3 months climbing in WA
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- This topic has 6 replies, 1 voice, and was last updated 12 years, 5 months ago by
Mark.
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Adrien
Dear Australian Climbers,
Im am very excited because I am coming with my girlfriend, for 3 months (May June July), to travel, climb and kitesurf in western Australia. About the kitesurf I am not sure, cause it is not the windy season and I don’t find any info about the wind condition in this season…
Anyway, I have checked out a few climbing websites including this one and we will stay around perth first and then go all along the west coast. But if you think about crags we should not really missed do not hesitate to tell me… For info my girlfriend is about 17-18 australian grades and I am in 23-24. So please give me the NOT TO MISS crags all around WA.
I am french so I really suck at trad climbing… Moreover I don’t have any trad gears… I have done trad once in the peak district (UK) or in mountaineering. But I really want to improve my trad skills during this stay in Australia.
For climbing in WA what trad gears should I buy ?
– one rack of nuts, I suppose , 2 maybe ?
– Camalot cams, what size are the most useful ? How many should be sufficient ?
– Hex ?
– others ?Is it easy to find second hand (cause this toys are really expensive) gears in perth ?
Do you know any good deals ?Thanks for all the information you can give me..
And maybe see you soon.
AdrienNumbat
Hi Adrien,
there are some bolted routes in WA, but mostly at the quarries and at a few other spots like Bob’s Hollow and Kalbarri and your climbing would be pretty limited if you only stick to bolted routes, although there are some great bolted routes around.
Most people with a trad rack have something like 6 – 10 cams – Black Diamonds are popular. A set of nuts are useful. Some people like hexes, some don’t. I don’t. Plus about a dozen quickdraws. And about 10 bolt plates…
Many people order stuff from overseas or bring it back when they go overseas as the price in the US is about half what it is here. If you know your address in Perth, order the stuff from the US and have it sent over. If the total (including shipping) is less than $1000 AUD, then there is no GST (VAT), otherwise there is a 10% tax when it arrives.
Otherwise, about the cheapest places in Australia are http://www.rockhardware.com.au/ and http://www.climbinganchors.com.au/
Second hand gear is sometimes available but any decent stuff usually goes pretty quickly.
Don’t forget that May, June and July are late autumn and winter here, so a lot of the climbing spots may not be suitable – probably the Stirling Ranges, Porongurup Ranges, West Cape Howe, Peak Head, and The Gap will all be pretty much unclimable, although if you are lucky you may get some good winter weather and still be able to do some climbing at those places. Maybe.
Have fun!
Pete
Hi Adrien,
As a recent convert to climbing, but a long time surfer and kitesurfer, I can tell you that the kitesurfing in winter is pretty patchy. It’s really a summer activity when the sea breeze is consistent and blows from 15 to 25 knots most days.
In the winter the normal weather pattern is to get several days of fine weather with light offshore winds and decent swell (good for surfing), then every week or so a storm front will pass through, generating strong NW then SW winds. Kiting the NWer before the front arrives can be good. Kiting the SWer once the worst of the front has passed through can also be fun, especially if you like wave riding. The fronts produce very unpredictable winds though and you have to be vigilant kiting these conditions. A number of guys have died over the years getting caught out by sudden squalls. That said, some of the best sessions I’ve had have been in mid winter with big swells and 25+. Bring a small kite.
pete
Adrien
Thanks a lot for your answsers…
I could tell it was winter (cause I live in reunion Island, near madagascar) but i thought it was warm during the whole year in australia !! 🙂 Well, we will see once we are there for the wethear…
For the gear, I will buy nuts and cams before coming then… As for the bolt plates I’ll buy it in Perth. Are there different sizes for bolt plates ? Which size do you recommend ?
I was wondering do you have any multi pitch routes ? I haven’t seen any in the guide I have checked yet…As for kiting I will take my 7m²… But I am not sure my girlfriend is going to like kiting in those condition : storm in the sky, shark under the water… me neither 🙂
See you !
Adrien
Hey,
I was still wondering about multipitch routes in WA ? Is there any ?
I was also wondering if you should take the helmets with us… Usually we wear helmet for multipitch or mountainnering… What about trad climbing ? Are you wearing helmets ?
Do you have a checklist of the best places to climb in WA ?
Thanks.tonsen hargreaves-unsworth-hitchens
best easy multipitch trad in WA that I have done
that is – the only multipitch climbs in WA I have done…Nailbite in the Stirlings – excellent 3 pitch. gr 12, gr 12, gr 15. in the West Australian Rock guidebook.
Five Flies up an Elephant – in the Porongorups, see the mini guide on this website. I climbed this at the start of June a few years ago. It was quite dry.
I climbed Willyabrup mostly in the winter months.
I think the weather will be fine for you.
have a good time, forget the kiting, just go climbing.Mark
best climb in WA? climb aboard a qantas jet and fly to the blue mountains
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