Rock Climbing in Chiang Mai

[TotallyOz]

Climbing Thailand was an excellent day trip. We choose a day at the rocks plus an extra adventure to the Hot Springs.

 

The cost was 2500 baht per person. I had the boyfriend and 2 other Thai guys and the four of us were given our own 2 guides and instructors. We didn’t have to have others in our group and we had great individual attention.

 

PJ’s arranged the trip for us and I found much easier to just let these guys do the work for us and all we had to do was show up at the right time in the dining room.

 

We were picked up at the hotel and taken to the rock climbing store and school. We signed waivers and were given a choice of meals to order for lunch. We were then driven to the mounting where we went to our area for instruction and were given several suggestions before we took to the rocks. We had been given shoes, a harness and a helmet at the school earlier so we had everything needed for the day.

 

The rocks were Class 5A and 5A Plus and 6A and 6A plus. I don’t really know what all that means but I know the higher up the numbers go the harder it is to climb. I am sure we were all on very basic climbs and that was fine for us as we were all really new beginners.

 

We did 4 different climbs all together. The boys made it to the top on all 4. I made it to the top on the first 2 and part of the way on the second 2. It is true that the bigger you are, the harder it is to climb. At least that is my thoughts on why the boys were able to scale the mountains so fast and it took me a bit longer.

 

The huts we put our bags in were made of wooden branches and comfortable to relax in.

 

Lunch was served for us around 2PM. That was after several hours of climbing. The lunch was good and we all ate every bit. We were exhausted from the climb so we were thrilled to eat and drink the Gatorade they supplied.

 

We had chosen to go to the Hot Springs, which was nearby. The springs were great fun and a perfect way to end the day. The springs were very hot and ran though the park filled with tress and flowers. The springs were made so that visitors would sit on the banks and put their feet and legs into the water. We all did this and it was great comfort after a long day of climbing

 

The boys bought some eggs. I assume they were bird eggs and they were pretty small. They came in a basket, which they took over to an area for the eggs and they put the basket into the Hot Springs to allow the eggs to be cooked. They left them in for 3 minutes for a soft egg and up to 11 minutes for a well done egg. They all enjoyed the eggs including the instructions. I had bought them all eggs and all the eggs were eaten. I think the eggs were 20 baht for a basket.

 

We then went to the Mineral Water swimming pool. This was also warm but not as hot as the springs. It has a huge 2-story waterfall flowing into the pool. We stayed there for about 40 minutes before we had a food massage outside the pool area.

 

The pool and the massage were extra fees to partake in. The pool was 50 baht each and the massage was 120 baht for ½ hour.

 

Our day ended with the guides taking us back to the store and school for us to fill out evaluation forms. We did this and I bought the boys a t-shirt with the company logo and the mounting we climbed on the shirt. The shirts were 300 baht each. I always tip for good service and I gave each of our two instructors 200 baht each. I am not sure if this is the right amount or not but it was what I felt comfortable with and they appreciated the tip. I figured that most guys in Thailand can make about 200 baht a day in a regular job and they were with us from pickup in the AM till drop off after dark. So, I gave them what I thought was a good tip. I tipped the driver 50 baht. I simply wanted to give a summary of our day and the costs of the day and I don't know if the tips were good or cheap but it was a tip for the guides and they seemed to be thankful. Most of the climbers were younger guys and gals and I am sure most don't tip at all so, our instructors did seem to appreciate the tip.

 

The rock climbing was perhaps the best day we have had here. It was fun for all of us and it was great to see the guys climb the mountain and do things they never thought was possible. I recommend this to anyone who wants a fantastic day!

 

http://thailandclimbing.com/

[dapitt]

Thanks much for all of this wonderful information about Chiang Mai, GT. I too am quite happy when I'm in Chiang Mai, and I now know that most all of my time in Thailand will be spent in there. Wonderful city and wonderful men!

 

With all of your 'adventure activities' I wonder if you've come across a place called "The Flight of the Gibbon"?

{ http://www.treetopasia.com } They say in their advert, "high altitude rainforest adventure". I've not been to it, but I have it on my 'must do' list for my next trip in June.

[Guest]

With all of your 'adventure activities' I wonder if you've come across a place called "The Flight of the Gibbon"?

{ http://www.treetopasia.com } They say in their advert, "high altitude rainforest adventure". I've not been to it, but I have it on my 'must do' list for my next trip in June.

 

We didn't try this trek. I did see brochures of it all over town and wanted to try. My understanding is that you hook into a harness in the trees and take a zip line from one tree to the next. It looked like fun to me. I hope you will give us a full report on it.

 

There were many things I want to try on my next trip there. This is one of them. The other one is a 90k bike ride through a national park. Another one is a day of hiking in the jungle and picking your food and cooking what you find in the jungle. The last one is a Jungle Bungee Jump. The boyfriend wanted to do this one but I kept postponing the time and time just ran out.