The Tombstone | ClimbNZ

Type

Part of

Past Elephant Buttress and around a big corner is an area dominated by a huge rock resembling a tombstone.

Approach

Follow the track to The Point through the rock ravine and onto a small beach. Once you leave the shoreline, the track winds through blocky ground until you come to a flat area where there is a rock cairn that leads up the hill. Follow more rock cairns up and right to a blank wall. Continue following the cairns up and left for another few minutes until you come to a massive body crack; this is Fibula.

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Routes

Reference	Title	Grade	Length	Pro	Quality
	Snake Charmer, 19	19	15m	4	0
P1 19 15m 4 Trad A steep track winds up the hill to an isolate buttress. A single bolt belay marks the start of the climb. From the belay stance traverse left out onto the buttress then climb the crack onto the head wall. Climbing the head wall,crux. DBC belay. A bit out of the beaten track but a pleasant little climb in a great location.
A	AThe Prow, 19	19	32m	12	1.02
P1 19 32m 12 The big prow down toward the lake from Fibula. V1 boulder start gives access to ledges before the arête of The Prow is gained and climbed on the left hand side to the top.
B	BClosed Project		0m		0
P1 Project directly on the right hand side of The Prow, top cleaned.
2	2Fibula, 15	15	18m		0
P1 15 18m Trad Adventure caving experience similar to Tibia but shorter. Climb the yawning body crack chimney splitting the face. There is some loose rock.
3	3Closed Project		0m		0
P1 Project follows bolts on the left arête of Fibula to the top.
C	CSnake Charmer, 19	19	30m	4	0
Just before you reach Fibula you should see a clean section of rock with a horizontal tree to belay off five meters up. A pleasant little climb in a great location. P1 17 30m Trad Follow wandering crack systems up and right, traverse the slab up to the D.B.C. belay. P2 19 4 Trad From the belay stance, traverse left onto the buttress, then climb the crack onto the head wall. Climb the head wall (crux) to a D.B.C. belay.
D	DThe Tombstone, 21	21	35m		2.01
Adventurous climbing in a nice location with some of the best finger crack climbing at Kawakawa. Climb the first pitch of Snake Charmer to walk to the start of The Tombstone or bush-bash up approximately twenty meters right from the start. There are three alternative second pitches P1 21 25m Trad Follow the series of hand cracks up to a small ledge and continue five meters right into the traversing finger crack. Trad belay (big sling) and small to med cams on the arête ten meters below the next ledge to avoid bad rope drag. P2 17 10m Trad Pitch 2.a (17) 10m Short pitch two meters right of the arête. P3 16 Trad Pitch 2.b (16) 10m Five meters right of the arête is a corner this is the easier, original finish. P4 20 Trad Pitch 2.c (20) 15m We we nugu mi mi apana
E	EWe we Nugu Mi mi apana, 20	20	15m		1.02
P1 20 15m Trad From the arête belay on The Tombstone, traverse right into the rightmost crack systems that lead to the top of Pride Rock. Has some fun off-width moves midway or some exposed arête climbing instead to spice things up. Interesting, varied climbing.
F	FRafiki, 18	18	20m		1.02
P1 18 20m Trad Start as for The Tombstone. After gaining the small ledge approximately seven meters up, continue up the left hand finger crack following the path of least resistance. A wandering, fun adventurous line. D.B.C. anchor at top.

Comments

This place appears in

Kawakawa Bay: a guide for rock climbers, 2019

Free download of this guide

UUID

bd9422c3-e8b9-4085-a6f5-ae89cc1c91c4