View underhill Moonhill, one of the major tourist destinations and climbing crags in YangshuoThis is probably one of biggest adventures Miel and I have lined up after the month-long Thailand trip in 2005 (post-graduation). Going to Yangshuo has also been on our calendar since early last year. We already actually bought a ticket for an October 2007 trip. Unfortunately, Miel suffered an ACL injury maybe two months prior to that schedule, forcing us to cancel our bookings and postpone the trip to this year.
And so finally, it pushed through. One very obvious blessing of our trip’s postponement was how an international climbing festival was organized around the same time of our trip. The First North Face/Black Diamond Yangshuo Climbing Festival is an event open to any climber willing to travel to the area and pay the registration fee of HKD 300 (but HKD 200 for early birds, like us!) We couldn’t have been any happier to catch the event, especially being first-timers to Yangshuo, as we imagined it to be the perfect venue to acquaint ourselves with the climbing area while meeting many climbers along the way.
But getting our asses to Yangshuo was an adventure in itself already. Yangshuo is a town in the mountainous region of Guangxi Province. Since it is in the south of China with no airport (nearest airport is in Guilin City which is two hours drive away as well), we decided to take the cheaper route of flying to Hong Kong city, taking a train to the border, crossing the border to China, and taking a ten-hour bus from Shenzhen to Yangshuo. Our good friend from Hong Kong, June, was supposed to take this bus trip with us. Unfortunately she got caught up with work and couldn’t take the bus with us, allowing our adventure to start earlier than expected.
Thankfully, doing the border-cross and bus-station-search by ourselves wasn’t as bad as we expected. The bus was also a big surprise because it was the first “sleeper bus” I’ve ever seen – instead of bus seats, the it had bunk beds and pillows and comforters so you can truly sleep throughout the trip!
The first real challenge Miel and I faced was when the bus driver dropped us in the middle road somewhere in Yangshuo, around 6:30 in the morning, instead of the bus station which we were “briefed” to be left off. Lugging a big duffel each, and Miel carrying his board bag on one arm, walking around the streets with no person speaking English easily made both Miel and I tired and cranky. So we decided that only one of us should roam the streets to find our hotel, while another is left with all the bags. And we decided that I do the looking while he waits and plays with his PSP. Fair deal, I’d rather walk than sit, not doing anything.
Yet again, it turns out that we weren’t too far off the hotel. Just about 15 minutes walk away, I saw the bus stop (a reference point) and Fawlty Towers, the hotel where June booked all of us to stay at. So I immediately walked back to where Miel was waiting so we could lug our baggage some more and finally check in.
By the afternoon, we’ve figured out that Fawlty Towers is only a 2-minute walk away from West Street, which is the “center” of the town frequented by tourists (both local and foreign) and is packed with restaurants, bars, shopping stalls and backpackers’ hotels. We’ve also managed to find the climbing shops and registration area for the event – making me feel both comfortable and excited, finally seeing a handful of other climbers. Our first evening was quite uneventful, though, as the event briefing was not providing any new information from what we’ve already read in a bunch of flyers. But it wasn’t so bad either, because it meant we can sleep early and have adequate rest for the next day – our first day of climbing.
From Day 1 of climbing, everything just picked up. Being amidst many other climbers, regardless of nationality, age and language spoken, made me feel very positive and just focused on what I was in Yangshuo for, which was climbing. Despite the terrible weather (in the 10 days we were there, the sun only came out in two days), despite some locals ripping us off and charging us nonsense, despite the work emails I had to make in between, there was too much good going that I was only compelled to throw all the negative vibe to the wind and savor every moment.
Again, it would be difficult for me tell what happened every single minute of every single day (even if I was just ten days), but allow me to go into LIST FORMAT in sharing my favorite experiences/thoughts:
- The town was very easy to fall in love with. West Street, a very busy area packed with people, is enveloped by a beautiful scenery of mountains and mist. I keep saying it’s almost like Boracay with its shops and nightlife, except instead of beaches, you have mountains. And the weather is just fine for climbing! (Except when it’s raining, of course!)
- Excellent climbing, both in quantity and quality. Yanghsuo already has 33 crags, but with a gazillion more mountains left unexplored, I’m pretty sure that number can easily expand! The climbing areas are very accessible, with minimal hikes needed. Then the routes are just so, so good! I’ve never experienced getting on a natural line that has all types of hold in one: Crimps, slopers, jugs, pockets, doing face-climbing, laybacks, underclings – a single route that demands you to apply all kinds of climbing techniques! And I don’t think I’ve ever crimped as hard because I couldn’t feel my fingertips with the cold anymore! They’ve got all kinds of limestone – flat, sustained, clean/smooth, textured, overhanging, tufas, cracks…it seems to be all there. The place is so nice that we’re already planning a trip there next year. There’s just so much to experience and accomplish and work on, and there’s so much to learn in terms of climbing style and expanding one’s climbing experience!
- New friends made. On our first climbing day after the event, Miel and I rented a bike and found ourselves in a crag with some of the sponsored athletes who graced the event. By the end of the day, they were nice enough to invite us to climb with them the next day, and we’ve been hanging out with them for the rest of the trip. We developed a routine of meeting after breakfast, taking a van to and from the crag together, going home to freshen up, then having drinks before dinner, during dinner, and having dinner. They’re super nice and cool and talented and I hope to climb with them again in the future.
- There were so many new things to do and try out. It was endless. The food, the drinks, the shopping, the bargaining, the people – both climbers and non-climbers, the massage, the mode of transportation, the hikes, the weather…Every moment was an opportunity to learn about the local culture, and to reflect and appreciate your own.
SIGH. And it was just for ten days. Miel and I were both so bummed out when our last night came to a close, with the word BITTERSWEET plastered on my mind the whole time. It felt like just when were starting to get settled in with the weather, the climbing, and meeting more people to climb with, already we had to leave. So many other climbs to try and send, so many other good food to eat!
But all good things must come to an end. We have to hit the lows to feel the highs. And it just gives us more reason to come back to Yangshuo.
On the bigger scheme of things, it gives us more reason to celebrate this lifestyle we chose to live. This trip was one perfect reason of why we keep working hard, saving up, and why we keep finding ways to just go out there and climb.
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*Thanks to Joe for helping us get into the festival. Thanks to June for letting us crash in her HK apartment and introducing us to the "big" people. See you guys again soon!
**Pictures now up! Click here!
