Yangshuo Climbs 1 | chossclimbers.com

Go back to China.
Go back to Yangshuo.

Nice position with fun exposure.

Our first climb in Yangshuo was the 6-pitch 6b line called Grandfathered In on a handsome looking spire. Unfortunately, somebody screwed up on the crux 5th pitch and ended up at the rap anchor…maybe consulting the topo is a good idea even on a bolted climb (especially if you’re learning disabled like me). We did not get to do the final 5.8 pitch but more importantly we missed the summit. The following day we climbed the somewhat famous Yangshuo mash up of Paparazzi Pete to Happy New Year on The Thumb formation (6 pitch, 6a). A fun line on some pretty black and pretty sharp limestone that was positively baking in the harsh sun that day. Ambitions to do another climb the same day evaporated in the heat and instead we focused on rehydrating ourselves with some shitty beer and a dip in the river.

Photos

Hot wiring the scooters – one of our cherished morning routines in Yangshuo (right there with having a decent cup of coffee at the hotel).

A Yangshuo breakfast…I was almost getting used to the freshly blended soya bean milk when it was time to leave…

Steamed buns and dumplings – maybe the reason that I found some of the 5.10+ routes difficult (many buns for breakfast make ass heavy for climbing).

The Grandfathered In in formation (Sept. 2016).

Shirley topping out on pitch 1 or 2 of Grandfathered In…just clearing the jungle canopy (Sept. 2016).

Odd looking stacked limestone on Grandfathered In (Sept. 2016).

The nice pitch 3 dihedral (Sept. 2016).

Starting up pitch 4 of Grandfathered In: 5.10c and our favorite pitch of the trip!

Shirley following pitch 4 – crimps to a slight bulge/mantle at the end. Very fun (Sept. 2016).

Topping out on the same pitch (Sept. 2016).

Views from Grandfathered In (Sept. 2016).

Shirley on pitch 5 of Grandfathered In…or a variation of it. I should’ve checked the guidebook but did not. In the back of my mind I recalled a 5.11 variation going left and the pitch proper going right. In short, I fucked up and we ended up at the rap anchor.

Nice position with fun exposure!

Views from high up on Grandfathered In (Sept. 2016).

Packing up back at the “trailhead”. Kind of loved the whole experience of commuting to climbs on our scooter (thanks Ola!!).

Scenic drive on some narrow backcountry roads outside of Yangshuo (Sept. 2016).

Postcard perfect scenery (well, maybe not the concrete buildings).

An old man and his fishing “tools”, the cormorants (Sept. 2016).

A close-up.

More random Yangshuo sights (Sept. 2016).

A bar we actually checked out. Bar hopping is not really our thing but this one seemed OK with some live (Chinese) music though I suspect that my dram of Glenfiddich was actually Johnny Walker Red (Sept. 2016).

Thumb Peak from the base (Sept. 2016).

Shirley at the base of The Thumb Peak racking up for Paparazzi Pete route (Sept. 2016).

Starting up pitch 1 of Paparazzi Pete on The Thumb Peak (Sept. 2016).

Shirley on pitch 1 (Sept. 2016).

Into the hot sunshine on pitch 1 of Paparazzi Pete (Sept. 2016).

Starting up pitch 2 of Paparazzi Pete (Sept. 2016).

Shirley on pitch 2 (Sept. 2016).

From the top of pitch 2 of Paparazzi Pete, we traversed over to Happy New Year. This is the first pitch of the latter (Sept. 2016).

Views of the busy road from high up on Thumb Peak (Sept. 2016).

Shirley topping out on the same pitch. Beautiful – black and sharp – limestone. Although at the time it felt like an oven in the blazing sun (Sept. 2016).

Shirley in the sauna at a belay…see how fogged up the lens is?

Leading the third and final pitch of Happy New Year (Sept. 2016).

Views from high up on The Thumb (Setp. 2016).

Shirley on the very short hike back to our scooter. A horse and the Middle Finger are visible (Sept. 2016).

Lotus flowers (Sept. 2016).

Shirley and the lotus flowers. Should’ve taken more photos since the entrance fee to this field was like 40 Yuan (Sept. 2016).

A lotus flower. The yellow center will eventually turn green and produce edible nuts (fruits?).

Swimming in the river was a great way of capping off a Yangshuo day (Sept. 2016).

Yangshuo (Sept. 2016).

Dinner time in Yangshuo (Sept. 2016).

Go to Yangshuo Climbs 2.
Go back to China.