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Seasonality
Description
Vertical
Face
Afternoon sun
Windy
This rap-in halfway ledge is situated between the Sunbath and Sporting Complex areas of 'Medlow Bath', with the Hydro Majestic dominating the skyline above. The cliff face is mostly dead vertical and contains six two-pitch bolted routes and one two-pitch trad outing, all just under 40m long. The large ledge, the area above and the climbs themselves feature spectacular views out over the Megalong Valley.
Useful Info: At the bottom of the steps look a few metres to the right to find a pair of fixed hangers at the top of a small gully. (The hangers are grey and can be difficult to spot). Use your own carabiners and slings on these to rap down the short 45 degree sloped gully then the cliff itself. A 50m rope is easily long enough. It is best to bring a rope for this purpose and leave it in place.
The route you rap down is 'Bohemiath'. If you wish to climb this route and not have the rap rope in the way you could rap from the top anchor of 'Stuck in the Middle with You', a few metres north - two rings a metre back from the cliff edge, set in a cavelet underneath a boulder.
The crag is in the sun from 1:00pm in summer and 11.00am in late winter.
© (Niall)Access issues inherited from Medlow Bath
Be wary of where you park, ensuring not to block any driveways or leave any rubbish. The crags are located on land owned by The Hydro Majestic, so act appropriately.
Approach
Rap in
10-20 min
To find the crag follow the track down from Belgravia St past the circular sunbath itself to the lookout above 'Schwing'. Turn left and follow the clifftop path. (The crag is visible, 100m away to the south, from the next lookout).
From here the path goes in around a wooded gully then back out towards the cliff. It swings left with a thicket of banksias on the right. Where these start to open out there is an old indistinct set of man-made bouldery steps heading down to the cliff edge. If you come across a wide circle in the middle of some cemented rock you've gone too far. Turn around and head back about 20 metres and you'll find the bouldery steps on your left. These steps are marked with a big cairn on their right. Walk down the short scrubby path towards the cliff top. When you walk out of the scrub turn right and look for the sloping gully. Here you'll find the fixed hangers facing you on approach.
© (Niall)Ethic inherited from Blue Mountains
Well established
Although sport climbing is well entrenched as the most popular form of Blueys climbing, mixed-climbing on gear and bolts has generally been the rule over the long term. Please try to use available natural gear where possible, and do not bolt cracks or potential trad climbs. If you do the bolts may be removed.
Because of the softness of Blue Mountains sandstone, bolting should only be done by those with a solid knowledge of glue-in equipping. A recent fatality serves as a reminder that this is not an area to experiment with bolting.
If you do need to top rope, please do it through your own gear as the wear on the anchors is both difficult and expensive to maintain.
If you have benefited from climbing infrastructure in NSW, please consider making a donation towards maintenance costs. The Sydney Rockclimbing Club Rebolting Fund finances the replacement of old bolts on existing climbs and the maintenance of other hardware such as fixed ropes and anchors. The SRC purchases hardware, such as bolts and glue, and distributes them to volunteer rebolters across the state of New South Wales. For more information, including donation details, visit https://sydneyrockies.org.au/rebolting/
It would be appreciated if brushing of holds becomes part of your climbing routine - do it with a soft bristled brush and never a steel brush!
The removal of vegetation - both from the cliff bases and the climbs - is not seen as beneficial to aesthetics of the environment nor to our access to it.
However, the fast growing scrub can conceal walking tracks in mere months, making remote and less popular crags slightly more difficult and fun to navigate to. Some appropriately discreet pruning is a far better alternative then track braiding (which causes far more damage).
However, do so only on Council land and definitely not in the National Park. Remember, to maintain access our best approach is to 'Respect Native Habitat, Tread Softly and Leave No Trace'. Do not cut flora and keep any tracks and infrastructure as minimal as possible or risk possible closures.
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Some content has been provided under license from: © Australian Climbing Association Queensland (Creative Commons, Attribution, Share-Alike 2.5 AU)
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Henryk on ★★ Flex Time 21 - P1000935.jpg
Henryk on ★★ Wake Up and Apologise 22 - P1000803.jpg
Henryk on ★★ Wake Up and Apologise 22 - P1000928.jpg
Josh Dodson on ★★ Mr Orange 21 - Josh approaches the P2 crux belayed by Niall