A Climber's Guide to the Glasshouses

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Mt Beerwah

Because so little free climbing had been done on Beerwah until recently, the rock must be handled carefully. The rock on the low slabs was subjected to intense heat in recent times by a bushfire that raged over the mountain. This has left the outer crust a little unstable. Loose rock on the routes themselves is generally no real problem, but the relatively small number of ascents should provide good incentive to check out holds carefully before lunging on them. Note that the rock is the softest of any main peak in the Glasshouses, therefore don't wing onto RP's and expect them to hold, and always check tree belays carefully.

A normal free climbing rack is required including four to six keyhole hangers. Especially important are medium sized hexes, these often being the only protection that will go into the solution pockets found on many of the routes. Good route-finding skills are essential for many of the longer routes. Many of the protection placements are not immediately obvious and good judgement and experience placing natural protection is required. Protection often comes in the form of wires inserted sideways, odd shaped pockets where tricams may be useful, the occasional bolt and the old adage, "the leader must never fall".

On some tree belays, slings and rappel rings have been left around the base. These slings are to protect the tree when abseiling from the route. DO NOT REMOVE THE SLINGS. It is hoped that other climbers will follow this example (very common in North America) and leave slings on trees commonly used to abseil from (and replace them when necessary). It is therefore recommended that you carry 1.5m - 2m of sling to use when abseiling from tree belays and to replace old slings.

How to get to the carpark
Entering the Glasshouse Township, turn L at the first intersection, drive over the railway line and turn L into Coonowrin Road at the T-junction. Follow Coonowrin Road for approx 3.5 km to another T-junction. Turn L into Old Gympie Road, then drive 400m and take the next R (signposted) and follow the Beerwah National Park signs to the Beerwah car park, approximately 9.7 km from Glasshouse Township.

How to get to the rock
A short walk along a paved track will bring you to the picnic shed with a wood BBQ, toilet and water tank (often empty during dry periods). There is a good walking track to the base of the mountain and a rough bush track along the base of the rock apron to both east and west faces. The track meets the mountain at the Hiker’s Route.