religious significance appears to be lost to time. For in 1839, only three years after the proclamation of the British colony of South Australia in 1836, the area was granted by the new South Australian Government to pastoralists. In 1847, John Baker bought the land and built the grand Morialta House and Morialta Barns on Fourth Creek, near the head of the gorge. Geography and climate Morialta Conservation Park covers 5.33 km² within the Mount Lofty Ranges, which run north–south to the east of Adelaide's coastal plain. It is bounded by Black Hill Conservation Park on the north, Norton Summit road on the south, the suburb of Rostrevor on the west, and by agricultural land on the east. The park lies mostly on either side of Morialta Gorge, along the bottom of which runs Fourth Creek. There are three waterfalls on the creek, named respectively First, Second and Third Falls. The main access to the park is via the vehicle entrance off Morialta Road, and there is walking access at various points along Norton Summit Road. Morialta shares Adelaide's Mediterranean climate, with average temperatures of 17 degrees Celsius in winter, to 28 degrees during summer. The park receives average annual rainfall of 800 mm, mostly between May and September. During summer (December to February) temperatures can rise above 40 degrees. Activities The park caters for a variety of activities, including bushwalking, picnics, rock climbing and bird watching. There are many walking paths within the park. A project has recently finished, installing a large nature play area in the foot of the park. Rock Climbing Being only 10 km from the centre of Adelaide and having a large number of climbs, Morialta is one of the most popular rock climbing areas in South Australia. The rock is quartzite, and there are heavy duty rings at the top of most routes to allow for easy top-roping. There are several crags along both sides of the gorge. On the southern side, from the western end, there is Milestone Buttress, The Outcrops, The Buttress, Billiard Table, Boulder Bridge, Throne Room and Far Crag. On the northern side there is The Lost Walls and Thorn Buttress. Far Crag is one of the more popular crags, with over 67 routes graded from 4 (Ewbanks) to 27. History The first climbing at Morialta was in 1962 by a group from the Adelaide University Mountain Club (AUMC). Four