Climbing

The Mountain Club of South Africa Johannesburg Section offers a vibrant climbing community catering to both traditional (trad) and sport climbing enthusiasts. With an abundance of excellent rock and good weather; climbers can enjoy year-round climbing adventures.

Trad Climbing: Traditional climbing, often called “trad climbing is a style of rock climbing involves placing removable protection, such as nuts and camming devices, into natural rock features as you ascend. Unlike sport climbing, where permanent bolts are drilled into the rock, trad climbing relies on natural features such as cracks, ledges, and pockets for gear placement. Notable trad climbing areas include the Magaliesberg and the expansive Blouberg, where climbers can experience routes without fixed anchors.

Sport Climbing: Sport climbing is a popular style of rock climbing that focuses on ascending routes equipped with pre-installed, fixed protection such as bolts and anchors. It emphasizes athleticism, technique, and problem-solving rather than placement of protective gear. Key sport climbing venues accessible from Johannesburg are:

  • Strubens Valley: Located in Roodepoort, this crag features over 100 short sport routes suitable for beginners and training purposes.
  • King’s Kloof is a sport climbing area located near Krugersdorp. The routes are mostly suitable for beginners and intermediate climbers.
  • Chosspile: Located Above Hartbeespoort Dam, Chosspile comprises three climbing sectors with grades ranging from 13 to 31, providing a variety of challenges for climbers.

Other great sport climbing destinations include Waterval Boven in Mpumalanga, Swinburne near Harrismith, and the recently developed Wellington’s Dome crag in Limpopo.

Training: For those new to climbing or looking to enhance their skills, the we offer introductory courses, where participants can learn the basics of rock climbing in a supportive environment. The best way to get good at climbing (after having done an introductory meet) is to go out with members who know all the tricks of the trade, and learn from them. There are some really hard core people amongst our members who have done some awesome stuff.

Route Books: The Section has published a number of route books for climbing areas and keeps stocks of these. It takes a lot of time to collate all the information and put out a hard copy route book. Route books can be purchased from the MCSA Jhb – contact us for more information. We also keep stock of route books published by other publishers.

Currently available route books are:-

  • Upper Tonquani
  • Lower Tonquani, Cedarberg and Boulder Kloof
  • Mhlabatini & Fernkloof
  • Grootkloof, Ysterhout & Groblerskloof
  • Trident, Kranskloof & Castle Gorge
  • Hamerkop & Breedtsnekkloof
  • Krantzberg
  • Drakensberg Climbs (2003)
  • Crags of Gauteng. – Including:- Strubens, Chosspile, Vrede, Radioactive, Wellington’s Dome (Rory Lowther)
  • Table Mountain Classics (Blue Mountain)
  • Blouberg (Southern Rock)
  • Magaliesberg (Southern Rock)
  • Bolting

Over the last couple of years sport climbing has become increasingly popular in South Africa. Sport climbing involves the use of fixed protection in the rock in the form of bolts which are either glued or expansion fitted with hangers to clip into. Putting up a sport route requires a lot of effort and expense. The Section actively assists members financially who bolt in sport areas.

Check out the bolting policy.