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VIC Eastern Buchan Limestone (General) (General) [ Buchan Guide | Images ]

Author

Has anyone climbed here?

Hugh

24-Oct-2009
9:48:45 PM

Heya guys,
Haven't got the guide and just wondering if anyone has/is climbed/ing here (buchan limestone) and what its like? would it be worth making the trip from melb? Any 'hidden' gems available to the intrepid few...? The chocky pictures look cool....
Cheers
Hugh

contactgav

25-Oct-2009
12:48:15 AM

i climbed at the buchan caves and lived near Orbost for a short while.
i climbed the walls near the road and the caving. these consisted of short walls, vertical, to slightly steep.
if you are into caving, you may want to go out for that.

there are some bolted routes, nothing great. (from memory) this was in 1998.

if you are that way, go up to Raymond Creek falls
there is an amzing wall which i began to bolt some lines. but one day i had two very frightening experiences with snakes.
one being a tiger snake which i scared away by reving the petrol drill.
the 2nd was horrid. i was rapping down the line drilling and when i got to about 4m from the bottom, i noticed a massive brown snake at the bottom of my ropes.

i tried the drill rev trick but with no success, i dropped a bolt near it. then it just stayed and looked at me for the next 5 mins or so.
i was trapped there and was hoping the snake didn't want to come up the rope.
i finally got down scrambled up the slope to the top of the crag packed up my stuff as fast as i could and never went back.

browns, blacks and tigers are common out there, seriously, do go out on your own like i stupidly did and not in summer.

hope that helps.

Hugh

25-Oct-2009
8:22:56 AM

cheers, wil keep that in mind! Just looking for something a little abstract to climb haha

JamesMc

25-Oct-2009
10:39:47 AM

I've climbed around Buchan a few times, and quite like it. The limestone is good, but there's not much of it. Various people developed secret cliffs over the decades, and forgot about them, so there's a lot that's been done and not written up. We put all we could find in the guide, but that's not a lot.

The Pyamids are the pick of the area in my opinion. Very nice lttle limestone pinnacles in a beautiful location. I had an uncomfortable time sharing the top of a pyramid with two large and extremely hostile goannas once. Reptile trouble seems to be a feature of the region.

JamesMc

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