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Chockstone Forum - General Discussion

General Climbing Discussion

 Page 1 of 2. Messages 1 to 20 | 21 to 29
Author
Wales to Arapiles
wyn_88
25-Oct-2013
10:25:25 AM
Sorry if this is a fairly regular post that gets repeated but I'm going with it anyway.

I was just after a bit of advice really

I

I'm Flying from from rainy wales in the uk with a mate and arriving on Monday morning in Melbourne and we have a month in Australia where we plan on spending a week or two climbing in Araps maybe more or less depending on my messed up tendons.
We are both 25, climb around 13-15 and like a few beers,

We have a car and I am happy to do multiple 10 hour days of driving or dump the car and fly some where for a few days/ a week, not to short of money so can afford to do things but are quite happy to camp and sleep in the car if that makes things cheaper and more fun or will free up more cash up for beers and fun stuff.

Is it worth just sticking around Victoria for the month and possibly popping over to Tasmania for a bit and properly exploring one area or would it be worth driving up to Sydney for a week and checking out the blue mountains ( providing they are fire free obviously)

I reckon I will be back to Australia one day so I don't want to waste time heading to far north as I can do that another time.

What fun touristy things should I not miss out? The great ocean road is on the list to see and maybe a trip to Tasmania but we were just going to arrive in the pines campsite and hope to meet people there and work out some kind of plan.
Outdoorsy adventure stuff is the main theme with a few beers thrown in for good measure.



Hurl your abuse or suggestion at me please.

Thanks

Wyn





Eduardo Slabofvic
25-Oct-2013
10:55:36 AM
Hi Wyn,

You might like to go to the beach while your here. Victorian beaches suck. NSW beaches are pretty good. Kweeeeenzlairnd beaches are the best beaches on planet earth.

Other than that, try Coopers Green or Coopers red for a taste of standard beer.

Be on the look out for Mountain Goat, and if you can find a Mountain Goat Rare Breed dive on it. My favorite is Mountain Goat Rare Breed Rye India Pale Ale.

Most Australian beer is Larger, even though it might be called a Bitter or a Pilsner, or a what ever, it really is a Larger. Try a VB or a XXXX just so you know how bad beer can really be. I get a head ache just thinking about Carlton Draught.

VB stands for vagina backwash, and XXXX is called that because people who live in Kweeeenslairnd can't spell beer. You might also notice that it will be difficult to find Fosters for sale anywhere. That's because Fosters is a practical joke we play on the rest of the world. We're pretty funny sometimes.

Vale is another good brand I would recommend, along with any of the mid sized micro breweries that are popping up all over the place. Driving to Arapiles from Melbourne you'll pass a town called Ballarat, where you will find the Rebellion Brewery, makers of O'Brian gluten free beer. Red Duck brewery have also opened up in Ballarat.

Oh, and there's some climbing in Grampians, as well as Arapiles.
PThomson
25-Oct-2013
10:59:24 AM
Feel free to help me find a job in Wales so I can move over there, Wyn... I'm dying to tackle some more death-slate and Tremadog obscurity!

E. wells
25-Oct-2013
11:00:18 AM
I have lived in the Blueys my whole life and its a wonderful place, Definately stay at Arapiles for a month, for those grades it is the frickin shizz. Just swing by Natimuk gear shop (nearby) and get some small wires to compliment your rack. You wont be dissapointed.
wyn_88
25-Oct-2013
11:04:53 AM
Sadly jobs are far and few between at the moment here.
Tremadog has to be my favourite place to climb at home and the balancy death slate is also pretty awesome,
Most people seem to be heading down under for work so maybe you could do a job swap.
wyn_88
25-Oct-2013
11:12:27 AM
Cheers for the suggestions guys keep them coming.

We have some Rp's and small nuts with us so should be good for gear but might swing by the gear shop for some of your fangled carrot bolt thingy's

Is driving to nsw worth it or would flying be a better use of our time?

Or would you say f--- it and go north for the barrier reef for a week whilst we are there?

Im guessing a plan will formulate it's self after being at araps for a week but tips and idea's are always handy from locals rather than a guide book.


Cheers again

wyn
kieranl
25-Oct-2013
11:16:01 AM
You could easily spend a month around Arapiles and the Grampians without feeling that you’ve missed anything though a week in Tassie would be good. If the forecast looks mild for a week, a trip to Moonarie is pretty special, but it could be getting quite hot there (ie damn hot).
Wendy
25-Oct-2013
11:28:20 AM
For 13-15, araps is almost the only place in the country worth bothering with for climbing. It has the best routes in the world for those grades. The Grampians are gorgeous, and you could go for a few adventures at those grades there, just be aware they will be a bit more out there than the araps routes at that grade (unless you go just go to Summerday Valley, but I'd skip that and try Mt Difficult, Mt Rosea or Asses Ears instead - be ready for less perfect rock, tricky route finding and old school climbing though). At those grades, a double set of normal rocks and a range of cams such as .5-3 camlot will be fine. Slings are useful. CHeck the rap lengths if you only have a single rope.

I know you mentioned driving was fine, but really, Australia is a massive country. It will take 14 hours to drive from Araps to the Blueys, then another 20 or so to the great barrier reef. Personally, I'd head straight to Araps, climb yourself silly, take a few rest days to explore the GOR, climb yourself silly again then try the nice stuff that's a lot quieter than the GOR just over the SA border around Canunda NP and Beachport for another rest. Wineries are good in that region too. By that time you will probably be 3 weeks into your month, so if you still want to go to the great barrier reef, jump on a plane from Melbourne to Townsville or Cairns.

prb
25-Oct-2013
11:46:14 AM
I'd go 2.5 weeks in western Victoria/south-east SA and 1.5 weeks in Tassie.

Next time I'd spend a month in NSW/Queensland.

The time after that I'd do Moonarie and the Northern Territory (between April and September).

You could find plenty to do in WA for a month as well.
Wyn_88
25-Oct-2013
11:55:06 AM
Yeah I think staying in Victoria or round about is the best bet instead of wasting time on the road. If my arms were100% I would happily climb for a month solid but I'm not sure how crap they may go so just wanted a few ideas for a rest week or two. Really appreciate all your help, so excited now for my29 hour journey before I start the 4 hour drive.

Can we cook with our gas stoves and buy gas canisters and a cheap tent in Horsham or would you advise anywhere else for camping
stocks?
Thanks again
Wyn
Wyn_88
25-Oct-2013
11:58:23 AM
Tassie is defo on both our list of places to go. Is there any climbing there at our garades? We have 2 ropes. 60m
Wendy
25-Oct-2013
12:09:57 PM
There's a little bit of easy stuff at Frecinet, but in general, climbing in Tassie is a lot of work. The weather is frequently awful (although you are from wales, so maybe that won't be such an issue), the access long, the guidebook unintelligible, the rock only generously deserving the title of rock. I may be exagerating a little, but after 2 extended climbing trips to tassie, I remain unconvinced that it's really worth bothering with. You have to be really motivated to climb in Tassie. It does however have beautiful walking, but again, weather is usually terrible. For your grades, i'd go maybe a day a frecinet, then walking and snorkelling (in a really thick wetsuit) - we did some great snorkelling around Frecinet and south of Hobart, much better than any of the climbing. And check the weather before you go, becasue it mean it's not be worth going at all.
kieranl
25-Oct-2013
12:22:46 PM
Don't let Wendy put you off Tassie. Especially if you've only got a week or so and aren't climbing every day.
White Water Wall at Freycinet is brilliant at your grades.
http://www.thesarvo.com/confluence/display/thesarvo/Whitewater+Wall

Also try The Organ Pipes on Mt Wellington above Hobart.
Both these places are pretty unique and you now actually have the luxury of guidebooks even if they're a bit idiosyncratic.
Cam McKenzie
25-Oct-2013
12:27:21 PM
Don't listen to the haters. Tassie is awesome. The weather's not nearly as bad as people would suggest. The climbing is unique for Australia. At your grades, Freycinet is probably the best place to climb. Mt Wellington is amazing, but doesn't have a heap of stuff under 17-18ish, unless you like old school body chimneys (there are a few exceptions, Fiddlesticks is a very good 14, Moonraker is a very good 16 etc.)

All the guides are online at http://thesarvo.com

Not sure why there are complaints about the guides, I've always found them completely sufficient to find stuff.
prb
25-Oct-2013
1:14:32 PM
On 25/10/2013 Wyn_88 wrote:

>Outdoorsy adventure stuff is the main theme with a few beers thrown in for good measure.

Tassie plus Boags sounds perfect to me! My experience has not been Wendy's. The east coast weather is fairly reliable, you can find good climbing at most grades and the approaches range from short'n'easy to 'outdoorsy adventure stuff'. For example, the walk in and climb of the Moai (find pictures) is a brilliant day (18 but not a hard Tassie 18). I'm from SA - no biases to declare.

Big G
25-Oct-2013
2:57:28 PM
On 25/10/2013 prb wrote:

>
>Tassie plus Boags sounds perfect to me!
No idea about the climbing in Tassie, but Boags is rubbish beer - flavourless pish!
It beautiful down there though, wlaking is awesome. Weather is a little less predicatable than the mainland. Worth a visit - but not for the beer, especially for men brought up on Felinfoel, Brains. So pack your own double draggon and get down there.

Eduardo Slabofvic
25-Oct-2013
3:17:32 PM
On 25/10/2013 Big G wrote:
>On 25/10/2013 prb wrote:
>
>>
>>Tassie plus Boags sounds perfect to me!
>No idea about the climbing in Tassie, but Boags is rubbish beer - flavourless
>pish!

Agreed. Just another boring larger.
martym
25-Oct-2013
3:32:23 PM
On 25/10/2013 Edward Oslabofvic wrote:
>Most Australian beer is Larger, even though it might be called a Bitter
>or a Pilsner, or a what ever, it really is a Larger.

>people who live in Kweeeenslairnd can't spell beer.

It's spelled "Lager" - which comes from the German word for Cellar.

Unless you really mean "Larger" as Homer Simpson learned:

Although it's even spelled Lager on the Larger beer.

In Victoria they drink Pints, so you won't be shocked.
However in NSW we drink Schooners, which is as or more expensive generally than pints but is actually smaller "because otherwise the beer gets warm" which is just an excuse to rip patrons off, which has been working for decades.
martym
25-Oct-2013
3:47:05 PM
On 25/10/2013 wyn_88 wrote:
>Sorry if this is a fairly regular post that gets repeated but I'm going
The Tasmania question was asked here just a week ago!

>We are both 25, climb around 13-15 and like a few beers,
Are you sure you climb at those grades? Or did you look at a faulty chart?
Or is that the grade you're comfortable leading on trad? If so, Araps (as many above have said) is the best place to improve your trad climbing as well as push the grades on amazing rock.
At 25 you should be climbing your age by Australian standards; unless you like more than just a few beers...


>We have a car and I am happy to do multiple 10 hour days of driving or
>dump the car and fly some where for a few days/ a week
You'll be able to make it out of Victoria then... You could go check out the mighty Murray River for a dip...

>What fun touristy things should I not miss out?
Outdoors Toursity things? Tassie won't disappoint...


>Hurl your abuse or suggestion at me please.
You've done surprisingly well on this website - considering your invitation!

sbm
25-Oct-2013
4:21:42 PM
On 25/10/2013 martym wrote:
>Are you sure you climb at those grades? Or did you look at a faulty
>chart?
>Or is that the grade you're comfortable leading on trad? If
>At 25 you should be climbing your age by Australian standards; unless
>you like more than just a few beers...
>

Whoa I can be pretty elitist myself but this is a bit much.

I will console myself about my lack of grade 25 red points on gear with a Little Creatures, or perhaps a Kosciuszko Pale Ale.

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There are 29 messages in this topic.

 

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