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Crag & Route Beta

Area	Location	Sub Location	Crag	Links
All QLD	(General)	(General)	(General)

Topic Date User

Weipa, FNQ 23-Feb-2007 At 9:52:16 AM jimfalla

Message

Poor climbing weather aside, the Eastern side of the Northern Cape has some fantastic possibilities for the adventurous.

Cape Melville as shown in the photo above (shows the tiny tiny bit) is gob smacking in the extreem. A bit like Black Mountain (the Mountain of Certain Death, near Cooktown) but many times bigger, Melville is a tropical paradise with fox tailed palms and piled up featured granite boulders. Most bouldering here will be very dangerous as langings tend to be bottomless pits...(full of huge pythons) However 'adventure scrambling' is unsurpassed, demanding and exhausting. Not for the faint hearted and help is a LONG way away if you end up rattling down into the bowls of the mountain. Certainly the best I have ever done.

Cape Direction has lovely featured orange granite boulders and has a few little problems done by some keen sea kayakers in the 90 s. I do not know how or if it is accessible other than by boat, and it is on Aboriginal land. (isn't it all).

Noble Island, just south of Cape Melville, is made up of the most intricate and geologically interesting swirl of minerals I've ever seen. Just a little bit crumbly but solid enough for some real out there adventure. The peak of the island is about 150 m on an area of about 5 ha, set on an inner reef, maybe 10 km off shore. The East face of the island approaches vertical straight out of the coral trout and is most likely unclimbed. (it would need ropes and grimpons). The South ridge is the 'easy' access to the summit and has had ascents by many crusty prawn fishers and paddlers homesick for araps. The Western face is a bit like the Atridae at Araps (to my eyes anyway) and was soloed at about grade 10 - 15 in the 'obvious' (to his eyes anyway) line by Jon Muir in the 1990s. It's a great Island. (possibly the best in the world)

The Flinders Group of islands in Bathurst/Princess Charlotte Bay has heaps of sea cliffs for you to explore (especially Stanley Island, the southern one, if my memory is not decieved...)

I am sure there are heaps of other outcrops to be checked out up there and to my mind the tropical heat etc. will beat off most sporty types and keep the adventure as it was meant to be.

Don't expect to find the new Fountainbleu (but maybe you will...), get yourself a boat (how could you not ) and a shot gut and have a good time.
(and can I come too??)