Bali

When we first booked our flights we decided to stay in Australia for 5,5 months. To be allowed for so long we had two choices: Either apply for a 12 extended month tourist visa, or leave the country after 3 months. Since the extended visa would have cost us 100 Euro each, we decided to spent this money on a flight instead. By booking a flight to Bali for a 9 days holiday we split our Australia time into two parts: 2 months Australia, 9 days Bali (Indonesia) and another 3 months Australia. After that our trip would end in September 19th.

View out of the living room

The last few days in Australia we spent bouldering in Arapiles Mountains (30km west of Horsham). Katinka proofed her ability to climb hard as she climbed a problem called "Crankshaft Right", V8. Since her pregnancy it's her hardest climb, which means she is in the very best way back to or even past her old shape!


We did the 300km drive to Melbourne where we did a little bit of seightseeing. Early in the morning, last friday we went to the airport. After a 6 hour flight we arrived in Denpasar where Ketut was already waiting for us. He had been sent by Katinka's friends Elke and Werner who are renting their villa to us for our time here. The bali climate is quiet different to the Australian winter climate. Temperatures are always around 30ºC and humitidy is pretty high as well. For other travellers interested, check out www.two-smiling-buddhas.com, the website of our friends place. The villas are well designed and come with a huge saltwaterpool for nice refreshment. It's a big difference living in such an apartment, then living in our Australian campervan 70km away from civilisation.

Manu and Marie did join our little trip to Bali. Last week they decided to book a last minute flight from Adelaide, which makes it even more fun to explore the Island, culture and food with our two Scooters.

Day 1:
We went to a basar in Amlapura. Marie and Katinka successfully searched for airy pants to defy heat, while Axel was running from one food booth to the next one, trying all different specialities: Nasi Goreng, Tebs, ...
In the evening we had a little walk in Ujung Water Palace.

balinese food

Day 2:
For breakfast we eat a great mix of fruit and yogurt.
Afterwards we start to explore the island. We want to see Padangbai, a harbour village about 20km away. While trying to navigate around we get lost and suddenly we have a flat back tire. Non of the balinese people understands any english, but by the help of hands and feet we managed to find a garage and for the price of 50.000 Ruphiah (~3 Euros) we got a new tube build in.
Back on the Scooters, we continued up the mountains until we found back on our planned path, next to the coast. Since it was already getting late, we eat some delicious lunch in Candidasa and returned to our villa with the last light of the day.

Ujung Water Palace

Day 3:
A Poolsession in the morning, afterwards fruity breakfast (Ananas, Orange, Mango, Papaya, Dragonfruit, Melon, Lemon, etc.). Finja takes a nap in the shade next to the pool.
In the afternoon we visit Tirtagangga's famous Water Palace with loads of fish and tourists.

Fixing our flat

Day 4:
For snorkling we drive 40km with our Scooters to Amed. Because i did the mistake to stop at a red light instead of following all the balinese people driving past the red light we get checked by the police. I drove 1m past the stopping line, so there was no way around some bribe money... 100.000 Ruphiah or 6 Euros later we are back on the road.

Breakfast (or Breakfeast?)

In Amed we went straight for a delicious fruit shake before we explored the coral riffs next to the beach. It was like a huge aquarium with many colorful fish.
Afterwards we have some lunch in a restaurant nearby before we take the costal route back to our villa (another 40km on very small roads).

One of many rice terraces

Now we have another 4 days, before flying back to Melbourne where our van is parked on the Airports Long Term Value Parkinglot. After to much heat we feel the psyche for touching rock again!

For more pictures check out our main blog: www.chalkonrock.com/bali

Rock climbing glossary

Every now and then I get asked, what is a V12? What is a "roof" and what are Crashpads?
To satisfy your thirst for knowledge I'll explain some of the climbing vocabulary in this post.

Bouldering:
Bouldering is a type of rock climbing where you do not use a rope. The climbing will usually happen in low heights (+/- 4meters bloc height).

Ascent, Flash and OnSight:
If you climb a boulderproblem without someone else pushing you, without touching (dabbing) the Crashpad or anything else besides the rock you did "send" it. The goal of bouldering is to figure out how to climb a problem and then work on it until you send it. :)

If sending a route or boulderproblem in your very first attempt (First Go) it increases our archivement. If someone told you what to do and helped you by shouting "around the corner, there is a hold you did not see!" or something similary the send is called a Flash. If, in the meanwhile, no one helped you, and you did not ever watch anybody climbing on it, it would have been an OnSight.

The very first person sending a boulderproblem gets it's First Ascent. Usully the First Ascentionist has invested more time then successive Repetitors, because he had to find a solution for the boulderproblem without knowing if it will even be possible. The First Ascentionist is the one who is allowed to name a boulderproblem and suggesting a Grade for it. Repetitors will add their input until the grade has setteled.

Crashpad:
A Crashpad is a bigger piece of foam, surrounded by a robust fabric and designed as an oversize backpack. On this trip we carry around two Evolv Maverick Crashpads (5kg each) plus two little Wingman Crashpads (1,5kg each). After carrying the Crashpads into an bouldering area, they are placed below the boulderproblem you are trying to climb and will save your back and your ancles when gravity is stronger then you.

Evolv Maverick and Evolv Wingman

Grading Systems:
If talking about boulderproblems you tried or you succeded to climb, there exist different grading systems. The most common one is the french grading system, which was invented in Fontainebleau (fb), France long ago. It uses a mix of numbers and letters as ..., fb7B+, fb7C, fb7C+, fb8A, fb8A+, fb8B ...
An other one is the Vermin (V) Scale. This system was first used in Hueco Tanks, Texas and is the most common one in the USA, Australia and other countries. It is possible to translate V-Grades into fb-Grades, but usually I talk about the current climbs in the local area grading system, which is the V-Scale for Australia.

V0: Usually inclined boulderproblem on big holds and with good feet. Beginners should be able to solve such a problem.

V3: either holds are smaller now, or the problem is steeper (more arm power required). Basic climbing tecnique required.

V5: out of range for most beginners. It starts to get really technical or powerful now.

V8: 1978 "Midnight Lightning" in Yosemite was the hardest boulderproblem in the world. To climb this grade you need to practise a lot

V11/fb8A: requires specific training and strong motivation.

V14/fb8B+: the hardest Flash Ascent.

V16/fb8C+: the hardest problems in the world. Only a few of those exist.

Katinka sending a nameless V6 at Mount Fox, Southern Grampians

Before beeing pregnant Katinka managed to climb a couple of V9 (fb7C) boulders and one V10 (fb7C+). I have climbed more then 20 V11 (fb8A) boulders and a couple of V12s (fb8A+) so far.

Others
A slab is inclined piece of rock. Most pressure will be on your feet, handholds might be really scarce and it involves a lot of balance to climb it.
A roof is a really steep piece of rock. Holds trend to be bigger and you usually need more power in your arms.
A hook is a technic for your feet. Using the back of the heel to apply pressure to a hold is called a heelhook. A toetook is securing the upper side of the toes on a hold.

Buandik Camp

Just after uploading our last blog update, we met up again with Manu and Marie. We had seperated in Canberra, as they wanted to drive the Great Ocean Road, while we were psyched for the Grampians bouldering and hurried down through the inland. We did buy a lot of groceries, since the climbing area is far away from civilisation, filled up our water and headed back to Buandik Campground where we spent the next five days.

Finja playing in the dirt, as usual.

The weather had cooled down, but sun still was a scarce gift. We managed to put up a few more first ascents. Katinka called one line "I'm a Koala", V5 and another scary one is now called the "Grave Yard". I myselfe started working on two harder boulders. One is an already established line "The Rubiks Cube", V12 - first climbed by Dave Graham - which feels possible to climb for me. The other line is a nameless, steep V7 roof. It ends on a big jug, where the big holds end and the rock blanks out. But I found a solution how to top it out. After climbing the existing boulder the real business starts with some really hard moves at the end of the roof.

Katinka climbs the nameless V7 roof

Manu and Marie are more into easy climbing. They enjoy the warmup boulders and both did a few First Ascents as well. In the evenings we make big fires at the campground to stay warm and not to get bored. And at some time in the next days we might bake our first pizza in a while. :)

Marie and Manu sitting at the evenings fire

Today it is a rainy day, and we decided to visit Hamilton. Its exactly the same distance as to Horsham, but driving south, not north. This town offers a few places with free showers and internet and we need to get rid of a major van problem ... we found some mould below the matress, where we had spit the 3 liters of orange juice a couple weeks ago. Not the very best weather to dry our stuff, but having bought new wood and some strong anti-mould-mixture we are confident, we will succeed!

read back soon,
www.chalkonrock.com

Grampians

We're just back to civilisation from the Grampians National Park. The closest town is Horsham which is about a hour drive away. 70km on a paved road plus 10km on a really bad dirtroad. On the campground where all the climbers stay there are restrooms, a rainwatertank and fireplaces, but that's it. You can't grab a shower, you won't find drinkable water and there's no chance to get rid of your rubbish without driving back to Horsham.

Katinka in "Cold Hands, Cold Hearth", V7 - The Cave of Man Hand

On the campground we met other climbers (partly friends known from previous trips, partly new made friends) and since there is not really a guidebook pubished yet, it was a good chance to get a tour through the areas. The bouldering in the southern Grampians Nationalpark is still in development. While some good looking lines have been cleaned and climbed there's plenty a chance to find a new line noone has ever looked at, or even tried to climb yet.

The red marked area is closed due to bushfires in january.
We are at Buandik (bottom left) Campground now

Since the weather was not really good we did quiet some walking to get acquainted the the area. It was mostly either really humid, or slightly drizzling or sweltering and windless. But we got to climb a little anyways. I could almost Flash "The Sound of One Man Hand Clapping" in the Cave of Man Hands Area. Apparently graded as a V11 i decided to call it a V8 after climbing it in ease in my second attempt. Also I could do a first ascent of a new steep and slopy line, nothing for small people, as the only feetholds are far away from the handholds. I called it "Northern Fire", since this is the reason why we are climbing in the south and not in the established and famous north of Grampians Nationalpark.

"Northern Fire", V10?! - Buandik

 read back soon,
www.chalkonrock.com

Blue Mountains, Sydney and Canberra

We finished our time in the Blue Mountains with some nice last climbs up to 27. I was able to Flash "Wrong Movement", 27 while Jochen had big success on his longterm project "Alpa Leather", 32. He had tried it a lot on his last trip to the Blue Mountains about seven years ago, and now it took him another 4 days to complete. This day ended with a delicious dinner at the Blackheath Tai Restaurant.

Jochen in "Alpha Leather", 32 - Blue Mountains

After those last days we went back to Sydney to check out the southern bouldering areas around Sutherland. We wanted to see The Wing Cave and The Villas and we wanted to meet up with our friends Manu and Marie from Germany. Both happened and Katinka was able to climb "Weak Ape Test Zone", V7 the only boulder she had seen on a photo before and she really wanted to climb. Great job! We had a fun day out there with James and even though it was really hot, i could climb most the boulders up to V8 in both areas.

James in "Weak Ape Test Zone", V7 - The Wing Cave, Sydney

Then it was time to hit the road. We went to Wollongong, where Manu and Marie had spent their first week in Australia. A nice little town just next to the ocean. We went to a junk yard where we found another pair of roof racks which makes it way faster and safer to store our crashpads on the vans roof for longer drives. We spent a few days driving down the coast in slow motion. Dinner at the beach, breakfast at the beach. We saw Kangaroos and Dolphins and enjoyed the salty water.

Dolphins

Around Canberra we stopped for a day to climb at the Black Range Bouldering Area. It's nice granit and you have to drive 10km on a rough dirt road to get to the area. Now we are on our way towards the Grampian Nationalpark. A big bush fire happened here in January, so most of the northern Grampians are shut down. Nobody is allowed to walk in there or even climb...

Axel in a nameless V9 - Black Range Bouldering, Canberra

So now it's time to grab a brush and help developing the southern areas, which are way younger and less developed then the world famous northern Grampians with Taipan Wall and Hollow Mountain Cave.

read back in a few days.
www.chalkonrock.com

Sydney

The trip to Sydney was awesome! We had a beautiful and cool climbing day in The Balkans, one of Sydney's bigger and older Bouldering Areas. We met up with our friends Steve, Joe and their daugther Tara, which we had met a few weeks ago in the Blue Mountains.

I had visited this area 5 years ago, but only did one climb: "Sloper-Dan Milosevic", V5 since it was a 33ºC day with 95% humidity and the rock is facing the sun .. not the best crag for a warm summerday. This time it was different, we got to climb a lot and I could get a quick ascent of "L'homme Obu", V11 the hardest climb in the area. Katinka and Miriam spent some time on "Paratroopin", V8 - finally sending it, while Joe was getting really close.

"L'homme Obu", V11 - The Balkans, Sydney

We spent the evening together with our friends, enjoying some showers, homemade Spätzle and wine. We arrange a meetup with another old friend, James Alexander, for the next day. Sydney has a lot to offer for bouldering, as it has a huge amount of little bouldering areas spread over the whole city. No matter where you live, it's never more then 15min drive to the next boulders!

Katinka in "Paratroopin", V8

James took us to "Crumply", a dirty cave that Finja enjoyed a lot! Katinka decided to take a restday to save some skin and power while I could snap some quick ascents of "Sushi Train", V8 and "Chaos and Disorder", V10. Before we hiked to the cave, we realized we spit 3 liters of orange juice on our van's matress. What a mess ... we decided to take care of it after the climbing day, not psyched to waste any of the remaining day light.

In the night we cleaned everything as good as possible, but it was an uncomfortable night with lots of orange smell in the car. The next morning we drove straight to James parents, to start the laundry mission. It took 3 overloaded laundry circles to get everything clean again and 30h of drying time.

We went to another bouldering spot next to James house, the Black Cave. Jochen could manage an ascent of "Plunge", V10 tried to send "Deep Blue Sea", V12 while Katinka did a nameless V6.

The Instructor (James) and his students (Jochen and Katinka) at the Black Cave

Now after some days in the City we are back to the Blue Mountains where we had left some gear at the cliff as we left in the cold and nasty weather. Time to finish some last climbs before heading down south to the Grampians next week!

www.chalkonrock.com

Blue Mountains

A few days ago Jochen, Miri and Paula arrived in Blackheath. Hey had flewn into Sydney on April 24th and spend a couple days in Sydney in search for a van as well. After final success they are proud owners of a Kia Pregio, 2004, 270000km with was a little cheaper then ours but in need for a garage repair as well. It also has a nice camping setup and is a little longer than ours. But our car has the better electical setup with LEDs, sparebattery and the solarpanel. :)

Jochen and Miriam next to our vans.

 It is running great now, after the broken Gas Converter beeing replaced last week and Jochen Van has an appointment in our garage for next week. They need to replace some clutch or transmission cylinder. Besides that their car seems to run great as well!

It's a nice situation for Paula and Finja, as they then play together. They are really good in making chaos everywhere, as there most favorite hobby is to work through the kitchen and remove every pan and every pack of cereals to another, random place. While rockclimbing they sometimes are distracted by each other, so all four of us can climb at the same time, while is a big improvement. But usually it's one person climbing, one person belaying, one person babysitting and one person doing nothing or taking pictures.

Welcome Party

 Katinka managed to tick one of her projects as she sent "Tricks Roughly", 26 a few days ago. I myselfe climbed up all the way to the last move of "August 1914", 29 three times now, but couldn't finish it. I always get pulled down by gravity and my cold and numb fingertips, so i stopped trying it now. Better climb more and easier things at first and then return in better shape and send the project with a free mind but later.

Axel in "August 1914", 29 - Centenial Glen, Main Wall

Jochen is complaining about loosing all his strength while eating to much and moving to less on their Newzealand Roadtrip. But he is regaining strength fast and making good progress in his old project "Alpha Leather", 32 which he couldn't finish on his last trip to the Blue Mountains seven years ago.

Now we are looking forward for some cold next days. If it will be to cold, we might just leave the mountains and head back to Sydney. The weather there is usually 8-10ºC warmer. But as you want cold conditions for bouldering this might indicate to warm conditions for this type of climbing again ...

Jochen in "Ruddy Norry", 22 - Centenial Glen, Main Wall

But we'll see. We might just give it a try, do some Sightseeing and meet up with our german friends Manu and Marie. They are flying in on Monday, they are going to buy an other van and they are going to join our trip though Australia!

www.chalkonrock.com