New Zealand climb suggestions - 3 wk 'tour' Jan 2012

My climbing partner & I will be in New Zealand for awhile and looking for the best areas for craggin' and multi-pitch climbs, either sport or trad. Either N Island or South Island is fine. We're no stonemasters, so I think areas with lots of routes with grades of 16 - 22 in the Ewbank system would be about right. We're Yanks, so this guess is based on conversions from our YDS. And apologies in advance for being Yanks . . . . :-)

I'm there mostly for climbing and other adventure sports -- no particular desire for long approaches. Nearby towns or hostels with hot water and food will also be useful. Any info on these topics is greatly appreciated !!

Feel free to PM me if you don't want to post . . . Thanks!

Hey
I currently live in NZ (north island),and have for about 6 years, and I have climbed all over NZ. I would highly recommend not going to NZ and heading to Arapiles (Victoria, Australia) instead. Some of the best rock in the world, a true destination area. Fcuking awesome.
If some other reason is keeping you in NZ, then here are my recommendations:

Skip the North Island - the south island is way more spectacular and the climbing is better. There are some good crags on the North Island, but the south island is cooler.

Sport:
Wanaka - good town, free camping, pretty good rock. Multiple crags, mostly well bolted
Queenstown - okay town (very touristy), camping is free near Wye Creek (the main crag), but there is no water or toilets. The rock isn't as good as wanaka, but it's not too bad
Payne's Ford - the "best sport climbing in NZ" - crowded, overhanging limestone.
Fjordland - there are a few granite sport crags down here that are quite good. But this area of NZ receives 7 METERS of rain/year. So... even though there are some crags that are so overhanging that they're protected, this isn't always the best choice.

Trad:
Long Beach - near dunedin, pretty good local crag, not a destination in and of itself. camping on beach is cool
Charleston - sea cliffs. I've never been here, but people seem to like it
Mt. Somers - "NZ's crack climbing destination" - not very many people climb cracks here in the 20 range (20-24 or so) so the cracks here tend to be very dirty. 3 hour walk in (or so), DoC hut to stay in. Some interesting sport climbing here too. I think Geraldine is the closest town.
Remarkables - same range as the Queenstown crags, but higher up. "Alpine" rock. Not that great, but can be fun.
Fjordland - the Darrans (mountain range) have some good alpine rock - long approaches, but it's granite - and it rains 7 meter/year.

Bouldering - I'm not a boulderer generally, but:
Castle Hill - in my opinion the only climbing that NZ has to offer that is truly world-class. Awesome. free camping, water, port-a-potties, usually dry.

I'm sure I've missed a few, and if you'd like some North Island reccomendations I can make some as well. But unless something else is bringing you to NZ, if I was on a rock climbing tour, I'd go to Australia (Araps, grampiens, blue mountains, tasmania, the list goes on and on) in a heartbeat.

feel free to PM me if you've got any other questions you'd like to ask

Cheers

Graham

If you are going to be by Christchurch you should hit up Britten Crags. They are very close to town. Cruiser,non-committing sport routes. You can also climb and surf in the same day! I met some of the coolest people down there. Also, like the previous poster mentioned "Castle Hill" is great! so, is "Flock Hill".
You need permission to climb on "Flock Hill". You can get permission at the restaurant down the road.

Graham & Ty,

Thanks for the info! So, is Castle Hill only bouldering, or does it have some taller stuff? -- We're not much into bouldering. Quality roped climbs much preferred (single-pitch is fine).

And where is Flock Hill?

flock hill is right next to castle hill. i saw bolts without hangers on some of the biggins but you might as well boulder if your in a world class bouldering destination. in my opinion at least. Paynes was my favorite sport area, and their is cheap accommodation right next to it called Hangdog Camp. You have never seen what a true hippie looks like until you stay in Takaka/Paynes Forde. Gorgeous beaches ten minutes away too. The climbing there is............interesting. Hope you like slopey limestone:-) As for other activities, you should totally bungee jump!

Like Kyle said it's essentially across the Alpine Highway. You need to go here: Flock Hill Station first for permission. They have great coffee as well. Ask the cute girl at the counter and she will give you a waiver for the party to sign. It's on private property but its got less crowds and awesome problems; IMO better bouldering. Unfortunately this is all moot because there are no sport routes at Flock Hill. I am not sure about Castle Hill though. Even if you aren't into bouldering you should check out Castle Hill. A guy I met down there told me that the Dalai Lama considers Castle Hill to be the "Spiritual Center of the Universe". Take it as you will, it's pretty cool either way. I was backpacking alone so I didn't do any sport climbing other than Britten Crags. But this area had some really fun climbs with big pockets and jugs. Many climbs ranging from 16 to mid 20's. Not very big though, I would say nothing bigger than 50'