Rock climbing meet at Arapiles over Easter and ANZAC Day 2019 By Jenny Cossey A conversation, between a visiting Australian NZAC section member Andrew Mitchell and a Wellington section member at Unwin Hut in the summer of 2017, sowed the idea for an inaugural joint section ten-day meet at Arapiles over Easter and ANZAC Day 2019. Ten Wellington climbers were keen as mustard and signed up nine months in advance for the trip, asking their section to hold a trad leading course at Tukino and later, a self-rescue rope course, to upskill the sport climbing starlets in the intricate art of placing and removing rocks, hex’s and camming devices. Hearing the girls were coming over, the Melbourne guys prepared by collecting tables, chairs, solar panel recharging packs, large double gas burners, soft pillows and other Glamping accessories. As the enthusiasm associated with the meet increased, so did the members usage of their annual leave allowances and team member withdrawals occurred with job promotions, returning to study, moving overseas to ice climb for six months and lack of leave being granted. Reduced to one Wellington Member Jenny Cossey, Richard Knott from Whakatane, and Timothy Hargrave from Canterbury/Westland, the trio were now the unofficial Wellington NZAC section of the joint section meet. Eight Australian Section members from Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide attended. Travel time from Wellington homes to the base of the Organ Pipes, ready to climb, took twelve hours and ten minutes, quicker than the drive from Sydney to Arapiles. The NZAC banner flew from the Arapiles base camp gazebo in the Upper Gums. The invasion by other independent NZ climbers from Wanaka, Hokatiki, Dunedin and Christchurch filled the campsite. The neighbouring tarp city flew the NZ flag and the two countries alliance was enhanced on ANZAC Day by a bugler player at dawn, in the cloud on top of D Major Bluff, filling the cloudy campsite with a haunting rendition of Reveille. Numerous routes were climbed, testing the metal of rocks and people. There were impressive leads from the injured. Bold leads from those pushing their limits and heaps of questions about route finding and what is a gully at the top of Lamplighter by Pitro. Richard and Jenny followed the stars, Richard collecting 97 stars (99 guide book pitches), in 13 solid days of climbing. Touch Type, 25 metres, 19, Echo Crag Photo Richard Knott Andrew Mitchell, Australian section organiser of the joint meet, coiling ropes The annual Goatfest local climbing film festival was attended by over 200 climbers in the Soldiers Hall in Natimuk. Highlights included Desert Crack close up’s of finger jamming. Base jumping, slack lining between the Bluff at Arapiles and the debatable new sport of skin hanging and swinging at Freycinet. The climbing community debate afterwards was heated and timely, with the November closures of certain culturally significant areas in the Grampians to climbers. The Victorian Climbing Club and the newly formed Australian Climbing Association (three branches in Queensland, South Australia and Victoria, whose role is crag access in Australia), were hotly discussed. Across the dust, at shared dinners and fast emptying whisky bottles, yarns were told and future joint section trips planned. The new Moonaire guide book provided inspiration. Richard Knot on Entertainer, 25 metres, 18 three star, on Curtain Wall Photo Jenny Cossey Skink 107 metres, 18 three star route on The Watchtower Faces Photo Richard Knott
