Abseiling/Climbing Baroomba Rocks and Ororal Ridge

Baroomba Rocks is a spectacular granite slab at the southern end of canberra. It actually looks out over the city and once you know it's there, you can glimpse it from all over town. It sits there reminding me of what I'd rather be doing.

It is about 20 minutes out of tuggeranong by car. There is a wide grade of trad routes to be climbed. Some them are multi pitch. It is a great slab in the shoulder seasons because its northerly aspect catches the sun during a lot of the day. There is also bouldering at the nearby Orroaral Ridge.
It is a memorable crag for me for one reason in particular. After seconding Integral Crack (20) a couple of times I finally decided to try leading it. I made it most of the way up the route to the crux which is a terrifying smooth bulge that you have to pass in order to finish the route. Despite my best efforts I couldn't go straight through it so I searched to the side and fell. I was 2m above my pro and wide so I fell all in all about 5m before hitting the slab. I was swinging sideways as well and rolled my ankle when I hit the rock. Bad enough to break the talus bone in my ankle.
I got lowered off and then then with the help of my mates hopped back to the car. I didn't know it was broken, it was just a bit swollen so I tried to drive my car (manual) back home. The car broke down on Apollo Road not 3k from the crag. I had a pretty shi*t day.
It took over 2 years to fully recover and even now I get inflamation in the scar tissue around the bone. Awesome.
I still climb fairly regulalry and don't have a fear of hieghts as much as I used too. I am a bit more careful though.
ABSEILING
Abseiling at Baroomba Rocks is a pretty good way to pass a day. The slabs at the North Butriss have a slight positive slope so you can cruise down for over 100 metres if you have enough rope on a smooth granite surface.
The descent isn't very technical so I find it's fairly easy to take a few companions. The trick is to find the right anchor point and back it up safely, also being careful not to bomb down on any climbers below. Usually Baroomba is fairly quit and this isn't a problem.

Another great place off Apollo Road is Orroral Ridge. The clusters of massive boulders make for sheltered climbing on windy days. Alternatively its also a great place for an abseil or ropes course.

Honeysuckle Creek camp is a pretty good campsite. There is a shelter with a fireplace and a couple of BBQ's. The campground itself is large and there are plenty of spots to enjoy a nice campfire. (bring your own wood)