Mt Wellington, as well as being home to Hobart's major trad climbing area, has some OK boulders. They are fairly widely scattered and have pretty variable landings. But the access is easy and they are ideal for after work sessions.
From the centre of Hobart drive up Davey Street, which becomes Huon Road, for 9.6km. Just before Fern Tree a well sign posted road (Pillinger Drive) leads off sharply to the right and winds up the mountain. Follow this for 4.2km to reach the Springs. Another 2.5km further on is a small parking bay on the left hand side of the road, which is the parking area for the Organ Pipes. To reach Lost World continue up past the parking area for a few more kilometres to a big leftwards bend in the road (9.1 km from the turn off). Keep going up the road to reach the Summit.
There are some unusually steep dolerite boulders on the way to Lost World. The rock is flakey and exfoliated with huge amounts of friction. Some of the landings are pretty bad, so a good spotter or thick mat is a good idea.
Park your car at the big bend just down from the summit of Mt Wellington, and then follow the directions and map below to find the problems.
The first group of boulders can be seen downhill from the carpark. Follow the little stream down the hill. About 20m down is the first boulder, a short clean face with two faint grooves above a slopey ledge.
V2 The left hand groove, with a hold on the arete to get started. Eliminating the arete will be pretty hard.
VE The right hand groove is pretty easy if you use the crack to the right, but bloody hard without it and not done this way yet
Follow the stream down for another 40 metres or so to a group of boulders with 2 prominent aretes and a V shaped corner
V2 (SDS) Just across from the main boulders is a small free standing boulder. Sitstart at the undercut arete to awkward top.
1. Moss V2 (Stand) The arete left of the corner. Don't use the crack or layaways to the left. Jump up to the break then dyno up to the top break. Using the holds to the left is V0, and the crack to the left is VE
3. Back in the House V1 (Stand) Start below the faint arete between the two blocks and above a clear landing around to the right of OS and crank up to the top
4. It's a Beautiful Day V2 (Stand) Start just to the right of Back in the House, and traverse left on the excellent rising horizontal line to finish around past Moss
From Streamside follow the stream downhill for about another 50-60m. Head up and left when you can see these sizable buttresses. This area can also be reached easily directly downhill from the Yellow Dot boulder.
15. Highball to Hell V2 (Highball) Start right of the arete and after a couple of tricky moves climb the featured slab to the top
16. V5? (Hang) Project - hang start on the big sloper on the horizontal column opposite Highball to Hell
This small face is in behind a scree pile downhill from Highball World. It is a little face with a crack/corner on its left and a leftwards curving arete on the right with a diagonal ramp in the middle of the face.
Rainbow V2 Start a bit right of the crack at the bottom of the rightwards leading ramp. Climb up this on slopers then straight up to the top
V? Project - Start just left of the right hand edge of the face, but don't use any of the good holds on or around the arete. Instead climb the thin and bulgey face towards the top of the ramp and then to the top.
The next problems are on the Queen Slot Boulder. Follow the little stream down the hill about 100m past Stream Side or 50m past Rainbow until you see a square cut boulder on the left of the stream with an arete that faces Mt Wellington.
V1 start at Queen Slot and traverse leftwards right around the boulder. The only tricky bit is at the start.
To get to the next boulders start on the cairned track from the road, but at about the second or third red dot turn right and follow a roughly marked track for a few minutes to a group of boulders where the yellow dots start (Yellow Dot Boulder). There are a couple of easy crack and slab problems here.
From the Yellow Dot Boulder follow the yellow dots down the hill for another 50m or so. Where the track takes a right hand turn down the hill there is a 3m high overhanging boulder with an OK landing on the left hand side of the track. This is Res Gestae boulder. If you can't find it from this description head to Lost World along any other track and locate the yellow dots about half way along the cliff top. Follow the track up to the boulder.
1. Tools V3 (SDS) Sit start underneath the nose of the boulder on underclings, as for Hammurabi. Move up and left to a very big jug, then throw from the jug to another good hold and an awkward top out. Starting from the jug is about V2
1a. Hearsay V5 (SDS) Start on the big jug on Tools, then traverse right around the nose and into the horizontal break/crack on Res Gestae to finish up that problem
2. Hammurabi V7 (SDS) Sit start underneath the steepest part of the boulder, at the nose and in between Tools and Res Gestae. Crank directly up through and over the nose. "Pretty Hard"
3. Res Gestae V4 (SDS) This is the problem on the right hand side of the boulder. Sit start with your hands on the incut hold and the undercling. Move into the horizontal break with difficulty and then pull through the bulge on good holds and then to the top. Stand start is V2
20m straight up the hill from RG is a bulgey wall with 3 obvious lines. Be careful of the bad landings
6. Pull Harder V3 Climb the thin right hand seam without using the footholds or flake to the left on PIO or the blocky ledge to the right. An easier variant uses the footholds on PIO
If you head up the hill from the Yellow Dot boulder you will come to two pinnacles that are both about 5m high. There are several problems that have been done here by the Jacksons that I don't have the details for.
1. V? Project - On the front of the left hand pinnacle is a very hard looking 30 degree overhanging finger crack. Looks desperate, but may go.
2. The Horn V1 The right hand arete of the right hand pinnacle. There are quite a few variations of this quite nice problem: One starts on the left and goes to the top at the arete (using whatever) and the other (the original and most obvious line) starts on the right. Also on the right side one can climb the face (heading slightly up right instead of left to the arete). All are about the same grade.
Walk around behind the right hand pinnacle to find an area with more boulders. The following problems are on the boulder straight ahead behind a pile of dead trees.
3. Party Like It's 1999 V2 About 3m to the right and up the hill from MB is a slabby arete. Climb it without using the boulders on the left or right
There are some good problems along the red dot track. From the big bend follow the red dot track up the hill for around 50 -100 metres to where the track makes a sharp right hand turn around a a group of boulders. After the right hand turn there is an overhung boulder that faces up the hill just off the track next to a cairn. This is Sweet Pussy. Downhill and to the left of here is a slightly overhung prow - this is Holy Shit.
1. Sweet Pussy V3 Sit start underneath the little overhang and climb it using the left arete and holds near the crack. A dynamic move to gain the sloper above the overhang, and then a fairly easy top out
2. Sunset V4 Sit start 1 metre right of Sweet Pussy at the right arete with a big span between the crack and the hold way around to the right. Climb through the bulge using a toe hook to the right and a thin lay away to an awkward friction top out
There are a couple of eliminates yet to be done on this boulder - just the crack; Sunset without the crack; and the traverse from around right to the left arete.
2. Holy Shit V3 Down and to the left of SP is a gently overhanging prow. Climb the steep face from its lowest point without using the the crack to the right (there is an easier variation using these holds). Thin and scary due to a dodgy landing
Along the track a few metres from SP is an upwards pointing arrow painted in red on a rock. To the right of this is a decent sized pinnacle.
1. Elegant Pinnacle V1 Straight forward up the front of the pinnacle. The other faces are also climbable at a reasonable grade
1. V2 There is another detached pinnacle up and to the left of the previous one. There are a few variations: use everything; straight up the front; and the hardest variation is the right hand side of the front of the block without using any of the holds to the left of the groove in the middle of the face
2. Arrow Head V1 The thin seam just to the right of the previous problem without using the flake to the left or the stuff to the right
1. Face Away V0 the back arete of the pinnacle up and to the left which faces away from the summit of Mt Wellington. Climb the arete/slab on nice incut flakes
1. V? To the right of the previous problem and directly above and back from Arrow Head is a tallish pinnacle/face with a series of seams up it. Climb directly up the face.
V2 About 30m to the right of the Elegant Pinnacle at the same level is a blunt arete/slab behind a dead tree with 3 forks. Climb the very thin and delicate seam up this above a bad landing
There are several impressive prows next to the red dot track as it heads back down the hill to Lost World, but no one has had the balls to climb any of them (bad landings).
There are a very large number of nice boulders in the amphitheater below the Lost World cliffs. They have barely been touched to date, but there is a large amount of potential here. The bad landings and the walk put people off, but with a bit of vision there will be some excellent problems done here.
The quickest and easiest way to get there is to follow the yellow dot track down to the top of the cliff, then take the red dot track down around the northern edge of the cliffs and down into the amphitheater. It takes about 15 minutes.
The quickest and easiest way to get there is to follow the yellow dot track down to the top of the cliff, then take the red dot track down around the northern edge of the cliffs and down into the amphitheater. It takes about 15 minutes.
From the big bend walk west up the stream for about 30m and then head north straight up the hill to just below the ridge crest where you should find a very nice looking overhanging block with two striking aretes
There is another group of boulders on the far side of the hill with some fun moderate problems. To get there walk up the gravel fire trail from the big bend about two or three hundred metres, to just before the road reaches its highest. There should now be a relatively open area on your right. The boulders can seen up the hill to the right about 80 metres from the road (the boulders that can be seen are the ones around and above The Somme). A small cairn marks the start of a vague track that heads via the boulders to a hut. A good reference point is the highest boulder on the hill, which is the top of Shell Shock.
1. Shell Shock V3 (SDS) Thin shallow crack in middle of face of boulder right at top of hill. Only use crack
9. Skinless V5 (SDS) Sitstart on rail then right around arete on slopes then up. Dont use jugs at top until the finish
