Te Ahi-a-Tamatea (Rāpaki Rock)

One of Christchurch’s most popular crags, due to its accessibility, availability of a number of reasonably easy trad climbs, easy access to the top, and partial shelter from the easterly.

The Māori name, and now official name for the crag, is Te Ahi-a-Tamatea – The Fire of Tamatea. The crag was known to climbers as Rāpaki Rock, and to European settlers as The Giant’s Causeway. The name arose when the famous explorer Tamatea stood on Te Poho-o-Tamatea (The Port Hills) and invoked a powerful incantation to a North Island tohunga, who sent down volcanic fire and ash to warm his travelling party who had been caught in a storm.

The crag is a large trachyte radial dyke of the Lyttelton Volcano, resulting in a coarse-grained rock that is generally solid and well-weathered to give a variety of features. Most of the climbs are based on more-or-less continuous cracks.

Climbing
Though often regarded as suitable for beginner trad leaders, the crag has a long history of injury accidents, including a fatality in 2019. Despite its benign reputation the difficulty of protection placements on some climbs, coupled with a trend for the routes to be harshly graded, creates a trap for the unwary leader. Therefore take appropriate care: ensure that protection placements are good and be prepared to back off. A substantial rack is needed because some climbs will take plentiful protection, and gear is also required for setting anchors at the top.

There are no bolt anchors, and placing bolts either as anchors or as protection could set climbers at odds with the owners.

Top-roping is often set up as there are generally good protection placements and some large boulders for long slings at the top, and there is easy access to the top. The crag is extensively used by outdoor education groups of various stripes.

History
There is no record of climbing at the crag prior to 1968, when 11 routes were included in New Zealand’s first rock climbing guidebook, which covered Castle Rock and Rāpaki Rock, with a total of about 50 climbs. Most notable among the early ascents was Body and Soul (19) by Gavin Wills, who was later the general manager of Alpine Guides at Aoraki/Mount Cook. Since then the other climbs have been progressively added, with the first ascents not always known.

Orientation
On the left side is the classic beginner route Crow’s Nest. Just left of the overhangs is Monkee Poop. Right of the overhangs Main Royale goes up the thin face and the earthquake-scarred rock above. A convoluted chimney on the right is Bilge.