Update from Downunder
Okay, its been a while since I've posted up here. I've emailed some of you guys, so you've probably read some of this already. Right now I'm in Christchurch in New Zealand and I'm about 12 hours ahead of home, how cool is that. So is this what it feels like to be in the future, its FREEZING!!! To give oyu an idea, they tell you not to use your handbrakes, cause they freeze and get stuck. I'm hoping that means that it is going to snow bucket loads and then I'm going to hit the slopes with my board, I can't wait.
I've been a few places since I last wrote on this. After the Blue Mountains we went camping in this place called Nowra, a few hours drive south of Sydney along the coast. The campsite is great, its right along this river and they have this small little pier that sticks out into the river, its nice to sit there in the morning while I'm trying to wake up and listening to all the birds. There is an animal park right next to the campsite and they have about a dozen peacocks that come prancing round the campsite and try steal your breakfast. If its not a possum or a kookabara, then its something else, basically if you're camping in Oz, remember that anything edible had legs and needs to be tied down, or eaten quickly.
I can throw a boomerang!!! and catch it!!!! Its so much fun, even though it clobbered my fingers a few times before I got it.
Sorry to all the guys that don't understand climbing terms, I'll try get a glossary or something up for you guys soon. Got some cool climbing there after resting my fingers for a few days. I got my second 7b!!!! I wasn't expecting to get it, just had a really good day, was climbing with this Australian guy Jason and he put me on this route as a warm up, and its all uphill from there. I got it on my third go too. Its got this crazy move at the crux, you have to reach up for this small crimp from an undercling and then grab this tiny little crystal sticking out the rock with your left hand and then jump from there to this sloper, then match hands on the sloper and jump again with your right hand for another hold that isn't really good at all, but at least its a bit bigger. All this while you're 3 metres above your last bolt, so you take a nice big swing if you miss the hold your jumping for. I had fun getting it :D
A few days later we were climbing at another crag straight across the river from the campsite, it looks cool. Climbing is a different style here, its not steep and overhanging so they're a lot more technical. Me and Julie-Ann decided we were going to try do 10 routes in a day and every route we tried was a gem, just fun to climb even the really easy ones. We decided that the next day we were going to hire canoes with Liz and Jo (other climbers that we met along the way) and paddle across the river from camp instead of the 20 minute drive down river to the bridge and through town. Sitting in traffic lights just doesn't do it for us ;)
Next day we woke up all excited about going canoeing and climbing and it was bucketing down with rain :( And it was our last day climbing in that area, I'm sure NZ has got tonnes of adventure just waiting to be found.
While in Nowra I went up to Sydney for the day with Sean and Ryan. Sean gave me a tour around the city. It feels so surreal to finally see and touch (just to make sure its real, you know) the Sydney Opera House. The whole harbour is awesome to see, took tonnes of photos.
The drive back down to Melbourne was good, we took a more scenic route that the main highway and drove through some cool forests. There had been tonnes of rain in the area over the last week, including flooding rivers just North of Sydney where Jason was from cause blackouts, unfortunatly his work was still powered, poor guy. So these construction guys were out cutting down some trees next to the road. Normally I'd imagine a few guys out with chainsaws and a few more guys holding up the traffic, but no, why not use a big hydroilic digger if you have one, man that thing was taking those trees down like a kid snapping twigs. It was scary how quickly he took down 5 trees, I'm definatly not messing with one of those things on the road.
The forest was awesome though, really worth the drive through, it was cool to see it in all the mist as well, added to the whole atmosphere, I'd love to come back in the summer and go for a hike through it.
We stopped in Melbourne to put up a for sale sign for our car and then drove straigh out to the Grampians. Neil and Sean each have a project climb that they want to try get. Neil is working his 8a Kualas and Sean is working this 7c Chasing the Shadows. I decided to hop onto the 7c as well to see how I'd do and I could get all the moves, but just didn't have the endurance to put them all together. Something else to do in the summer, should be a busy summer if things go well. By the end of the week out there Neil had almost got his 8a and Sean almost got his 7c, just needed a few more days as always, but it was getting quite cold, my fingers were starting to go numb when I tried climbing the cold rock, it was very frustrating.
So we decided it was time to say good bye to the Grampians and head to Melbourne to try sell the car before we head to New Zealand. Me and Sean were really lucky, we stayed with my cousin Owen in his appartment on the 16th floor of the docklands looking over all the city lights was pure luxary.
So now I'm in New Zealand and we're off to explore Tolkeins world of the Lord of the Rings as true adventurers and have a go at some bouldering if its not too cold up there (wishful thinking)
I've been a few places since I last wrote on this. After the Blue Mountains we went camping in this place called Nowra, a few hours drive south of Sydney along the coast. The campsite is great, its right along this river and they have this small little pier that sticks out into the river, its nice to sit there in the morning while I'm trying to wake up and listening to all the birds. There is an animal park right next to the campsite and they have about a dozen peacocks that come prancing round the campsite and try steal your breakfast. If its not a possum or a kookabara, then its something else, basically if you're camping in Oz, remember that anything edible had legs and needs to be tied down, or eaten quickly.
I can throw a boomerang!!! and catch it!!!! Its so much fun, even though it clobbered my fingers a few times before I got it.
Sorry to all the guys that don't understand climbing terms, I'll try get a glossary or something up for you guys soon. Got some cool climbing there after resting my fingers for a few days. I got my second 7b!!!! I wasn't expecting to get it, just had a really good day, was climbing with this Australian guy Jason and he put me on this route as a warm up, and its all uphill from there. I got it on my third go too. Its got this crazy move at the crux, you have to reach up for this small crimp from an undercling and then grab this tiny little crystal sticking out the rock with your left hand and then jump from there to this sloper, then match hands on the sloper and jump again with your right hand for another hold that isn't really good at all, but at least its a bit bigger. All this while you're 3 metres above your last bolt, so you take a nice big swing if you miss the hold your jumping for. I had fun getting it :D
A few days later we were climbing at another crag straight across the river from the campsite, it looks cool. Climbing is a different style here, its not steep and overhanging so they're a lot more technical. Me and Julie-Ann decided we were going to try do 10 routes in a day and every route we tried was a gem, just fun to climb even the really easy ones. We decided that the next day we were going to hire canoes with Liz and Jo (other climbers that we met along the way) and paddle across the river from camp instead of the 20 minute drive down river to the bridge and through town. Sitting in traffic lights just doesn't do it for us ;)
Next day we woke up all excited about going canoeing and climbing and it was bucketing down with rain :( And it was our last day climbing in that area, I'm sure NZ has got tonnes of adventure just waiting to be found.
While in Nowra I went up to Sydney for the day with Sean and Ryan. Sean gave me a tour around the city. It feels so surreal to finally see and touch (just to make sure its real, you know) the Sydney Opera House. The whole harbour is awesome to see, took tonnes of photos.
The drive back down to Melbourne was good, we took a more scenic route that the main highway and drove through some cool forests. There had been tonnes of rain in the area over the last week, including flooding rivers just North of Sydney where Jason was from cause blackouts, unfortunatly his work was still powered, poor guy. So these construction guys were out cutting down some trees next to the road. Normally I'd imagine a few guys out with chainsaws and a few more guys holding up the traffic, but no, why not use a big hydroilic digger if you have one, man that thing was taking those trees down like a kid snapping twigs. It was scary how quickly he took down 5 trees, I'm definatly not messing with one of those things on the road.
The forest was awesome though, really worth the drive through, it was cool to see it in all the mist as well, added to the whole atmosphere, I'd love to come back in the summer and go for a hike through it.
We stopped in Melbourne to put up a for sale sign for our car and then drove straigh out to the Grampians. Neil and Sean each have a project climb that they want to try get. Neil is working his 8a Kualas and Sean is working this 7c Chasing the Shadows. I decided to hop onto the 7c as well to see how I'd do and I could get all the moves, but just didn't have the endurance to put them all together. Something else to do in the summer, should be a busy summer if things go well. By the end of the week out there Neil had almost got his 8a and Sean almost got his 7c, just needed a few more days as always, but it was getting quite cold, my fingers were starting to go numb when I tried climbing the cold rock, it was very frustrating.
So we decided it was time to say good bye to the Grampians and head to Melbourne to try sell the car before we head to New Zealand. Me and Sean were really lucky, we stayed with my cousin Owen in his appartment on the 16th floor of the docklands looking over all the city lights was pure luxary.
So now I'm in New Zealand and we're off to explore Tolkeins world of the Lord of the Rings as true adventurers and have a go at some bouldering if its not too cold up there (wishful thinking)
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