The Top 50, Australia's Most Popular Climbs
(brought to you by theCrag.com and Onsight Photography, April 2001)
In April 2001, we undertook some analysis ticks to produce a list of the Top 50 climbs in Australia.
This sort of information and more is now available at all levels of the index by clicking on the 'Statistics' tab.
To give you a feel of the quality of some of these routes, Simon Carter (Onsight Photography) has contributed some photos to this article.
Key Findings
| * | 'D Minor' topped the list as the most popular climb in Australia. |
| * | Nine out of the top ten climbs were five minutes walk from Arapiles' famous 'Pines' campground. |
| * | 39 of the Top 50 climbs were found at Arapiles. |
| * | Blue Mountains [4] and Nowra [5] were the most popular crags in New South Wales. |
| * | For Brisbane climbers it was the city crag of Kangaroo Point [2]. |
| * | The Grampians remained Victoria's hidden secret with not a single climb featuring in the Top 50. (There were 116 three star climbs in the Grampians, ranging from grade 13 to 31). |
| * | The hardest routes in the Top 50 were 'Pilot Error' and 'Kachoong', both grade 21. |
| * | 48% of the Top 50 climbs range from grade 15 to 18. |
The Top 50
| 1. *** D Minor | [15, 35m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 63] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 77] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 16] | ||
| 2. *** Little Thor (photo) | [20, 12m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 35] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 34] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 15] | ||
| 3. ** Swinging | [17, 20m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 125] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 162] | ||
| 4. *** Muldoon (photo) | [13, 43m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 57] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 67] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 16] | ||
| 5. * Maximus | [17, 13m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 102] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 130] | ||
| 6. ** Piccolo | [11, 40m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 64] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 79] | ||
| 7. *** Bard (photo) | [12, 120m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 104] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 151] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 20] | ||
| 8. *** Tannin | [19, 40m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 67] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 83] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 17] | ||
| 9. *** Vanderholics | [19, 25m, Nowra] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Nowra, Rod Young [page 48] | |
| 10. * Pilot Error (photo) | [21, 12m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 50] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 56] | ||
| 11. * Marmot's Mall | [16, 12m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 35] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 34] | ||
| 12. ** Trapeze | [11, 20m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 125] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 162] | ||
| 13. * Minimus | [15, 12m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 102] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 129] | ||
| 14. *** Skink | [18, 107m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 173] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 233] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 30] | ||
| 15. *** Agamemnon | [10, 40m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 58] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 70] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 16] | ||
| 16. ** The Golden Fleece | [18, 28m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 73] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 88] | ||
| 17. *** Flake Crack (photo) | [17, 53m, Blue Mountains] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Blue Mountains, Simon Carter & Martin Pircher [page 98] | |
| The Blue Mountains, Michael Law [page 48] | ||
| Upper Blue Mountains, SRC [page 110] | ||
| 18. *** The Watchtower Crack (photo) | [17, 100m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 173] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 232] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 30] | ||
| 19. *** Tombstone Wall (photo) | [15, 30m, Blue Mountains] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Blue Mountains, Simon Carter & Martin Pircher [page 98] | |
| The Blue Mountains, Michael Law [page 48] | ||
| Upper Blue Mountains, SRC [page 109] | ||
| 20. * Camelot | [10, 13m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 102] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 130] | ||
| 21. ** Conifer Crack | [9, 75m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 66] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 82] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 17] | ||
| 22. ** Beautiful Possibilities | [15, 46m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 73] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 88] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 18] | ||
| 23. ** Libretto | [17, 50m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 64] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 82] | ||
| 24. ** Horn Piece | [13, 33m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 67] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 83] | ||
| 25. ** Surface To Air | [17, 30m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 55] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 67] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 16] | ||
| 26. *** Entertainer | [18, 40m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 199] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 270] | ||
| 27. *** Eurydice | [18, 100m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 104] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 149] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 20] | ||
| 28. *** Diddy Kong | [18, 24m, Nowra] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Nowra, Rod Young [page 52] | |
| RockGUIDE (Nowra Update) [page 4] | ||
| 29. * Crap | [14, 18m, Kangaroo Point] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Kangaroo Point, Neil Monteith [page 35] | |
| 30. ** D Major | [10, 50m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 64] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 79] | ||
| 31. *** West Wall | [12, 290m, Blue Mountains] | |
| Guidebook(s): | The Blue Mountains, Michael Law [page 12] | |
| Upper Blue Mountains, SRC [page 14] | ||
| 32. *** Exodus | [6, 36m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 210] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 287] | ||
| 33. * Moby Dick | [18, 15m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 73] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 89] | ||
| 34. *** Arachnus | [9, 123m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 172] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 229] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 30] | ||
| 35. *** Samurai Pizza Catz | [18, 15m, Nowra] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Nowra, Rod Young [page 38] | |
| 36. *** Santa's Little Helper | [15, 15m, Nowra] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Nowra, Rod Young [page 39] | |
| 37. ** Lucifer | [11, 15m, Nowra] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Nowra, Rod Young [page 38] | |
| 38. *** Brolga (photo) | [16, 116m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 175] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 234] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 30] | ||
| 39. *** The Eternity (photo) | [19, 52m, Blue Mountains] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Blue Mountains, Simon Carter & Martin Pircher [page 94] | |
| The Blue Mountains, Michael Law [page 46] | ||
| Upper Blue Mountains, SRC [page 108] | ||
| 40. * Sickle | [8, 13m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 37] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 33] | ||
| 41. *** Diapason | [7, 55m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 66] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 82] | ||
| 42. ** Pedro | [10, 36m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 73] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 88] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 18] | ||
| 43. *** Missing Link (photo) | [17, 30m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 111] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 139] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 24] | ||
| 44. * Wind in the Willows | [15, 18m, Kangaroo Point] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Kangaroo Point, Neil Monteith [page 35] | |
| 45. ** Didgeridoo | [11, 35m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 67] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 82] | ||
| 46. ** The Rack | [18, 13m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 39] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 43] | ||
| 47. ** XI | [19, 30m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 100] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 128] | ||
| 48. * Hammer | [3, 12m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 37] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 33] | ||
| 49. *** Kachoong (photo) | [21, 25m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 191] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 260] | ||
| Victoria, Chris Baxter [page 32] | ||
| 50. * Aardvark | [18, 18m, Arapiles] | |
| Guidebook(s): | Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd [page 63] | |
| Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest [page 77] | ||
Methodology
This list was compiled by looking at the most popular climbing ticks from users at theCrag.com on 10 March 2001. Climbing ticks are made by users of theCrag.com when they have successfully completed the climb. There is no attempt made to verify that the tick is authentic. A tick can be made by a 'signed up' user, by a mouse click, when they browse the index. Users can add climbs to the index if the climb does not already exist, thereby not excluding any climb. The list was generated from over 10,000 ticks.
About the Guidebooks
Without the support of Australian Guidebooks theCrag.com would not exist. A special mention to the guidebooks that contibuted to climbs in the Top 50 list.
* Arapiles, Mentz & Tempest
* Arapiles/Djurite, Louise Shepherd
* Victoria, Chris Baxter
* Nowra, Rod Young
* Upper Blue Mountains, SRC
* Blue Mountains, Simon Carter & Martin Pircher
* The Blue Mountains, Michael Law
* Kangaroo Point, Neil Monteith
* RockGUIDE (Nowra Update)
Reproduction and Copyright
The Top 50, Australia's Most Popular Climbs list or any derivation of the list are under copyright of theCrag.com. If you want to use this list contact thecrag@thecrag.com outlining your proposed use.
The photos have been supplied by Simon Carter / Onsight Photography. Onsight Photography retains all copyright of the photos.
About theCrag.com
theCrag.com is a resource for climbers on the web, featuring a searchable index of Australian climbs. Simon Dale and Campbell Gome, the founders of the site, are two Australian (Melbourne) based rock climbers who devised the site as a pre and post trip planner. Search and navigation features on the site help climbers find the climbs they are interested in, while personalisation features give climbers the ability to record their climbing ticks for life.
About Onsight Photography
Onsight Photography is run by Simon Carter, a 34-year-old Australian who has successfully combined his passions of rock climbing and photography to become Australia's pre-eminent climbing photographer.
Much of Simon's photography is self-commissioned and this work is regularly featured in climbing and outdoor magazines around the world. It is also widely used by the climbing and outdoor industry for advertising, catalogues and promotions. Notible commissions include work for Australian Geographic, The North Face and Rock and Ice. He has also won several awards for his photography including The King Albert Medal of Merit and Best Feature Photography.
Goto to his web site (www.onsight.com.au) for more details ...