Tags: Waikato

AccessWaikatoPakeho

Pakeho crag reopens!

ACAT is stoked to announce that Pakeho will reopen to the public from the weekend of 9-10 November 2024. The crag reopens thanks to a massive community effort and crag-wide rebolting work that cost over $15,000.  Incredibly, the crag has also doubled in size! The original 68 routes plus 16 re-discovered routes have all been rebolted with 316-...
Read more
WaikatoDonationsPakeho

Donate to Pakeho

Pakeho crag was reopened thanks to a massive community effort and crag-wide rebolting work that cost over $15,000. Your donation will support continued crag access plus essential maintenance work at Pakeho and other crags. If you have climbed or will climb at Pakeho, we encourage you to make a donation of at least $10 per person for each day you...
Read more
AccessWaikatoSheridan Hills

Sheridan Hills access update

This Waikato farmland crag remains open and the toilet has been moved, thanks to the support of the landowners and volunteer work from the local climbing community. ACAT and the climbing community thank the landowners Craig and Julie Wards for their continued generosity in welcoming climbers onto their property. Access requirementsCompliance by...
Read more
AccessWaikatoWharepapa Rock

Wharepapa Rock cleanup done but access threatened by non-payment of fees

Cleanup work after the 2023 tree fall damage is now mostly complete, and the crag is seeing considerable traffic – but future access remains uncertain because many climbers are not registering or paying the crag access fee. Recent observations of climber numbers at the crag vs registrations suggest that only a small minority of recreational...
Read more
AccessWaikatoPakeho

Pakeho Crag re-opening project update

Since ACAT signed an MOU with the Pakeho landowners in January, Chris Hailey has been leading an epic community effort to get the crag ready for re-opening.  The main job has been re-bolting the existing routes with glue-in 316-grade stainless steel eye-bolts, so we can assure the landowners that all climbs have been safety-checked and the...
Read more
AccessWaikatoKinloch K1

Climbing at Kinloch K1 crag not recommended

The Kinloch K1 crag sits on a section of Maori land called the Whangamata No. 3 block, owned by an Ahu Whenua Trust. Over the past year, ACAT has been working with one of the Trustees to resolve issues around a wāhi tapu site at the crag. Unfortunately, there has been some disagreement within the wider owners’ group as to whether the land should...
Read more
AccessWaikatoPakeho

Progress on Pakeho crag

ACAT has been working behind the scenes toward re-opening Pakeho crag, and has recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the landowners and started re-bolting the crag. Pakeho is a beautiful limestone crag in the Waitomo area popular with beginner-intermediate climbers and instruction groups. It was closed in 2022 for reasons including...
Read more
AccessWaikatoKinloch K1

Wāhi tapu site and closed climbs at Kinloch K1

ACAT and local climbers have been discussing climbing at Kinloch with the Trust representing the landowners. We are excited to finally be talking with the right people and forging a positive connection between climbers and iwi in the area. Many thanks to Taupō locals Anthea and Michael for making these connections. For several years there has...
Read more
AccessWaikatoPakeho

Pakeho crag is closed

We are gutted to announce that Pakeho crag has been indefinitely closed for climbing. Pakeho is a beautiful limestone sport climbing area in the Waitomo district. Pakeho was re-opened in 2017 with assistance from ACAT’s GM Edwin Sheppard and volunteer Michael Donovan (well before ACAT existed). Since then, thousands of climbers have enjoyed...
Read more
AccessWaikatoWhanganui Bay

Whanganui Bay opens for 2022 trial season

After over 5 years of closure, ACAT is stoked to announce that climbing at Whanganui Bay is now possible again under a trial climbing season. Whanganui Bay is one of the North Islandʻs premiere crags, with a mix of quality sport and trad on compact ignimbrite, and a climbing history reaching back into the 1970s. Its north-facing and sheltered...
Read more
AccessWaikatoKawakawa Bay

Guidelines for camping at Kawakawa Bay

Excited for a weekend away at Kawakawa Bay? Who wouldn’t be! But remember it’s crucial that we behave respectfully, leave no trace, and keep climbing access open.  The campsite and many of the cliffs are on DOC or Iwi land, with Iwi co-governance, and there is no formally established agreement for camping or climbing activities. That means...
Read more
WaikatoDonationsWaipari

Donate to the Waipari fund or volunteer for a working bee

Please donate to ACAT’s Waipari crag fund – every dollar will go directly to improving access and the crag environment.  Any excess funds received will be held for future Waipari projects. Following our initial success when the property was sold, we are still working with Merry and Emma to create a permanent climbing access right at Waipari...
Read more
AccessWaikatoWharepapa Rock

Wharepapa Rock / Castle Rock access update

Wharepapa Rock remains open subject to the entry conditions below. However the farm has recently been sold again, less than a year after its last sale. The new owner took possession in December 2021. Access remains tenuous – ACAT will provide updates as soon as any further information is available.The crag continues to be managed by Sheena...
Read more
AccessWaikato

Rock climbing permitted in Waikato under alert level 3 step 1

The government has announced that Waikato’s alert level 3 restrictions will ease tonight to match the greater freedoms seen in Auckland – called Alert Level 3 Step 1. The current level 3 boundary will remain. Read about the announcement here: Live Covid-19 updates: Everything you need to know on 27 OctoberThis means that from 11.59pm on 27...
Read more
AccessWaikatoWaipari

Meet the new owners of Waipari / Froggatt Edge

You may have heard about the sale of the “Froggatt Edge” crag last year. The new owners would like to introduce themselves and they have some important things to say, as both climbers and now landowners. Crag visitors, please read the following carefully. ACAT looks forward to working closely with Emma and Merry in the future. Welcome to...
Read more
AccessWaikatoWharepapa Rock

Wharepapa Rock / Castle Rock to remain open under trial

Over the past three months the Aotearoa Climbing Access Trust (ACAT) has been in access discussions with the new owner of prominent Waikato crag Wharepapa / Castle Rock, Bryan Heapy. We are now pleased to announce that climbing access will remain open under a trial period arrangement as from 1 April 2021 onwards. Bryan will...
Read more
AccessWaikatoWaipari

Froggatt Edge future access preserved following farm sale

Although the Aotearoa Climbing Access Trust is still being formally established, it has already faced its first challenge – the sale of the Froggatt Edge farm. I am stoked to announce the Trust’s first success – we have reached an understanding with the farm purchaser to ensure that climbing at Froggatt Edge can remain open to climbers for...
Read more