Treading Water

This climb is located just beyond Hip Wader Gully (or so I believe). A creek crossing is needed to get to it. With the remoteness of the area in winter, this may or may not be a wise decision if you enjoy warm feet. The climb is very visible on the east slopes of Blackiston. It lies along a long 60m headwall that extends for a couple of kilometers. The best time to catch this route may actually be as soon as the Red Rock Highway opens up in May. The climb retains ice for quite sometime (into early June). Being able to drive up greatly simplifies the apprach problem. The only issue is that, usually, by this time of year, people aren't too keen on wading across creeks to get to some sun melted, relatively easy ice.

The climb was first done by Brad Hagen and Grey Horne (who used to be a Park Naturalist and active climber in the area) some time ago. Brad has been active in the area on and off for some 25 years. Undoubtably the approach to these climbs was much easier when you could drive up the road. During the first ascent, there was a large horizontal crack across the top section of the climb that made it challenging for its grade. It is reported to be similar to the top pitch of the left Compound gully.

Thanks for the info Brad.