suggest that I should start to make my way down to the car park. I grab a stick off the ground and start to amke my pained way up the scree slope at the base of the wall and soon chuck my stick away as it is more of a hinderance than a help.
I rest at Carborundum Chimney and then I bum shuffle my way down the short slabs on the track. I find that by staying on the balls of my feet I can actually make pretty fast progress so I scamper down the track at a near trot.
Down at the carpark I wit for near on 3/4 of an hour for the others to come down. I meet a couple of walkers and I allay their concerns for me as I explain that the rest of my group will join me soon.
Ron does the triage thing for me and we decide to head into Glashouse Township for some medical supplies and ice. Once there Ron suggest that I need to get some exercise into that foot after icing it down so we head up to Ngun Ngun.
After duely icing my ankle and applying other swelling reducing agents I try to take my medicine of giving my ankle exercise. I am somewhat dubious as to the efficacy of this treatment but I do what the doctor orders and we head up the track. Hey this is working, woddya know.
Slowly I make my way up the steep part of the track past Flat Battery Wall and beyond the cave where Ron gives a talk on the Aboriginal legend of the cave. I decide that I have had enough when I get to the platform above the cave.
After a short lie down IN THE SPEAR GRASS, GRRRRR, I make my way back to the carpark.
What went wrong? Why did I fall so far?
First and foremost is the fact that climbing anywhere on this wall is possible and the confusing terrain leads one into desperate territory. The rock shattered under my hand. I did not read the topo with enough care as I thought that I could thug through relying on memory alone as I ahd been on this pitch before.
What I thought was the rope breaking was indeed gear ripping out. The first piece to go was a shallow HB Offset nut. The second piece to go was a purple Alien in a suspect flared pocket. The third piece to go was a Yellow Alien which I considered to be a bomber piece. It was this third piece blowing that made me think the rope broke I could feel the tugs on the rope as pieces blew but the third piece blew with such a force that I just assumed that my rope broke.
I have never been so glad of having a bolt pull me up. If this bolt had not have been there I would have been in very real danger of splatting on to some large ledges below us.
Why did my gear blow? dunno why the yellow Alien blew but what I think may have happened is that during the time when the other pieces were blowing it was doing a bit of a walk as it got worked this way and that wilst being under load and then being released from that load only to then become loaded again. This may have walked it in to a less than optimal position. I certainly could have placed better gear in this location.
As to the other two pieces, I believ that the Offset Nut being placed so shallow simply blew the rock apart. The large Purple Alien was placed in a pocket that had some crumbley rock within it, this pocket was a little flared to make matters worse. I worked on that placement for a deal of time too so I had thought it better than it subsequently turned out to be.
Ted did say that he did have a small amount of slack out at the time but this did not have any bearing on the accident.
Distance fallen was 20 metres. One thing I learned out of my first big fall is that falling distances are almost exponential with every piece blowing creating much longer distances to fall.
Injuries sustained are,
twisted right ankle
bruised right thigh
bruised right buttock
large egg bruise and fluid on the right elbow, sorta like a hit funny bone on mega steroids
twisted right wrist
two big flappers on right palm
one large flapper in front of right ankle
one small ding in centre of skull
The guys told me several times that these things will sneak up and happen to you the longer you climb. I feel a little reassured by this but I still feel like an eeedeeeot.
The worst aspect about this whole accident though is that I forgot my helmet as I had left it back in my truck which was too far to walk back to.
You guys on this forum know that I am the number one advocate for helmet wearing. This could also have contributed to the accident as it bothered me all morning and could have put me off my game slightly. Fortunately I got out of jail free as I didn`t have any head injuries to speak of from the accident except the real small ding in the centre of my scone. I think I got that when the yellow Alien came rattling down the rope.
I believe that I will become a safer and stronger and more reliable climber through having experienced this fall. I believe that we learn by mistakes and I know that I certainly have learned much out of this and I would hope that others would also learn from my mistakes. It isn`t very often that you get a second chance in a situation like this.There have already been two bad accidents involving Queenslanders this year let`s hope there are no more of them.
...Phil...
- Looks like a some new type of climbing appendage (jamming in pockets perhaps?)....where can i get one!!
