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VIC Melbourne (General) (General) (General) [ Melbourne Guide ]

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Altona Gate Basement Carpark

TooFatToClimb

15-Aug-2010
4:49:54 PM

Early in the evening last night I dropped into the Altona Gate Safeway via the Basement Carpark and noticed a bunch of exposed rock around the sides of the area. Being with the missus I didn't have a chance to look to see the quality etc. but it looked like there were some areas with bouldering potential. Have I stumbled upon something new or has this area been found before? Alternatively, is this someone's secret super crag that will hate me for making it public? Option 3, it's all choss and no good for anything?

dalai

15-Aug-2010
6:51:49 PM

News to me. Though the area is on basalt so could be okay...

I very vaguely recall comments about Highpoint City built in an old quarry - will have to search.

Phil Box

16-Aug-2010
7:39:26 AM

On 15/08/2010 TooFatToClimb wrote:

Well being that you are too fat to climb you'll prolly never find out how good it is. ;)) Joking of course.

Casper

16-Aug-2010
8:29:34 AM

Highpoint has some exposed quarry walls near the lower myer carpark and loading area, its pretty awful with a spattering of drilled holes. If you are looking for bouldering near highpoint go for Jacks magazine off Gordon st (next to edgewater estate, long bluestone walls).

BA

16-Aug-2010
11:00:18 AM

Could be Bumbo's Flying Circus. It was frequented by many climbers before they put a supermarket into the hole, about 20-30 years ago.

dalai

16-Aug-2010
11:39:09 AM

More details BA?

ajfclark

16-Aug-2010
11:42:45 AM

Dalai asking for more details about a bouldering area in Melbourne? Good thing I was sitting down when I read that. :-)

dalai

16-Aug-2010
12:27:55 PM

On 16/08/2010 ajfclark wrote:
>Dalai asking for more details about a bouldering area in Melbourne?

New indoor gym? ;-)

Did a quick search yesterday and it was mentioned that the Altona Gate, Highpoint City and Northcote Plaza were build in disused quarries. Also tried searching about climbing/bouldering at Highpoint in the dark dim past but couldn't find any mention online... If anyone remembers, it will be BA!

mikllaw

16-Aug-2010
12:35:53 PM

It was a great little bluestone quarry, a bit highball, columnar, with pockets and vugs everywhere. And then they filled it in with a carpark and concrete.

BA

16-Aug-2010
12:36:37 PM

On 16/08/2010 dalai wrote:
>More details BA?

You're asking a lot from an old bloke Dalai.

If Altona Gate is the one I think it is, we got to it by driving along Blackshaws Rd and down Millers Rd. It was 'discovered' by Andrew Bowman and was originally known as Bowman's Flying Circus as it was anticipated that considerable air time would be logged. Mike Stone's young kid couldn't say Bowman and it came out as Bumbo, of course that name stuck and it became known as Bumbo's Flying Circus. A young Ian Ross aka Black Ian and later Foxy, got a can of paint and a paint brush and put a number on anything that looked remotely climbable. Some of these took a while before they were climbed and of course people found climbs between the climbs and these were labeled with a number and a suffix (eg "a"). It all happened back in the early '70s, probably.

Now excuse me while I go looking for my memory pills, I know I put them down somewhere safe.

dalai

16-Aug-2010
1:21:56 PM

Mikl - was that Highpoint you are describing?

Thanks BA. Once you've found your pills, do you recall anything about the Highpoint quarry or already covered by Mikl?

BA

16-Aug-2010
3:39:46 PM

On 16/08/2010 dalai wrote:
>
>Thanks BA. Once you've found your pills, do you recall anything about
>the Highpoint quarry or already covered by Mikl?

I still haven't found my pills but hasn't Highpoint been discussed on Chocky before? I've been to Highpoint but haven't scoped any of its quarry walls.

dalai

16-Aug-2010
4:01:55 PM

On 16/08/2010 BA wrote:
>I still haven't found my pills but hasn't Highpoint been discussed on
>Chocky before? I've been to Highpoint but haven't scoped any of its quarry
>walls.

I also recall a topic about Highpoint - though this was on the building not any quarried walls. I've searched but found nothing...

ajfclark

16-Aug-2010
4:07:48 PM

Only thing I can find that mentions Highpoint...

http://www.chockstone.org/Forum/Forum.asp?Action=Display&ForumID=1&MessageID=18012

dalai

16-Aug-2010
4:30:10 PM

Thanks. But that is referring to the Edgewater park Bluestone walls.. There was a chockstone member who wrote about buildering I'm pretty certain at Highpoint, but I can't find the posts...

Cam McKenzie

17-Aug-2010
8:04:38 AM

I think that was Singer, and he was talking about bouldering at Northlands.

dalai

17-Aug-2010
8:33:43 AM

Thanks Cam. You are correct. Northlands not Highpoint...

BA, when you find your memory pills can I grab some? Looks like I need some too!

There are 17 messages in this topic.