Rock Jocks

On the last post I left off somewhere between Koh Tao and Krabi.

To finish my previous thoughts on Koh Tao, I had a good scuba dive there as well as some world-class snorkeling. The snorkeling took place on a coral reef called ‘Japanese Gardens’. The coral is huge and brain-shaped, and I have never seen such large quantities of fish, all different varieties and colours.

I have now been living on the beaches nearby to Krabi, Thailand for 4 days. There are two beautiful beaches that are very built up for tourists (ie. Large hotels, expensive restaurants, bars, McDonald’s), and then one quiet one nestled right in the middle. I’m in the quiet one, called Ton Sai.

As people here tell me, Ton Sai is rated one of the top 5 rock climbing sites in the world. There are a lot of climbers just living here for weeks or months at a time, climbing every day.

I have done very little rock climbing previously, but I wouldn't miss a chance to participate in the action. I joined a beginner course where we spent a morning testing our mettle on the cliffs.

I am amazed at how much concentration and mental power is required to rock climb. After the course I was both physically and mentally drained, and spent the rest of the day lounging on the beach. I really, really enjoyed myself, however, and am looking forward to my next opportunity to do more climbing.

The other activity that’s popular on Ton Sai is Ocean Kayaking, due to the beautiful cliffs surrounding the beaches. I took the kayak out today and enjoyed the sun, warm water, scenery, and clean sandy beaches.

There are a couple of caves in the sides of the cliffs that you can kayak right through!

I had a great rock climbing experience, largely due to the excellent people at Basecamp Tonsai (whom I took my course with). These guys literally wrote the rock climbing guide book for the area!