One of the most spectacular accessible canyons in the Blue Mountains, Claustral is a bold, achievable adventure for the well prepared.
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| A rain shower comes over Claustral Canyon country, Blue Mountains. |
Warning: Canyoning is a potentially dangerous activity, and anyone undertaking Claustral Canyon needs to be confident enough to abseil in the dark, down a waterfall. Weather must be carefully assessed before entering the canyon as rising water levels have been fatal.
I first did this absolutely gorgeous canyon a decade ago, and this trip, on 13 April 2014, was my third into its delights. A few years ago, the access route changed dramatically, and I have been unsure about doing it, as I have heard of people who have become quite seriously lost. However, the route is really quite easy to follow, and highly recommended for experienced canyoners.
It has been listed as a "grade 4" canyon (on a scale of 1-6) and is not to be taken lightly. At a minimum, participants should have completed a couple of easier canyons involving abseiling, such as Grand Canyon and Empress Canyon. On this trip, our party of three included two older, experienced canyoners, and my 13-year-old daughter, who had done both of those canyons, and did really well.
I don't intend on going over the whole route here, but Ozultimate has an excellent description. Canyoners should also have their own topographical maps and/or GPS and know how to use them. Wetsuits, dry bags, warm clothing, a medical kit and spare ropes and rescue gear are highly recommended.
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| Andy Scott, Ms 13 and one of the rock platforms that offers a vista on the way out. |
Finding the start
From there we temporarily lost the track, but it is well defined enough after 4 years of use that you should be able to identify quickly if you are on it or have lost it. There is a beautiful rock platform near the start, tucked into the side of the mountain, and you want to be on top of that. The track then heads off the other side of the rock platform, on the high side.
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| The rock platform just 100m from the road. The track leads off diagonally left from here. |
The "new" route
The biggest problem with the change in access is that you now have to scale the full height of the canyon twice on the way out. i.e, you will enter the canyon half way along it, do the lower half, then climb all the way out after a few hours. You'll then start the canyon from the top (like we used to), and follow it all the way along to the halfway point, then have to climb all the way out again. Do not underestimate the time or energy it will take to do this. The three of us took nine hours travelling car to car, taking only minimal breaks. We certainly weren't rushing, but were on the move fairly constantly. Many groups have taken longer.
The canyon
A gorgeous slot canyon, Claustral has plenty of tricky obstacles, as well as the usual logjams, slippery rocks and ankle-twisting holes to fall into. Before the first of the three main abseils (where the canyon disappears into the stunning Black Hole of Calcutta), there is a tricky climb down on the right hand side (but quite achievable if you take it slow), or it looks like some people stay high on the left and add an extra abseil to avoid the climb down.
All the abseils in the Black Hole are well set up now (with stainless steel rings and chains on some abseil points), but there is still plenty of scope for things to go wrong, so take care. The rock is slippery and the water can be deep and cold.
We discovered a great way to move efficiently through the three abseils - using a 60m rope, with the first person down threading one end of the rope through the next abseil so it is almost ready to go once the rope is pulled down. This isn't so necessary with a small group of three, but could be a great time saver with a larger group.
The lower section of the canyon involves some longer swims, a fairly long walking and wading section, and some more tricky climb downs. The safest route is not always obvious, and it's worth looking around if unsure.
On the very last awkward climb down, using a fixed rope with knots, my foot temporarily became stuck in a cleft, while water poured on me from above. It was a small inconvenience as I freed it, but I found out later that is where one experienced canyoner died in Claustral, as he became wedged and drowned. Just another warning to take care I guess.
The route out
For some reason, some people have missed the escape route, but once you spot the sloping waterfall on the left, and do the 20m swim, the track should be quite obvious. Read the advice again before you start the ascent, as there are a few misleading tracks.Some of the little ledges on the ascent are tricky to get up, and you may need to help each other. Also remember to watch the least experienced canyoners, and make sure they've had something to eat and drink, as a stumble due to fatigue here could be dangerous.
There are some wonderful rock platforms with views near the top of the ascent - a great spot for lunch if you haven't already woofed it all down.
Although it seems wrong at the fork, ignore the obvious track to the left, and keep going right and down, which will lead you to the old track that goes down to the start of the canyon. The temptation is not to put on wetsuits again, as you can walk along here for a long way before getting wet again. However, there are two swims near the end and some tricky sections that would be easier if you just had your wetsuit on from the start. A couple of gullies coming in on the right could look like the way you came in (particularly if it is getting dark), so try to really cement the spot where you came in in your mind.
When you leave the canyon for the second time, it'll take about an hour to walk back to the car at a steady pace.
An extraordinary day out in one of the most beautiful canyons in the mountains.
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