Pro-Sports

I was skulking around the facebook sites of some local rock climbers when I saw a recent photo of Damai:

I almost didn’t recognise the place, if it weren’t for the fact that I remember the rock face so well…  In case, you’ve never seen what Damai used to look like, you can check out an old photo in my previous post.

It just goes to show how much can change over four years (which is about how long I’ve been away from outdoor rock climbing)…

I wonder how much more will change by the time Gavin’s ready to come outdoor rock climbing with me?

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I think of all the rock climbing expeditions I’ve ever been on with the Rockrats, my all-time favourite has got to be Gua Musang.  Although we had a lot of fun during all our climbing trips, this was by far the most relaxed because there were no expectations or a need to prove anything.  It was pure climbing for the enjoyment of the sport.

Gua Musang is located in the state of Kelantan in Taman Etnobotani.  It’s about 5 hours drive from Kuala  Lumpur and 3 hours by car from Kota Bharu.  I wasn’t the designated driver so I can’t really tell you how to get there, although there’s a description on Rock Climbing on how to get there.

There are dormatories located on site that you can stay at, but the nearest town is only a hop away so you have the option to stay there instead.  Even if you stay at Etnobotani, you’ll still need to drive to town to get food, unless you pack your own supplies. 

We were originally planning to stay on site but couldn’t find the caretakers so we ended up taking refuge in town.

Below: Simian Boy’s panorama.

One of the nicest features of Gua Musang is the ability to drive right up to the crag and park your car at the foot of Section A. 

Since the access is so easy, you can pack as much as you want (read: whatever fits into your car) and bring it along with you to crag - an eski full of beer if that’s your fancy.  You can bring along your camping chairs, or haul someone up to the anchor on top rope if they’re taking too long (just hook them up to the car and drive away - kidding!). 

If you’re bored, waiting for your turn to climb or just want something else to do, you can ride the horse in the nearby paddock.  Okay, just kidding.  I don’t even know if they offer rides or if the horse is still there since that was about 5 years back when we visited.

Gua Musang has five Sections - A to E.  We only managed to get time to climb Section A and C.  Section A is nice and easy with plenty of large, solid holds for you to take your pick from.  Grade ratings are all round 5B/C.  Section C was a bit more challenging, around about 6A/B. 

You can see from the photos that the belay stations for Section A and C are all pretty clear.  Section D which is the wall facing Section C (to the left of the photo above) shares the same belay area as Section C, but the routes look a lot tougher.  We didn’t get to climb Section D, but I think someone attempted one of the routes, albeit unsuccessfully.  Thin Man and I hiked around to check out Section E which had some pretty wicked looking routes that we talked about coming back to try when we were “better climbers”.  Unfortunately, that was my first and last trip back to Gua Musang.

There are also some pretty cool boulders slightly deeper in from Section C and D that are pretty interesting to boulder.  The ground cover is clean so they provide a pretty good area for some beginner bouldering.

Taman Etnobotani is also a training ground so they have an obstacle course in the park that you can try out for free. Well, it was free back in 2003.  I’m not sure if it’s still free now.

Stay tuned for the next post for the Rockrats’ Gua Musang 2003 trip report.

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There is a route over in Ridsect, Nyamuk, called 800 Bucks Down the Hill.  If you ever wondered why it was dubbed so, this is the tale behind the name…

Sometime towards mid-to-late 2003, the Rockrats decided to learn how to bolt a route.  Under the expert tutelage of route bolter Patrick Andre (whom you will have noticed bolted many, if not most, of the routes in Nyamuk), we set out to Ridsect - a relatively new section of Nyamuk that Patrick was trying to establish at the time. 

From the Rockrats were Holdbreaker, Thin Man, Moo Moo, Lelek Le Grunt, Simian Boy and Combat Girl.  Accompanied by Kevin and Patrick, himself, we set out early that day to accomplish as much as possible.  After briefing us on the tasks involved, Patrick got started setting up the ropes, while the rest of us set to work clearing up the place.

As you can see from the brambles behind Patrick, there was a lot to clean up (and if you think the wall was bad, you should see the ground).  Here’s a shot of Simian Boy trying to clear the access path to the base of the crag.

The belay area is a narrow strip of land with a natural drain between it and the wall and a downward sloping hill covered with brambles behind it.  The picture below should give you a fair idea of what the ground coverage was like:

While we were clearing up, some of the Rockrats got a little distracted and started goofing around.

Below: “Stick ‘em up and gimme all your gear!”  Thin Man threatening to slice Le Grunt and Moo Moo if they didn’t hand over all their rock climbing gear.

After a while, Thin Man decides he’s going to get rid of the evidence - Le Grunt about to be beheaded by one of the bluntest parangs around.

Figuring it was going to get messy and not wanting to have to clean up, he made Le Grunt lean over into the “drain” between the wall and the belay area.

Below: Private Moo gets her hands on a glue gun and starts blasting anyone and everyone in sight.

Lelek Le Grunt runs for cover but is cornered by Private Moo.  She kicks him into the drain…

…”Gimme all your gear or I’ll blast your head off!”

Meanwhile, some real work is being done by Kevin who is setting up a rope to bolt a route that would later be known as Otesanek (the route right of 800 Bucks Down the Hill). 

The FA of Otesanek was by Patrick Andre.  He named the route Otesanek after a story about a couple who so badly wanted a baby that the husband carved a baby out of wood (there’s more to the story but I can’t really remember any more - you’ll have to ask Patrick himself to relate it to you).  Otesanek has some tree roots running along it which reminded him of the wooden baby, hence the name.  You can see the tree root in this picture - it’s the long brown root at the right most part of the photo (it is also extremely tempting to use the root as you get towards the anchor).

I’ll tell you a little more about how to bolt a route in the next post.  This one’s about the route 800 Bucks Down the Hill.

After Patrick teaches us how to bolt a route using Otesanek as an example, we get to work on 800 Bucks Down the Hill.  We all get a chance to climb the route on top rope first and naturally Hold Breaker had to live up to his alias and break off a piece just as he’s getting started…

Le Grunt lives up to his name spitting curses all the way up:

I got the task of marking the spots where we would place bolts and Thin Man did the bolting using a battery powered drill.  Halfway up, the battery ran out so he had to send down the battery and get the spare sent up to him.  While sending down the battery, it fell out and rolled down the hill into the brambles.  We spent the rest of the day combing the brambles for the battery (not that we could do very much without being shredded to pieces).

Below:  The Rockrats combing the area for the battery.  Unfortunately, it rolled into the brambles and although Simian Boy eventually found it, it was out of our reach.

Since the drill belonged to Yuen Li from Summit Climbing Gym, we ended up having to buy a new battery for her which costed us 800 bucks.  Hence the name 800 Bucks Down the Hill - it was coined by the Rockrats, even though the FA was completed by Thin Man. 

And now you know the story behind 800 Bucks Down the Hill…

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I found some old trip reports from our climbing trip to Singapore in 2003 written by the Thin Man and Lelek le Grunt.  Lelek le Grunt’s report is rather comical, actually.  It is a pity Simian Boy didn’t write anything - his trip reports are always good for a laugh, too.

From Thin Man:

Day 1: Artificial wall climbing at SAFRA Yishun.

Excellent enterprise climbing walls with some very long, pumpy, overhanging routes. The walls are set up right smack under the sun, which means it can get pretty blistering hot in the late mornings. Everybody had good fun and performed well on the challenging routes.

Later on, went shopping for climbing shoes and gear. There’s a lot more selection here as compared to KL, and the prices are pretty decent as well.

Below: Cinderella’s ugly step-sister (aka Fearless Leader trying on a pair of climbing shoes at All Sports)

At night, we were back at JB for MooMoo’s house-warming dinner where we stuffed ourselves crazy!

Day 2: Outdoor climbing at Dairy Farm, Bukit Timah

Most of us wouldn’t have guessed, but right smack in the concrete jungles of Singapore is a natural park with very well-maintained hiking and biking trails. Managed to explore some really interesting bolted routes. The climbing gang had a field day testing themselves out against some of the more challenging routes and I guess everybody left with some unfinished business

Spent the night at JB, watched a late-night movie, and then an even later mamak session before trudging home for a couple of hours of sleep.

In all, another fun-filled climbing trip in the record books for the climbing RockRats.

From Lelek le Grunt:

I’m just filling out the blanks…

Day 0, Lai runs out of petrol again. Whatever happened to “I dont make the same mistake twice”?

Day 1, pick up Holdbreakers goods at his suppliers place (me reading map in the car), then on to Allsports and campers (me still reading map in car, getting sick), finally attempted to go to wisma atria to get some goods for mumsie (me still reading map, getting even more sick) gave up because of lack of time and head back over to MooMoos place in JB for makan (Me finally giving up the map reading and conking out in the backseat. Lucky didn’t puke.)

Day 2, Adrian takes a massive dump somewhere off the trail. 2 or 3 days worth if I’m not mistaken. Heres the sequence of events. Leaves car, walkes up trail with the rest of us, feels the urge, turns around, searches for toilet paper, can’t find it, runs back up the trail, asks moomoo where the TP is, gets told its in the glove box (the only place he didn’t look), says “DOH!” in the exact same manner as lai when he found his safety was locked on his harness, gets some tiny piece of tissue paper from Richard, runs back to car, doesnt make it, jumps into the bushes, says “aaaaahhhhhhh”…..

Also on Day 2 was this b**** (edited) of a slab climb. Its a nice 6a all the way to the bloody 1 foot crux move. Yes, just 1 FOOT! And that 1 foot is a 6C by general consensus. A mini matchstick width micro edge to stand on, a sloping mini crimp for the left hand and abslutly nothing for the right hand. Kenneth leads for us, but chickens out and swings over to the scramble on the left to finish the route to set up top rope for the rest of us. Next was yours truly. Hung for a bloody long time and finally managed to haul my sorry ass over the lip using my left foot all the way to the left. (cheating?) Next was Coverboy who tried and tried and tried, but finally asked for a haul. Well, 1 foot of hauling was all it took. Next was holdbreaker who had the same results. Sim tried and didnt make it either. Came off the climb and was royally pissed with us when we told him non of us made it up either. Shen managed to haul herself over the lip after some long hanging and cranking.!

Dunno how she did it though. 5C master tried and made it. All the way to the first bolt, which was his goal for the day. After that, feeling brave, he went on to the crux and died, with the rest of us.

Oh yeah, somewhere around that time, Thin man and Shameless were attempting this deceptively easy looking climb. I heard grunts and moans from thin man that rivalled mine! Later when Shameless was trying, Ho ho, it was a funny sight to look over and see lai swinging out. Look over again, and lai swings out again. In fact, everytime we looked over, we could see lai swinging out… Lai, that was by far, your most shameless performance ever. Runners were pulled, bolts were stepped on… and the best… oh man, pull on the runner, clip in to the bolt using the safety, unclip the runner, reach up and clip the runner into the next bolt, unclip safety, pull on newly clipped in runner…

Hmmm, dun forget the huge cinema we went to, when we were late. I remember someone saying “Hey, we are probbably 90% of the audience, can they delay just for us ar?” Turns out we actually WERE 90% of the audience. They didn’t delay for us though, we missed the starting. We also missed the ending because some lazy prick of a projector operator cut off the last bits of the show just so he could go home.

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Okay, I promised to write about the Rockrats’ trip to Dairy Farm and here it is - a little late, but better than never…

I’m not really sure if it’s still open to climbing, or if it still exists (2003 was a long time ago, although I did go back subsequently in 2004).  As far as I know, it should be there, but I suppose you can ask at any one of the rock climbing gyms in Singapore to find out more. 

As for how to get there, here’s a map, courtesy of our Singaporean climber friend, Ken:

And his directions on how to get there (which I still have up until now - I never could part with my old junk and guess it comes in handy after all…):

1. Take BKE and exit at Dairy Farm Road.
2. When you see Dairy Farm Estate to your right, look out for a small broken tarmac road with a barrier denying entrance to the road (red star on Dairy Farm map).

You can park there but don’t obstruct traffic. Alternatively there should be parking a few meters down just before the road junction to Upper Bukit Timah Road.

Dairy Farm is an abandoned granite quarry that has been converted to a leisure park where Singaporeans can take their pets, go for walks and ride their bikes surrounded by greenery as opposed to the urban concrete jungle that fills up most of the island.  Dairy Farm contains natural and sport routes, although there have been a few accidents which put off a lot of climbers.  It might be wise to note that a lot of what I write here was true back in 2003-2004, but it’s been 4 years plus so a lot might have changed since.

What I liked most about Dairy Farm was climbing on granite.  A lot of granite routes are pretty slabby - just the kind of wall to turn on a slab climber like me.

So what does Dairy Farm look like?  Here are some pictures from our trip…

After you pass the barrier, there is a short walk to the entrance to the quarry as shown in the two pictures below.

Dairy Farm is basically like a big field surrounded by rock cliffs.  They have bolted and natural routes which you can read about on Rockclimbing.com, but I believe one of the more popular natural routes was called, “The Nose”.  There was an accident on “The Nose” which I heard about a few years back and I think the accident made a lot of climbers wary of climbing at Dairy Farm.

By the time we arrived, the Singaporean climbers were already warmed up with lots of climbing action going on.  Below is the first wall we visited - it’s a close up of the wall you see in the picture above.

We set up belay at another wall near a crack climb and a route called “Mermaid” which I was later to get acquainted with.  Here’s Simian boy with a canine friend.

Ken took the lead with a rather featureless, slabby route (check out the crack climb on the wall beside him - it’s a natural route so we couldn’t try it since none of us had natural pro)…

…while the rest of us watched with baited breath.

Then each of us took turns attempting this slabby route, with Holdbreaker leading the way (sort of looks like he broke off a feature from an already featureless face).

Then it was Lelek Le Grunt’s turn.

Meanwhile, Thin Man leads a second route.

He gets conned into stepping on the tree by sneaky Simian Boy who convinces him it’s not really cheating only to tell him he’s lost his flash after his foot connects with the tree.

Then I second it.

A Top-down view of the site we were climbing at:

My attempt on Mermaid:

I liked Mermaid because it was a route that required grace more than power.  It was tricky but possible and with each attempt, I got further.

Until I finally managed to clear the first part.

Thin Man tackled his first ever 6C route on top rope.  Only he and Fearless Leader had a chance to attempt this route.  Some climber was projecting this route because there was a piece of string threaded through the anchor that allowed us to put up a top rope without having to lead it.

Thin Man almost at the anchor.

Fearless Leader on belay and me taking a break before my final crack at Mermaid.

Moo Moo having a chat with Simian Boy’s canine friend.

I located an entry I wrote about our little excursion to Dairy Farm that I completely forgot all about. 

Dairy Farm is a beautiful glade surrounded by climbable rock formations. It feels like entering a portal into a different realm from the concrete jungle city of Singapore. At the wall that we climbed, I felt rather reminiscent of the Australian outback. It was so picturesque, I felt content to never leave. I wished we could have stayed there longer to climb more of the sites.

There were two routes I wanted to lead, but the fear gripped my heart and stopped me in my tracks. I wondered why because I was not afraid the night before. I thought that by now it would be easier to climb with reckless abandon because there was no longer anything to hold me back. Patric wanted to solo a scramble to set the rope for us, but I felt distinctly uncomfortable watching him scale higher and higher without the proper gear. I was not sure why I felt protective because a part of me felt that it should have been me up there, instead of him. In the end it was Kenneth who set up the rope – climbing the conventional way. Even then I could feel my breathing stop when I watched him at the crux.

My first climb was set up by some Caucasians. I thought they might have been from Australia because I heard them talking about an Australian Math syllabus. The accent wasn’t Australian, but content of the discussion felt distinctly so. They threaded my rope through the anchor so I wouldn’t have to lead. The funny thing about granite is that the holds are difficult to see from the ground and the climb looked much harder than it felt. I think I could have led the route, but unfortunately, I lacked the mental for it.

I followed David up another route to the left, stopped short of the crux and bailed. It was a nice climb, but no guts and no glory for me. Just as well because I later went back to it on top rope and found myself peeling off the crux countless times. In all, this wall felt like it was created for me. It was the kind of climbing I liked – like “1st July Special” at Whitewall – a lot of footwork to supplement the fingers so my arms never feel pumped.

Some very loud cries drew me down to watch the Thin Man work a 6C route. Sitting on that rock, I could feel the serene energy of the vale pervade my very essence. Each breath I took revitalized me as energy seeping into every last inch of my body. I closed my eyes, focusing my mind, tried to send some of this renewed power surging within me to the Thin Man. Don’t know if it helped, because I went back up after to have a crack at the “Mermaid”.

I liked the “Mermaid”. It’s challenging because it requires balance rather than power. All the moves are within my physical ability to achieve rather than some crank move beyond my muscle capacity.

The Rockrats at Dairy Farm.

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Here are more photos from the archives of the Rockrats.  These are from our first trip down to Singapore to climb, which I believe was in August, 2003.  I remember because we went down in 3 cars and someone had this wise idea of sticking Merdeka flags to our cars.  The glue wasn’t very strong, so the flags were gone by the time we arrived in Singapore.

We planned the trip after meeting a bunch of Singaporean climbers who came up to Damai to climb one weekend.  They invited us down to climb in Singapore giving us details of two places that they frequent - Safra Yishun, which is an outdoor artificial wall, and Dairy Farm, which is a natural granite quarry turned recreational park.

I’ll post the photos from Dairy Farm in another post.  Below are the ones from Safra Yishun…

There are two sections to the place - a boulder wall and a vertical climbing wall.  You can see why the Singaporean climbers are all so strong - every single wall has an incline of some sort.

Here’s a view of the vertical wall with the boulder wall in the background.  It’s a shot from the beginner’s side with the power routes on the back.  You’ll notice that even the so-called “easy” routes have inclined sections. 

Here’s a shot of the power routes:

Jugs or no jugs, these walls are still a challenge to climb - especially when you’re a slab climber like me…

Here is Fearless Leader seconding for a change:

And 5C Master on the not-so-5C route:

This shot was taken after my very painful climb to the top of the overhang.  I gotta thank Ken setting up the top rope and for hauling my behind up the rest of the way…

How to get to Safra Yishun from Woodlands Checkpoint (thanks Ken for the directions):

1. Take SLE and exit at Yishun (exit 3)
2. Turn left into Lentor Avenue
3. At the next traffic junction turn right into Yiahun Avenue 1
4. Take the next left turn, into Yishun Avenue 4
5. Continue until you see SAFRA Yishun. Turn right into carpark (marked with red star on attached map).
6. After parking, proceed to main reception on ground floor (near the huge staircase).
7. Pay S$10 climbing fee
8. Walk up the stairs and across the suspension bridge to the climbing walls.
9. Present receipt at office.

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Since I haven’t been working out at all and have nothing much to report on the fitness front, I decided to take another trip down memory lane with a few old photos.  Over the last week, I was down with a touch of some stomach bug which left me unable to eat.  Needless to say, I lose a few kilos while my stomach squirmed at the thought of eating.  Since then, I’ve been actively putting them back with a couple of midnight forages, polishing off my chocolate stash in the refrigerator that will soon need replenishing.

During my brief adventure stint, I only even went caving twice.  The first trip was to the Dark Caves near the main Batu Cave Temple.  The second trip took place some two years later when I finally managed to drag myself away from the crag long enough to do something other than rock climbing. 

Gua Batu Maloi isn’t a true cave per se, but it is a series of fallen rocks that form a covered area that can at times appear to be cave-like.  During the wet season, the water levels can be quite high, so it is wise to get an experienced guide if you’d like to experience this particular little adventure.

The day began with a bit of breakfast near Sunway Pyramid with our guide, the Mountain Goat and his side kick:

I came along for the ride.  You can glimpse the pyramid behind me:

Here’s the rest of the crew:

The path towards the “caves”:

The first bat cave: 

Waterfalls:

A little 5C climbing required to get through the natural obstacle course: 

Swimwear is a great idea, since it can get pretty wet in there.

Taking a bit of a breather while we wait for the others to catch up.

Getting out of the caves is made a little easier with a helping hand.

Another break and some food before a bit of trekking.

More of the crew just chilling. 

The only way is up. 

So I did get a chance to put my climbing skills into practice after all… 

Washing up by the river at the end of the trip.

The short ride home at the end of the day.

All in all, the experience was enjoyable.  It wasn’t a particularly tough trek, nor a very challenging cave, but it is great for a bit of light fun for those with an adventurous spirit.  You don’t need a high level of fitness to make it either, but I highly recommend getting a guide.

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These came from Thin Man way back when we were rock climbing addicts. We used to collect anything and everything that would inspire us to climb harder and better. I kept these photos because looking at them used to make my palms sweat. Heck! It still does…

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Ever wondered how Gollum got so good at rock climbing in Lord of the Rings? Well, we got the scoop. Here’s a shot of him in training in secret:

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P and E recently discovered the great outdoors of rock climbing at Damai in Batu Caves. After looking at their photos, I suddenly felt reminiscent of the old days. Damai was also the first place I climbed at when I first started rock climbing outdoors. It was where I first discovered my interest for rock climbing ran deeper than surface level and I went head over heels into a rather intense two year affair with the rocks.

I managed to dig up some of my old photos of my first days rock climbing at Damai. There were lots of kidding around because we got rained out.

In one of the photos, I was admiring S’s gear as she took us through the basics. I remember thinking to myself that I was going to be like her one day, looking through my own rack like an old friend. A couple of weeks later I bought my first set of rock climbing gear.

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