Devil's Knuckles technical routes

Viking wrote: the discussions I've had are usually just on whether they've been climbed. I've always assumed that would mean frontal (KZN) routes.

All 3 most certainly have been hiked from SA, but I know that's not what you mean.

There are 4 passes (1 between each knuckle and 1 on either side of the outer knuckles). The pass between north and middle is a rock pass, but isn't technical. There is a gully on the south side of the north Knuckle (easy to mistake for the 2nd Knuckles Pass) that is supposed to be technical - not sure if it has ever been climbed though (it looks loose and dodgy).

Your best bet is to chat to Murray Saunders as he has often advertised climbing trips to the Knuckles on the MCSA list - so one could only assume that he, at a minimum, knows what the routes around there.

I know AndrewP was itching to rope up when we did Knuckles Traverse Pass at the end of GT in Jan this year - so if there aren't any opened routes yet, give it another few months and there will be

Hi Viking.

I can confirm that there are no frontal routes recorded on the Knuckles. Gavin Peckham and I did once try on the North peak and failed. Gavin P also once tried on the south peak. There is one semi technical route recorded up the gully between Middle and South which consists of rock scrambling with an awkward E grade move over a chockstone in one place.
Gavin Raubenheimer
Peak High Mountaineering