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​Flakes and Shakes: 
​Flake Crack Revisited

By Keith Bell
The term "Mount" usually brings to mind a high snowcapped place with steep sides. It is usually on such places that climbers play. This is also true for Australian climbers who live on an eroded, sun-bathed island continent. Mount Piddington, in the Blue Mountains, 120 kilometres west of Sydney, is one such place. Except Mt Piddington is a miniscule pimple on the mountains' western edge, sardonically described by a leading climber as “the fearsome unclimbed summit …which, even in summer is capped by perennial swings, see-saws and a shelter shed." 

It is also used as a climber’s car park.

​The key to its climbs is a subtle, descending road off its back, leading eventually to the base of a western facing sunlit cliff.  Strung out along it is the so-called Mt. Piddington climbing area, but most Australian climbers, in their abbreviated vernacular, just call it "Piddo."


Piddo is a varied amalgam of black, grey, orange, red, and yellow sandstone that is interposed with climbs, many of which are the jewels of NSW climbing. This is the home of Blue Mountains trad in its many guises. John Ewbank, in his 1967 seminal guide, described its bounty thus: 
The cliff is uniformly steep, in the form of flat buttresses, slabs, walls and aretes split by fine cracks and corners. Most of the climbs lie up these, taking laybacking, hand, finger, fist and boot jamming, bridging and chimneying techniques to a highly developed art form."
Early pioneer climbers scampered up Blue Mountains walls in the 1930’s, they were affectionately but incorrectly called the "Katoomba Suicide Club" after a nearby town. Piddington would have to wait a further 30 years for its day in the sun. 

Although others had climbed there first, it was Ewbank, a young lad of British origins, who took the place by storm. Teamed up with an equally young John Worrall, they slowly but surely, ticked off most of the plum first ascents. One that escaped this team was Flake Crack (17/5.9). Ewbank climbed it with Eric Saxby in October 1964, adding it to his formidable list of first ascents.
​An awesome climb and still a lead I’m proud of.

Near the top of the flake I remember looking for my larger cam only to find I’d left it on the ground. Realising this, I decided to commit and was very relieved when I pulled up over the top of the flake!

​I enjoyed the narrower crack system above. This was a welcome surprise as I was rather intimidated by it from the ground. While I was pushing my grades, I felt safe and secure here and across the roof. I was stoked afterwards.

​All in all, a superb climb!”

-- Catherine Dawson
Picture
Catherine Dawson in classic layback mode surging up the flake.

​Sitting proudly in the middle of the crag, Flake Crack is a hypnotic route with its initial flake giving access to a crack snaking through a steep wall  to the final crux, a small exposed roof that has caused many a suitor to spill "blood, sweat, tears and fears" before it submitted to their advances. Given a grade of middling number, it has been a "rite of passage" for many climbers.
Flake Crack was the first “real” trad route I led. The few routes prior were easy rambles.

Flake Crack is a different beast and a route I’ll never forget. Laybacks, hand-jams, and an exposed little rooflet guarding the anchors.

​For me it earns its classic status because it’s a 30 metre journey with a distinct beginning, middle, and a powerful finish.”

-- Phillip Booth
Picture
Phillip Booth is now a professional climbing photographer. Here he photographs Maxwell Cullen tackling Flake Crack.

​Flake Crack was first climbed in three pitches, as ropes in the 1960’s were only 40 metres (120 feet) long, compared to the greater length used nowadays. The climb also has a large, flat, convenient ledge at the top of the flake, and a comfortable stance at the base of the final corner chimney. As the last pitch is an easy ramble it is hardly ever done, and climbers escape by using a loose, fragile ledge that leads right to a convenient abseil station. An easy abseil down the corner below lands one within metres of the start of the climb and stowed gear.
Flake Crack was three pitches but makes an awesome mega single pitch. I have no idea how I did it when I was 18, I was lucky to own a single cam. This time I slid the 4 up as far as I could before gibbering above my gear. I have always been crap above gear, but maybe I had some youthful infallibility when I did it with the meagre rack of a uni student.

​So glad that I climb in the era of modern gear, Flake Crack would have been more exciting with old school boots and homemade chocks”.

-- Wendy Eden
Picture
The author, Keith Bell, on flake crack in 1973.
Picture
Keith Bell on Pitch 2
I first ventured upon Flake Crack in the late 1960’s, early 1970’s and I have a few memories of that reckoning.

My laybacking skills were good, so the flake went easily to its belay pedestal - a spacious ledge on the top of the flake. The crack and wall climbing that followed also went well, until I moved into the shadows of the dreaded roof. While I remember climbing through it, it was surmounted with very little style or grace.

​In subsequent ascents, I managed to ferret out its secrets and to move more easily over the roof, onto the wall, and into the sunlight above.
Any aspiring crack-addict will be keen to jump on Flake Crack. The initial “flake” is dispatched with ease - it’s scary, but you can use arm strength and no technique. The middle bit is more complicated, but its five or so metres is well protected.

But then you arrive at the rooflet. The crack is WIDE, the gear is there but it’s not spectacular. The moves through the roof and onto the wall above are surprisingly bouldery - grade 17 – seriously?”

-- Frothy Thomson
Located in the middle of Piddo, Flake Crack has a large sandy area at its base - a rather convenient place to deposit your gear for racking up and having lunch. Just left of this spot are easier beginner's climbs and many guiding companies also use this area as a convenient base. Countless eyes are then directed longingly at this particular route, which probably accounts for its popular status.

​It is a well-worn classic and the loss of the tree near the bottom of the flake is testimony to this.
Pitch 1 Saxby's Flake. Up to bush runner and up even thinner flake above."

-- 
Ewbank’s original route description
Considering the traffic that Flack Crack takes - apart from the loss of the tree - the route is in remarkable condition. Even so, legend has it that a prominent interstate climber reckoned the flake moved while he was on it. He immediately descended, walked out, never to be seen at Piddo again. The locals at the time wondered what he was on apart from the flake.
I had been climbing all morning. I was tired and expected the flake to get the better of me.

An experienced friend gave me some beta to find the friendly foot jam which gave my arms a rest. I felt so satisfied at the top of the flake, such beautiful and rewarding climbing.

Then the crack. I felt relieved that the pressure was off my forearms - interesting smears and jams followed.

I was intimidated by the overhang but each hand snugs into the rock and feels bomber. I was surprised and inspired how the climb
 flowed, and my body seemed to know what to do. Such an exciting and satisfying route! My favourite crack to date."

-- Tasha Samara
For any climber who needs a break from the ‘dark side’ of modern sport climbing, namely the continual clipping of bolts, then Piddo is the place for you. Although some infiltration of the latter has been made upon its finer walls and aretes, there are still many classic climbs, such as Flake Crack, where nuts, hexes and cams of all types and sizes still rule - allowing the climber to use style, stealth and cunning in the placement of his/her pro.

Let me finish with the words of Ewbank who stated that:                              
Climbing there on the firm rock on a sunny day with a light breeze and the beautiful Kanimbla Valley stretched out below is indeed a delight in itself, be the climb 5 or 20”.                                                                                                                        
Amen to that brothers and sisters!!! So many other fine cracks and even walls await the discerning climber at "Piddo."
Picture
The author's friend Harry climbing in the 1970s blasting up the top crack towards the looming rooflet.

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  • Common Climber
  • Writing
    • All Writings (List)
    • Editions >
      • Themed Editions >
        • Adaptive Climbing Edition >
          • Adaptive Climbing Photo Feature: Paradox Sports
          • Advocating for Deaf Climbers: Sonya Wilson
          • Amputations: Leg Prosthesis for Climbing
          • Blind Ambition Builds a World Class Climber: The Story of Jesse Dufton
          • Climbing with Type 1 Diabetes
          • First Paralyzed Ascents: Rand Abbott
          • Mixed Climbing: My Answer to KT Syndrome
          • Paraclimbing Competitions: Althlete Interviews
          • Rock!
          • The Unreasonable Man
        • Belaytionships Edition >
          • Featured Photographer: Charlie OlGrady-Kessner
          • Belaytionships: Drew-and-Sarah
          • Belaytionships: Jeantique and Natalie
          • Belaytionships: Maggie and Charlie Odette
          • I Am My Father's Son: Layton Bridwell
          • Book Review: Uncoiling the Ropes
          • Zac the Interloper
        • Big Wall Edition >
          • Book Review: Paul Preuss: Lord of the Abyss
          • Featured Photographer: Matt Spohn
          • Grading Commitment
          • Hanging with the Monkeys, and Getting the Monkey Off My Back
          • It Was His Time: Brad Gobright Interview May 2019
          • John Middendorf : A Big Man for a Big Stone
          • Sébastien Berthe Free Climbs the Nose From the Ground Up
          • Shit Happens – Or, Why You Need a Walkie Talkie
        • Developers and Guidebook Authors >
          • Developer - Mitch Lehman
          • Andrew Penny - A Blue Mountaineer
          • Kevin Powell
          • Rock Star Groupie
          • Tony Calderone
        • Exploring Our World >
          • AUSTRALIA - Photographer - Diego Perez
          • AUSTRALIA - Profile - Julie Anderson
          • Book Review - Climbing Rock
          • CHINA - From Yangshuo, to Getu, to Liming
          • FRANCE - Verdon in Winter
          • GREECE - Meteora
          • ITALY - Dolomites
          • MEXICO - La Huasteca
          • SPAIN - Artist - Karmelo Onate
          • UTAH - Maple Canyon: This One Makes You Taller
        • Honoring Diversity >
          • ARTIST: Shawn Lee
          • A Shift on Moonlight Buttress
          • Claiming a Space on the Mountain
          • Colorblind
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          • MOVIE: People of Climbing:
          • Profile - Favia Dubyk
          • The Lineage
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          • Joshua Tree: Heinous Approaches
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          • Profile - Louise Shepherd
          • Profile - Megan Banker
          • Profile - Shawn Axelrod
          • Rock Type 1
          • The Tape Job
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          • Climbing is My Art
          • Mt. Logan Solo
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          • Profile - Caitlin Schokker
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      • Alpine & Ice >
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        • My Common Alpine Epic
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        • Train the Mind: Mental Toughness Tips for Quaratraining
        • The 5.10 Commandments
        • Trying to Send this Route
      • Equipment (writings) >
        • Aliens!
        • A Rack Retrospective
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        • Guide Book Follies
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        • Shit Happens – Or, Why You Need a Walkie Talkie
        • The One Item to Stockpile
        • Which Way Should I Carry My Trad Rack?
        • Why GriGris Suck
        • 8 Reasons I Carry a Full Rack on Every Trad Climb
      • Facebook Feature >
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      • Grades, Styles, & Types >
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        • Onsight vs Flash vs Etc...
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        • Trad Climbing is for Chicken Sh*#s
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      • Kids >
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        • M - John Middendorf
      • Mental-Physical >
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          • Improving Hip Mobility
          • Rock Climber Mobility
          • Train the Mind: Mental Toughness Tips for Quaratraining
        • A Climb Worth Fighting For
        • Achilles
        • Everyone Around Me Is Better Than I Am
        • Fear, Pride, and Exploration
        • How Auto-Immune Disease Affected My Climbing
        • Mastering Joy on Easy Street
        • Mind, Body, and Soul
        • My Demon Has a Name
        • New Year's Resolutions
        • Of Cartoons and Quickdraws
        • Push and Pull
        • Sorcerer and the Kidney Stone
        • Take Risks - You'll Remember Them Later
        • The Art of Climbing Without Rock
        • The Devil's Game
        • The Taste of Climbing
        • 12-Weeks to Onsighting a 5.8
      • Other/Misc >
        • Assault on Schurman Rock
        • Book Club
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        • Climbing Hands
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        • Climbing Resolutions
        • Demented Dirtbag
        • Don't Take Granite for Granite
        • Dorothy, We Aren't on Havana Anymore
        • Guatemalan Worry Dolls Go Climbing
        • No Health Insurance Changed How I Climb
        • Snakes and Ladders
        • Starting Over
        • The Adventure of A Lifetime - So Far
        • The Bane of Northwest Climbing
        • The Pink Tricam
        • Things of Stone and Wood
        • Zac the Interloper
      • Places & Climbs >
        • Climbs >
          • Consolation Prize
          • Flakes and Shakes: Flake Crack Revisited
          • From Yorkshire to Eternity
          • Tiptoeing Through Some Bungles
          • Tombstone Territory
          • Yosemite - What We Came For
        • Location Reviews
        • My Home Crag >
          • Climbing in the Upper Cumberland Valley, Kentucky
          • Drytooling in the Rain - Wayne's World, WA
          • My Home Crag: Nowra, NSW, Australia
        • Travel Stories >
          • Blue Mountains - Bliss: Climbing in the Blueys
          • Buenos Aires, Argentina Crag
          • Colorado - Calling Pat Ament
          • Coolum Cave - Sendfest 8
          • Ecuador - A Nation of Four Worlds
          • El Potrero Chico - Riding the Dirty Dog
          • Yosemite: Growing Up
          • Lover's Leap - Zone of Craptitude
          • Rio de Janeiro - Classic Climbs Sampler
          • Taghia, Morocco - Hardly Failing
          • Tasmania - Legend of the ‘Unclimbable Cliff’
          • Thailand - Lost and Found: A Mini-Epic in Paradise
          • Vedauwoo, WY
          • Yosemite - What We Came For
          • 20 World Destinations for Adventurous Climbing
        • 2020 U.S. Rock Climbing Festivals
      • Poetry/Prose >
        • Anti-Social Climbers
        • Sojourn at Dyuritte
        • Finding Poetry
        • Ice is Nice
        • The Space Between
      • Safety and Skills >
        • Bolting and Ground-Fall Potential
        • Euro-Death Knot is NOT
        • Multi-Pitch Tips: Two ATCs
        • Sketchy Anchor Bolts
        • Sliding-X Anchor
        • Three Ways to Use a Stick Clip
        • Top 10: Climbing Best Practices
      • Science Fiction >
        • Red Curtain: Prologue
      • Social, Social Media, & Social Issues >
        • Chossy Trio Renegades
        • Climbing into the Fold
        • Diversity in Climbing is Not a Bandwagon
        • Fuck "Gumbies" and "Noobs"
        • Montana, My Home: Claire Larson
        • My Husband Climbs Stronger than Me
        • Navajo Rising
        • Social Network Rescue
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  • Reviews
    • Books >
      • Advanced Rock Climbing Book Review
      • Adventures at the Edge of the World
      • Climbing Rock: Vertical Explorations Across North America
      • Hangdog Days Book Review
      • HOOKING UP: The Ultimate Big Wall and Aid Climbing Manual
      • Paul Preuss: Lord of the Abyss
      • The Sharp End of Life: A Mother's Story - Book Review
    • Equipment/Gear Reviews >
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        • Edelrid Mega Jul
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      • Packs and Bags >
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        • Trango Crag Pack
      • Personal Anchor Systems >
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      • Other >
        • Dr. Piton's Review of the D4 Delta2P Portaledge
    • Location Reviews >
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          • Kangaroo Point Photos and Beta
          • Kangaroo Point Review
        • New South Wales Australia >
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            • Blue Mountains Photos and Beta
            • Blue Mountains Review
          • Nowra >
            • Nowra Review >
              • Nowra Photos and Beta
      • Mexico >
        • Potrero Chico Photos and Beta
        • Potrero Chico Review
      • United States >
        • Climbing Area Check List - U.S. >
          • Climbing Area Check List Part 1: Alabama to California
          • Climbing Area Checklist Part 2: Colorado to Michigan
          • Climbing Area Checklist Part 3: Minnesota to New Mexico
          • Climbing Area Checklist Part 4: New York to Wyoming
        • Arizona >
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        • California >
          • Joshua Tree >
            • Joshua Tree Tips
          • Mount Whitney >
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        • Idaho >
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            • City of Rocks Photos and Beta
            • City of Rocks Review
        • Oregon >
          • Smith Rock >
            • Smith Rock - Photos and Beta
            • Smith Rock Review
          • Spring Mountain >
            • Spring Mountain Review
            • Spring Mountain - Photos and Beta
          • Trout Creek >
            • Trout Creek Photos and Beta
            • Trout Creek Review
        • Nevada >
          • Gun Club
          • Keyhole Canyon
          • Mt. Charleston, Nevada
          • Red Rock Canyon >
            • Red Rock Canyon Review - Yeahs and Neahs
            • Red Rocks Photos and Beta
        • New Hampshire >
          • North Conway, NH
          • Rumney, NH
        • New York >
          • Gunks Review
        • Utah >
          • Echo Canyon
          • Ferguson Canyon >
            • Ferguson Canyon Photos and Beta
            • Ferguson Canyon Review
          • Ibex >
            • Ibex Photos and Beta
            • Ibex Review
          • Maple Canyon >
            • Maple Canyon, Utah Photos and Beta
            • Maple Canyon Review
          • Moab >
            • Moab - Main - Photos and Beta
            • Moab -Main - Review
          • St. George >
            • St. George - Prophesy Wall- Photos and Beta
            • St. George - Prophesy Wall - Review
        • West Virginia >
          • Seneca Rocks
        • Wyoming >
          • Ten Sleep
  • Photographers & Artists
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