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Chockstone Forum - Crag & Route Beta

Crag & Route Beta

Area	Location	Sub Location	Crag	Links
All NSW	(General)	(General)	(General)

Topic Date User

Warrumbungle family climbing 14-Mar-2020 At 7:47:10 AM IdratherbeclimbingM9

Message

On 13-Mar-2020 mjf wrote:
>Thank you everyone for your candid and honest advice for the Bungles. We’ll
>still go, have a look around, definitely do some of the easy climbing that’s
>not too far away from the car.

Short easy climbing is an afterthought for the Warrumbungles, as it’s not the kind of climbing there that is worth traveling for, but rather, rest day activity or family style time filler stuff.

You will still enjoy it because it is an absolutely magical place.

Although what others have said above is generally true, I have found family climbing to be okay there for trad and adventure style climbing, and reckon it’d be sad indeed if the ’sport brigade’ have got their tentacles into the ’bungles.

Unlike goshen’s assessment my view of Blackmans Bluff differs.
Many of the routes at Blackmans Bluff (W facing cliffline just north of Camp Blackman), were put up by a father and 12 yo son team, specifically for that lad to learn the art of trad on. Routes are short (15 metres or less), but rock quality is good and more akin to quality sandstone than the trachyte predominantly found in the ‘bungles. Grades range from 6 to 15 there.
Some of the routes are pretty burly (overhanging / offwidth), but they, along with face routes there, can be easily top-roped off trad anchors if necessary.
Access is best following up the open valley to LH end of cliffline, instead of bush bashing, and then progressively doing routes by traversing right, along the base of the cliff.

Another easily accessed location, Canyon Cliffs (W side of Canyon Picnic Area) has trad routes up to 35 m, and mostly mid-high teen grades for the better lines, though there’s a few grade 8 to 12 routes there.
A note of caution at this point... Humble trad grades still require respect! - I’ve seen falls taken there by people who take the lower grades of climbing for granted!!

The Nature Track Cliffs are also easily accessible along Wambelong Nature Track from Canyon Camp; but this area has less routes and is stiffer climbing (quality high teens grades), on trachyte.