Відео

Oh no… I’ve spent countless days, and weeks, at Araps… it was always climbers looking after the place, and every climber I know is incredibly responsible, respectful, and conscious of looking after the amazing areas we go to to climb…! This is absolutely heartbreaking, and living in London now, it’s the place I miss the most. I’m sorry you guys in Victoria still have an absolutely idiotic state government… Fight on…

This an example of Government arrogance, the behind closed doors decisions we've seen in recent years.

You know it's got a chipped hold right?

Wether you're a rock climber, 4x4 driver, hunter or bushwalker now is the time to band together, everyone is loosing out with these new rules.

This will happen across Australia. Sorry folks

Well captured film. I wanted to get into climbing in 2019 but was afraid of the bans starting to be implemented. I finally got into climbing in 2022 and I want it to be part of my life forever. As a a trail runner and hiker I also can't imagine the idea of losing this too. Have written to my MPs etc and hoping for the best

I've heard that Europe has great climbing. You're objectively on stolen, unceded land.

My partner and I are not climbers but we love watching people taking on different locations around the world I’ve been told in the past that this government has an issue with liability when it comes to people involved in extreme sports you can thank insurance companies for that My partner has been involved in extreme sports all his life he recently looked into insurance for a mountain bike park we wanted to build on our own property we were looking at tens of thousands of dollars so we canned the idea. Even Gymnasiums around the country struggle because of these high insurance costs. My partner grew up in the seventies exercising was such an important part of his life without it he said he would have taken his life many years ago. challenging your self physically is really important for a lot of people Governments are robbing us of our way of life

Such an amazing place. I hope Parks Vic can reach a sensible position that respects indigenous culture and makes climbing accessible to all who want to experience the joy of Arapilies .

This video just popped up on my feed. I read the transcript and the comments. It’s clear the climbing community is grieving for a loss of something precious. I know a few climbers myself. The footage is a nice record of what people love about the place, and the meaning behind that love. I’m sorry for the loss of all that, even though it’s clear there’s still a lot of access. Having read the comments though, I’m moved to offer a counterpoint. There’s precious little in the comments that even mentions the sacredness of that range of indigenous people. Certainly little or no use of Gariwerd, or the Djab Warrung or Jardwardjali. In the NT, there are many places there’s absolutely no way you’d be climbing or driving and camping. You’d need owner’s permission to just set foot on the place. The reason that isn’t the case in Victoria is because of the wholesale destruction of aboriginal lands and lives because of farming and mining. Economics, profit. We benefit from that, without taking any account of how it happened. Australia is beginning to mature as a country, we are accounting for our history. That involves a loss for non-aboriginal Australia, which I believe in the long run is a gain for all of us.

Can’t climb on Arapiles, can’t climb Uluṟu can’t take photos at parts of Uluṟu……it’s becoming a bad joke.

Great film Lucas and Magui. It's a magical place for the place, people, community, wildlife, heritage, geology and of course the climbing for attracting us there in the first place and bringing all of that into our lives. We've all been so many places with climbing but there is truly no-where like Araps.

Funny how PV found thousands of artefacts, trees and sites despite many decades of activity. Closing this due to another man's religion is weird but unfortunately current politics makes it seem like a moral disability to challenge. Good luck.

Parks Victoria have a dreadful legacy of destroying heritage sites, rather than manage them. Deans Steps, immortalised in the surf film A day in the life of Wayne Lynch, was a series of stairs built by WW1 returned soldiers to access the beach near Port Campbell. We used to surf there on trips “Down South”, but PV decided it was a liability and blew them up with explosives. Disgraceful. They close off established tracks at Wilson’s prom. They simply prefer to deny access rather than manage. The thin green line my arse….

Welcome to Absurdistan. It breaks my heart that the saame thing happens over and over again. Here in Germany climbers experienced and are experiencing a lot of climbing bans "to protect nature" which is amost funny wouldn't it be so sad. I mean as the world and its nature is a perfectly protected space now the last species is doing harm to the world is the species of climbers. Not. I feel that there are not only few politicians that feel provoked by the freedom vibe climbers have. "Climbing is freedom" said Wolfgang Güllich and of course young people consuming social media can be much easier controlled than free thinking climbers ... It's time to fight for your right to climb! All the best from the Frankenjura, Hannes Huch

I’ve always wanted to do rock climbing, but growing up and living in South Africa we had more pressing issues. As a 68 year old I enjoy it now by watching movies and videos about it. I never knew it was such a big thing in Australia. Good luck doing what you obviously enjoy, and stay safe.

Great film Lucas! Can I suggest a small edit for your consideration - the beautiful footage at 7:30 onwards would be a perfect time for a voice over to explain to non-climbers what removable protection is and how most of Arapiles climbing is trad. It would compliment the points Wayne makes about climbers being blamed for bolts and damaging rock. Thanks for the massive effort to produce this, really well done!

It’s just so symptomatic of the over reach and turning of a blind eye to what the people want and need! Parks Victoria have closed all of the great trails in Woowookarung Regional Park in a similar ‘consultation’. It’s just disgusting!

Find somewhere else to climb, or simply ignore the bans.... This is a complete non issue if everyone rises up together. Cmon Aussies your eyes and ears aren't fkn painted on XD

Talk to the opposition parties

I'm all for this video and it's messaging. But I do wonder how many people involved with this were vocal during the shut down of Ayers Rock. Australia has gone off the edge of a very slippery slope. Access to mountains and nature areas being removed is now a common occurrence. Say what you like. But I was born in Australia. The claim of "our land" does not resonate with me. If this isn't "my land" then I don't know what is.

Well done Lucas. This is a well produced clip…..around very important issues.

Sort yourself out Parks Vic. Seriously, this was a really poor decision, and really poorly managed. And the State Govt. needs to take responsibility too.

Australia is so ripe for the progressives to bring this kind of control due to our political apathy. This will be just the start of banning people from all "wilderness" areas completely. Everyone who votes labor or greens - this is the idealogy you are voting for.

How many rock climbers vote labor? As a percentage, maybe 80%?

Thank you

fantastic video!

The gate on the interview audio seems a little strong. Love the vision!

Lots of support on this chat. Don't forget to sign the petition with your preference to help.

Extreme left at work again. The funny thing is if there was gold or other commodities on the land the government would let corporations destroy it regardless of aboriginal concerns. I have worked in Aboriginal health too, i understand some of the frustrations / issues. in the end i decided to move from australia to the US as i saw the gradual erosion of peoples rights and the rise of the police state (it has happened in the UK too where i spent my 1st 25yrs)

Just keep climbing. Don't listen to the government. Don't pay the fines. Just ignore the government over reach

As much as the climbing community want to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land, there comes an inflection point where climbers and other nature users need to decide how much power they want traditional owners to have over recreational access. Many climbers are left-leaning and support / respect traditional owners, I get it, but many traditional owner groups if given the choice, will lock everyone else out of what they see as areas of significance (which tend to be unqique landmarks such as mountains). Many State Parks agencies (VIC, NSW, QLD) have explicit policies where management of lands is based on significant input from traditional owners, some of whom have pushed to declare some areas off limits (Mount Warning, Grampians, Arapiles). The closure of Arapiles is ostensibly justified by Parks Vic on one basis only, and that is cultural heritage. Unfortunately, I feel that all of this discourse around "welcome to country" and acknowledgements of traditional owners has permated the political narrative to the point we are losing access to simply walk in certain places. Some hard conversations are coming, and I think climbers need to be willing to stand up for a reasonable balance.

It's interesting that this seems to be the only one of your films with acknowledgement of traditional owners. What made you include it in this one and not the others?

I used to dream of Arapiles when I was living in Germany in the mid 80. I started climbing at the age of 13 and when I saw pictures of Arapiles it touched my heart ❤️. What a magic place , the colour of the rock and the landscape, beautiful. Eventually I moved to Australia went to Arapiles and had the best time. Please keep Arapiles alive it's unique and one of the most iconic climbing area in the world.

Some of my favourite memories are at araps . It holds a special place in my heart, i can still picture the first time i topped golden streak at age 12 in my mind

Yep. 1% of the population buggers it up for the other 99%

At this point just say fuck it and climb? What can they really do? They have fucked you guys out of all you’re climbing already

Thanks for capturing the mgic of Arapiles - nature presenting a daunting challenge. You may hate it, you may come to love it - but you always respect it, and cherish the fact that it is there.

Not a very informative video, more an emotional appeal for most of this video BUT an excellent discussion of the issues by DrJess Hopf at 11:00 to 12:49. See also some hard data on what is banned at 11:24.

Such amazing, unique rock :)

"Cultural heritage" closures can get fucked

Good on ya mate for this activist documentary. Another mad as a cut snake PV land and power grab to disenfranchise common folk. The "traditional" owners have been assimilated into the tacit PV campaign to exterminate climbing. So long as the oppressed only whimper the unthinkable is palatable - the end of Oz climbing is at hand. The she’ll be apples Gramps grab was a pilot for their ambition to turn all of PV into a monetized petting zoo.

Land council = Corporation = Government Control

very strange you haven’t interviewed any traditional owners for this when they are a massive part of this conversation. feels very white centred and entitled.

sure is hard to understand. climbing is very low impact compared to 4wd or even mountain biking.

Brilliant video Lucas. Well done. You have really hit the sweet spot articulating our annoyance about the lack of transparency in the PV decision making, the impact on the local and wider climbing community and the love, care and respect climbers have for the environment of Arapiles.

Connection with others interaction and sport. Such a immature botched action banning this great learning and sharing location.

These government bodies that perversely destroy culture via cultural overreach sicken me. Clueless ideologues.

I just came to Australia, nearly two years ago. I have been wanting to go on a few climbing trips, and it’s a total bumber that these bans have started. There will be things I will never get to climb 😢

I started climbing at Arapiles in 1987 and then as a 15yr old spent summers living at the pines with my climbing buddies. It was, and still is, a critical part of who I am now. The freedom we had as teenagers - living independently and learning life lessons through climbing was priceless and I only wish every teenager could have the same experience. Climbers have always been on the forefront of nature and cultural protection and I can still remember when we first became familiar with the the Aboriginal name of the mount (if I remember rightly Louise you were one of the main drivers of this with your guide), and this was at least 15 years before anyone else was doing it. Consequently, I find it extraordinary that local climbers have not been consulted. Simon, Louise, Chris, Kevin etc I remember you all as much younger guides and you along with all of the other remaining 'OGs' should have been consulted. As a side note one of my core memories was coming back to the pines after a very hot day climbing in the summer to John M, in out hammocks and drinking our port - as teenagers we were so in awe he would chat with us that we looked past his 'opportunistic' behaviour. 😀