How often does Climb & Wine meet?
We normally arrange a Climb & Wine event one weekend per month, generally within a 3-hour drive of Sydney. We are, however, a community. Our climbers meet regularly during the week for gym-based training sessions, and on weekends at crags. We run a page, Climb & Wine - Find a Catch, to assist women climbers to find climbing partners. This is particularly useful if you find yourself with an unexpected day off and want to have a sneaky mid-week epic.
Is Climb & Wine only for women?
Climb & Wine is not just for women. We encourage people of all genders to participate in our events as long as they uphold our philosophy of empowering women, and those who identify as women, to climb.
The only exception to this is that we occasionally run weekends away. In these cases, we will arrange accommodation only for women. Others are welcome to attend, but they must arrange their own accommodation.
Is Climb & Wine run by registered rock climbing guides?
No. Climb & Wine is an amateur climbing group in which we focus on empowering women to take up rock climbing as a sport. To do this we provide a supportive and encouraging environment with a strong focus on skill sharing and safety. It is the responsibility of the participant to ensure that they possess the adequate skills and knowledge required to climb safely, and to conduct their own risk assessments. We assist participants with gaining these skills by arranging self-rescue and other courses through registered training organisations several times a year.
The organisers of Climb & Wine accept no responsibility or liability for any injuries suffered by participants in Climb & Wine social climbing events.
What do I need to bring with me if I want to join an event?
At a minimum we require participants to bring the following gear:
Climbing Gear
- Helmet
- Harness
- Shoes
- Personal Anchor System
- At least one locking carabiner
- ATC or GRIGRI
Other Gear
- Camping gear if you intend to camp the night (tent, sleeping bag, mat, camper van etc.)
- Water
- Food
- Sunscreen
- Toilet paper, carry-out bags, poo tube etc. Leave no trace!
If you have any other gear eg. rope, quickdraws, slings, carabiners, rack etc., we would also be grateful if you could please bring those also. The core members of this group have gear that they are willing to share, but the more gear we have as a group, the less we will all have to wait and the more we can climb! Just make sure you know your gear really well, or mark it to help with the gear sorting at the end of the day.
I've heard about issues between rock climbing, the environment and Aboriginal cultural heritage - what is your approach to that?
We practice Leave No Trace principles (click here to see what that means) and we ensure that, to the best of our knowledge, when practising our sport we avoid impacting areas that hold cultural significance for Aboriginal peoples. We closely monitor discussions within the climbing community about access issues, pass this information on to climbers who participate in our events, and encourage members of our community to actively engage in these discussions so that, as a community, we can climb in a respectful way.
Is your merchandise ethically made?
Absolutely! We work with selected suppliers that comply with labor, environmental, and safety standards. On top of that we only make to order, which provides a sustainable approach to design where we are not carrying excess amounts of stock that end up being wasted.
When can I expect my order to arrive?
We offer a flat rate fee of $10.00 for shipping on all orders anywhere in the world.
All of our merchandise is made to order, so please allow 2-4 weeks for your order to be produced and delivered. This time may be additionally affected by delays at the border of the destination country as they go through customs.
If you require something sooner please contact us and we can arrange an express service at an additional cost. This will reduce the delivery time to approximately 1-2 weeks.
Click here to read the full terms and conditions of our Shipping & Returns policies.
What size should I order?
Because our products are made to order, we do not offer returns for change of mind or incorrect sizes. It's important to read our apparel Size Guides which you can find in the images of each product, and if you still have any questions please don't hesitate to contact us. If you are ordering in Sydney, there will be some limited samples available at the Climb & Wine events that you can try for size before ordering.