Since Castle Hill is known as one of the very best bouldering destinations worldwide, i thought it suitable to do an area-by-area guide rather than a general overview, considering each field has it’s own unique style and character. And since this one is the first you come to, i thought it’d be as good a [...]
Over the last few weeks I have been grounded in Auckland due to a large amount of work and an un-large amount of money. This unfortunate combination has been further compounded my an inordinately high number of climbing DVD’s passing through my laptop. Watching footage and not being able to go out and pretend I’m [...]
“Waitomo is the stunted, learning deficient but ultimately lovable child of NZ bouldering. Living in the shadow of its bigger limestone brother in the south, and not quite as stacked as its cousin on the blustery shores of the capital, it ambles along in the wake its betters, competently bringing up the rear.” Anon. Waitomo’s prevailing forecast has settled [...]
Another under-appreciated N.I. crag hated on as a past time by most NZ climbers. Sure its packed to the gunnels with huge ring bolts every three feet and a thousand razor sharp and crumbly pockets, but there is more to the area than just these. It has a lot of history, but if you want [...]
The ancient proving ground for many a hard NZ climber like Charlie Creese, Roland Foster, Troy Stevenson, Scott Mooney and others i can’t remember. Is it the birthplace of the country’s nails trad, or an overblown choss pile that’s little more than a giant chipped hold? it’s both of these things and a whole lot [...]