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I’m heading to India in February for a holiday but hoping to squeeze in some climbing. The only destination I’ve heard of is Hampi, will it be too hot to climb in February, or is it workable? Are there any other destinations that are suitable to take the girlfriend (so not 8000 meters stuff!)
Cheers
Cheers
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In reply to Kemics:
There is Badami, which is also in the south. I think it’s that area of granite crags featured in the classic film Sholay.
India is a big place with often poor transport. Which bit were you thinking of going to? Have you been to India before?
There is Badami, which is also in the south. I think it’s that area of granite crags featured in the classic film Sholay.
India is a big place with often poor transport. Which bit were you thinking of going to? Have you been to India before?
Post edited at 22:33
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In reply to seankenny:
India is a big place, but the transport is actually generally good, as in you can usually get from anywhere to anywhere else at any time. As for climbing, I suggest contacting the Indian Mountaineering Foundation in Delhi. Climbing is increasing in popularity in India.
> India is a big place with often poor transport. Which bit were you thinking of going to? Have you been to India before?
India is a big place, but the transport is actually generally good, as in you can usually get from anywhere to anywhere else at any time. As for climbing, I suggest contacting the Indian Mountaineering Foundation in Delhi. Climbing is increasing in popularity in India.
In reply to Kemics:
I was in Hampi in March. It was hot, and locals were telling me it was pretty much the end of the tourist season, for locals too not just for climbers.
I was in Hampi in March. It was hot, and locals were telling me it was pretty much the end of the tourist season, for locals too not just for climbers.
In reply to AlanLittle:
We went in April/May. It was too hot to climb during the day so we got to the crag for sunrise and climbed until 9am. Then we spent the rest of the day relaxing and exploring the other sights. This worked well for a holiday with some climbing but would be less ideal if you were mainly there for a climbing trip. February should be a fair bit cooler.
In reply to Kemics:
Much further North in the Himalayas, the bouldering around Manali is good. Manali is a touristy town that also has sport climbing although I didn't try it and there is skiing, kayaking, paragliding and thermal baths too.
There is some sport climbing around Darjeeling, but again, I didn't try it.
I did some high altitude bouldering near Yuksom in Sikkim but that probably fails the girlfriend test.
We went in April/May. It was too hot to climb during the day so we got to the crag for sunrise and climbed until 9am. Then we spent the rest of the day relaxing and exploring the other sights. This worked well for a holiday with some climbing but would be less ideal if you were mainly there for a climbing trip. February should be a fair bit cooler.
In reply to Kemics:
Much further North in the Himalayas, the bouldering around Manali is good. Manali is a touristy town that also has sport climbing although I didn't try it and there is skiing, kayaking, paragliding and thermal baths too.
There is some sport climbing around Darjeeling, but again, I didn't try it.
I did some high altitude bouldering near Yuksom in Sikkim but that probably fails the girlfriend test.
In reply to Skip:
Are you confusing quantity with quality? Yes, there's lots of transport in India, and yes, you can get to and from most places given a fairly flexible schedule, but it can at times be a bit awkward.
I was once in Delhi's main station when the stilted automated tannoy thing announced: "The Trivandrum Express is currently running... nine... hours late."
Or flying to Manali which is a good idea on paper but taking a couple of days to manage it because of heavy monsoon cloud made the landing impossible.
The carefully planned two week holiday can sometimes struggle to contain these sorts of issues!
> India is a big place, but the transport is actually generally good, as in you can usually get from anywhere to anywhere else at any time. As for climbing, I suggest contacting the Indian Mountaineering Foundation in Delhi. Climbing is increasing in popularity in India.
Are you confusing quantity with quality? Yes, there's lots of transport in India, and yes, you can get to and from most places given a fairly flexible schedule, but it can at times be a bit awkward.
I was once in Delhi's main station when the stilted automated tannoy thing announced: "The Trivandrum Express is currently running... nine... hours late."
Or flying to Manali which is a good idea on paper but taking a couple of days to manage it because of heavy monsoon cloud made the landing impossible.
The carefully planned two week holiday can sometimes struggle to contain these sorts of issues!
In reply to seankenny:
This is why, frightening as Indian roads can be, I often use buses, taxis or Jeeps.
I can see that. Two weeks is really no time at all in India.
> I was once in Delhi's main station when the stilted automated tannoy thing announced: "The Trivandrum Express is currently running... nine... hours late."
This is why, frightening as Indian roads can be, I often use buses, taxis or Jeeps.
> The carefully planned two week holiday can sometimes struggle to contain these sorts of issues!
I can see that. Two weeks is really no time at all in India.
In reply to Skip:
>> This is why, frightening as Indian roads can be, I often use buses, taxis or Jeeps.
Our record for a train was a delay of 39 hours. Not what you want at the start of a journey that was already expected to take 37 hours.
Buses can be just as bad. We spent 16 hours on what was supposed to be a 3 hour journey. The reason? There was a single-track river crossing. Our bus driver and another bus driver traveling in the opposite direction both decided to try and cross at the same time. They ended up in a standoff half way across the 300m bridge with neither of them willing to back down despite being asked nicely (and then not so nicely) by their passengers and other drivers. All the other drivers filled in the gaps behind them, causing a 10 mile tail back in either direction which meant it took another 2 hours after one of them had given in before we could start moving again. We ended up walking to the next town to get some food and waited in comfort for the bus to catch us up.
We also waited for over week for transport to Leh. Got up at 3am every morning, packed our bags and waited for the Jeeps to arrive. Some nights, someone got a phonecall to say that avalanches had prevented the Jeeps from making it. Some nights, Jeeps arrived with passengers from Leh, we got in, only to be told there had been another avalanche, the pass was blocked again and we weren't going anywhere. Eventually, we gave up and changed our travel plans. Still, better than getting caught up in one of the landslides.
> I was once in Delhi's main station when the stilted automated tannoy thing announced: "The Trivandrum Express is currently running... nine... hours late."
>> This is why, frightening as Indian roads can be, I often use buses, taxis or Jeeps.
Our record for a train was a delay of 39 hours. Not what you want at the start of a journey that was already expected to take 37 hours.
Buses can be just as bad. We spent 16 hours on what was supposed to be a 3 hour journey. The reason? There was a single-track river crossing. Our bus driver and another bus driver traveling in the opposite direction both decided to try and cross at the same time. They ended up in a standoff half way across the 300m bridge with neither of them willing to back down despite being asked nicely (and then not so nicely) by their passengers and other drivers. All the other drivers filled in the gaps behind them, causing a 10 mile tail back in either direction which meant it took another 2 hours after one of them had given in before we could start moving again. We ended up walking to the next town to get some food and waited in comfort for the bus to catch us up.
We also waited for over week for transport to Leh. Got up at 3am every morning, packed our bags and waited for the Jeeps to arrive. Some nights, someone got a phonecall to say that avalanches had prevented the Jeeps from making it. Some nights, Jeeps arrived with passengers from Leh, we got in, only to be told there had been another avalanche, the pass was blocked again and we weren't going anywhere. Eventually, we gave up and changed our travel plans. Still, better than getting caught up in one of the landslides.
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In reply to Skip:
A road journey from Trivandrum to Delhi would probably include the odd delay...
It is hard, unless you plan things out well and don't travel around too much - hence my question. Three weeks works fine.
> I was once in Delhi's main station when the stilted automated tannoy thing announced: "The Trivandrum Express is currently running... nine... hours late."
> This is why, frightening as Indian roads can be, I often use buses, taxis or Jeeps.
A road journey from Trivandrum to Delhi would probably include the odd delay...
> I can see that. Two weeks is really no time at all in India.
It is hard, unless you plan things out well and don't travel around too much - hence my question. Three weeks works fine.
In reply to Kemics:
If you like multi-pitch, large granite domes just outside of Bangalore look excellent (there’s an active local club with a FB page). Also, there’s some multi-pitch towers outside of Pune. Classic there seems to be a route called Duke’s Nose. Seems much more appealing for a long trip than single pitch sport or bouldering venue.
If you like multi-pitch, large granite domes just outside of Bangalore look excellent (there’s an active local club with a FB page). Also, there’s some multi-pitch towers outside of Pune. Classic there seems to be a route called Duke’s Nose. Seems much more appealing for a long trip than single pitch sport or bouldering venue.
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In reply to seankenny:
Search for "Bangalore Climbers" on FB.
Local climbers have added a considerable amount of info to mountainproject in the last ~year also. That should be enough to get you started.
https://www.mountainproject.com/area/111592441/bangalore-area-and-southern-...
https://www.mountainproject.com/area/112363939/mumbai-and-maharashtra-regio...
If you end up going, would be great to read about it...
Search for "Bangalore Climbers" on FB.
Local climbers have added a considerable amount of info to mountainproject in the last ~year also. That should be enough to get you started.
https://www.mountainproject.com/area/111592441/bangalore-area-and-southern-...
https://www.mountainproject.com/area/112363939/mumbai-and-maharashtra-regio...
If you end up going, would be great to read about it...
Post edited at 21:03
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Some great info, thanks guys.
I’m going for 3 and a bit weeks (trying to get to 4 but negotiating with work at the mo!) so hopefully have time to visit a few places.
Sounds like Hampi should be good in February. But some people are reporting the guest houses are being shut down? Hopefully that isn’t problematic.
The climbing near Bangalore sounds interesting, I’ll definitely Look into it
I’m going for 3 and a bit weeks (trying to get to 4 but negotiating with work at the mo!) so hopefully have time to visit a few places.
Sounds like Hampi should be good in February. But some people are reporting the guest houses are being shut down? Hopefully that isn’t problematic.
The climbing near Bangalore sounds interesting, I’ll definitely Look into it
In reply to Kemics:
The guest houses north of the river at Hampi where the bouldering is appear to still be open at the moment on trip advisor. (its also the nicer area to stay IMO, the boulderers seem to like Goan Corner guest house)
I thought the public transport system was pretty good myself. Make sure to get an IIRC account for the trains and book well in advance. Also make sure you understand the system. I booked mine mostly just a few days in advance apart from the critical ones, but I had two months in India so wasn't rushing. I normally got a Wait List place, which for me atleast always materialised in an actual seat normally a day or two before hand. Buses are harder to negotiate but were also fine for me.
The best places I visited (I wasn't climbing) were Agonda Beach (For surfing and relaxing), Hampi (for the atmosphere and ruins) and Madurai for the temples. I loved India and want to go back this time to the north.
Finally as per my other post watch out for the mossies at Hampi there is more than a minimal risk of malaria and dengue there (google it, both tourists and boulders have caught it there).
Personally I'd leave your climbing kit at home and just enjoy India, its an amazing place to soak up the vibe. You can climb at Hampi with nothing (as there are firms organising everything and you can hire kit), but I guess you'd atleast want your own boots.
The guest houses north of the river at Hampi where the bouldering is appear to still be open at the moment on trip advisor. (its also the nicer area to stay IMO, the boulderers seem to like Goan Corner guest house)
I thought the public transport system was pretty good myself. Make sure to get an IIRC account for the trains and book well in advance. Also make sure you understand the system. I booked mine mostly just a few days in advance apart from the critical ones, but I had two months in India so wasn't rushing. I normally got a Wait List place, which for me atleast always materialised in an actual seat normally a day or two before hand. Buses are harder to negotiate but were also fine for me.
The best places I visited (I wasn't climbing) were Agonda Beach (For surfing and relaxing), Hampi (for the atmosphere and ruins) and Madurai for the temples. I loved India and want to go back this time to the north.
Finally as per my other post watch out for the mossies at Hampi there is more than a minimal risk of malaria and dengue there (google it, both tourists and boulders have caught it there).
Personally I'd leave your climbing kit at home and just enjoy India, its an amazing place to soak up the vibe. You can climb at Hampi with nothing (as there are firms organising everything and you can hire kit), but I guess you'd atleast want your own boots.
Post edited at 16:23
In reply to Kemics:
Also bear in mind even South India is massive and the trains max speed is 40 mph, 3 weeks isn’t very long. I’d concentrate on the experience not on travelling between them. In 3 weeks I’d aim for no more than 4 major places to stay. Goa is a nice easy start to the experience and India can be quite full on. The best parts of Goa are well worth a visit. Hampi is more Intense, but no where near the most full on I went to. Bangalore is tame and quite westernised but fairly dull.
Personally I didn’t rate Kerala as much as some other areas. Allepey was ok but the backwaters were busier and more man made canals than I’d hoped for. Kochin was very touristy. Some of the less touristy areas were good but hard to get to and it was easy to run out of stuff to do between trains.
Depending on your flights I’d spend the first few nights in an easy to reach part of goa and the last few days in agonda as it’s such as nice ending to a holiday. (assuming your flights are to goa/Mumbai). Hampi isn’t too far from goa by train.
Also bear in mind even South India is massive and the trains max speed is 40 mph, 3 weeks isn’t very long. I’d concentrate on the experience not on travelling between them. In 3 weeks I’d aim for no more than 4 major places to stay. Goa is a nice easy start to the experience and India can be quite full on. The best parts of Goa are well worth a visit. Hampi is more Intense, but no where near the most full on I went to. Bangalore is tame and quite westernised but fairly dull.
Personally I didn’t rate Kerala as much as some other areas. Allepey was ok but the backwaters were busier and more man made canals than I’d hoped for. Kochin was very touristy. Some of the less touristy areas were good but hard to get to and it was easy to run out of stuff to do between trains.
Depending on your flights I’d spend the first few nights in an easy to reach part of goa and the last few days in agonda as it’s such as nice ending to a holiday. (assuming your flights are to goa/Mumbai). Hampi isn’t too far from goa by train.
Post edited at 22:05
In reply to CurlyStevo:
We booked a boat for the backwaters from Kochin. It was then a 2 hour drive on back roads to the village we departed from. We spent 2 days cruising around idyllic natural backwaters on a modest rustic punt houseboat. The only other boats we saw were a handful of local fisherman and water taxis. We saw lots of interesting wildlife, we caught/picked all of our food and we stopped to chat to locals who were mostly fascinated to have seen white people.
When we went back to India the next year, we took a houseboat from Allepey and it was completely different. It cost 3 times as much and the boats were huge, luxurious diesel powered palaces. The waterways were like motorways and were rammed with other houseboats and you didn't get to experience any of the local way of life or see any wildlife.
We spent nearly 2 months in Kerala the first time around and loved it but a lot of the highlights came from immersing ourselves in the local culture in less touristy places which you aren't going to have the time to do on a short trip.
> Personally I didn’t rate Kerala as much as some other areas. Allepey was ok but the backwaters were busier and more man made canals than I’d hoped for. Kochin was very touristy. Some of the less touristy areas were good but hard to get to and it was easy to run out of stuff to do between trains.
We booked a boat for the backwaters from Kochin. It was then a 2 hour drive on back roads to the village we departed from. We spent 2 days cruising around idyllic natural backwaters on a modest rustic punt houseboat. The only other boats we saw were a handful of local fisherman and water taxis. We saw lots of interesting wildlife, we caught/picked all of our food and we stopped to chat to locals who were mostly fascinated to have seen white people.
When we went back to India the next year, we took a houseboat from Allepey and it was completely different. It cost 3 times as much and the boats were huge, luxurious diesel powered palaces. The waterways were like motorways and were rammed with other houseboats and you didn't get to experience any of the local way of life or see any wildlife.
We spent nearly 2 months in Kerala the first time around and loved it but a lot of the highlights came from immersing ourselves in the local culture in less touristy places which you aren't going to have the time to do on a short trip.
Post edited at 01:06
In reply to SDM:
I also enjoyed some of the more out of the way areas of Kerala where westerners weren’t at all common. However I found personally Tamil Nadu and to some extent Karnataka had more of a vibrant, intense Indian experience I was looking for. Kerala is probably the next easiest place for a Brit to go to in India after Goa. It’s highly educated, they are taught in English. There’s a quite a lot of Christian culture etc. However from my fairly limited experience I also thought it was a bit of a safe option. Personally I loved Madurai but it was full on, quite a few hagglers as well as genuinely helpful and friendly people, with a very strong Hindu culture, very few westerners passed on the street and amazing temples. Probably the most full on experience was going through a temple, actually passing the idols during worship with all the chanting and insence etc on Christmas Day.
I also enjoyed some of the more out of the way areas of Kerala where westerners weren’t at all common. However I found personally Tamil Nadu and to some extent Karnataka had more of a vibrant, intense Indian experience I was looking for. Kerala is probably the next easiest place for a Brit to go to in India after Goa. It’s highly educated, they are taught in English. There’s a quite a lot of Christian culture etc. However from my fairly limited experience I also thought it was a bit of a safe option. Personally I loved Madurai but it was full on, quite a few hagglers as well as genuinely helpful and friendly people, with a very strong Hindu culture, very few westerners passed on the street and amazing temples. Probably the most full on experience was going through a temple, actually passing the idols during worship with all the chanting and insence etc on Christmas Day.
Post edited at 06:34
In reply to Kemics:
I didn't think much of badami, a lot of the first few bolts were missing and routes weren't the cleanest in the world though I think the high end stuff is good.
For hampi, early start for bouldering would be good. We stayed at Goan corner who rent mats, but also met Tom and Jerry, who run a climbing store that you can find on Google who would probably help with any questions. Taping finger tips was a must for us, we also did one of the sport routes there, which was adventure bolted.
Dunno about the trad around Pune, I've seen some of the sport at the castle, and heard about other stuff (bouldering wall in Pune is run by Tuhin Satakars dad,) but didn't get the impression it was worth the trip?
I didn't think much of badami, a lot of the first few bolts were missing and routes weren't the cleanest in the world though I think the high end stuff is good.
For hampi, early start for bouldering would be good. We stayed at Goan corner who rent mats, but also met Tom and Jerry, who run a climbing store that you can find on Google who would probably help with any questions. Taping finger tips was a must for us, we also did one of the sport routes there, which was adventure bolted.
Dunno about the trad around Pune, I've seen some of the sport at the castle, and heard about other stuff (bouldering wall in Pune is run by Tuhin Satakars dad,) but didn't get the impression it was worth the trip?
In reply to jonnie3430:
I think Hampi is a great location to visit for the cultural / historic aspects anyway. The bouldering is supposed to be good and you can rock up with shoes and a chalk bag and climb. Personally I'd reckon best bang for the buck would be to see and experience more of the amazing places to visit rather than hunt out ok climbing and miss visiting somewhere great with no climbing. Also I don't think carting around a sport rack when visiting India for 3 weeks holiday would be the best plan anyways.
You also have to consider that indian hospitals and blood infusions may not be a great plan so getting injured would not be a good idea in many locations IMO.
I think Hampi is a great location to visit for the cultural / historic aspects anyway. The bouldering is supposed to be good and you can rock up with shoes and a chalk bag and climb. Personally I'd reckon best bang for the buck would be to see and experience more of the amazing places to visit rather than hunt out ok climbing and miss visiting somewhere great with no climbing. Also I don't think carting around a sport rack when visiting India for 3 weeks holiday would be the best plan anyways.
You also have to consider that indian hospitals and blood infusions may not be a great plan so getting injured would not be a good idea in many locations IMO.
Post edited at 08:19
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In reply to CurlyStevo:
Agreed, I was living in India at the time.
> Also I don't think carting around a sport rack when visiting India for 3 weeks holiday would be the best plan anyways.
Agreed, I was living in India at the time.
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