Lower Bluff | ClimbNZ

Type

Sector

Altitude

500m

Part of

Kawakawa Bay

The Bluff is clearly seen from the beach. The Predator and the climbs around Aliens are shaded from noon.

Aspect

North

Approach

From the beach, follow the track past the toilet for 2 minutes until you reach a rock cairn at the top of a small rise. Walk uphill to an overgrown slab and head left to Jug Addiction, or right to Predator and Aliens.

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Routes

Reference	Title	Grade	Length	Pro	Quality
	Sugar Rush, 16	16	15m	5	0
P1 16 15m 5 At the left end of the wall, an obvious block with layback start.
15	15Kykkeliky, 17	17	20m		1.02
P1 17 20m Trad Say KOO-kee-lee-KOO. Flaring chimney to hand crack to chimney with a steep layback exit. A nice little adventure. Walk off via Upper Bluff track.
	Bilingual, 17	17	20m	4	0
P1 17 20m 4 Trad Start up Kykkeliky and right to join Jug Addiction at its 4th bolt.
16	16Jug Addiction, 16	16	20m	8	1.02
P1 16 20m 8 Start in the corner up to the left and ascend the face just right of the crack.
17	17Sundowning Syndrome, 19	19	20m	7	0
P1 19 20m 7 Follow the bolts immediately right of Jug Addiction up the centre of the butress.
	Hugs Not Drugs, 21	21	20m	9	0
P1 21 20m 9 Stay on the arete and don’t use the jugs out right.
	Secret Squirrel, 17	17	22m	9	0
P1 17 22m 9 Technical face and slab climbing. An easier variation (16) starts right of the arête on 3 separate bolts.
	Respect My Authoritah, 19	19	18m	7	0
P1 19 18m 7 The wall opposite Pinch and a Punch, with a crux about halfway. Don’t drift off left.
	Pinch and a Punch, 19	19	15m	7	2.01
P1 19 15m 7 In the narrow gully, up the face left of Pimple. Stay right at the 3rd bolt.
	Pimple, 17	17	18m	6	1.02
P1 17 18m 6 Arete in the gully right of Jug Addiction. Start in the cool scoop on the right.
	My Little Pony, 10	10	6m	3	0
P1 10 6m 3 The left arête on the short wall where the track meets the crag. Equipped by Dan Head.
	Pink Fluffy Unicorns, 15	15	6m	4	0
P1 15 6m 4 Second pitch to My Little Pony.
	Dancing On Rainbows, 14	14	12m	5	1.02
P1 14 12m 5 Climb the wall on some nice holds.
	Little Miss Naughty, 17	17	12m		0
P1 17 12m Trad Start at Peach Teats, climb up and left into Dancing on Rainbows.
	Peach Teats, 13	13	12m	5	0
P1 13 12m 5 Direct up the right end of the wall.
	Free Dirt, 14	14	12m		0
P1 14 12m Trad The gully with twin trad cracks. Finish left to the Peach Teats anchor or right up Reggae Shark.
	Reggae Shark, 23	23	75m	10	2.01
P1 17 25m 10 The featured face, more or less where the access track meets the wall. P2 14 10m 10 Can be linked into pitch 1. At the top, follow the handline right. P3 17 25m 10 The corner. P4 23 15m 10 Steep cranking to finish.
	Don’t Hurt My Kowhai, 18	18	55m	7	1.02
P1 18 55m 7 Trad Back down to Predator then head up and left for 5 metres. Climb the featured start past 1 bolt to a crack. Follow the crack to a ledge then climb the obvious arete past 6 more bolts stepping right at the belay. [Pro: small CDs. P2 2 Trad Climb up and left to a bolt then head up to the big corner with a roof. The line goes up the corner then traverse right through the roof past 1 bolt to the TBC belay [Pro: CDs, W , 2 bolts]
	Iboga, 17	17	30m	1	0
P1 17 30m 1 Trad Start as for The Medicine but go left at the big flake. Belay off tree roots. [Pro 1 bolt + Trad]
	The Medicine, 18	18	45m	1	1.02
P1 18 45m 1 Trad Start up Don’t Hurt My Kowhai, move right around the corner before the bolted Arete. From here gain the big gigantic diagonal under-clink flake, then climb this to the right finishing as for Ayahusca. This climb may need to be broken into two pitch’s to avoid rope drag. [Pro 1 bolt + Trad]
	Ayahuasca, 18	18	45m		1.02
P1 18 45m Trad On the wall opposite aliens, Start in the corner and follow the crack up the slab to you get to the under-cling roof. Trad Belay. P2 Follow the crack right then climb the thin crack to the top. belay off tree.
	Pointy Bit, 15	15	6m	2	0
P1 15 6m 2 There is a short bolted line up the pinnacle. A nice view from the top. [Pro 2 bolts]
18	18Predator, 22	22	12m	5	1.02
P1 22 12m 5 The line of bolts up the middle of the small buttress. Steep and sustained. Go right after the first bolt and finish on top of the pinnacle.
C	CThe Devil Has a Window Into Paradise, 18	18	35m		2.01
After Peach Teats if you use the knotted rope to scramble up to the left of the buttress, you’ll arrive underneath a huge, featured overhang. A spiritual journey. P1 13 35m Trad Excellent chimney with hand crack starting high up in the gully left of Jugzilla, on the right hand wall. Traverse to the right out of the chimney around the corner and on to the Jugzilla belay ledge. Build a trad anchor three meters left of the Jugzilla bolted anchors. (Double up on size 3) P2 18 Trad meter up to follow a seam diagonally right for five meters, then mantle a spike and head up through some cool featured rock. Great moves, exposed, but well protected.
	Where The Wild Things Are, 18	18	0m		2.01
P1 18 Trad The overhanging crack in the centre at the top of the gully left of Jugzilla. The route goes up a ramp then traverse the right facing wall until you are standing on the top of a pedestal. Take a deep breath then head up the right trending overhanging crack until you reach the top of the first pitch of The Devil Has a Window Into Paradise.
19	19Jugzilla, 19	19	42m	10	1.02
P1 17 30m 10 The steep wall with ring-bolts and jugs to a scenic slab top-out. P2 19 12m 3 Climb up and right (crux) before moving back left.
20	20Aliens, 21	21	20m	9	2.01
P1 21 20m 9 Crumbs. From the top of the Predator Pinnacle, take a line up through the overhangs. Traverse right to the first bolt and then again after the last bolt. Many consider this better than Alien Resurrection.
20	20Aliens Resurrection, 21	21	60m	9	2.01
P1 18 25m 9 Start below and right of Predator and follow the left-hand line of bolts up and left towards the start of the original Aliens. P2 21 15m 8 The original Aliens pitch. Climb through the overhangs and right to the arête. P3 19 20m 7 A bolt on the arête leads to the belay of Jugzilla. Clip that and continue upwards.
21	21Foo Fighters, 27	27	25m	12	1.02
P1 27 25m 12 Follow the first pitch of Aliens Resurrection until it splits off left. Continue straight up the overhanging arête on some wild holds till you gain the slab. Continue about 8m further to a D.B.C.
22	22Brunettes not Fighter Jets, 23	23	35m	9	2.01
P1 21 15m 6 Follow the right hand line of bolts up (climbing right of the bolts) to the colourful featured wall. P2 23 20m 9 Follow the dark streak on the left, moving slightly right after the fourth bolt (crux) then back left after the fifth bolt. The most technically challenging of the three 23s’ here.
23	23Redheads not Warheads, 23	23	15m	6	1.02
P1 23 15m 6 Climb the first pitch of Brunettes to a semi-hanging belay. Follow the red streak in the middle of the wall. Head left for the first two bolts then traverse back right and up. Bouldery crux between second and third bolts leading to sweet moves through the small roof.
24	24Blonds not Bombs, 23	23	15m	6	1.02
P1 23 15m 6 First pitch as for Brunettes and Redheads. The easiest out of the three routes but requires stamina. Follow the white streak on the right for the first two bolts then head left around the corner and up through the overhanging features onto the arête. Move left after the fifth bolt to join the top of Redheads.
25	25Thunder God, 21	21	52m		2.01
A great three pitch trad line. Maybe 2.5 stars, each pitch is so unique. It starts via the access rope, between Brunettes not Fighter Jets and Elephant Hunting, For those that don’t climb solid trad 21 you can abseil into the brilliant grade 14 pitch via the top of the first pitches of T.D.H.A.W.I.P (13) or Jugzilla (17). P1 21 52m Trad Follow an overlap up five meters onto a slab. Step left. From here a crack cuts through the slightly steep rock above, between an arête on the left and a pink wall on the right. Cool moves, good gear and very sustained through the top half of the route (crux). P2 14 Trad A three star 14 up the easy splitter hand crack, split from the ThunderGod of the Sky. First climbed with a rack of full baked bean cans as part of a quasi religious ceremony. P3 18 Trad (Also pitch 2 of The Devil Has a Window Into Paradise) Build a trad anchor three meters left of the Jugzilla bolted anchors. Climb one meter up to follow a seam diagonally right for five meters, then mantle a spike and head straight up through some cool featured rock. Great moves, exposed, but well protected.
	Thor's Little Brother, 19	19	33m	4	0
P1 17 18m Trad The crack starting directly above the Thundergod belay ledge - follow it up and through some pockets to undercling the the right-trending crack heading up towards Captain Caveman. Follow it to the ledge in the cave. DBB P2 19 15m 4 Trad Extend the anchor to belay outside the cave. Climb up a slabby corner and follow the obvious crack until you link up with the bolted climb.
27	27Captain Caveman, 20	20	60m	10	2.01
One of the most popular routes at Kawakawa Bay. First climbed as ground-up, run-out trad, all three pitches are now fully bolted and well protected. Pitch 3 is still optionally excellent on gear. P1 17 30m 7 Start below the big cave and climb mostly straight up slabs to an anchor on the right edge (climber’s view) of the cave. P2 16 12m 8 Traverse the cave to the opposite corner. Climb up and exit out the person-sized hole at the top of the cave. P3 20 18m 10 Up the crack line to a ledge, then head out left to overhanging fun at the crux. (Alternately, from the ledge, exit right as for Cave Boy at grade 16.)

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Comments

This place appears in

Kawakawa Bay: a guide for rock climbers, 2019

Free download of this guide

Rock Deluxe North, 2013

Buy this guidebook

UUID

986f5383-78ac-4e6f-8893-23208f47b642