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Bulahdelah Cave Access Closure |
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5-Aug-2010 8:36:41 PM
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The most popular access route to the Cave at Bulahdelah involves crossing private property. Whatever access arrangements may have been in place previously have now been revoked by the landowner. Climbers are no longer able to enter the mountain from the northern side, driving up the access road. To be clear, the property owner has placed a sign on the old gate advising that entering his land will constitute trespass. And we are told that he will not hesitate in calling the police.
If you are going to go climbing in the cave you now access the cave by;
• drive up the west side of the mountain through the State Forest to the top car park;
• locate the obvious tourist trail steps to the left (facing cliff);
• follow trail along past cliffs on right side and stand alone pinnacles on downhill side until trail veers slightly right and up onto the ridge of mountain;
• just before arriving at the lookout, locate quarry on right hand side;
• follow down right hand edge to base of quarry and then out on to scree slope;
• follow cliff line around left (facing outwards from cliff) until you reach the cave.
The cave itself is also on private property. We are currently in talks with the new land owners (Down Under Brewery Resorts Limited) about retaining climbing access to the cave. In light of this we ask that any visitors to the cave refrain from further bolting, setting of ropes or bringing dogs or large groups to the cliff. It goes without saying that anything you bring in with you, you take out.
Thanks for your support to keep the cave open to climbers.
John, Daniel and Trent
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5-Aug-2010 10:50:58 PM
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Thanks for the heads up guys! Any idea why the landowner suddenly closed the road?
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9-Aug-2010 12:46:07 AM
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Thats insane. Theres a big freeway being built on or next to that persons boundary in case they havent noticed.
How has he even noticed the climbers and what has precipitated this stance?
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11-Aug-2010 5:32:05 PM
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I think the problem is that we all just assumed that the landowner wouldn’t mind if we crossed his property. To my knowledge there was no negotiations entered into with the landowner about using his property to access the cave. Even though the directions to access the cave across the landowners property was published in the Rock Climbing in the Hunter Valley guide book.
As for the reasons why? I’m not sure. We tried to contact the owner but he was unavailable, Trent being a local spoke to the landowner’s son who said that his father wasn’t happy with people crossing his land and that he wouldn’t hesitate to call the police.
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11-Aug-2010 8:02:04 PM
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Thats a shame. I'm still a bit confused about where the property starts and ends and whether he lets a telstra tower get built on his land but not climbers walk through. I guess we just get fitter and walk the long way round and be super constructive with the group that actually own the cave land.
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28-Sep-2010 11:09:55 AM
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Is there an update on this?
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28-Sep-2010 1:20:00 PM
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Telstra pay rental for towers on private land.
You wanna pay too?
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28-Sep-2010 4:48:53 PM
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The walk in the other way (from the pinnacle car park) isnt too bad at all. Just check for leeches occasionally
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