Horseshoe
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| | Difficulty:3B III (v3a2 III) Raps:2-3, max ↨49ft
Red Tape:No permit required Shuttle:None Vehicle:Passenger Rock type:Sandstone | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Condition Reports: | 30 Nov 2025
"SNR Scouts Canyoning Trip. Left the Geranimo track at the 800m contour and contoured round until we were in line with the "Big Chockstone" (which is v |
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| Best season: | Oct-Apr (avg for this region)
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-33.4840, 150.3550
-33.5056, 150.3673
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Introduction[edit]
Horseshoe Canyon is a reasonably easy to get to canyon on the other side of the Wollangambie River, it can be done as a canyon on its own, or, some people do it after doing the nearby Geronimo canyon v3a2.
A short, but very spectacular canyon with stunning deep, dark slots and amazing green sections.
Approach[edit]
- Access is via crossing the Wollangambie at Horseshoe Bend and then up the other side using the Geronimo Canyon track
- Ascending from Wollangambie up involves a few scrambles and not a really well defined path, find your way to the top, you can see where others have been before you
- Once on top and in the right place, you should see a reasonably well defined track on top, follow along the top of the ridge before dropping into the creek at a point that suits.
- The grid reference in the Jamison guidebook (at approx. -33.48160, 150.35470) is pointlessly far upstream (advice from Flynny and seconded by Alex). The start of the canyon actually begins with a giant chockstone at -33.48397, 150.35496
- Highly recommend navigating to this chockstone, which will likely require an entry abseil, in order to avoid a bunch of pointless walking and descending some very unremarkable creek terrain. You can also leave the track at the 800m contour to avoid the entry abseil (keep at around 800m until aproximately in line with the chockstone then desend to it - there is one point where it cliffs out and you can descend through a crack in the rocks but otherwise easy going).
- Note: The GPX provided on this page shows a contour route that puts you in at the previously mentioned large chockstone.
Descent[edit]
Depending on how high up in the canyon you dropped in, will dictate how long it takes you to reach the giant boulder / chock stone that blocks the creek, you are about to start the canyon "proper". (You can scramble down with relative ease to enter the creek directly above the boulder, this saves scrub bashing in the creek above.)
| Problem No. | Type | Metres | Location | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Down climb | 4m | RC | Down climb under giant chock stone |
| 2 | Down climb | 3m | RL | Shown in Shoes on My Feet video as a small abseil but can be easily down climbed on river left. |
| 3 | Abseil | 10m | RC | Sling on tree. Tree is on chockstone. Approach requires small traverse along a large tree root on river left with 10m deep hole on the right hand side. Depending which side of the tree you abseil from you will either land on a false floor mid way (downstream side of tree) or you will land on the creek bed (upstream side of tree). If landing on creek bed, scramble back up to false floor. |
| 4 | Abseil | 10m | RL | Finishes in deep pool. |
| 5 | Abseil | 15m | RR | "Carrot" bolts with permanent bolt plates on river right wall. Abseil is very slippery and "in flow". Just embrace it and abseil down sliding on your side. Finishes in deep pool. |
Exit[edit]
There are two ways:
- Downstream to one exit on the other bank of the Wollangambie
- Upstream to Horseshoe Bend where you descended and crossed the Wollangambie a few hours earlier
Red tape[edit]
Beta sites[edit]
Trip reports and media[edit]
Sleep When We Are Dead 2018 trip