TNA-GOLD 1/TNA-GOLD - Volume 1.iso/24hours/michael_.txt

INI File | 1996-03-11 | 10KB | 156 lines

[Prev|Next|Index] Thu, Feb 22, 1996 Michael Calnan

Hot Thai climbing

     By Michael Calnan

     Hot Thai Climbing Sharing Experiences on the Internet Michael
     Calnan

     This winter I decided to spend Christmas in Thailand. I was
     looking for a place where rock climbing could be mixed with some
     other activity (such as snorkeling) in a comfortable climate
     where food and accomodation were cheap. One look at the pictures
     in the climbing guide for Thailand told me it would be the place.
     In order to get cheap airfare you can't travel between December
     15th and January 15th. I was able to get a ticket for $812 round
     trip San Diego-Bangkok departing December 11th and returning
     January 16th. Anabel thought this sounded like a good idea as
     well and decided to accompany me. We packed very little besides
     snorkeling and rock climbing gear. For me that was a pair of
     sandals, two t-shirts, two pairs of shorts, one pair of jeans and
     a sweat shirt. No jackets, no rain coats, no shoes or socks.

     We actually landed in Bangkok on the 13th, having lost a day to
     the international date line. We spent the next day doing the
     quickie tour and learning the ins and outs of using the river
     boats to travel as road traffic is at a standstill for most of
     the time in Bangkok. It took us three hours to get to Khao San
     Road from the airport on the #59 bus in the middle of the day. We
     never wanted to get on another city bus again. One day in Bangkok
     was enough and we shipped out on the overnight bus to Krabi that
     evening. The bus carried us and 40 some odd other foreigners from
     Khao San Road to Surat Thani departing at 6 PM and arriving at 6
     AM. The airconditioning on these buses either doesn't work, as
     was the case on the trip down, or freezes you to death, as was
     the case on the trip back 5 weeks later. From Surat Thani we
     split up and those of us continuing on to Krabi were put in a
     minivan for 4 hours. Arriving in Krabi we took a long-tailed boat
     over to Phra Nang after being sold two nights accomodation for
     800 Baht, much more than I had hoped to spend. We were told that
     we risked not finding a vacant bungalow if we didn't reserve in
     advance. I was skeptical but didn't want to take the risk of
     being wrong so I went for it. As it turns out I saw many cases of
     people arriving and not being able to find a bungalow during my 3
     1/2 weeks at Phra Nang. We were able to move into a bungalow for
     200 Baht/night ($8) a few days later.

     The climbing scene at Phra Nang is BIG. Lots of climbers come
     from all over the world and stay for months on end to climb
     wildly overhanging limestone dripping with stalactites. Within
     hours of arriving we had already seen the three climbing shops
     and were climbing at the most accessible area, just 100 yards
     down the beach from our bungalow. We joined the crowd at the Muai
     Thai and 1-2-3 climbing areas whose routes are popular with
     beginners and are used by the local climbing guides for
     instruction. In 3 1/2 weeks I climbed with numerous partners in
     most of the climbing areas in Phra Nang. I spent Christmas day
     climbing with Mike Gardner from San Diego who was on vacation
     with his family. No area was more than 30 minutes walk from the
     bungalow. The tides and exposure to the sun dictated when and
     where to climb. Some areas needed a low tide in the afternoon to
     be both accessible and in the shade, others needed the low tide
     in the morning. We did them all. I onsighted routes ranging from
     5 to 7A+, attempted up to 7C, fell on a 6B+, dogged 6Cs, took a
     25 footer on a 6C+ when a hold broke pulling over the roof. I
     chimneyed and monkeyed up stalactites and pulled pockets on roofs
     and smooth faces. I rapped into space off double 60 m ropes and
     saw my ATC fly into the sea, only to get it back a few days later
     from a new climbing partner who had found it snorkeling. I had
     two 50 m raps into boats and dripping wet ropes. There was enough
     climbing to stay busy for months at Phra Nang. New routes were
     going up and old ones were being rebolted constantly.

     During our time on Phra Nang we made several trips to the outer
     islands to snorkel as the visibility near the mainland was poor.
     We saw Leopard and Black-tipped Reef sharks, sea snakes and
     countless trigger, parrot, butterfly, what-have-you fish. The
     Andaman Sea is alive with colorful fish. I made several long
     swims with mask and snorkel to burn off some excess calories,
     swimming from one beach to another around the penninsula.

     After New Years we made the tough move to Koh Phi Phi, tough
     because you become comfortable where you are and with the people
     you're hanging around with. We packed up and caught the 9 AM
     ferry to Koh Phi Phi on January 6th and docked at Koh Phi Phi at
     10:30 AM. Within minutes I had stumbed upon my next climbing
     partner, Eric from Boulder. He was sitting on a lounge chair
     looking out at Ton Sai Bay with his camera. One look at his
     forearms told me what he did for fun. He pointed out the way to
     the 200 Baht/night bungalows and we agreed to talk that evening.
     After a tour down the beach and up through town I jumped into the
     water for a snorkel. The coral and fish in Ton Sai Bay were
     fantastic. I walked for about 20 minutes along the west side of
     the bay, passing a troup of monkeys scouring the rocks at low
     tide, and made my way out over the reef. I snorkeled down to the
     Hin Taak climbing area where I saw the local guide, a Frenchman
     named Michel from Haute Savoie, with four clients. I knew who he
     was without ever meeting him as the downtown area was plastered
     with his advertisements. I was to bump into Michel every day of
     my stay on Koh Phi Phi, small place.

     Eric and I started out with a trip to Phi Phi Leh, the
     uninhabited island to the south of Phi Phi Don, where we were
     staying. 700 Baht ($28) got us a boat for 7 hours. Anabel joined
     us as a videotographer and belay slave. Eric's main interest was
     to take photos for an article he was planning to write for
     Climbing magazine when he got back. We climbed several routes at
     the Pileh and Maya Bay areas, Eric got his photos, and then got
     down to some serious snorkeling spotting more sharks and some
     large grouper amongst the coral. We partied until late, snorkeled
     mornings and climbed in the afternoon for the rest of the trip.
     The grand finale was a full day boat trip that started with
     exploring the sea caves under the Monkey Head rock. I got down to
     35 feet on a 65 second dive. I was happy that my ears were
     finally clearing easily as they had been difficult to clear for
     most of the trip. I was able to dive to 30 feet many times with
     no problem but couldn't match my record of 50 feet from almost 13
     years before. We ended the day on four pitch route on the Monkey
     Head with a 6C crux and a full 50 meter free rappel into the
     boat. Anabel videoed as Eric, Blandine and myself ambled up. This
     time it was Eric who dropped his ATC in the sea, only to be
     recovered a little later by a German snorkeler who happened by.
     He clipped it onto the carabiner I lowered to him on the end of
     one rope while Blandine belayed Eric on the other.

     Our trip back to Bangkok was the reverse of the trip down,
     departed Koh Phi Phi at 1 PM, on the bus at 3 PM, arrive at Khao
     San Road in Bangkok at 6 AM. We hit the bars on Patpong Road on
     our last night there, prepared to go until the sun came up but
     all the bars closed at 1 AM due to some problem with the police
     that started a month ago. We ended the night, sadly, at the big
     McDonalds on Silom Road before taking a Tuk-tuk back to our guest
     house. The trip to the airport the next day was aided by two
     veterans we met at the guest house who told us how to get there
     using the taxi boat and the train. The boat stopped on a canal
     only 100 meters from the guest house. The trip took 1 1/2 hours
     and cost 10 Baht ($0.40), much better than the #59 bus.

     We had a great time climbing and snorkeling in Thailand. The
     people there are easy going and don't give you hassles, the food
     and accomodation are cheap. The beaches are covered in topless
     european beauties and tanned hunks during the day and the bars
     are packed with better dressed versions of the same at night. The
     climate is mild, not too hot or too cold, the water perfect for
     swimming. We needed to cover ourselves with a sheet some nights.
     Mosquitoes attack at sunset and during the day in cool damp
     places so be prepared, a mosquito net is a must and is provided
     along with the bungalow. The 5 week trip cost me about $1600
     including airfare and would have been much less if I didn't like
     Singha so much! There is never a problem finding a climbing
     partner if you have a rope and draws. Get down there if you
     haven't been.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
                     [Twenty-Four Hours of Democracy]