Rocklands — a guide to bouldering in the Cederberg, Western Cape: permits, season, crash-pad hire and where to stay.
World-class bouldering on Cederberg sandstone — three hours from Cape Town, over the Pakhuis Pass. Get your permits, season, crash pads and beds sorted before you fly.
Rocklands is one of the great bouldering destinations on earth — thousands of problems on grippy orange sandstone, spread across the farms and wilderness above Clanwilliam.
Climbers fly in from all over the world for the cool, dry Cederberg winter. This site is the short version of everything you need to arrive sorted: the permit, the season, a crash pad, and a bed within walking distance of the rock.
April to September, best June–August. Cool and dry means good friction; summer is too hot to climb.
Season & weather →
A CapeNature permit is required and capped at 100 climbers a day. Buy online or at Traveller's Rest.
Permits & access →
Stay on the rock — Traveller's Rest, de Pakhuys or Kliphuis. Book well ahead for the winter peak.
Where to stay →
You don't have to fly with one — Traveller's Rest hires pads. Reserve yours when you book the bed.
Crash pads & gear →Rocklands sits on a mix of CapeNature wilderness and private farms, so a CapeNature climbing permit is required and must be carried at all times. Buy it online before you come, or in person at the Kliphuis and de Pakhuys campsite offices, or the Traveller's Rest farmstall — your permit with your morning coffee.
Daily access is limited, so in the busy months buy ahead online rather than turning up. Check the current price and any area closures with CapeNature before you travel.
The season runs roughly April to September, and June to August is prime. The Cederberg winter is cool and dry — exactly what the sandstone wants, giving the friction that makes hard problems possible. Summer (November–March) climbs into the 40s and the rock turns slick; if you come then, it's shade-only and dawn-and-dusk.
Bring layers — mornings are cold, afternoons can be warm in the sun, and the good conditions come and go with the weather.
The classic areas — 8 Day Rain, Roadside, The Plateau, Campground and more — spread across the de Pakhuys and Traveller's Rest farms and the CapeNature land between them. Grades run from a friendly warm-up to the hardest boulders in the country.
We won't reprint the topos — the climbers who wrote them deserve the sale. For problems, grades and beta, use the guidebook and the apps the community already trusts:
Booking links go straight to each place's own site — we're an independent guide, not a middleman. Confirm rates and availability with them directly. If you host climbers here and want to be listed, get in touch.
It's about 3 hours from Cape Town: the N7 to Clanwilliam, then the R364 over the Pakhuis Pass to the farms. You'll want a car. Fuel and shops are in Clanwilliam — stock up before the pass.
Sandstone shreds skin, so rest days matter. The Sevilla rock-art trail, the Clanwilliam dam, and — a little further down the same road — the citrus valley and hot springs of Citrusdal and the mission village of Wupperthal are all within reach.
Permit, season, crash pad, bed. The four things between you and the best bouldering trip of your life.
Start with permits