An impressive chunk of rock with several new 4-5 pitch mixed routes and very short access. Generally they consist of 15-25m pitches interspersed by good belay ledges. The bottom and middle pitches are generally excellent, however the upper pitches can be vegetated, sandy or short. Or a combo of all three. All routes here require some trad and if you plan to rap the wall a 60m rope. All belays are bolted. The base of the cliff is a bit swampy in places, so be prepared with shoes suitable for wetness. If doing new routes here please respect the trad/mixed ethic that these routes were established by, and avoid adding squeeze jobs.
Many of the Wollongong crags are located in the Illawarra Escarpment State Conservation Area (IESCA). This region has had a chequered history in recent times, with large swathes of popular crags having to be closed after it was missed that a new NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) Plan of Management (PoM - 2018) had incidentally banned climbing along most of the escarpment. After a lobbying effort and a stroke of coincidental good luck an amended plan of management has been published (2023), modifying the plan to allow rock-climbing “… on the west- and south-facing cliffs of Mount Keira and on cliffs north of Bulli Pass."
Access comes with caveats and all climbers should be aware that that “… new bolts or anchors may only be installed with NPWS consent, and park infrastructure such as safety railing may not be used as anchor points as they have not been designed for this purpose. NPWS will not install, assess or guarantee bolts or other fixed protection points. Participants in these activities are solely responsible for their own safety.”
Given the pressures many rock-climbing areas have been under around Australia and the plethora of access issues that have followed it is imperative that climbers respect and heed the access requirements. Access granted can easily be access taken, noting from the PoM: “Locations where rock climbing and abseiling are allowed may be reviewed and altered to address safety issues, risks to visitors or impacts on cultural values or environmental values. Temporary closures of rock climbing and abseiling locations may be applied to limit impacts. Permanent closure of sites may also be necessary. NPWS will consult with representatives of the local climbing community before implementing any permanent closures.”
Please refer to the ‘Ethic” section for more notes on how to be a good steward for the climbing community.
View this marked Google Map to see detailed access information and map. https://maps.google.com.au/maps/ms?msid=210377956196981525836.0004eb8f23a0928dfa57f&msa=0&ll=-34.267218,150.953994&spn=0.021492,0.040298&iwloc=0004eb8f61c28e4e026fa
Crag access is from either above (via abseil) or from above by steep climbers track (walk). The carpark is located on the Old Princes Highway above the town of Scarborough north of Wollongong. From entrance of Boomerang Golf Course drive 1.7km south on Old Princess Highway and park on east side of road at small dirt pull-out.
Rap-in Access. 15 minutes. Bushbash 50m east to 4WD road, follow it south for 50m then take hikers trail left (east) at small green post. Follow this trail north-east for 250m to wooden duckboards. In the middle and highest section of the duckboards is a largish tree growing on the right side - there should be a bit of blue tape on it. Jump off duckboards here and follow blue tape markers directly south through scrub for 230m to cliff top GPS co-ord (34 16 04 S, 150 57 00 E). Notes on how to rap the base of the cliff are detailed in the Descents section below.
Walk-down Access. 20 minutes. Bushbash 50m east from carpark to 4WD road. Follow this road south past little green sign and two power-poles. 15m south from the 2nd power-pole look for climbers trail on the left - currently marked by rock cairn and pink string in tree. Follow faint trail east for 50m until it drops sharply over escarpment. Follow pink string and rock cairns down steep hill, into rock gully then to base of large cliff. Follow base of cliff along (short section of fixed rope) with some steep and muddy sections to cave formed by giant block. Avian Abbatior is 10m right of this. Shoes that don't mind mud recommend.
The modern climbing scene and all the access issues that go with it requires modern ethic and all climbers should familiarise themselves with general good crag etiquette to ensure access is maintained into the future.
The following is a short summary for the area:
Learn more at https://www.cliffcare.org.au/education
The cliff appears untouched by climbers until 2013. Surely someone tried something here previously????
First time here?
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