Author |
Granite Tor Between Goulburn and Crookwell |
|
|
12-Dec-2009 10:25:08 PM
|
Today me and my mate, Brett went out to check a big granite tor just near Pejar Dam, between Goulburn and Crookwell. Brett had been out there once before.
It's probably about as big as The Belfry at The Orrorral Ridge in the ACT. There are a couple of routes bolted with rings although all except one look like very improbable projects. One good looking route is an arete with about 4 rings.It goes up the right edge of the tor in this photo, and is the obvious brushed white line in the middle of the first photo.
The boulder to the right of the main tor has two sets of rings on top as top rope anchors.
The strange thing is that most of the climbs (except for the nice arete, I think) are marked with white painted squares and initials, like the old school climbs at Piddo and Narrowneck. I'm not really used to climbs with ringbolts marked in this manner. There are also what seem to be boulder problems, marked with small painted arrows.
The main problem with the crag and all the surrounding boulders are they are entirely surrounded by a forest of Blackberry bushes. Every bit of greenery you see in the photos are Blackberry bushes. Brett had mentioned this so I took some gardening gloves and some secoteurs and had to cut my way into the crag , which wasnt much fun.
I'm just posting this on the off chance that someone knows something about this crag and the weird old school/modern routes there. Some of the ring bolts have Kong stamped on them and some of the others look home made. I don't know anyone who marks climbs like that anymore and as far as I know me and Brett are the only climbers in the area except for a small crew who go to the PCYC indoor wall and I know they don't put up new routes.
It's top quality granite and is almost like it's been mysteriously transported from the Orrorrol RIdge. I'm planning on doing some major defoliating in the next couple of months to try and uncover more of the crag and the adjacent tors and boulders. It will be a big job though.
Any tips on dealing with Blackberry bushes?
|
13-Dec-2009 12:54:56 AM
|
eat them?
|
13-Dec-2009 10:14:37 AM
|
Nuke them form orbit - it's the only way to be sure.
|
13-Dec-2009 10:23:23 AM
|
Well so far I have two constructive suggestions.
|
13-Dec-2009 10:52:18 AM
|
pet goats on chains !
|
13-Dec-2009 11:21:09 AM
|
See here for options
also a herbicide called Brushoff.
goats would be good but difficult. I could lend you Chloe.
|
13-Dec-2009 12:37:44 PM
|
Thanks GravityHound.
The is so much there that you would need a very big herd of goats.
I think we may use a combination of cutting paths to the boulders/crag and then poisoning around them. Brett has a hardcore petrol brushcutter that will come in handy.
|
13-Dec-2009 2:05:32 PM
|
Read the info but I would suggest either RoundUp (glyphosate) or Brushoff
glyphosate
- kills everything, plants need to be growing (not drought stressed or a hot day), relatively harmless (esp BiActive) but cheap.
brushoff
- more effective but prob a bit more nasty and costs more too.
|
13-Dec-2009 2:45:55 PM
|
Believe me, these babies are growing and growing and growing. Roundup was what I was thinking of using.
I think it will be worth the effort if it means, having a good quality bouldering/ climbing spot on really nice solid granite, on public land, only 25kms from Goulburn.
I'm still intrigued by the ring rolted routes with white painted squares and initials at the base.
|
14-Dec-2009 9:11:10 AM
|
Until the goats have had a chance to eat all of the blackberries, perhaps you could set up a Tyrolean from that large gum in the background and make it a rap-in/climb-out affair.
|
14-Dec-2009 10:28:58 AM
|
Roundup is crap on blackberries (Spent a lot of time getting rid of them at Oatlands) - get
brush off. You need a sprayer as well
|
14-Dec-2009 10:41:52 AM
|
OK, Brushoff it is then. I have a spayer.
Cruze, that big gum tree in the photo is indeed a 'big gum tree' - it's about 200m away.
|
14-Dec-2009 10:55:07 AM
|
Then it looks like you will need to anchor it down to allow for the tension in a 200 m tyrollean to keep it from sagging to the ground. Alternatively you could always buy a helicopter.
|
14-Dec-2009 11:03:44 AM
|
I made reasonable progress, the other day, with a pair of secateurs and some leather gardening gloves. It would have been easier if I had work boots, long pants and a long sleeve shirt on.
|
15-Dec-2009 9:59:54 AM
|
If brushoff is too expensive, you could brushcut back to ground level, then paint neat glyphosate onto
blackberry stumps and new regrowth. this would be cheap.
|
15-Dec-2009 11:10:05 AM
|
Nice looking boulder. There's quite a lot of granite near Bigga, including some biggish (130m+ slabs) of varying quality although nowhere near the quality of the ACT stuff. There are also quite a lot of tors but mostly on private property.. so much rock.. so little time...
|
15-Dec-2009 11:37:48 AM
|
Is it maybe called Dog Rocks? I remember looking at some rocks out that way when I worked with you in the 90's
|
15-Dec-2009 12:31:24 PM
|
Have you fully considered the fire option?
|
15-Dec-2009 12:48:41 PM
|
On 15/12/2009 Pat B wrote:
>Is it maybe called Dog Rocks? I remember looking at some rocks out that
>way when I worked with you in the 90's
I don't know, Pat. I've never heard of Dog Rocks. It's on the other side of the road from Pejar Dam, overlooking what once was a creek.
Apparently there is a bloke who works at the BBQs Galore/Snowgum in Goulburn that knows who put up the routes. I'll have to go and ask him or drop him an email..
mikepatt - Yes, I've seen heaps of granite out that way but unfortunately it all seems to be on private land
|
15-Dec-2009 1:07:45 PM
|
On 15/12/2009 wallwombat wrote:
>mikepatt - Yes, I've seen heaps of granite out that way but unfortunately
>it all seems to be on private land
land to some of which I have access, including the appropriately named c0ckrock. the knob is the crux.
I have been interested to look at the walls on the new overflow they cut through there but never bother to stop.
|