A big week of results and field action for the region's outdoor adventure community, from bouldering comps at the Eaglehawk Rocks to trail runs through the Whipstick.
4 min read
Eleven competitors from Bendigo's growing outdoor climbing scene completed the Mount Alexander Circuit challenge last weekend, with Castlemaine local and Bendigo Climbing Club member Priya Nandagopal recording the fastest female ascent of the season at 2 hours 41 minutes. The result came during the club's annual Winter Series, which this year drew 63 registered participants across three disciplines — sport climbing, bouldering and multi-pitch — the highest entry figure since the series launched in 2019.
The timing matters. Saturday's dual heartbreaks for Australian national teams — the Wallabies losing a tight Nations Championship final to Ireland and the Socceroos bowing out of the FIFA World Cup 2026 on penalties against Egypt — sent many Australians searching for a sporting narrative that felt closer to home and a little less agonising. For Bendigo's outdoor community, this week delivered exactly that: clean results, clear skies and a local scene that has quietly grown into one of regional Victoria's most active adventure sport hubs.
The weekend's headline event was Sunday's Bendigo Bouldering Blitz held at Eaglehawk Rocks, a cluster of granite outcrops off Crusoe Road in Eaglehawk, roughly seven kilometres north of the Bendigo CBD. Forty-two climbers — 19 of them under 18 — registered for the event run by the Bendigo Climbing Club in partnership with Outdoor Education Australia's Central Victoria branch. Grades ran from V0 through to V9, and the youth division produced the most competitive session in two years, with four juniors topping the V5 problem that had stumped the majority of the open field.
Meanwhile, across town at the Whipstick Forest trail network, the Bendigo Multisport Association ran its fourth consecutive weekly trail running event as part of its July Winter Series. Thirty-one runners completed the 14-kilometre route through the Whipstick bush north of Lansell Road, with the fastest male and female times both improving on the previous week's benchmarks by more than three minutes — attributed partly to recently cleared trail maintenance work completed by Parks Victoria contractors in late June.
The Bendigo Indoor Climbing Centre on Williamson Street also reported a record midwinter attendance week, with 287 visits logged between Monday June 29 and Sunday July 4. A standard adult day pass currently sits at $24, and the centre's Monday junior program — $15 per session including harness hire — reached its 20-person capacity for the first time since April.
The surge in participation is not accidental. A $180,000 Regional Sports Infrastructure grant from Sport and Recreation Victoria, announced in March 2026, earmarked funds specifically for outdoor recreation infrastructure in the Greater Bendigo municipality. A portion of that money has gone toward fixing anchor bolts at Eaglehawk Rocks and installing a new toilet and parking bay at the Whipstick trailhead — small improvements that, according to the Bendigo Climbing Club's own data, have reduced the barrier for beginner and family visits by a measurable degree. Club membership has risen 34 percent since January, from 118 paid members to 158 as of July 1.
The Australian Climbing Association Victoria also flagged Bendigo this week as a priority region for its 2027 state outdoor comp calendar, meaning the city could host an officially sanctioned outdoor bouldering event for the first time. No formal announcement has been made, but the club has been invited to submit an expression of interest by August 15.
For anyone wanting to get involved, the Bendigo Climbing Club holds a free beginner's session at Eaglehawk Rocks every second Sunday, next scheduled for July 12. The Bendigo Indoor Climbing Centre on Williamson Street runs structured lead-climbing courses starting at $195 for a four-week block. The Bendigo Multisport Association's Whipstick trail runs continue every Sunday morning through July, meeting at the Lansell Road trailhead car park at 8 a.m. Registration is $5 on the day, cash or card accepted.
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