Easily Amused: A Look Inside the Mind of a Wanderer: Payne's Ford

Real quick, I just read an Article about this earthquake on the North Island. Read about it here if you like.

As you may know, after my second set of finals in the southern hemisphere I set out for a couple of weeks of climbing on the fantastic South Island. We started the trip in Payne's Ford, which you can find out more in the interesting links I have down and to the right.

In such a short space, the place is a sport climber's paradise. We were treated to near perfect weather (I think it rained a smidgen one night) with great camping and perfect rock. We stayed at the Hang dog climber's camp. If you are ever on the north tip of the South Island this place is a must-stop for any dirtbag. Camping is 5$, a bargain anywhere, you can take a shower for another dollar, and they ask that if you are climbing contribute 50cents per day for the bolt fund, which replaces dodgy climbing bolts. Hangdog is the kind of place I imagined the perfect vacation spot to be: filled with laid back people and where a worry hardly enters your mind.

The place was started by this guy Willie who tragically died a few years ago while being lowered. They have free bikes you can use to ride into town. The toilets have surprisingly good poetry in them (see Inga's blog. no really. It is pretty clever and not your typical bathroom graffiti) and the facility also has it's own Gravity meter...

We stayed in Scumbag Corner, a place that was well suited for our needs

Part of one of the Poems. Apparently the one in German was a bit darker...

The place has plenty of other funny quirks and great aspects. One of which is the great swimming hole a scant 5 minute walk and scramble from the climbs or the camp (there is another with a slackline over the river a short walk away from this one). To get there, walk through a gorse choked field to a ledge situated beneath a massive overhang. Slither on your hands and knees out to a sunny ledge that is complete with 2 rope swings, a cliff jump, and one badass boulder problem the likes of which you have ever seen. Acid Test is situated on a massive roof hanging over the Takaka river. It's a v4 (more like a 3 or 2) out to the roof and then it gets hard. The whole thing goes at apparently v7 and the first ascentionist apparently sent it while on acid and wearing a Walkman, thus the name. It's better without shoes on, as there are perfect little scoops for your toes. All in all, it's a great way to spend an afternoon, the only downside being the freezing water you crash into when you inevitably fall.

Ingrid starting out on Acid Test