Townsville, located in North Queensland strikes fear into the hearts of hipsters and the trendy southern yuppie, but it holds a special place in my heart as I began my climbing career in Townsville while at University.
The most well-known crag Mount Stuart occupied most of my time, and though Frederick Peak was visible to the north west of the city, gates and 4WD access kept it out of my cross-hairs. Another 10 years, and these minor inconveniences have been overcome, and a new generation of climbers have been blessed with a greenfields playground for establishing new routes in almost every style.
It's true, the remote location and slightly tricky access will ensure this crag never be crowded, but for the climbers of the region, Frederick Peak is a major drawcard. Based on number of routes, uniqueness and quality, it's probably Australia's most significant new crag "discovery" in the last 10 years.
I've been back a couple of times (read about the first here), hosted by the Three Monkeys, who are a triple-barbed missile of bad heavy-metal music and new routing enthusiasm. On both trips I was able to put up some great routes, and repeat some great routes too.
On the last trip, we also teamed up with the indomitable Gareth Llewellin who was keen to use his new camera to capture some pics and video. The video he put together was an introduction to the area, and contains a rather lengthy and somewhat embarrassing monologue by me. This was featured in Vertical Life magazine issue 4. Scroll down for the video, and grab issue #4 of Vertical Life while you're at it. Good stuff, and free. How do they do it?
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Profiled on the Vertical Life site
Me repeating Monty's terrific 'White Gold' extension 27, Frederick Peak (c) Gareth Llewellin |
Climbing in Townsville - Winter 2012 from
Gareth Llewellin on
Vimeo.
And if that's got you Frederick-frothing, check out the
guidebook:
