Mt Tenduragan Off Trail Ascent + Descent

This route maybe the first ever successful solo using no ropes. Its long, off trail and you better be ready for cuts, bruises, leeches and adventure.

Ascend border to cave by the fence line.

The crossing : South face crossing via any means possible fr the cave across to the nect ridge plateau . Someone has done across the face vaguely before with very random pink tape but it gets lost regularly and only goes about half way before they gave up. Just aim to stay around 600m elevation. too cose to the cliffs and you up up in no mans land on ledges regularly. too low and you have nasty steep ascents regularly.

The south face crossing is rugged, vague , heavily sloped and very very off trail. Long pants and a machete and gloves were a minimum requirement . Got a few leeches too. You will cross multiple “creeks/ravines” where its worth looking for pink tape but don’t hold your breath. Aim to hover around 600m elevation as this is the best mixture of slope vs terrain and keeps you off the rock face but you really have to just go with the flow . The land will force you up and down regularly . Everything you look at looks like a track because of heavy water flow down these steep faces combined with massive rocks and trees so it rips “tracks” everywhere . The second half of this is all very wet, mossy, loose and in some places are fields of loose shale rock. Also don’t trust any tree with your life without checking it. Some are super strong , some are upright good looking trees that turn to dust and fall over as you touch them.

Just keep pushing until you reach the final ridge where you meet multiple massive trees down at various elevations in it and begin heading upwards until you reach the cliffs . I stayed on the left of this final ravine . ( i believe its called numinbah creek on the maps)

The final ascent : once you check you maps and have reached the area of least slope
“in theory on google maps“ begin climbing up the left side until you reach the cliffs again . You will arrive at a maybe 6-8m overhanging cliff. Your on the right track . Now begin your way by any means across looking for the easiest path until you reach a wet black mossy slab. At the top will be trees with white moss and a single tree with a single white mould too.

Scramble up and be careful as it’s all loose black Mud Rock . Get up halfway then go right across the slab past a tree until you reach some vines . Climb up to the obvious ledge from here and veer right again.

Your looking again for the easiest path , it will require again grabbing tree branches, wiping mud from rock crimps and holds on the slab and anything you can to ascend through some very slippery, very very steep bushes and vines and rock. It’s safe if you move slow and check everything!!! Before you weight it. Up here bushes and trees just pull out the the rock and others are great . The final ascent from last standing platform till you feel “out of Trouble” at the top ridge is probably a total of 15-20m of height through tight vines and trees and a slope of around 60-80deg . The first is 2 trees growing out the rock which gets you up the impossible but will require some care and strength to manage your weight up and at the same time untangle the shit off you to step on the next one to the next ledge . Moss rock slab requiring cleaning your holds with gloves and finding basically the only 2 crimps and pulling yourself onto the platform , now that’s over it’s more so vines , dirt and trees but not so much ascending slabs to the top as directly as possible . Its still as steep but its safer.

The top : you should appear at the top of a ridge with a large rock formation on your east side 5m away. Sort of looks like a good lookout spot . You now need to stay left-ish beside the main ridge centre as it’s wait-a-while central. The left side near the slope is easier but will again require you to be careful and just go with the flow until you reach a lovely clearing of rock and a giant tree of moss. It’s a campers dream. Your nearly there. You can continue on to the “peak” but dont waste your time its just bush bush bush. Once your at this tree you have proved your point and done the hard work well before this anyway, any further walking will be for your own interest now . Upto you.

Descent - make sure you come all the way back to the same tree to descend - I chopped it with my machete to mark it but do it yourself too as this combo of trees/roots/hand holds/ rock/vines is a one off and is quite safe-ish with care and being very slow and sure . Plenty of bush and vine to make you feel “protected “ vs exposed open rock faces everywhere else .

To go down the wrong sections will put you over cliffs , often overhanging and in danger . (I repeat, it’s all moss , water, vines and mud so just because you get down into trouble doesn’t mean you can get back up without falling) hence always use the known good route to come back down.

the exact peak said 780m and I got 792m and it was downhill in every direction . There was nothing there other than spiny tree and wait-a-while in bulk.

The ridge could be explored in all directions and is safe once your up there and going east to the faces below Point Burrigan/Springbrook could be done . it appears this will be a significant vertical rock climb though.