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bouldering within 2hrs of melbourne

bosley

15-Jul-2004
9:43:53 PM

i'm new to Victoria and can't seem to find any decent bouldering within day trip distance of Melbourne. So far i found a little at the You Yangs and Black Hill. Whats the stuff at Mt Erica like (apart from covered in snow at the moment)?

alrob

16-Jul-2004
8:15:48 AM

cobaws is another quite good spot close by. and i've heard some things about mt alwex too lately

nmonteith

16-Jul-2004
8:49:59 AM

Mt Erica is not worth it. Too slabby and smooth in general.

dalai

16-Jul-2004
9:24:29 AM

If you have been weened in steep Sandstone caves there won't be much to suit, with the boulders around the Sugarloaf cliff in the Cathedrals the only reasonable Sandstone area close to Melbourne.

If you like more technical problems then there is a lot of good granite bouldering within two hours of Melbourne.

- Cobaws would have to be the pick with the quality of the rock and problems.
- Mt Alexander I have also heard good things about.
- Black Hill does have gems, just need to know where to look.
- You Yangs. Numerous areas, around the Saddle Car Park being the best. Course granite unfortunately
-Wilsons Prom - Squeeky beach is a little further than 2 hrs but quite good.

What Melbourne lacks in quantity, makes up for diversity with sandstone, granite, basalt and trachyte.

Damietta

16-Jul-2004
11:05:22 AM

And there is the amazing......Lysterfield. The best bouldering on real rock around Melbourne. The fontainbleau-style slopers and heuco-esque pockets have earnt the place a cult underground following rivalled only by the Richmond underpass

I heard that someone even tried to bury the only topo to the area nearby, and to get directions to find the map, you needed to say the correct password at the nearby local and buy the publican a round.

dalai

16-Jul-2004
11:26:48 AM

Long drive for only a couple of worthwhile problems Damien.

HEX

16-Jul-2004
11:47:54 AM

On 16/07/2004 dalai wrote:
>Long drive for only a couple of worthwhile problems...

There-in lays the path/secret to/of enlightenment , grass-hopper(s)...

Luv, HEX

Mike

16-Jul-2004
12:23:55 PM

On 16/07/2004 dalai wrote:
>- Cobaws would have to be the pick with the quality of the rock and problems.

How about a Cobaws write up for Chockstone's guide? There's a few pics over here on RC, but some directions, and maybe a scribbled topo or even just a couple of paragraphs would be nice. Anyone? Joe? Neil?

alrob

16-Jul-2004
12:27:52 PM

On 16/07/2004 Mike wrote:
>On 16/07/2004 dalai wrote:
>How about a Cobaws write up for Chockstone's guide? There's a few pics
>over here
>on RC, but some directions, and maybe a scribbled topo or even just a couple
>of paragraphs would be nice. Anyone? Joe? Neil?

i think a constorted effort could get a little guide going. a lot of people knowing a little bit. i think marty would know the most, along with joe o

nmonteith

16-Jul-2004
1:07:59 PM

i know nothing. i have never been there.

Skip-Skip

19-Jul-2004
1:14:29 PM

I have done a lot of granite bouldering around Melbourne andCoBAW is definitely the best( I have to pedanticly point out that it is Cobaw State Forest and not Cobaws!) So a few paragraphs"....
Cobaw is about an hours drive from my door!(Thornbury) It is a scattering off granite blocks mostly along the ridgeline, to the right of the road outbound, with some isolated blocks on the left and at the t-junction on the far side of the forest.
The rock is the most excellent smooth granite that I have climbed on. Delicious! The probs are technical and fingery with steepness ranging form footpath angle to about 25 degrees over max. There are probably 20-30 established probs up to V11 with potential for many more hard ones . Charlie Creese first found it about 12 years ago then forgot about it then went back at the start of last year and showed it to me and some other melbourne blockers eg. Saunders etc.. I think I know most of the probs but not all the names. Marty seems to have different names for some of the areas and he seems to be keenest for a guide but in the interim someone whos been there is best as they can be tricky to find. Anyway, its well good up there!
PS you need good pads for a lot of the landings

joemor

19-Jul-2004
3:38:21 PM

i saw a bit of granite in the toolangi state park in the yarra ranges a week ago.... not much but some nice granite here and there!

bosley

25-Jul-2004
9:17:02 AM

cheers for the info. i will go a take a look round Cobaw SF today.

There are 13 messages in this topic.