The best trad rock climbing in the world has to be in Arapiles, Australia. I am just back from my second visit to "Raps" where I spent a week climbing the easy grades. It's the rock quality and natural lines that make Arapiles so exceptional. From the distance Arapiles doesn't look like much more than a pile of slag, But up close, I mean really up close, you'll find nearly every square millimeter of this pile to be beautiful, at least to the eyes of a rock climber. This time around I spent the non-climbing moments in the morning and evenings wandering around the place, exploring the crags and photographing good looking rock. Yep, I was wishing I could climb grade 25 (5.12) so I could power-up up some of Arapilies finer climbing lines. Maybe on my next visit.
A bird pauses under the north face of Death Row Pinnacle
