Great White Slabs

Type

Part of

These slabs, behind Gill’s Bivvy in the Adelaide Cirque, cemented the Darrans’ reputation for quality friction climbing.
A beautiful sweep of rock located directly up and right of Gills Bivvy. Once popular for its smooth sustained slab climbing the area has been neglected over the past decade with the slow deterioration of the bolts. There is a danger of being hit early season by rock and ice from the shelf above, particularly on the left-hand side.

Although rock and icefall/avalanche danger will always exist, particularly early season, loss of permanent snow above has seen this hazard decrease. Notably, Nothing Ventured Nothing Gained was bolted in 2008 and remains intact, with the majority of the original routes have been rebolted since 2023 with no damage yet evident to the hardware after two seasons.

Aspect

North

Lat/lon

-44.73703992,168.03043842, NZ Topo Map

Topo50

CB09 065 342

Add Place Add Route

Routes

Reference	Title	Grade	Length	Pro	Quality
6	6Zinzinbar, 21	21	105m	3	0
The left side of the slabs is kept clean by frequent avalanches through to mid-summer. Strictly a late summer climb. Follow a generally dry streak for a bold and exciting venture. Some climbers have chosen to turn and run, rather than take a sliding fall. Old bolts have all been replaced as of February 2025. P1 18 30m 3 Scramble up to the big ledge with a double ring anchor at the right hand end, follow the bolts up and left. Alternatively start further left on the ledge and follow the original line with natural protection. P2 21 40m 3 P3 20 35m 2 Tiptoe diagonally up and right, aiming for the anchor at the top of the blocky flake directly above the start of flutterby.
7	7Flutterby, 19	19	108m	3	2.01
Four pitches of sustained and bold slab climbing. Flutterby and Braustin Ooks share the same first pitch, and also share the same top anchor as zinzinbar. Old bolts have all been replaced as of February 2025. P1 14 20m 1 Start roughly in the middle of the slabs and climb up past one bolt to a small right-facing corner. Flutterby goes up, Braustin Ooks goes up and right. P2 18 28m 2 Trad P3 19 30m 3 P4 19 30m Trad
8	8Braustin Ooks, 19	19	0m		2.01
This route was not re-bolted as of 2025, and most likely has just the original bolts in an un-usable state. P1 19 Four pitches. Initial climbing tends up and right before curving back left past some well spaced 40+ year old bolts.
9	9Rockaway Beach, 19	19	0m		2.01
This route was not re-bolted as of 2025, and most likely has just the original bolts in an un-usable state. P1 19 Four pitches. The last pitch takes an unlikely traverse below an overlap followed by a mantelshelf through the overlap.
	Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained, 16	16	170m	6	0
A moderate slab route, protected with 10mm stainless steel bolts. Follows the driest area of the slabs P1 14 50m 6 P2 16 50m 5 P3 16 35m 5 P4 16 35m 4 a couple of moves through the bulge to reach the belay
10	10Rabbit Test, 16	16	100m	5	1.02
Scramble up the right hand edge of the slab, to ledge which curves down from the pillar and single belay bolt. Hop on up two long pitches of featured slab. Old bolts have all been replaced as of February 2025. P1 15 45m 5 P2 16 55m 5 Trend up and left past the last bolt to the anchor of Nothing Ventured Nothing Gained
11	11Rear Entry Burns		0m		0
This route was not re-bolted as of 2025, and most likely has just the original bolts in an un-usable state. P1 “Named after meeting him, he’d fallen on lead while putting in a bolt in the slabs and had skinned his butt” Phil de Joux.

Images

Comments

UUID

5887e696-adf5-4d67-b66c-f0c9c719f43e