Go Climb Something!!!
No matter where the journey takes you, do not forget your camera and climbing shoes.
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Life On The Move
Tama Zoo and Kawai Boulders
For the past week the weather has been sunny and hot. I have been trying to bear with the heat and get outdoors as much as possible with out putting Gavin at risk of heat stroke. On Saturday The Walkers and a partial Team G, Star is on call, went to the Tama zoo. I had not been to a zoo in Japan yet, so I was interested to see if the zoos were different or similar to that of Us zoos. Not too different as it turns out. A bunch of animals in cages with artificial habitats that do not resemble the real habitat but by color tones. The one difference that I can point out is that I felt much closer to the animals at this zoo. I was literally ten feet from a Rhinoceros with a three foot “moat” and an electric fence that I could hop over!! Rhinos are so prehistoric looking. Being that close you can really see the details of their skin and grasp how large these animals really are. We arrived late to the zoo and only spent a couple of hours there before the zoo closed but I would like to go back soon. Many of the animals were already removed from display, so there is much to see next time. I know Star wants to go back anyway.
Yesterday Jeff and I decided to go bouldering since there is a typhoon expected to land on Tuesday and put a hold on climbing outside for at least a few days. We first tried the Mitake boulders, what a cluster. In Japan there are random Mondays here and there that are national holidays. Well yesterday was one of those holidays. Mitake looked like an overturned ant pile. We did not even leave the car. We drove five minutes up river to the Kawai boulders. A much better decision. We were the only climbers! The only bad thing to the Kawai boulder area is that you have to pay to park and to climb, but since there was no other climbers I was happy to oblige. I would suggest to only bring one car and pack it full of folks to get your full dollar value. The parking is 1000 yen and climbing 500 yen.
Jeff had never been to this area so I showed him around a bit. We started to warmup on the back side of the Kawai boulder and immediately we were enjoying the shade and solitude. Gavin was great , as always. He played on his mat, randomly chewing on sticks and such.
We climbed everything ,excluding Nobu’s V3 mantel, V4 and under. It was a fun morning and afternoon. For those of you that have never been to the Kawai area, this is a great place for beginners and families. The Kawai boulder area consists of two boulder. The larger, the Kawai boulder, is 20 feet tall with several trees on top to allow for setting up top ropes. There are some tricky slabs, tough v8’s, and a nice overhang. Not to mention that luxury cabins located there as well. The other is a steep overhang with great holds here and there.
I only brought one flash, why I only bring one along I will never fully understand, so most of the photos from the day are sub-bueno. Here are a few photos from the day that are sub-bueno, but just less than others. Like I was saying before, the typhoon arrived today and will put a damper on climbing for a few days, so I am going to Base Camp today an probably Caramba tomorrow. Stay psyched and …….
Go Climb Something!!!!
