UKC

Hi,
I'm currently looking at a trip to Thailand and Vietnam in July/August and was wondering if anyone had any advice on climbing or bouldering in the countries, I've heard there is some great climbing near Krabi and at Halong bay in Vietnam. As it stands I will be travelling on my own so any contacts with climbers would be helpful too.
Any advice would be appreciated, cheers.
Jane

In reply to Jane Pea:

Main areas near krabi are ton sai and railay, I got a taxi from krabi airport to ao nang then long tail boat to ton sai. There is lots of accommodation options in ton sai, and great climbing straight off the beach, nice walk to railay for more of the same. Also it's easy to travel to other areas and islands from there eg pi pi islands etc if you Google ton sai then you will find all you need to know

In reply to Jane Pea:

Been to Krabi, excellent. What about somewhere off the radar??
www.the mountain shop.org
I used them for a short trip and had a great time on Koh Yao Noi. Chris

In reply to Jane Pea:

Worth considering Chiang Mai, in the north of Thailand. Nice town. Very easy to get partners through the climbing shop...

http://www.thailandclimbing.com/

When I climbed in Halong Bay, I was stopping in Cat Ba. Didn't find any partners (it was December so maybe out of season), so I did a guided day with Slo Pony (I think they've changed name now).

Easy to get to Cat Ba from Hanoi, you can get a single ticket that gets you a coach to Hai Phong, a boat to the island, and a bus to Cat Ba town.

In reply to Jane Pea:
Hi Jane,

Thailand has many other venues aside from North and South however they will be your easiest venues to travel to. Unless you are specifically seeking grades of F7c and above (Chiang Mai has a couple of F7c's and a single F8a+) then the south is a beach and climb experience and the north is solely focused on climbing.

Having developed Chiang Mai since 2000, it is a good destination for plenty of routes from F4 up to F7b+ (with the odd harder line), away from crowds and in a fantastic part of the country. The disadvantage is that you can't just stroll down to the beach and 'tie on'. That said the travel distance to Crazy Horse is only 50 minutes and CMRCA have that side of things dialled in for anyone needing only transport (lunch is included with unlimited water).

Both destinations are certainly worth a visit.

For Vietnam, I have not visited Cat Ba but have developed a brand new area 3 hours north of Hanoi. This area currently has the longest route in Vietnam and about 30 other routes from F4 to F7b. Long single pitches on very good quality limestone. This is the main place that Vietclimb, based in Hanoi, visit on weekends. Whilst probably more 'remote' there is a community regularly visiting and thus you are more likely to connect with other climbers.

Have fun,

Francis

In reply to Jane Pea:

For Thailand, check out this vid - vimeo.com/101907072

In reply to Jane Pea:

Thanks everyone, some great ideas and a lot of help. As I'm climbing on my own, are there any groups or guides that I can climb with?

In reply to Jane Pea:

There are plenty of options in Krabi - beginners courses to a notice board for partners, or just go to the bar - if they look like a climber, they probably are... I'd suggest from the above post vietclimb would be good to contact for a more remote area, I also climbed out of Chang Mai and getting a guide wasn't hard.
Phiphi I assume is the same as Krabi.

I have travelled a lot on my own and rarely had any issues doing whatever I wanted. Especially if you have equipment, and are competent, it soon comes out and people are happy to share an adventure.

The one thing I regret not climbing were some of the tall trees in the rain forest. Bivi at the top, see sunrise amongst the gibons etc. That'd be awesome. God knows why I didn't think of it when I was out there!

In reply to Jane Pea:

Most folk wouldn't a list Koh Tao as a venue. But for the boulderer the island is incredible, solid granite blocs everywhere, and perfect for the lone traveller. The guys at Goodtime Adventures have mapped most of the existing areas (including trad venues and sport routes) and have the guide available on their website. A new(ish) company Rock Junkie have been developing their own areas, which will no doubt be quality as Dave has a knack for finding really cruxy lines.

In reply to Jane Pea:

Krabi is great but getting very polished,great party scene there if you like that kind of thing! Vietnam is still very undeveloped, Butterfly valley on Cat Ba Island(Halong Bay) and Huu Lung North Of Hanoi are good places,both these venues have only got a couple of days climbing though! The "Green Climbers Home" at Thakhek (Laos) is the place for me in this part of the world,hundreds of routes, great accommodation,bar, restaurant etc right there at the crag.

In reply to Jane Pea:

I reckon Koh Yao is a must do in S Thailand. Same could be said for Koh Laoliang. Tonsai and Railay do have crowds and polish, but also some classy climbing. I think the multi pitch stuff is outstanding.

In reply to Jane Pea:

one thing to think about is that july/august are in the rainy season . not been at that time of year , so not sure if it would affect the climbing. someone else might have more of an idea .