My first Easter weekend at Arapiles proved to be all it was hyped up to be. Departing Melbourne on Thurs at 7.30pm, the traffic wasn’t as bad as we thought it would be for the start of an Easter weekend. As we reached the half way point at Ararat, we found the supermarket were going on holidays early, closing the doors at 10pm.
Horsham Safeway to the rescue, staying up late til midnight! Gearing up for a weekend, we filled the 70 litre esky and drove the final stretch, down the bumpy road to the Pines camp ground at base of the Arapiles. Full moon, midnight and the camp ground was a buzz. The tapping sound of hammers continued til about 1am as late arrivals made their way into camp.
I awoke to an amazing site of hundreds of tents scattered around the pine trees and the clinking of hex’s as climbers prepared for the day ahead. Apparently this wasn’t even a busy Easter!
Good Friday and the first of four days of climbing was spent on Charity Buttress, with my first lead climb in 5 years opportunely up Hope.
Second day was spent on the back wall at Bushrangers Bluff where a variety of climbs were made in the sun, including my old friend ‘Rubbery Underarms’.
Third day at Mitre Rock where we met the Commandos………..so off to Declaration Crag for some short climbs. I can just imagine how happy the lizard that walked into our cookie bag and ate our biscuits would have been if we were doing a long climb!
Fourth day and an easy four-pitch scramble up Introductory Route, one of the first climbs done in the Arapiles (the descent route takes almost as long as the climb).
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Tips for climbing into this adventure:
- A great site to get an overview of the climbs is Chockstone - click here.
- Natimuk Pub does a pig-on-a-spit on Easter Saturday. Book in early if you want a seat as climbers are keen for a good hearty meal after a couple of days climbing
- 4 days of dirt, sunscreen, sweat can certainly make you pretty stinky….as an alternative to a ‘wet ones wash’ take a face washer and towel into the disabled toilet for a quick ‘shower’ in the big basin
- as Easter is always a full moon, take a walk up Fang Buttress to the large landing to watch the moon rising
- beware of Commandoes who are known to steal your climbs just as you are setting up at the base
