Van Stadens Gorge

PE's biggest and most popular climbing venue hosting bouldering, sport and traditional climbing.

Van Stadens Gorge

PE's biggest and most popular climbing venue hosting bouldering, sport and traditional climbing.

This area has an enormous variety of climbing. There are over 300 sport and 200 trad routes from easier lines around grade 14/4c to hard routes like 'Troll' 34/8c, Van Stadens has something for everyone.

Van Stadens sports 2 minor bouldering areas with limited routes, the hardest being 8A.

The rock is an extremely quartzitic making it hard and lacking the friction of sandstones and limestones. Most of the climbing is overhanging or vertical with good edges. For these reasons its best to climb in the shade, luckily there are many crags in shade all day or with majority shade in the morning or afternoon. When the weather is worse climbing can still happen at Cleopatra and Platform even in rain.

The river is a great spot to cool off on a hot day, there are many swimming pools scattered through the gorge.

Bees, snakes and baboons can be hazardous and are best avoided.

Access to most of the gorge is through the Water Affairs land. Park outside the gate where the gps pin is and walk from there.

outdoor climbing and hiking adventures guided tours
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Single Pitch
Multi Pitch
Single & Multi Pitch Options
Climbing crag top for The Pump House, Van Staadens, Port Elizabeth

Pump House

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Boulder
Sport
Trad
Big wall
Alpine
Ice
Short walk-in to steep sport climbing.
12
min
to
hrs
m ASL
All Day Shade
AM Shade
All Day Sun
PM Shade
1 Pitch
2 Pitch
3 Pitch
4 Pitch
5 Pitch
6 Pitch
6+ Pitch
Std Rack
Special Gear
50m
60m
70m
80m
Double Rope
Face
Overhang
Powerful
Slab
Technical
Vert
Single Pitch
Multi Pitch
Single & Multi Pitch Options

Milestone

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Boulder
Sport
Trad
Big wall
Alpine
Ice
Easy approach with shorter easier routes
12
min
to
hrs
m ASL
All Day Shade
AM Shade
All Day Sun
PM Shade
1 Pitch
2 Pitch
3 Pitch
4 Pitch
5 Pitch
6 Pitch
6+ Pitch
Std Rack
Special Gear
50m
60m
70m
80m
Double Rope
Face
Overhang
Powerful
Slab
Technical
Vert
Single Pitch
Multi Pitch
Single & Multi Pitch Options

Poop Scoop

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Boulder
Sport
Trad
Big wall
Alpine
Ice
A sweet overhanging crag with an airy setting and short walk-in.
15
min
to
hrs
m ASL
All Day Shade
AM Shade
All Day Sun
PM Shade
1 Pitch
2 Pitch
3 Pitch
4 Pitch
5 Pitch
6 Pitch
6+ Pitch
Std Rack
Special Gear
50m
60m
70m
80m
Double Rope
Face
Overhang
Powerful
Slab
Technical
Vert
Single Pitch
Multi Pitch
Single & Multi Pitch Options

Mantis

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Boulder
Sport
Trad
Big wall
Alpine
Ice
A good mixture of easy and hard face climbing at an aesthetic wall.
16
min
to
hrs
m ASL
All Day Shade
AM Shade
All Day Sun
PM Shade
1 Pitch
2 Pitch
3 Pitch
4 Pitch
5 Pitch
6 Pitch
6+ Pitch
Std Rack
Special Gear
50m
60m
70m
80m
Double Rope
Face
Overhang
Powerful
Slab
Technical
Vert
Single Pitch
Multi Pitch
Single & Multi Pitch Options

Easter Bunnies Secret Hide-out

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Boulder
Sport
Trad
Big wall
Alpine
Ice
All day shaded climbing with a spectacular view
20
min
to
hrs
m ASL
All Day Shade
AM Shade
All Day Sun
PM Shade
1 Pitch
2 Pitch
3 Pitch
4 Pitch
5 Pitch
6 Pitch
6+ Pitch
Std Rack
Special Gear
50m
60m
70m
80m
Double Rope
Face
Overhang
Powerful
Slab
Technical
Vert
Single Pitch
Multi Pitch
Single & Multi Pitch Options

Cleopatra's Wall

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Boulder
Sport
Trad
Big wall
Alpine
Ice
A long overhanging wall with an abundance of routes, set over the dam.
20
min
to
hrs
m ASL
All Day Shade
AM Shade
All Day Sun
PM Shade
1 Pitch
2 Pitch
3 Pitch
4 Pitch
5 Pitch
6 Pitch
6+ Pitch
Std Rack
Special Gear
50m
60m
70m
80m
Double Rope
Face
Overhang
Powerful
Slab
Technical
Vert
Single Pitch
Multi Pitch
Single & Multi Pitch Options

The Beach

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Boulder
Sport
Trad
Big wall
Alpine
Ice
A great intermediate crag, very scenic with a comfy base.
25
min
to
hrs
m ASL
All Day Shade
AM Shade
All Day Sun
PM Shade
1 Pitch
2 Pitch
3 Pitch
4 Pitch
5 Pitch
6 Pitch
6+ Pitch
Std Rack
Special Gear
50m
60m
70m
80m
Double Rope
Face
Overhang
Powerful
Slab
Technical
Vert
Single Pitch
Multi Pitch
Single & Multi Pitch Options
Route Top for The Platform crag, Van Stadens, Port Elizabeth

Platform

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Boulder
Sport
Trad
Big wall
Alpine
Ice
Consistent overhanging riverside climbing at a moderate grade
30
min
to
hrs
m ASL
All Day Shade
AM Shade
All Day Sun
PM Shade
1 Pitch
2 Pitch
3 Pitch
4 Pitch
5 Pitch
6 Pitch
6+ Pitch
Std Rack
Special Gear
50m
60m
70m
80m
Double Rope
Face
Overhang
Powerful
Slab
Technical
Vert
Single Pitch
Multi Pitch
Single & Multi Pitch Options

Pipe Bridge

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Boulder
Sport
Trad
Big wall
Alpine
Ice
Longer sustained vertical climbing
40
min
to
hrs
m ASL
All Day Shade
AM Shade
All Day Sun
PM Shade
1 Pitch
2 Pitch
3 Pitch
4 Pitch
5 Pitch
6 Pitch
6+ Pitch
Std Rack
Special Gear
50m
60m
70m
80m
Double Rope
Face
Overhang
Powerful
Slab
Technical
Vert
Single Pitch
Multi Pitch
Single & Multi Pitch Options
Crag topo for Slayer Crag, Van Stadens, Port Elizabeth

Slayer

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Boulder
Sport
Trad
Big wall
Alpine
Ice
Multi-pitch sport climbing on a technical slab face
20
min
to
hrs
m ASL
All Day Shade
AM Shade
All Day Sun
PM Shade
1 Pitch
2 Pitch
3 Pitch
4 Pitch
5 Pitch
6 Pitch
6+ Pitch
Std Rack
Special Gear
50m
60m
70m
80m
Double Rope
Face
Overhang
Powerful
Slab
Technical
Vert
Single Pitch
Multi Pitch
Single & Multi Pitch Options

Tyson's Crag

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Boulder
Sport
Trad
Big wall
Alpine
Ice
A competitor for PE's best sport climbing crag
8
min
to
hrs
m ASL
All Day Shade
AM Shade
All Day Sun
PM Shade
1 Pitch
2 Pitch
3 Pitch
4 Pitch
5 Pitch
6 Pitch
6+ Pitch
Std Rack
Special Gear
50m
60m
70m
80m
Double Rope
Face
Overhang
Powerful
Slab
Technical
Vert
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Icons and Symbols

AM Shade
Morning ; Afternoon ; All Day or NO Shade
10B | Ch
Equipped with x number of Bolts & Chains (lower off rings)
Alpine
Area's or routes located in mountainous regions and requiring multiple mountain skills (navigation ; extreme weather ; self sufficiency ; remote )
Ice
Area or Route requires Ice Climbing and associated Winter skills
Sport
Area or Route is fully equipped as a sport climb. Separate distinction for # of PITCHES
Sport & Trad
Area or Route is a mixture of SPORT & Trad climbing styles
Trad
Area or Route requires Traditional equipment and experties
2 Pitches
Indicates the typical # of pitches of the area or route
Special
Indicates that a specialised Rack or Traditional equipment is typically required and will be mentioned in the Route Description BETA
Standard
Indicates that typically a Standard Traditional Rack will suffice. Typically in ZA that is a 8-10 Cams + 10-15 wires/nuts.
50m
Indicates the minimum length rope needed to typically climb safely.
Double
Typically climbed using half ropes
Corner
Climbs or mostly climbs a corner system. This often requires stemming as a technique.
Crack Climb
Follows a crack-system predominantly and may require good jamming technique.
Overhang
Indicates the overall style. Face climbing is steeper than slab usually on small holds and edges, often feeling delicate / insecure.
Overhang
Overhanging, usually involving roofs.
Powerful
Powerful style is often in conjunction with another style but feeling more powerful than is common for the style.
Slab
Usually not quite vertical and requiring smearing and friction techniques.
Steep
Consistently steeper than Vertical but not overhanging / roof-y
Technical
Additional to general styles, requiring careful sequence and thoughtful climbing.
Vert
General vertical climbing with no other defining style.