Rock Climb to New Heights in 2026

Chickcharney Real Rock provides outdoor rock climbing thrills, but also Bahamian heritage in a deeply physical and memorable way

By Chester Robards 25 Views

There’s a hidden place on the tiny island of New Providence, one that stretches across acres and quietly shifts from coppice forest to pristine beach, then rises into rugged coastal cliffs. It is a landscape that holds adventure in unexpected corners.

Coastal cliffs on New Providence, you say? Yes, and it is along these dramatic edges that you’ll now find daring adventurers, locals and visitors alike, top roping, bouldering, and swinging out over the turquoise waters of Clifton Bay.

Local business, local discovery

Seven years ago, local business The Chickcharney Challenge introduced real outdoor rock climbing to The Bahamas through its experience, Chickcharney Real Rock. Since then, countless Bahamians have rediscovered the outdoors through this one-of-a-kind adventure..

Real Rock is made possible through a partnership between The Chickcharney Challenge and the custodians of Clifton Heritage National Park, a protected area established to preserve one of the last remaining coastal green spaces on New Providence – safeguarding both natural beauty and national history.

Within the park are remnants of the Wylly plantation, including former slave and plantation houses.

Enslaved Africans were once brought ashore at Clifton Bay, where they disembarked from ships and climbed a staircase cut into the rock – carved by other enslaved people – to begin lives defined by unimaginable hardship. It is history etched directly into the landscape.

 What’s the experience Like?

Chickcharney Real Rock guides its “Rockstars” through this history, while immersing them in the fundamentals of top roping, a form of rock climbing that is both accessible and exhilarating.

As the founder of The Chickcharney Challenge, I discovered my love for the outdoors during summers spent hiking and exploring the Appalachian Mountains with my dad and sister.

Finding walkable, untouched nature is easy on islands like Andros and Eleuthera – both close to my heart – but I longed for an adventure that combined trees, rock, and water on my home island of New Providence.

 Clifton Heritage National Park checks every box

What Chickcharney Real Rock offers city-locked Nassuvians is a reminder of something we often forget: paradise isn’t far away.

It’s our birthright, and in many cases, right in our backyard. Through this experience, climbers are introduced not only to the safety, skill, and joy of rock climbing, but also to Bahamian heritage in a deeply physical and memorable way.

What’s involved?

Each Real Rock experience begins with a comprehensive safety briefing, followed by an abseil (rappel) down to an oceanside climb.

Doctors Hospital
Climbers learn equipment names, knots, and the fundamentals of top roping before ascending one of several cliff faces, chosen based on weather and tide conditions.

Our two primary crags are fittingly named.

Lil Cap pays homage to Yosemite’s iconic El Capitan, while Swing Time hints at the exhilarating arc climbers may experience if they lean back into the rope. Of course, some climbers don’t wait for a slip, they swing out over the water just for the thrill of it.

We look forward to welcoming more adventurers to this experience, and judging by the smiles at the top of the climb, we know others will too.

Who’s up for the challenge?

"Paradise isn’t far away. It’s our birthright, and in many cases, right in our backyard."

— Lil Cap

Chester Robards