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Chockstone Forum - General Discussion

General Climbing Discussion

 Page 1 of 2. Messages 1 to 20 | 21 to 40
Author
Bolting Bluestone/basalt

Pat B
10-May-2012
2:48:59 PM
I know this should probably come under the 'Safer Cliffs' forum, but I don't have access to that forum and the bluestone I want to bolt is actually not natural but in suburbia. A beautiful 7 metre tall retaining wall for a bridge in my home town. There are already two routes bolted with two carrots each and a natural line that goes up a "naturally" formed crack in the middle of the wall.
I plan to grid bolt the wall so that we can play/train/climb this awesome crimpy rock. I have 90mm double-collar expansion bolts with fixe hargers. Does anyone know if these are too short? Had any experience bolting basalt? Lots of it in Victoria, but not much climbed on

benjenga
10-May-2012
7:25:12 PM
Neil or mike should be able to fill you in but they sound fine. Make sure you use new drill bits otherwise it is going to takes you a while to drill.

Just because there are old carrot routes doesn't mean that you wont get in the sh*t for adding more.

nmonteith
10-May-2012
9:34:21 PM
Bolts sound fine providing they are 10mm in diameter (or bigger) and STAINLESS steel.

Be careful bolting Bluestone bridges - many are historical heritage listed structures. Just because someone bolted there in the past doesn't make it ok to add more.

Ben_E
10-May-2012
10:33:36 PM
>Be careful bolting Bluestone bridges - many are historical heritage listed
>structures. Just because someone bolted there in the past doesn't make
>it ok to add more.

^^^^
+1

Not sure if Neil is coming from a legal or "ethical" perspective, but I'd ask if grid bolting it makes much sense. All fairly pointless internet posturing without knowing what wall we're talking about, of course.

nmonteith
11-May-2012
10:45:14 AM
Legal! Some of those structures are well over 150 years old.
gfdonc
11-May-2012
11:25:12 AM
Echo comments about heritage, legality, and necessity.

However to address your question, 90mm is more than enough in that sort of rock. I would use 75mmx12mm.
Be aware of what you're bolting into. While the possibility of pulling a block out in a nasty fall is remote, check the structural integrity before you drill.


rodw
11-May-2012
11:26:59 AM
Why not just put some discrete top anchors in for top roping?
dalai
11-May-2012
12:17:57 PM
On 11/05/2012 rodw wrote:
>Why not just put some discrete top anchors in for top roping?

Agreed!; it is after all only 7m high. Just add discrete TR anchors if none available and be done with it...

shortman
11-May-2012
12:39:34 PM
On 11/05/2012 dalai wrote:
>On 11/05/2012 rodw wrote:
>>Why not just put some discrete top anchors in for top roping?
>
>Agreed!; it is after all only 7m high. Just add discrete TR anchors if
>none available and be done with it...

Finger on the pulse hey dalai?

Which bridge are we talkin?

Also - found a cool little pocketed basalt wall in Preston on the Darebin the other day. Was good for an hour or so. Some fun little two move problems......Melbourne climbing at its best!

Cool Hand Lock
11-May-2012
12:44:33 PM
Color your hangers/bolts.
Try to camoflage them. Enamel works best as it won't fade to white.
dalai
11-May-2012
1:45:40 PM
On 11/05/2012 shortman wrote:
>Also - found a cool little pocketed basalt wall in Preston on the Darebin
>the other day. Was good for an hour or so. Some fun little two move problems......Melbourn
> climbing at its best!

Pretty sure I know the spot. I wasn't the first to boulder there either, know the person who first cleaned up the problems.

Left section could do with some RoundUp at the base. Pillar on the left below the fence has some good height and a nice arete.

The right wall by the track has some nice easy pocketed up problems - guessing the topouts could do with a clean up again too.

If what you found doesn't match my description, please ignore what I posted above... ;-)

Pat B
11-May-2012
2:38:11 PM
On 11/05/2012 Cool Hand Lock wrote:
>Color your hangers/bolts.
>Try to camoflage them. Enamel works best as it won't fade to white.

Yes, am painting hangers, very hard to see anyway

Pat B
11-May-2012
2:42:37 PM
On 11/05/2012 dalai wrote:
>On 11/05/2012 rodw wrote:
>>Why not just put some discrete top anchors in for top roping?
>
>Agreed!; it is after all only 7m high. Just add discrete TR anchors if
>none available and be done with it...
Have done that also (top anchors that is, but they are not accessable unless you climb a route as the bridge over the top blocks access)
Being a country town we don't have any commercial indoor climbing walls so there is no where to practice leading, this is a great opportunity to address that

shortman
11-May-2012
2:43:36 PM
On 11/05/2012 dalai wrote:
>On 11/05/2012 shortman wrote:
>>Also - found a cool little pocketed basalt wall in Preston on the Darebin
>>the other day. Was good for an hour or so. Some fun little two move problems......Melbou
>n
>> climbing at its best!
>
>Pretty sure I know the spot. I wasn't the first to boulder there either,
>know the person who first cleaned up the problems.
>
>Left section could do with some RoundUp at the base. Pillar on the left
>below the fence has some good height and a nice arete.
>
>The right wall by the track has some nice easy pocketed up problems -
>guessing the topouts could do with a clean up again too.
>
>If what you found doesn't match my description, please ignore what I posted
>above... ;-)

Interesting edit dalai!
dalai
11-May-2012
3:21:31 PM
On 11/05/2012 shortman wrote:
>Interesting edit dalai!

I knowww nothink!!! ;-)

How accurate was I with my description? Same place?
dalai
11-May-2012
3:33:47 PM
On 11/05/2012 Pat B wrote:
>On 11/05/2012 dalai wrote:
>>On 11/05/2012 rodw wrote:
>>>Why not just put some discrete top anchors in for top roping?
>>
>>Agreed!; it is after all only 7m high. Just add discrete TR anchors if
>>none available and be done with it...
>Have done that also (top anchors that is, but they are not accessable
>unless you climb a route as the bridge over the top blocks access)
>Being a country town we don't have any commercial indoor climbing walls
>so there is no where to practice leading, this is a great opportunity to
>address that

Just lead one of the two routes already bolted?
One Day Hero
11-May-2012
3:41:30 PM
On 11/05/2012 Pat B wrote:
>Being a country town we don't have any commercial indoor climbing walls
>so there is no where to practice leading, this is a great opportunity to
>address that

Yeah...........there's a fair chance that heritage people (or whoever actually owns the retaining wall) won't share your enthusiasm. I'd try to be very discrete with the bolting, and keep the climbing between yourself and a few mates, or your new lead training wall will have a lifespan of about 3 months.

pmonks
12-May-2012
12:47:06 AM
Where does all this bluestone come from? Have any of you brains trust Victarcticans thought of finding the source and climbing it in its natural state??

Even a quarry would probably be better than climbing on skanky, bird crap encrusted bridges!

wallwombat
12-May-2012
12:51:40 AM
7m?

Get a couple of crash pads.

nmonteith
12-May-2012
2:32:10 PM
On 12/05/2012 pmonks wrote:
>Where does all this bluestone come from? Have any of you brains trust
>Victarcticans thought of finding the source and climbing it in its natural
>state??
>
>Even a quarry would probably be better than climbing on skanky, bird crap
>encrusted bridges!

Most Bluestone comes from flat lava beds. The only climbing on bluestone like rock in Victoria is probably Lodden River Falls, which is mostly a tottering pile of loose blocks stacked on top of each other.

 Page 1 of 2. Messages 1 to 20 | 21 to 40
There are 40 messages in this topic.

 

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