Kuching Trip 2016


Hey hey hey!
Wow, I just realized I have been missing for months! So sorry bout that folks. 
I have been really busy and packed with work and other events as well as trying to find time for myself to relax.
Anyways, I'm back from my climbing trip and I can't wait to tell you guys all about it!


I have been visiting Kuching for climbing trips for years now and it has taught me so many things on how to be a better climber and also that my fears will always come back to haunt me no matter how hard I try to fight it. You will always have to do your best to conquer those fears if you love something like rock climbing.

When you have "Heights + Falling = Fear" ,
which is why you climb harder to get to where you want to be!

You can read all about my previous trips here :
Rock On 3 2012 : Part I & Part II 
Rock On 4 2013 : Part I & Part II
Kuching Trip 2014

So yeah, enough talking and let's get to the photos!

(Day 1)

Got up at 5am and got prepared to pick up everyone to the airport. Never liked the airport but that's the only way to get to Kuching!
So on the first day, we have Thompson, Esther, Roy and me on the same flight and boy were they excited!
Most of our friends who're joining us on this trip has never been to Kuching before.



Our sleepy faces upon our arrival at Kuching airport!

My friend, Aaron came to pick us up and brought us to town to check-in to our hostel. We stayed at GoRest Guesthouse which is located in town. Its run by a climber friend of ours and its pretty cheap too! If you are not the fussy kind of traveller and happen to be looking for a place to just crash, I recommend this guesthouse. Looking at Kuching town really brings back good memories of our past climbing trips and I really wish I could stay longer for this trip.

After dropping off our luggage and all,
Aaron brought us to a place called Chong Choon Cafe which was just 5-10mins walking distance from our hostel.

Kuching Laksa (Small - Rm4.50)

We didn't do much for day 1 actually. Most of the time, climbing will start on Day 2 because Day 1 is when we settle our accommodations, transportation and other climbing stuff before heading off to climb. Also we were waiting for other climbers to arrive on the night of Day 1 and morning of Day 2.

(Day 2)

Woke up at 7am and had a nice breakfast at Chong Choon Cafe again and headed off to Batman Wall after that. Car as usual had problems again like our previous trips but this time we got it covered. The drive from Kuching town to Batman wall takes about 1 hour. We usually stop by Pekan Bau along the way to pack some lunch to be eaten at the wall later on. I would suggest you guys to use Waze in Kuching. It helped us a lot!

Once we arrived at the wall, everyone was in awe. The wall was as beautiful as I remembered. Lots of changes done to this place.
Paved floor, new clean toilets, polished walls and the place is now surrounded by a fence. Sad part is that climbing here is no longer free. We have to pay to enter. We had to pay Rm100 for a group of 10 people (Rm10 per person).






Hello!

Unloaded the car and unloaded all the equipments from the bag. Couldn't wait to start climbing. So another note for climbers out there who wants to visit Batman Wall, kindly bring a Trango Squid, an adjustable pole/stick and a ladder. You will need it to clip on the first quickdraw with the rope attached to it before you start your climb. The distance from the ground to the roof start is roughly around 5 metres high.





Not forgetting to bring loads of quickdraws!
Some climbs are pretty long and also some anchors requires you to do a Tie-Off/Top Out.


Great to see my name on the list!
Sent a project 4 years ago and sad that this year I couldn't climb that route because it was all slimy and full of webs and also water dripping from the wall.








Danny, Faisal, Gaku, Tiara, Sherine and Yati joined us on this trip and I couldn't ask for a better group to go with. Everyone was still new to the place. Majority of the them in the group have never been to Kuching before and it got them really psyched to climb more the next day. We even had a nice dinner together with Malcolm and Aunty Eunice after not seeing them for a while now.

Oh and also guess who I met?
Yes! Its the one and only Jian Goh aka Miao. Comic artist for Miao & WafuPafu comic!
He is such a friendly guy and he was such a dear to bring us around and telling us about Kuching! I even got Esther and Thompson in to reading his comics and they loved it! If you haven't read his comics yet, you really should!


Thank you so much Miao for the autograph!

He even brought us to a popular spot called Kai Joo Lane which is nearby India and Carpenter street in case you're curious.


Very crowded place filled with food stalls at night!

(Day 3)

Here we are back in Batman Wall again and this time, everyone decided to try our harder routes!
Higher and harder walls for everyone!




 Attempting Jitam Rodeo, Grade 6B again after projecting this for 4 years.Still scared of doing this route but it definitely taught me a lot.
Need to get back into shape if I really need to clean this route.



Nothing much but a lot of climbing on Day 3 and also other climbers arrived on the same day to join us too. There was a storm as soon as we left Batman Wall. It has been raining a lot when we were there but it never stopped us from climbing.

(Day 4)

Decided to go back to Tiger Wall to do some easy climbs but very long climbs.
The anchors on this walls requires you to perform a Tie-Off/Top Out. At least 12 - 15 metres high and love how the rocks are so solid! In case you're wondering what stones they are in Batman wall, they are Limestones.





Gula Apong (Small - Rm5.00 & Big - Rm10.00)

Tried out the famous Gula Apong and it taste just like Gula Melaka and I love how the toppings go so well with the Gula Apong!
Oreo crumbs and peanuts!

(Day 5)

This is one day we all could never forget. We went to a place called Coffee Garden which was just behind where we stayed and we decided to have breakfast there. Very nice and cosy place but the only problem was the management. Before that, group photo!


Anyways, back to the story. We all came in to order some breakfast. Yati ordered French Toast and Eggs Set,Tiara and I ordered American Breakfast Set A while Sherine and Gaku ordered Pancake Set which we thought wouldn't take long since we came early. So we waited.

French Toast and Egg Set (Price N/A)

Yati's breakfast set arrived first and so she ate her's first.
We were all trying to eat as fast as we can because we wanted to visit Fairy Cave today.

American Breakfast Set A (Price N/A)

Then my food came and I ate slowly while waiting for the others to be served. Waited for almost 30 minutes and realized why did the same food took so long to arrive. We found out that they were cooking each set individually and it took over 1 hour for the rest of the food to arrive. The group that came after us also waited for almost 30-45 minutes for their food to arrive and we all started complaining. They served us free Oreo Cheesecake which we didn't really like but still we ate a bit and when they food finally arrived, everyone was in such a bad mood to even eat their food. 

Saw this sign after breakfast and just had to take a picture of it!

Bla bla bla and off we go to Fairy Cave to do some caving and climbing.
I think the fee was Rm3 for adult and for those under 17 years old is free to enter.




 Hello again Fairy Cave!


Group photo before they headed off to climb at Nepentheas Wall while Roy and Gaku where somewhere outside the cave doing some multi-pitching.
Only had 2 hours to climb before the gate closes and also a storm was heading our way.
The gate to Fairy Cave closes at 4pm.

(Day 6)

Kolok Mee (Rm3.50)

Had some Kolok Mee before heading off to the airport and I was quite sad that we are leaving Kuching already.
Such a short and fun trip and really gonna miss this place.
We are all already planning on our next trip back to Kuching for 2017 and let's hope that it will happen again!

(Photo credits to Danny, Thompson, Roy, Gaku, Faisal, and everyone else)

For more pictures, click here!
For more info about GoRest Guesthouse, click here!
Be sure to check out Miao & WafuPafu comics here and here!

Things you need to climb at Batman Wall :
1) Trango Squid 
2) Adjustable Pole/Stick
3) Ladder
4) Mat (For your ropes)
5) Quickdraws (Minimum 10 pcs)
6) Ropes (Minimum 60-70m rope)

Things you need to climb at Tiger Wall and Staircase Wall:
1) Slings
2) Quickdraws (Minimum 10 pcs)
3) Helmet
4) Mat (For your ropes and personal belongings)
5) Ropes (Minimum 60-70m rope)

Here's a list of what you roughly need to prepare for if you plan to climb in Batman Wall or Fairy Cave :
1) Accommodations - Roughly around Rm20-Rm45 per night
2) Transportations  - Rm120 - Rm250 per car (depending on model of car)
3) Batman Wall Entrance Fee - Rm100 for a group of 10 pax 
*Contact Joseph (013-803 5516)*
4) Fairy Cave Entrance Fee - Rm3 for adult (I forget the price for foreigners) 
*FOC for anyone under 17 years old*

Comments

  1. that's a different experience of kuching trip! haha
    too bad i am not a rock climbing person, but for the food.. woohoo! :D

    Here's how the new changes of EPF affect you! Read here!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. U can always try rock climbing =) Something different is good sometimes! Food yang MMMMMMM~ Sedap!

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