Description

IMPORTANT: read the access information before coming!

Huge, solid boulders visible from the road with
high quality and varied stone. The all-night diner will surely become a must-visit in its own right! There's already an excellent circuit from 5-8A+, with many of the best projects still TBD. Lots of room for development, on the boulders both marked and unmarked (for the more adventurous of spirit).

The Nardouw farm and Rieboksfontein are owned by the same family, who are very welcoming to climbers. They offer accomodations as well as bakkie rides to hard to reach areas. They even cleared a road and created parking just for climbers, so if you want to do something/go somewhere, ask them first! Be friendly and don't break the rules.

Classics (roughly sorted by subarea):
Roadside lower:
The all-night diner (number one attraction!)
Red tortoise roof
Rinkhals
Black Label
What do you know

Roadside upper:
Broken sky
Disciplinarian
Pyramid scheme

Backside:
Cabin wall
Hidden wall
The Stabbin' cabin project (will be epic)
Mario's boulder
The dyno project (will also be epic)

Opposite ridge/campground clusters:
???
There are good boulders out there, just waiting...

Grades:
They're likely all over the place because Michael developed most lines solo, and he sucks at grading. Please propose corrections when appropriate!

History

First climbed by the Plesser brothers in 2019, with help from Alex Crist and Jesse Grupper. The first walkthrough went through almost the entire roadside sector, ending at the towering and stellar "What do you know". A troop of baboons blocked the best of the best: the all night diner and the boulders behind it, which remained a surprise for the brothers on the second walkthrough. 2019 development was limited to those boulders, red tortoise bandit, and rinkhals. Development continued in 2023 by Michael Plesser including new areas and dozens of new boulders.

Routes on Nardouw
85 boulder 6 Likes
Browse topos
Photos
Premium topo by Nardouw and co.
Mario Louw
M. Louw
from South Africa
Nardouw Guest
N. Guest
Michael Plesser
M. Plesser
from Geneva
Nardouw

The area is access sensitive!

IMPORTANT: You MUST notify Mario and get a permit before climbing at Nardouw, every time!

There is a private permit system in place separate from the pakhuis pass/cederberg permit. You MUST check in with Mario by WhatsApp (+27 63 306 7812) and stop by the farm house to pay the day use. (Day: R50, Week: R300, Month: R1000.)
Card or Cash accepted, and deals available for guests at Nardouw camping/accomodations.

You can contact Michael Plesser (@v10issoft on IG) with climbing or topo questions.

Driving:
1) Either take the Elizabethsfontein dirt road from near travellers rest past the sassies, then past taj mahal, until Nardouw appears on the right. (~35 min. from the farm stall, dirt roads)
2) Alternatively, head back over the pass and just before Clanwilliam take the road north to Klawer. A few minutes after the pavement ends, turn right up the Nardouwberg valley and Nardouw will be on the left. (~40 min. from the farmstall, mostly paved)

Parking/approach:
Differs by area, consult the map or ask Mario.
All parking is on top of the cliff and requires passing the farm house. Do NOT park by the lower/main road.

There are fence boundaries that must be respected, do NOT enter land if you do not know who owns it. In the future the neighbors may be amenable to opening access, but NOT if climbers betray their trust. Let Mario negotiate since he knows them, and don't blow it for everyone by "just having a look"!

Some boulders are near the Nardouw cabin, respect the privacy of the guests! These boulders in particular you must ask permission from Mario to access.

Always check for rock art before cleaning anything, there is lots on the property!