Soooooo its been a while since our last post... Lets see whats been happening....
Our epic... We had decided to climb a really easy route out in Verdon, and trust me there are not many easy routes to pick from. I suppose no one actually comes to Verdon to do the easy routes, which probably explains why it seemed like no one had climbed this route for years! The guide book, which is full of mistakes, as I believe we were forwarned, indicated that the route was fully equiped (ie bolted). Turns out it had one piton, and the only bolts available were those that we could "steal" from the surrounding harder climbs - and even then, there werent that many. Luckily David had brought minimal trad gear, and we got out ok ;) Think bushes, trees, dirt and tones of it, scary no pro sections... and harder than expected route - not the 4c we were expecting. Ok, so less epic description of our epic, but it will do ;)
The hike the following day was alot of fun and the gorge is just beautiful. It took us about 4 hours to complete and it ended in this long scary dark tunnel... which David bravely escorted me through. Probably the hardest part of the hike was finding someone that would give us a ride back to the village of La Palaud...as all these older tourist looking cars just ignored us and drove on by.
Deciding that perhaps it was a bit too much for us, we moved on to Les Calanques, stopping briefly in Aix en Provence for a little visit. Soo les Calanques also a really nice area, but the climbs are soooo polished, its obvious people have been climbing here for years and years and...It also included a brief visit to the hospital, where David seemed to have a bad allergic reaction which potentially is due to: the bee sting he got, the terrible rash/allergy he got from tape around his ankles (to prevent a blister during the hike), or the huge plate of sea food he had for dinner, and potentially some sort of poison ivy boils from who knows where?... A bit of a scare when while driving he tells me that he is feeling dizzy and is having difficulty breathing. Luckily we were really close to a "Centre de Secours" where the fireman (they dont actually have paramedics persay) drove us to the next town to the hospital. He is FINE! And was breathing normally shortly after the arrival to the hospital. :))
Tata for now!!
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Gorge de Verdon
Just a quick post before we run off to do a 13km hike in the bottom of the gorge de Verdon...
Its an amazingly beautiful place with crazy hard climbs, for which you get a near epic story... stay tuned... It starts with me attempting to lead what i thought was a 4C (5.6) but acutally a 6b+ (5.10c) oups and only gets better... Rebecca think similar to the climb we did in the adirondaks, except harder, yikes!
Stay tuned...
Its an amazingly beautiful place with crazy hard climbs, for which you get a near epic story... stay tuned... It starts with me attempting to lead what i thought was a 4C (5.6) but acutally a 6b+ (5.10c) oups and only gets better... Rebecca think similar to the climb we did in the adirondaks, except harder, yikes!
Stay tuned...
Sunday, May 20, 2007
A la Cité Carcasonne
Mmmmm wine!!!! Emilie and I just spent the day sampling southern French wine in la cité Carcasonne (as opposed to the city of Carcassone in that la cité is the largest medieval forification in Europe and the city is the city that grew around it (and fought with it at times until about the 19th century. Fascinating history dating back to the 1st century.)) I think we made a fine show wandering around the cité with our wine glasses strung around our necks.
Flash back three days: We met up with Thomas Ribierre, a friend from www.rockclimbing.com on wednesday night. After dinnering with a couple friends of his we went climbing at a local limestone crag (local to Montalimar) the following day. The climbing was quite nice but the sprinkling rain and tight schedule (Thomas had to be back in Montalimar early) forced us to bail off a 4 pitch climb we started. Ah well, too much rock to climb all of it.
Thursday found us driving further south to find better weather. Though cloudy, the area we climbed in was quite nice. We ended up doing 5 climbs between 5a and 6a (5.7 and 5.10a). Emilie led all the climbs but unfortunately retreated from the last, a 6a which featured multiple stretches of tough moves between large jugs. It turned out to be quite reachy, but she was able to do it after I led it and left a top rope for her.
Thursday night we drove along narrow mountain roads in the dark. It was scary; Lucy is no sports car.
Friday found us back north in the Gorge de Jontes. A magnificent gorge with 300 - 400 foot limestone cliffs. Emilie and I climb a route called Biotone a four pitch climb on fascenatingly sharp limestone with plenty of jugs. Except on the 6a+ pitch. Few jugs on that one. Emilie and I were both surprised by the sun and now sport fancy burns. The scenary was gorgeous as we watched the vultures float amongst the up drafts below us. A good time was had but we both needed a break.
So that brings us to Carcassone. Very nice medieval town. We are spending the night in a nice little hotel with a shower and a bed. Life is good.
Tomorrow we leave for Nimes, Avignon and the Verdun gorge! Good times will be had.
Flash back three days: We met up with Thomas Ribierre, a friend from www.rockclimbing.com on wednesday night. After dinnering with a couple friends of his we went climbing at a local limestone crag (local to Montalimar) the following day. The climbing was quite nice but the sprinkling rain and tight schedule (Thomas had to be back in Montalimar early) forced us to bail off a 4 pitch climb we started. Ah well, too much rock to climb all of it.
Thursday found us driving further south to find better weather. Though cloudy, the area we climbed in was quite nice. We ended up doing 5 climbs between 5a and 6a (5.7 and 5.10a). Emilie led all the climbs but unfortunately retreated from the last, a 6a which featured multiple stretches of tough moves between large jugs. It turned out to be quite reachy, but she was able to do it after I led it and left a top rope for her.
Thursday night we drove along narrow mountain roads in the dark. It was scary; Lucy is no sports car.
Friday found us back north in the Gorge de Jontes. A magnificent gorge with 300 - 400 foot limestone cliffs. Emilie and I climb a route called Biotone a four pitch climb on fascenatingly sharp limestone with plenty of jugs. Except on the 6a+ pitch. Few jugs on that one. Emilie and I were both surprised by the sun and now sport fancy burns. The scenary was gorgeous as we watched the vultures float amongst the up drafts below us. A good time was had but we both needed a break.
So that brings us to Carcassone. Very nice medieval town. We are spending the night in a nice little hotel with a shower and a bed. Life is good.
Tomorrow we leave for Nimes, Avignon and the Verdun gorge! Good times will be had.
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Montelimar and Picture updates!
Allo a tous! Some more pictures because they are so much more in demand! We are backtracking to Brugges to start this photo shoot...
Ok just had to slip in a Lucy Picture, so here I am, enjoying dinner, Filet de Canard au Poivre avec petites patates grillees a l'ail et l'oignon, avec Salade a l'olive et citron, and a fine Pinot Gris to complete this delicious meal. Ah the life!
Needless to say pictures were not allowed here, but shhhh... In the Grottes d'Arcy, a "colonne" where stalagmite meets stalactites.
Night life in Lyon, the city we enjoyed the most so far! Various pictures also follow, including the mini eiffel tower, crazy sets of stairs and some of the sights... Including a public washroom, which let me tell you are less than appealing (though to be honest, these ones were MUCH nicer than the Paris ones)
In Lyon they also have this really cool Gallo-Roman museum, with 2 roman theatres recently restored and currently used for some festivals during the summer.
Once again the famous belgian beers, in the company of Emma and Erich, some friends from Waterloo :)) We had met up with them for the evening, as they were on their way to Amsterdam while we were heading down to Paris...
Shortly after arriving in Paris David and I made our way to the Arche de Triomphe, where we witnessed the craziest traffic circle ever ;)
Alors voila, Diane, Chantal et Cookie, a Paris. Des amies du Vietnam, donc que je n'avais pas vue depuis 9 ans!! C'etait genial de se retrouver!
So while trying to find La Cathedrale Notre Dame de Paris, we stumbled onto the Louvre, where we took some pictures but did not venture in...Does David look like a tourist? Nahhhh... (wait till you see one picture when he has his hat on hehe...)
The little rocks forest of Fountainebleau, full of mysteries and well boulders, everywhere!
So from left to right, let me present: Theguy Farris, (top) Dave, Me, Paolo, Taz, Scapi and David, the bouldering crew and awesome belgian group (minus Farris --> who's awesome, but not from Belgium. Actually Canadian but living in Germany at the moment!) Thanks for the great time guys!
On the hike to Camp Cora, very exciting Gallo-Roman remains ;)
Ok just had to slip in a Lucy Picture, so here I am, enjoying dinner, Filet de Canard au Poivre avec petites patates grillees a l'ail et l'oignon, avec Salade a l'olive et citron, and a fine Pinot Gris to complete this delicious meal. Ah the life!
Needless to say pictures were not allowed here, but shhhh... In the Grottes d'Arcy, a "colonne" where stalagmite meets stalactites.
Night life in Lyon, the city we enjoyed the most so far! Various pictures also follow, including the mini eiffel tower, crazy sets of stairs and some of the sights... Including a public washroom, which let me tell you are less than appealing (though to be honest, these ones were MUCH nicer than the Paris ones)
In Lyon they also have this really cool Gallo-Roman museum, with 2 roman theatres recently restored and currently used for some festivals during the summer.The god jupiter, again pictures not allowed...but somehow we have some. David says he learnt well from his Dad... Tisk Tisk, I am not involved in this picture taking!
We have now moved on from Lyon to meet up with Thomas Ribiere in Montelimar, which is between Lyon and Marseille. Yes we can testify that he does in fact exist, for all those who doubted, and he even climbs! We went climbing with him and a friend (Virginie) today, at Saou (i think?) to do some single pitch climbs. Nice approach, about 30 minutes uphill, somewhat resembling the Yamnuska approach, but a shorter version.
Ahh baguettes, the lunch of champions!!
2 more days of climbing here near Montelimar with Thomas. Assuming the weather decides to cooperate - its been quite rainy these last few days, and even the climbing today was intersperced with rain. If all goes well, we should be heading climbing with Thomas, his friends Gabriel and Virginie, and perhaps even Julia and Renault from Belgium (arriving late tonight in montelimar). Saturday we are likely going to head towards Carcassone, stay tuned!
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Bonjour again!
Since it's been a little while since the last meat and potatoes thread I am going to post a few excerpts from the log I have been keeping of our adventure.
Paris was less exciting for us than you might expect so here is a brief summary. Big city. Lots of people, dirty bathrooms that open up and have dudes who forgot to put their junk away in them. Big touristy stuff to look at. Noisy. A bit smelly. Some nice streets. Some not so nice streets. Expensive food. Some cheap food. Lots of french people. And one really nice family who Emilie knew about 8 - 10 years ago. They put us up for the night.
And now the journal bit:
9:13pm May 11, 2007
After spending several hours preparing Lucy for future life Emilie and I got down to the business of preparing for dinner. Dinner this evening was a fillet of duck. It turned out to be extremely tasty, prepared as it was on the stoves in Lucy. We cooked some pre-cooked potatoes (1.58E for 500g) in the duck juices (read fat). It was extremely tasty. This trip has so far been about 90% about eating and only 10% about climbing so far. That should change in the next couple of days.
Saturday May 12, 2007
So this morning Emilie and I awoke to find that Taz, Paolo and Dave had not arrived during the night. The original plan was for them to arrive during the night and get the camp passes from us. We were sleeping in a parking lot away from the campsite. After spending an hour getting ready, I believe there were eggs for breakfast, Emilie and I set off looking for a computer where we could check to see what had become of our lost friends. Of course we couldn't find one. As you know, whenever you need a internet cafe you can never find one and when you don't need them they are everywhere. After our fruitless search, we headed back to the parking area figuring that since that is where they knew we would be they would head there if and when they arrived.
At this point Emilie and I set off into the forest known as Fontainebleau. In our excitment we forgot 1st our camara and after retrieving that 2nd I forgot to change into my climbing clothing. So on our third foray into the forest we found the Orange Traverse. A 6.5 km circuit that wound itself through the forest. 6.5 km of bouldering/scrambling on mostly contiguous boulders seems like alot. And it is. To give you a feel for the size of Fontainebleau you have to realize that there are 200 of these circuits. Not all are as long but that is still an immense about of rock to be climbed. Emilie and I decided to set off on our 6.5 km adventure. Before sending off though we decided to grab lunch from the van. As we looked back we saw the Yellow Kango in the parking lot ("The Best Car In The World") So down we went to see Paolo and Taz and their friendly dog Scappi. Dave and Farris were several minutes behind.
What followed was as expected a day of somewhat typical bouldering for me. The majority of the problems were too hard and those that weren't didn't last long enough. I guess that I just don't have the boulderers mentality to pound a bouldering problem into submission. Regardless, Emilie and I had a good day with some fantastic companions (the weather turned out to be sublime considering the forcast).
Later in the evening the whole group took off for a pizzaria in the town of fontainebleau. The wine flowed freely and the pizza was fantastic. Taz introduced us to the game of baguette counting. In France Baguettes are so cheap that everybody has them and carries them in the street. Essentially, the game is a competition to see who can count the most baguettes. Each baguette can only be counted once. I'm pretty sure I won because I counted 27. I never really did a final score check with Taz so it's possible that she won. But doubtful. After dinner several more bottles of wine were consumed before heading back to Lucy for a good nights sleep.
Sunday May 13, 2007
A sharp rap on the window awoke Emilie and I from our slumber. Taz & co were heading to the nearby town fo Milli La Foret to grab breakfast. Emilie and I both grabbed a coffee and un pain eau chocolat. It was at this point we discovered that Emilie is getting sick of pain eau chocolat. Uh oh... what will she eat for the next six weeks in France and Corsica?
Following breakfast our eager guides brought us to a different region of bleau. Here there was a blue circuit of "Moderate" difficulty. This is where I really discovered the strength of fontainebleau. I will never be a boulderer. But I loved the idea of these circuits. Originally disigned as training for real climbing in the mountains, the circuits are long sequences of bouldering problems and down climbs with the idea being that you avoid spending anytime on the ground. They are endurance nightmares as even the shortest have 25 - 50 problems and downclimbs. he blue one that was chosen did turn out to be more difficult than anticipated but each problem was doable. Unfortunately, after about 10 problems in the 50 problem circuit my shoulder gave out and I had to call it a day lest I damage it more before la Gorge d'Verdon. Emilie carried on and climbed about 20 problems. Shortly there after the threat of rain sent us packing and we bid adieu to our friends who were still trying to rush through the circuit. The driplets started just as lucy came into view. A short jog ensured that neither Emilie or I got wet.
The storm that followed made me somewhat concerned for the safety of our friends. The wind and rain was short lasted but vicious and we had to avoid at least three large trees at various parts of the road.
The rest of the evening was spent driving toward Montelimar were we are to meet thomas. While driving though, we passed the Grotes D'Arcy. 300,000 year old caves with caveman graffeti. Emilie and I thought it was cool enough to spend the night in a nearby parking area and go on a tour in the morning. (The tour was less cool than anticipated, as they didn't allow photos (which I took anyway much to Emilie's chagrin) and the tour was filled with a gaggle of kindergarten students. It was still pretty cool though.) While looking for a place to sleep we came across a short hike to a old Gallo-Roman fort called Camp Cora. The hike turned out to be slightly longer than expected but we did get there eventually. The stone wall was pretty cool to behold.
--End of Excerpt--
As this is probably long and Thomas will be home shortly, I will sumarize Lyon for you: Cool city with some really nice touristy things to look at. An interesting Gallo-Roman Museam and some Roman Theatres. It used to be the Roman city Lugdunium. Very quiet and pretty at night. Certaintaly ranks at the top of the cities that we have seen so far. We slept in a parking lot about 5 minutes from downtown. Ah lucy rocks.
The next three days will be spent climbing with Thomas. Our wonderful French friend who will be showing us the climbing in southern france. We'll upload more photos in the next few days. (Sorry Lockie, I know you can't picture anything I wrote but you'll have to wait)
PS: If you had one tape (10 songs) to pick that would be the only music you listened to for a 4 month road trip, which would it be?
Paris was less exciting for us than you might expect so here is a brief summary. Big city. Lots of people, dirty bathrooms that open up and have dudes who forgot to put their junk away in them. Big touristy stuff to look at. Noisy. A bit smelly. Some nice streets. Some not so nice streets. Expensive food. Some cheap food. Lots of french people. And one really nice family who Emilie knew about 8 - 10 years ago. They put us up for the night.
And now the journal bit:
9:13pm May 11, 2007
After spending several hours preparing Lucy for future life Emilie and I got down to the business of preparing for dinner. Dinner this evening was a fillet of duck. It turned out to be extremely tasty, prepared as it was on the stoves in Lucy. We cooked some pre-cooked potatoes (1.58E for 500g) in the duck juices (read fat). It was extremely tasty. This trip has so far been about 90% about eating and only 10% about climbing so far. That should change in the next couple of days.
Saturday May 12, 2007
So this morning Emilie and I awoke to find that Taz, Paolo and Dave had not arrived during the night. The original plan was for them to arrive during the night and get the camp passes from us. We were sleeping in a parking lot away from the campsite. After spending an hour getting ready, I believe there were eggs for breakfast, Emilie and I set off looking for a computer where we could check to see what had become of our lost friends. Of course we couldn't find one. As you know, whenever you need a internet cafe you can never find one and when you don't need them they are everywhere. After our fruitless search, we headed back to the parking area figuring that since that is where they knew we would be they would head there if and when they arrived.
At this point Emilie and I set off into the forest known as Fontainebleau. In our excitment we forgot 1st our camara and after retrieving that 2nd I forgot to change into my climbing clothing. So on our third foray into the forest we found the Orange Traverse. A 6.5 km circuit that wound itself through the forest. 6.5 km of bouldering/scrambling on mostly contiguous boulders seems like alot. And it is. To give you a feel for the size of Fontainebleau you have to realize that there are 200 of these circuits. Not all are as long but that is still an immense about of rock to be climbed. Emilie and I decided to set off on our 6.5 km adventure. Before sending off though we decided to grab lunch from the van. As we looked back we saw the Yellow Kango in the parking lot ("The Best Car In The World") So down we went to see Paolo and Taz and their friendly dog Scappi. Dave and Farris were several minutes behind.
What followed was as expected a day of somewhat typical bouldering for me. The majority of the problems were too hard and those that weren't didn't last long enough. I guess that I just don't have the boulderers mentality to pound a bouldering problem into submission. Regardless, Emilie and I had a good day with some fantastic companions (the weather turned out to be sublime considering the forcast).
Later in the evening the whole group took off for a pizzaria in the town of fontainebleau. The wine flowed freely and the pizza was fantastic. Taz introduced us to the game of baguette counting. In France Baguettes are so cheap that everybody has them and carries them in the street. Essentially, the game is a competition to see who can count the most baguettes. Each baguette can only be counted once. I'm pretty sure I won because I counted 27. I never really did a final score check with Taz so it's possible that she won. But doubtful. After dinner several more bottles of wine were consumed before heading back to Lucy for a good nights sleep.
Sunday May 13, 2007
A sharp rap on the window awoke Emilie and I from our slumber. Taz & co were heading to the nearby town fo Milli La Foret to grab breakfast. Emilie and I both grabbed a coffee and un pain eau chocolat. It was at this point we discovered that Emilie is getting sick of pain eau chocolat. Uh oh... what will she eat for the next six weeks in France and Corsica?
Following breakfast our eager guides brought us to a different region of bleau. Here there was a blue circuit of "Moderate" difficulty. This is where I really discovered the strength of fontainebleau. I will never be a boulderer. But I loved the idea of these circuits. Originally disigned as training for real climbing in the mountains, the circuits are long sequences of bouldering problems and down climbs with the idea being that you avoid spending anytime on the ground. They are endurance nightmares as even the shortest have 25 - 50 problems and downclimbs. he blue one that was chosen did turn out to be more difficult than anticipated but each problem was doable. Unfortunately, after about 10 problems in the 50 problem circuit my shoulder gave out and I had to call it a day lest I damage it more before la Gorge d'Verdon. Emilie carried on and climbed about 20 problems. Shortly there after the threat of rain sent us packing and we bid adieu to our friends who were still trying to rush through the circuit. The driplets started just as lucy came into view. A short jog ensured that neither Emilie or I got wet.
The storm that followed made me somewhat concerned for the safety of our friends. The wind and rain was short lasted but vicious and we had to avoid at least three large trees at various parts of the road.
The rest of the evening was spent driving toward Montelimar were we are to meet thomas. While driving though, we passed the Grotes D'Arcy. 300,000 year old caves with caveman graffeti. Emilie and I thought it was cool enough to spend the night in a nearby parking area and go on a tour in the morning. (The tour was less cool than anticipated, as they didn't allow photos (which I took anyway much to Emilie's chagrin) and the tour was filled with a gaggle of kindergarten students. It was still pretty cool though.) While looking for a place to sleep we came across a short hike to a old Gallo-Roman fort called Camp Cora. The hike turned out to be slightly longer than expected but we did get there eventually. The stone wall was pretty cool to behold.
--End of Excerpt--
As this is probably long and Thomas will be home shortly, I will sumarize Lyon for you: Cool city with some really nice touristy things to look at. An interesting Gallo-Roman Museam and some Roman Theatres. It used to be the Roman city Lugdunium. Very quiet and pretty at night. Certaintaly ranks at the top of the cities that we have seen so far. We slept in a parking lot about 5 minutes from downtown. Ah lucy rocks.
The next three days will be spent climbing with Thomas. Our wonderful French friend who will be showing us the climbing in southern france. We'll upload more photos in the next few days. (Sorry Lockie, I know you can't picture anything I wrote but you'll have to wait)
PS: If you had one tape (10 songs) to pick that would be the only music you listened to for a 4 month road trip, which would it be?
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Photos!!!
So we finally managed to get our pictures on a computer... after buying a card reader! So here are a few shots... Mostly food and climbing, but thats the best part right?
Emilie at the border of our trip! Welcome to the Netherlands and Europe!
David in Lucy, on our way out of Utrect for the grand adventure. First time of "real" driving in Europe.
Mmmmmmm, our dinner on our first night, in what we thought was a traditional Dutch Restaurant (turns out it was Belgian). The menu, translated for us: "Pork, Tournedos, Shrimp, Vegetables". After asking what the best choice was, and described as "You know, like in Asterix and Obelix, with the bone" we decided on the delicuous pork. It just fell off the bone....
Our first climbing trip, in Etrringen, Germany, our last route before we left, which david also led, "Hazenhert", 6 (5.8) "Hardest 5.8 ever... except all the other 5.8's in the place!" (but fun :) ) David is on the scariest part of the climb where you have to swing around and "trust" that the hold will be good...
Emilie at the border of our trip! Welcome to the Netherlands and Europe!
David in Lucy, on our way out of Utrect for the grand adventure. First time of "real" driving in Europe. Mmmmmmm, our dinner on our first night, in what we thought was a traditional Dutch Restaurant (turns out it was Belgian). The menu, translated for us: "Pork, Tournedos, Shrimp, Vegetables". After asking what the best choice was, and described as "You know, like in Asterix and Obelix, with the bone" we decided on the delicuous pork. It just fell off the bone....
Our first climbing trip, in Etrringen, Germany, our last route before we left, which david also led, "Hazenhert", 6 (5.8) "Hardest 5.8 ever... except all the other 5.8's in the place!" (but fun :) ) David is on the scariest part of the climb where you have to swing around and "trust" that the hold will be good...
Last night in Belgium... Ordered a wine bottle of beer. Foolish waiter thought I was going to share!!!!
Belgian waffles. Nothing better. Except Belgian Beer. Unless you are emilie. Then perhaps Belgian fries. So when do we start losing weight on this trip???
Hope you enjoy the photos! We are in Paris now, enjoying the city of love. Next update should come shortly. Stay tuned!
Sunday, May 6, 2007
Achtung Baby!
(So I had a long post ready but this stupid internet lost it for me; so here is the abbreviated version)
After spending friday walking through Brussels (very pretty town) Emilie and I took off for Ettrigen on saturday morning. I drove Lucy out; she doesn't move much faster than 100km per hour. So it took a little while to get there. Emilie and I had dreams of a trad climber's paradise. Turns out that really the paradise only really applies if you climb over 5.11a. Everybody below that basically has to wait in line for the few easy routes available. The climbing itself was nice but really the crowding on the easy routes and the shear number of people there kinda dampened the fun. Sunday really saved the trip though as we found a more secluded location with some easy routes.
Saturday night there was a big party with lots of cheap beer, steak and sausages. Good times were had.
Emilie and I had a good time. We were left with a taste of European climbing, but we are hungering for more.
Next stop: Fontanbleau. Theoretically one of the three best bouldering areas in the world. I think we'll be the judge of that.
Cheers!
After spending friday walking through Brussels (very pretty town) Emilie and I took off for Ettrigen on saturday morning. I drove Lucy out; she doesn't move much faster than 100km per hour. So it took a little while to get there. Emilie and I had dreams of a trad climber's paradise. Turns out that really the paradise only really applies if you climb over 5.11a. Everybody below that basically has to wait in line for the few easy routes available. The climbing itself was nice but really the crowding on the easy routes and the shear number of people there kinda dampened the fun. Sunday really saved the trip though as we found a more secluded location with some easy routes.
Saturday night there was a big party with lots of cheap beer, steak and sausages. Good times were had.
Emilie and I had a good time. We were left with a taste of European climbing, but we are hungering for more.
Next stop: Fontanbleau. Theoretically one of the three best bouldering areas in the world. I think we'll be the judge of that.
Cheers!
Thursday, May 3, 2007
We are alive!!!
We made it!!!! We are as I type in Brussels staying with some of davids friends (taz and paolo). We drove Lucy from Utrect this afternoon (approx 35min from amsterdam) and wow, driving here is stressful - and I wasnt even the one driving! Poor david, though i thought he did amazing - the 5 lane traffic circle was particularly interesting seeing as we had no idea which road we actually wanted to be on! Ironically we are now in the process of ordering thai food for dinner - suggestion from paolo. We did eat some more traditional food last night which included belgian fries and a huge piece of pork (that the waiter described to us as "you know just like the bones/meat in asterix and obelix"). Delicious! And of course david tried the local beer - pretty smooth he said. I still have to work on developing my beer taste buds...
The flight to Amsterdam went miraculously well, and we arrived early without any incidents around 4:30pm local time, just in time to jump on a train to Utrect, where Lucy was waiting for us. Visiting Amsterdam is reserved for our trip back, if we have time. We took a cab from the train station and got dropped off in front of a green door, in a tiny tiny street (and the cab drove away). euuuuh... Now what?
... thats all for me for today... david will pick up on my rambling from here :)
The flight to Amsterdam went miraculously well, and we arrived early without any incidents around 4:30pm local time, just in time to jump on a train to Utrect, where Lucy was waiting for us. Visiting Amsterdam is reserved for our trip back, if we have time. We took a cab from the train station and got dropped off in front of a green door, in a tiny tiny street (and the cab drove away). euuuuh... Now what?
... thats all for me for today... david will pick up on my rambling from here :)
Tuesday, May 1, 2007
Countdown is almost complete
Well then... less than 24 hours before departure. Both Emilie and I are extremely excited!!! Sleeping has been pretty tough these last couple of days. My theory is that we are starting to prep for the new time zones!
Pretty much everything is ready to go now. Everything is packed up. Just a few last details to attend to and we are off off off and away!
The plans for the first couple of weeks are pretty solidified at this point. We are heading to pick up the aforementioned Lucy as soon as we arrive on Thursday. We should be sleeping in her that very first night! (Assuming off course that Air Canada doesn't make us late; we all know how unlikely that is... sigh) Oh ya, speaking of which, Boeing 767's are the smallest plane ever. The flight shant be particularly comfortable, but who am I to complain? Definitely more comfortable than the office chair that I am leaving empty for the next four months!
Following our meeting with Lucy, we are going to be heading down to Belgium to meet with several charming and helpful people. After a night of jet lag recovery we shall be blasting off to our first climbing destination Ettrigen. This place is defined as a "trad climber's paradise." We're both pretty excited. (Though Emilie might be a little bit apprehensive about the sheer amount of crack climbing to be had; poor feet) ;-) Ah crack... The high concentration of ticks also challenges her definition of "paradise" but what's an adventure without a few ticks here and there.
We are definitely going to have access to the internet in Belgium so we shall have an update available within a week. Wish us luck on the flight!
Cheers,
David and Emilie
Pretty much everything is ready to go now. Everything is packed up. Just a few last details to attend to and we are off off off and away!
The plans for the first couple of weeks are pretty solidified at this point. We are heading to pick up the aforementioned Lucy as soon as we arrive on Thursday. We should be sleeping in her that very first night! (Assuming off course that Air Canada doesn't make us late; we all know how unlikely that is... sigh) Oh ya, speaking of which, Boeing 767's are the smallest plane ever. The flight shant be particularly comfortable, but who am I to complain? Definitely more comfortable than the office chair that I am leaving empty for the next four months!
Following our meeting with Lucy, we are going to be heading down to Belgium to meet with several charming and helpful people. After a night of jet lag recovery we shall be blasting off to our first climbing destination Ettrigen. This place is defined as a "trad climber's paradise." We're both pretty excited. (Though Emilie might be a little bit apprehensive about the sheer amount of crack climbing to be had; poor feet) ;-) Ah crack... The high concentration of ticks also challenges her definition of "paradise" but what's an adventure without a few ticks here and there.
We are definitely going to have access to the internet in Belgium so we shall have an update available within a week. Wish us luck on the flight!
Cheers,
David and Emilie
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