Wilson Avenue Bouldering Wall

A free boulder on Sydney Road

Wilson Avenue Bouldering Wall is a free public bouldering wall in the small square where Wilson Avenue meets Sydney Road in Brunswick, opposite Barkly Square and a short walk from Jewell station. Moreland (now Merri-bek) City Council closed this end of the street to traffic after a pop-up park trial in 2014, and when it consulted locals on a permanent space, 84% said they wanted a wall in it. The square, with the bouldering wall, landscaping and seating, opened on 2 August 2015, and the council's 2025 streetscape upgrade of the rest of Wilson Avenue included extending the bouldering wall park.

The wall

The freestanding wall is about 9 metres long and 3 metres high, with angled faces and soft fall surfacing all round. Coloured circuits run right round it, the longest being yellow (about V1), red (V2) and orange (V3). No new problems appear to have been set for some years, so most climbers lap the traverses or make up their own problems from the holds, and some holds have been reported to spin.

Before you go

• Free and open to everyone, with no booking
• Council rules: no more than four climbers on the wall at once, no climbing onto the top and no climbing when it's wet; wear climbing shoes or sneakers rather than bare feet, and supervise children under 10
• Facilities: a drinking fountain and seating in the square, with toilets in Barkly Square across Sydney Road
• Getting there: Jewell station on the Upfield line, tram 19 (stop 20) or the Upfield Shared Path