When To Go

Western Australia has hot summers and mild winters:

• Summer (Poor) - From January to February, it's hot and dry reaching 30 celsius.
• Autumn (Great) - From March to April, it's cool and dry which makes for the best climbing.
• Winter (Avoid) - From May to August, it's cold but also very wet with almost daily rain.
• Spring (Great) - From October to December, the temperature remains cool and the rains recede.

We had 3 climbing days on this trip in February.

The Climbing

Around Perth you'll find multiple bouldering spots too such as Midgegoroo, Kalamunda, or Beelu National Park.

Going down the South West coast there are also many areas but this guide covers the 2 with the highest concentration of boulder problems.

Both areas are good for beginners to outdoor bouldering as they have nice flat landings and short, easy approaches.

Copper Rocks has surprisingly great quality sandstone boulders. The main area seaside blocs have beautiful formations of big scoops, and mini roofs.

There are about 70 routes from V2 (5+) up to V12 (8A+) with many of the classics set by Andy Lampard.

In February, the cool morning was the best time to climb. By noon it gets too hot though you can work in a late afternoon session after 4pm. In between, it's ideal to hangout at a cafe for lunch and coffee.

The approach from Castle Bay Beach parking is an easy 5 minute walk. Being by the sea is amazing but you do have to watch for the tide or rough swells that can make everything wet.

Merchant Rocks is similar in rock quality though broader in climbing style. It also has 70+ boulder problems from V2 (5+) to V11 (8A) spread across a bigger area.

The approach is slightly further compared to Copper Rocks. As most of the routes are on a platform overlooking the sea, tide timing or rough swells are not an issue here.

The range of boulder problem styles here include tricky slabs, the classic Merchant Rock highballs, and scooped out Contos Cave roofs similar to Copper Rocks.

Topo

There isn't a published guidebook for this area but you can find all the routes on The Crag:

• Copper Rocks
• Merchant Rocks

Transportation

Getting there

Perth is the closest international airport. The closest town to Copper Rocks is Dunsborough which is 259km (3h) from the airport.

Merchant Rocks is closest to Margaret River which is 277km (3h) from the airport.

Moving around

While there are definitely ways to get to the town from Perth, having a car is necessary to drive between the areas.

Copper Rocks is just 5km from Dunsborough while Merchant Rocks is 67km (1h) from Dunsborough and 22km (0.5h) from Margaret River.

Accommodation

When we went in 2020, it was easy to book a house on Airbnb. We stayed at Busselton instead of Dunsborough just slightly further East.

Gear

Boulder crashpad rental is available in Perth from either Portside Boulders (2 locations) or The Boulder Hub in Perth. The Boulder Hub had much cheaper prices with various sizes available.

The only downside is that Boulder Hub is 32km (0.5h) North of Perth while Portside is close to the city which means you can pick it up on the way to Copper Rocks.

Food

Daily essentials

At Dunsborough, there was a Coles supermarket to buy groceries and other essentials while there was a Woolsworth in Margaret River.

There is no need to pre-pack lunches to the area since the towns are fairly close by and the afternoons can get too hot for climbing.

Cafes & restaurants

There are many places for coffee, food, or drinks in both towns. We didn't visit many but here's what we tried:

• Merchant & Maker is a general store with healthy lunch options
• Margaret River Bakery for lunch though it does get crowded during peak hours.
• Sidekick or for coffee.

Markets and shops

• Margaret River Farmer's Market is open year round every Saturday.
• Margaret River Chocolate Company is a factory shop just north of the town. You can pick up a few souvenirs here.

Rest Day Activities

The Margaret River region has plenty of national parks, nice surf beaches for active recovery.

For those who want to drink, there are award winning wineries from renown labels such as Cullen, Vasse Felix and Leeuwin Estate.

Around Perth, the Caversham Park is a nice place to get close to wildlife which can be worked into the start or end of the trip.

We dropped by Cohuna Koala Park instead as it was on the drive back to Perth.