Green Climbers Home

1/22-29/16

Gate slammin'!!!

Climbing continued to get better and better for both of us as we got closer and closer to our goals. By the end of our time we both reached our individual goals. Robyn climbed a 6b+ (5.10d) called Deep Fried Brit, a fantastic tufa and stalactite adventure totaling around 30 meters in height. Austin climbed a 7a (5.11d) called Sound of Music, a balance requiring boulder start leading to a pumpy over hung finish. We both enjoyed many climbs that pushed us to our limits mentally and physically as we pushed harder and harder to reach our goal.

Looking for the next clip

Of course we did not achieve these goals without set back. Weather became an issue for a few days as the whole Southeast Asia area was blasted by a cold front. We battled high winds and cold temperatures combined with days of rain. These days were usually spent cuddled up in the bamboo restaurant playing cards, reading books and talking with fellow climbers about their projects (climbs they were working on). Austin also battled a sprained ankle he received from a nasty lead fall through cave formations and an over use injury in his shoulders.

Raw hands!

In the end though we had climbed to our hearts were contempt and our hands were raw from constant gripping of rock. We had met many people from all walks of life, some that we will be meeting in our next stops as we travel and some that will remain life long friends. Over all the climbing was brilliant, the views amazing, and the community unforgettable. Thanks Green Climber's Home for a great experience and can't wait until next time!

Why you come to Thahkek

1/10-22/2016

After a good nights rest we woke up late and headed downstairs to grab some grub and figure out how we were going to get to Green Climbers Home. As we walked outside to grab a table we ran into some familiar faces, two guys we had met in Tonsai. We had a nice catch up chat during breakfast and were able to get some good information on how to get to the Green Climbers Home as well as some good climbs to jump on once there. 

We sat around a bit longer using internet before heading off to the mountains. During this time we met our new friend, Erik a cool guy from Sweden. Erik was also heading out to Green Climbers Home, so we decided to all share a tuk tuk to make it cheaper. After a few more errands we all grabbed our bags and waved down the nearest tuk tuk and headed off into the mountains and away from the hectic city of Thahkek. 

Can't ask for an easier approach!

Green Climbers Home is tucked away in a small valley about 18 or so kilometers outside of town. There are two separate camps made of a few bungalows and tents that all surround a nice bamboo restaurant filled with wonderful pillows and mats to lounge around. Outside of the two camps, no more than a ten minute walk away are over 200 climbs to choose from. Plenty to keep you busy during your stay.

We spent our first two days climbing two easier crags so that we could get use to the rock and the style of climbing in Laos. Erik, who was traveling alone, needed a climbing partner so we invited him to join us. The climbing was interesting, a lot different from Tonsai. The rock was sharper and less steep, the bolts hung different, and the anchor setup was something we never seen before. The one thing that was similar to Tonsai was all the dry cave formations hanging on the wall. As you climbed you had to negotiate your way through tufas and stalactites. 

Having fun on cave formations

On our third day we decided to get up extremely early and tackle the four pitch climb called Chinese New Year. We (Robyn and Austin) headed out of our campsite with headlamps glowing and climbing gear on our backs. After a short walk we were at the bottom of the climb just as the first light of day began showing itself. Once racked up, we were on our way up to the top 130 meters away. We traded leads as we made our way through the four pitches of enjoyable climbing. We took a break at the top of the first pitch to enjoy the sunrise peaking up over the mountains in the distance. The last pitch totaled 44 meters which Robyn cruised up. Once at the top we took a few pictures, high fived each other and enjoyed the view over a shot of whiskey from the bottle awaiting anyone who tops out. We hurried to get our rope sorted out for the five rappels that were between us and the ground. We were in a race with the clock to make it back to the restaurant for breakfast. 

Robyn climbing a 6a

As soon as we coiled both ends of the rope and prepare them for the first toss over the edge the winds picked up and started gusting into the mountain. ROPE! we yelled as we toss the rope coils out. They went out, stopped, and slammed back in the wall just a few meters below us on a sharp block of rock. We laughed and retried being successful the second time. This was soon the start of a big adventure. We were moments away from realizing that the getting off was more difficult than the getting up on this adventurous climb. We both made it down to the next set of anchors with little to no problem. We got safe and pulled the rope to continue down the route. As we expected the rope got caught which required one of us to climb back up freeing the rope so that we could continue. The rope decided to continue misbehaving as it was encouraged by the wind to grab pieces of sharp rock. The problem with trying to free your rope was the risk in cutting it on the razor sharp edges which we all can agree is no good. I (Austin) even had to re climb most of the 6b pitch to free the rope one last time before finally getting to the ground. Lets just say we did not make breakfast, in fact we barely made it back before lunch hours started. In total it took just under five hours to finish this epic adventure. Two hours to get to the top and three to reach the ground again. For those unfamiliar with multi pitches this is usually not the case at all to have the rappel take longer than the actual climb. Lunch tasted really good that day as we rehydrated and stuffed our faces with enough food to feed a small army.

We are one week into our stay at Green Climbers Home and have a little more than a week left before we head to Cat Ba in Vietnam (another climbers hotspot). We both have our individual goals we are pushing for. Lets see how we do!

Just can't get enough of Tonsai

One more Tonsai video up and ready to be viewed! I swear this will be our last one!
Click here to see it!

Where are we?

1/5-9/2016

Luang Phrabang was one of the prettiest cities I have seen.The city still has a french feel to it, as Laos had once been a french colony. The architecture, baguettes, pastries and cafes all screamed french. Textiles are also very big in the city.  We were able to visit a village where paper and textiles were made. As you walk down the road in the village you pass women working looms, dye shops, and paper being dried. The fabrics and patters were all breath taking. Every house was a store front with hand made scarves and tapestries.  

Dye shop

If you didn’t want to make the mile walk outside of the city, the village came to you every night. The main strip of the city at 4 o’clock everyday would cut off traffic and within minutes venders had their awnings and goods set up for sale.  They set up so closely together that there is only 2 thin paths on either side of the 1/2 mile long market. Something I noticed about Laos that is interesting is people sell the same things in a clusters. For example, in the market you will pass four to ten women selling scarves next to each other then a set of women selling bags and stuffed animals. During the day, the main street had a strip of women selling sandwiches and crapes all with the exact same menu and prices. We saw this style of business everywhere in Laos. The most intense place we saw this was in the night food market. Down a small alleyway was a pathway of all the food you could desire. The whole alley was full of buffet style food, each with their respective 3 tables you could eat. At each vender there was a table full of large bowls of prepared food, some you recognized and some that was a complete mystery. Since they were all very similar we usually ended up at the one that had the most people standing in front. We would load up a bowl as tall as we could and then top is off with a giant chicken meat stick. We would have to make sure to find our respective venders table and squeeze in with who would soon be our dinner conversation buddies. Every night we tried a new vender and every night we found the food to be equally awesome. I felt like we ate more food in this city in a few days than we did in our entire stay in Tonsai. 

Fresh Paper

During the daytime, Luang Phrabang had endless sights to see. We stayed busy visiting the museum in the city center that once was the home to the King of Luang Phrabang. One of the oldest temples in Laos was within walking distance, although we did not go into it because costing to many kips. One day we rented bikes and road 24 kilometers one way to Kuang Si waterfall. This was one of the coolest places we have visited so far. The water fall was on a preserve that was also used for rescued moon bears. We bought tickets to enter and got to walk through a huge fenced off area with the funniest looking bears playing about. Moon bears are relatively small compared to the black bear. They also have a huge main of fur around their necks that hang in such a way that it looks like they have cheeks full of food. In some cases the bile from moon bear stomachs are extracted via large uncleaned needles and used in traditional medicine. They are captured by poachers and kept in small cages to harvest this medicinal ingredient. Most of the bears in the reserve were rescued from this process and the horrible treatment. Unfortunately many had identifying scars from their past. The path continues on to an almost unnaturally blue river. The crowd gets thicker and thicker as you get closer to the waterfall and for good reason. The sight was breath taking. The waterfall was very tall with many tiers and glowing blue, we sat and took it in. If we had not biked there and had a long ride back we would of hiked to the very top. It was very uncharacteristic of us to not make the trek up but after talking about it for a good long while we decided we really should do our sour knees a favor. On the ride back to town we high fived local kids on their cruiser bikes coming home from school. We even saw an elephant walking down the main road! 

Kuang Si waterfall

After almost two weeks off from climbing, we were both starting to get antsy. We had to make it down south to what we heard was a climbing mecca waiting for us in Thakhek. We booked a night bus to the capital which was an eleven hour ride. If you ever have an opportunity to take a night bus, do it! You will only do it once. My only advice is travel with a buddy and make sure you don’t get assigned the back of the bus. How a night bus works is you are assigned a numbered position in the bus (each bed equals two numbers), you remove your shoes, store your gear in small bins and do the best to get to sleep. The beds are a bit smaller than a twin sized bed that you share with your bunk buddy which is a funny amount of space to share with a stranger. The back of the bus sleeps 5 people on one big mattress. It was pretty comfortable for us because we were fine with cuddling. The bus filled up quick and at the last minute before leaving they stuffed 3 more people in who got a spot on the floor to sleep. Going to the bathroom was quite a mission because of the people along the floor.

In the morning we arrived to the capital and took a tuk tuk to the southern station where we connected with another bus and headed south to Thakhek. This was a local bus which was another interesting experience yet again. Six hours, as promised, quickly turned into eight as we had one flat tire and a lot of stops to make. These stops ranged from cigarette and bathroom breaks for the driver to stops for local food vendors to hop on and sell their bags of food. We eventually made it to Thakhek where we found a room and started looking up our beta for climbing at the Green Climbers home crags.

Same Same but VERY Different

1/2-5/2016

Wow same same but very different. As we made our way closer to the lonely patch of cement surrounded by dried rice fields in the short flight to Vientiane, we realized that Laos was way less developed than Thailand. After a short line in Immigrations and 35 US dollars, we were through with a one month visa stamp in our passports. The adventure of Laos had begun! We found an ATM that worked for our foreign cards (harder then it sounds) and instantly became “millionaires” (8000 kip to the US dollar).  We were able to connect up with some girls from the states and we all split a private van with air-condition to make our slow but exciting journey north to Vang Vieng. 

We rode through the capital on roads that were once paved but are now covered in table-sized potholes. A few near misses on mountain roads and many bumps later, we found ourselves in “city center” of Vang Vieng. We said our good byes to our new friends we had gotten to know through out the four hour van ride and off into the streets we went to find a place to stay. We soon realized finding a place to stay during the holiday season is near impossible. Hostels and guest houses made it easy for us and put “full” signs outside their door. One hour later our packs began to feel heavier and heavier. We reached the edge of town and found a place with only one room left that we were quick to take it.

We walked around and found some good street food and did some investigation into the climbing in the area which was the main reason of our visit. We soon found out that it may be harder to get to the crags than we had originally anticipated. All the crags required lots of fees due to private land crossings and getting to the other side of the river via bridges or boats. So, instead of climbing our first day we decided that tubing was a much easier and fun option. 

Tubing was a wild experience not because of the river itself but what surrounded the banks of this slow flowing waterway. Locals were out fishing the eddies with nets and spears but even more interesting were the locals out fishing for customers. As we floated by, they threw throw-bags made from a soda bottle and string out to us and pulled us into their bank side bar. Yes, we were reeled in via a bottle on a rope to a bar where we were encouraged to enjoy a nice strong mixed drink before continuing our float. We had no idea that this is what we signed up for but we embraced it.  We floated down and found a few more river side bars, some bars were actually in the river. There were even more closed down shacks on the way. We learned later on that Vang Vieng used to be famous for its party seen. The locals got fed up with westerners coming in and getting out of hand. There were quite a few deaths from drunk people drowning or making bad decisions as well. The government came in and started cleaning up the town. Local businesses started pushing for more ecotourism in the area and clearing out the party culture. I believe this push only began in 2013 so there are still remnants of the old ways.

The rest of our time was spent sleeping in, walking around rice fields, avoiding fees, and trying to figure out why so many Koreans were in this small town in the middle of Laos. We succeeded in all of these activities. We slept a lot, never payed to cross a river or a private piece of property and solved the mystery of so many Koreans. First, I must explain the Korean invasion in the town. It all stemmed from a reality tv show in Korea were they visited the local lagoon.  Fans of the show made it a goal to travel here and take a dip in the very same water as their beloved tv heroes.  We never did climb, not out of laziness or even sore muscles but due to access problems. We got mixed information on how to get to the crag without a guide or how to avoid local kids from trying to take your gear.  Four days in Vang Vieng was enough and we were ready to head North to Luang Phrabang.

New Years!

12/26-1/1/2016!

Lets talk about transportation in Thailand. 

So we made I to Ko Pha Ngan! I am not sure how transportation works in Thailand but it works.   We bought a ticket from a street vender in Thailand, showed up on a street corner where a man in a mini bus told us to get in. Instantly trusting him, we packed in with 10 other people. He dropped us off on the side of the highway where there was a bigger bus waiting for all of us. We landed and got our designated colored stickers that represented where we were going. Then we were dropped off at a remote pier where a giant ferry was waiting. Within an hour of waiting on the dock herds of people starting showing up, all wearing the appropriate sticker. We were packed onto the ship in color order. Some colors where headed to Ko Samui, some to Ko Pha Ngan with us, and lots to Ko Toa. The people who operate the transport here must of taken a lesson from sheep herders, Its hectic but effective. It takes some blind faith and a lot of trust but you get there eventually. 

Ko Pha Ngan Coffee Spot

Ko Pha Ngan was a wild place. A mecca for partiers and scuba divers. We found Greg cruising on his motor bike in the heart of town. He is out there interning with a scuba diving company working on getting his master diving cert. and Instructor cert. Last time we saw him was at Joshua Tree Music Festival and now on a island in the south east of Thailand. It’s wild how many people from High Trails you find in the smallest corners of the world. It was great to see a familiar smiling face and to spend 4 days being beach side. We motor biked around, visited some remote beaches, and spectated some drunken debacle. It was interesting to see how westerners have shaped the island. One of the main industries is partying and everything that goes along with it. The scuba diving is great there as well. Austin was able to go out with Greg for two dives at sail rock. My notorious ear infections held me back from diving. It was a cool break to check out a different section of southern Thailand. 

Leaving Ko Pha Ngan was another experience.  We opted for a night boat. It was a huge slow boat with mats on the floor. If you didn’t know your bunk buddy it would of been an interesting night. We were told that we would land at 6 am and someone will pick us up at 7 am to bring us to the airport. Sounded great. What happened was we landed at 3 am to a dark pier with one woman that couldn’t speak english very well but knew what was going on. After looking at our tickets she pointed everyone to where they needed to be. Everyone that got off the boat with us were smushed into a tuk-tuk but we were pointed to the bench. When we realized we were going to be left alone on this dark dock, we tried to have her explain what we were meant to do. After insisting we just sit and stay, we took a breath and had a seat. Everyone pulled out, leaving us by ourselves. Just as we were starting to get seriously worried, a fella came around the corner and asked us for a ticket. Our overly tired selves handed it over and followed him. He brought us to a nice minivan with ac and a company label. With a sigh of relief we got on and got ready to land at the airport. We drove past the airport and down a dirt road to a bus stations. It was 4 am and we were dropped there, again we were the only ones in sight besides the guy in the ticket booth. The van driver said 1 hour, just wait. So we did. One hour later, more busses dropped off more people and the place filled up. The same fella that dropped us off earlier showed back up yelling “airport, airport”. We were the only two who got back onto the van. But we figured this was it, we are going to the airport! We drove past the turn off for the airport again and were dropped on a random city street. So with some more blind faith, we sat on down and a fella waiting on the corner said 1 hour. And he was right, one hour later a huge bus with doilies on the seats showed up. 4 people got on and finally we were on our way to the airport, wow what a relief. We were so exhausted the rest of the journey seemed like we were dreaming. 

For New Years we stayed just outside of the airport in Bangkok so we could grab an early cab and catch our flight to Laos the very next day. Finding our hostel was quite an adventure. Our host was nice enough to write us directions in both English (broken of course) and Thai. Although we felt good about this is still seem to confuse our taxi driver but after a few minutes were able to get a ride to what we hope to be the right spot. Once out of the cab and on the busy streets we had to now decipher the broken english directions to our place. An hour of venturing in circles trying to decide if we were heading the right way we decided to find help. We found a 7 eleven where we were able to get them to call our hostel host and get better directions. Turned out we were so close the whole time. Our host came via his bike to find us in the market by the 7 eleven and walked us to his place. On our way he shared a brief history of the markets and canals we were passing. Once settled in we went down stairs and enjoyed a cold water and a nice warm meal for little to no bahts. 

Our Hostels Window View

New years eve was awesome. We had a trip planned into the city center to meet up with Peter, a friend of Robyn's from high school. We took a taxi to the sky train where we were able to easily buy a ticket into the city. After a neat ride over neighborhoods, fields, and buildings and one connection at a station we were at the stop in which we were meant to meet up with Peter. A short walk down some stairs and there he was waiting for our arrival. After a quick catch up chat and a brief introduction we were off into the city. We went to a neat bar which was apparently closing for good that night so the beer was on happy hour prices all night. We were excited to see beer on tap with choices. Austin was even able to get an IPA, something that is greatly missed. Later on, the night food trucks showed up outside so ordering food was on the to do list. There was a taco truck, another thing we had not seen since leaving southern California. We all ordered really tasty burritos. Ten o’ clock came and it was time to get back to our hostel before the evening got to wild in Bangkok and, more importantly, the sky train stopped running. Once back to our hostel we sat on the balcony and enjoyed the views of locals celebrating New Years with loud music, fireworks, and plenty of laughter. 

Austin got adventurous as midnight approached. He heard some locals down on the dock by our hostel celebrating New Years with beer and loud Thai music. He headed down to see what all the commotion was about. He was welcomed with a beer and plenty of food. Now the next bit is from his perspective as I was on the balcony still watching the city skyline fill with fireworks:

 I was given a beer and offered food as we danced around the table and exchanged many hand gestures as they did not know a lick of English. After a few bites of mystery soups I was offered a chicken foot which I could not deny out of respect. I bit in to it and was surprised to find it tasty. A few more laughs and lot more dancing I brought in the New Year with my now good friends. They managed to eventually tell me “I Love You” which i figured meant they enjoyed my company. After midnight and the firework show, one of the gentlemen left with a bag of soup and showed back up a few minutes later with it warmed up. He placed in front of me. After several hand gestures that I managed to figure out meant try some, I did. It was black and filled with parts of chicken I did not recognized nor did I care to know. The weirdest part was the jello like clumps in the soup that you could not avoid as you took a scoop. Yet again, it was pretty good. After another beer and a few more laughs it was time for bed. 

The next morning, we woke up and got ready to head to Laos. As we headed out our host wished us luck with our travels. Oh and yes as for the black soup with jello clumps….it was chicken blood soup…yep! Thanks to our host for informing us on this as we left. According to him though it meant good luck and was an honor to be offered such a meal! 

Smell ya Later Tonsai

12/26(ish)

After a few days rest with some ac and and hot water we decided to head back to the rock and get back after it! After we arrived to Tonsai a place that felt like home we were in search for our next bungalow. A few times back and forth down the short street lead us to a place called Jungle hut, a nice set of bamboo huts tucked underneath a famous wall know as The Nest. To our surprise this place not only had a porch with out mosquitoes but a bed that was decently comfortable. We spent the next several days waving to friends who were still in the area, climbing, eating familiar food and climbing harder than we had in our first visit. We  decided to seek out new walls and famous climbs over the next few days. Of coarse ending our day with a nice over price beer at Freedom Bar watching sunset.

Christmas eve we ventured over to Pranang Beach where Austin Climbed the hardest climb of the trip a 6 c+ (5.11a) called “Best Route in Minnesota.” Afterwards, we traveled through a cave which took us through the rock tower to the other side. We repelled down to a beautiful view point over looking all of Tonsai and Railey east-side. Christmas morning came and we decided to go big: get “real” coffee and do a multi pitch. The climb was the world renowned Big Wave a 5 pitch climb that reached the top of a 400 foot tower over looking all on Tonsai and the Andaman Sea. A over hung challenging start led to interesting climbing through vegetation for the first pitch. The following four pitches went up brilliant rock with tufas and stalactites all around. The start of the climb was busy with multiple parties of mixed experienced. Some continued as some bailed being above there heads. Before Robyn could continue up the second pitch she had to dodge inexperienced climbers as they repelled back to the bottom of the route. Once clear of the second pitch it was smooth sailing to the top. Four hours later we returned to the ground with big smiles and the feeling of accomplishment. Never had either one of us spent Christmas day like this before. That night we treated our selves to a big meal including grilled fish, fried chicken and an assortment of noodles and vegetables. After stuffing our faces until or stomachs could not handle it any more we ventured down to the Thai massage place. We bought one another the best Christmas gift for any climber, back massages. An hour later, feeling like butter, we headed back to our bungalow where we crashed hard.

The next morning was a bit sad and surreal feeling. It was time to depart this beautiful place we had made home for the last 18 days. We had bought a ticket across the peninsula to visit a friend back from High Trails, Greg. Although excited to see a familiar face and hang out with a friend we found it hard to leave the crags and our daily routine of climbing. But as they say all good things must come to an end and so we headed down to the beach with all of our bags packed and waited for the long tail boat captain to give us the thumbs up once enough people had arrived. As we waited we reminisced about all the good times and wonderful people we had experienced in our time in Tonsai. We continued to gaze up at the walls that still surrounded us everywhere and day dreamed that we were still ascending them. Our day dreaming finally cut short as it was finally time to go. Only seven people out of the required eight needed to leave were there but several eager families decided to pay a little extra so that we could go ahead and get on the long tail headed back to main land. As we climbed into the boat reality hit that the chapter of Tonsai was coming to an end. We through our bags down in the front, found a seat, and smiled at one another knowing that we had made the most of our time there. The motor cranked up and deafened everyone as we cruised out of the bay. The rock walls started getting smaller and smaller and eventually fell out of our sights officially starting the next chapter of our Thailand adventure.  

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