As a Sydney local, you’ve probably driven, walked or caught the train across the bridge hundreds of times, but how many of you have actually climbed the arches? It’s on so many people’s bucket list and at last NSM Maryka can tick it off! And what makes it even more special, was that she climbed the bridge with her daughter Issy!
For her last birthday in single digits, we surprised Issy with a BridgeClimb. She was so excited at the thought of it, though a little nervous! When she was in pre-school, BridgeClimb founder Paul Cave came to give a talk about the Bridge and she has been fascinated at the thought of climbing it ever since! Kids can climb as long as they are over 8 years of age and 120cm.
We booked in for the 3.5 hour twilight BridgeClimb experience the week before Christmas. BridgeClimb have a few different climbs you can choose from – BridgeClimb, the original 3.5 hour climb over the arches, Express, a 2 ¼ hour climb and the fastest way to reach the summit or Sampler, only 1 ½ hours and you ascend the inner arch.
We checked in 15 minutes before our climb time. You are then told to head up the stairs where you are taken into a room where you sign a form and are breathalysed. We were then introduced to our climb leader, Luke – immediately you could feel his bubbly personality and that he had a love for what he was doing! We all introduced ourselves to each other (impressively Luke was able to remember all 14 members names in our climb group immediately and for the rest of the climb!). Next we received our climbing suits, got changed, got our gear and then had a practice run up some ladders. All up this process took around 1 hour.
The process at BridgeClimb is like a well oiled machine, everything runs so smoothly and is so well organised and timed to perfection!
Next we headed out onto the bridge…
When the doors opened and we were given a glimpse to the underside of the bridge, it took my breath away… the beauty of the structure was amazing, the precision of the steel beams looked perfect! It was so exiting walking straight onto the walkways under the bridge.
As you walk along the walkways, the climb leader is full of interesting facts and stories. Once you reach the Southern Pylon and you are heading towards the ladders to the arch, this is where my nerves started to affect me as you can really feel how high up you are! On the other hand, Isabella was taking it all in her stride and had the biggest smile on her face and you could see she was thoroughly enjoying the experience!
We at last reached the bottom of the arches and we could see the groups in front of us climbing, when suddenly we were told to go back down the ladders as there was an electrical storm approaching. We were taken to a holding area under the bridge where we waited for about 40 minutes and then told our climb was unfortunately cancelled. As upset and disappointed as we were, we could understand that our safety came first. I was just so grateful that we were able to reschedule for another climb, as quite a few people in our group were from overseas and were unable to rebook due to flying home the next day!
We rescheduled our second BridgeClimb for a few weeks later…
We had to go through the same processes and training as before and the whole process was still just as smooth. Our climb leader this time was Graham and our group included climbers from England, India, Brisbane and Melbourne.
As with our first leader, Graham once again kept us entertained and informed during our climb… lots of interesting facts… lots of funny jokes…. the leaders were full of enthusiasm. You are definitely left in excellent hands with all the climber leaders.
When reached the bottom of the arches for the second time, the excitement was still there – it was late afternoon and the view from here was spectacular! Issy and I did a 360 and was just taking in the view and trying to savour this moment. This is where you get your first photo of the climb taken. Over the course of your climb there are several opportunities where your climb leader takes photos of you. As you are not allowed to take anything up on the bridge, it’s great the climb leaders are able to capture your adventure!
Compared to the walkways under the bridge, the walkway over the arches is quite wide and not daunting at all – it’s just like climbing a set of stairs. The walk is also at a very leisurely pace and not rushed at all so you really get time to admire our beautiful city. The harbour was bustling, the city looked gorgeous and the views to the North and West were just as amazing! We really do live in a spectacular city and climbing the bridge is a great way to really appreciate how beautiful Sydney is!
You don’t actually go from one end of the bridge to the other, the walk starts at the Southern arch, you walk to the top, then you cross over and walk over the western side of the arch back to the start.
The experience was amazing, we were lucky enough to watch a few cruise ships leave port as well as watch several sea planes fly over us. It’s not often you get to be outside and higher than the Opera House and our City Skyline!
It was a memorable Mummy and Daughter adventure and such a unique experience that Issy and I will treasure forever!
Want to tick ‘BridgeClimb’ off your bucket list too? Make 2017 the year to do it! Click here to go to the BridgeClimb website.