Looking for rock climbing friends in taipei

Hey, looks like the last post about climbing was a few years ago so here a new one.

I just got here in taipei two weeks ago and I’m looking for people to rock climb with. indoors or out (prolly indoors for now).
I’ve been climbing in gyms only for two years and I’m also a good belayer (never dropped anyone).

At my local gym, I climbed around 5.8-5.9 (sorry, i dont know the equiv. in other rating systems.)

got my own shows, harness and belay tool and 'biner.

i also welcome any suggestions for airconditioned gyms and gyms i can climb solo.

I’m located in the wan hua area.

-=-=–
I’m also looking for friends to just do sporty things in general (but I’m bad at large team sports).

Peace,
Brian

Ooo… that’d be cool. I haven’t climbed in years though. Years.

Ooooh, I’d love to get into rock climbing here as well! I don’t have any equipment, though…my harness is back in the states :frowning:

If there are any gyms with equipment for rent, I’d love to get involved. Haven’t climbed since last fall and am eager to get back into it.

I’m around the ShiDa area, but I have no idea if there are any climbing areas nearby, indoor or out.

I might be up for it indoors. I would have to try once and see if I could, though. I have arthritis in my hands that didn’t used to stop me, but might now.

I’m into mountaineering so if you are thinking of a mountain trip i’d be interested, got ropes, cams, etc. Live in Neihu, Taipei

not lots of use for glacier traversing techniques in taiwan… although i have walked in crampons here before.

i’m looking for casual climbing partners too.

two gyms i know of worth climbing in: Y17 on RenAi/ LinSen in the city, and Beitou district gym in the north… Shuang Lian or something.

plenty of rocks outside too, but nothing spectacular.

Actually, Taiwan has some of the best and most spectacular seaside cragging in Asia, and it’s less than an hour from Taipei. Long Dong (“dragon’s cave”) is about 25km south of Keelung on the Northeast Coast.

Nearly 500 routes, 5.4 to 5.13c, trad and sport, up to 80 meters tall, on high-quality compact sandstone. Beautiful views and a swim in the ocean is always right at hand.

If sport climbing, beware of old bolts. One-piece glue-ins are new and generally safe.

The trad climbing opportunities are endless and outstanding.

A trad guidebook is available at climbing shops around Taiwan (Ting San Iou, Trail Corner Outdoors, etc. in Taipei… Sun & Tree Outdoors in Taichung/Hsinchu).

For further information and photos of Long Dong’s spectacular climbing:
www.climbstone.com

Any Q’s, PM me.

-matt

Um, ever been climbing in southern Thailand? Vietnam? Malaysia? those places absolutely shit all over LongDong. and longdong is only one tiny crag too. I mean, don;t get me wrong: i like the place, and its conveneient, and the rock is nice and hard.

the trad climbing opportunities there are rather limited by poor placement opportunities for most modern cams, with the only option on many climbs being wires and RPs or similar.
but you re right: it is close to town, and you can swim nearby after being roasted all day.

I’m not sure we’re even talking about the same Long Dong.

A single crag? Long Dong has over three dozen distinct, named crags along a kilometer of coastline. Most have at least a few really good climbs, others are worth skipping, and a couple would be classic even in Yosemite.

Significantly inferior to other regional areas? Clearly a matter of opinion. I agree that for sport climbing or party scene, nothing compares with Tonsai Beach… I’ve gone there eight times in the past decade and I love it. However, I’m personally more interested in trad climbing. Limestone/Karst as found in Thai and Vietnam is generally better suited for bolted sport climbing. As for the granite on Mt. Kinnabalu, it’s very high on my list and looks like an incredible adventure… but hardly qualifies as “cragging.”

Limited trad climbing? I’ve climbed over two hundred different trad routes at Long Dong, most with excellent protection.

Wires and RPs only? I wish. LD’s splitter vertical and horizontal cracks are perfect for cams; I usually leave wires on the ground, and years ago I sadly realized I must wait till I get to Arapiles to use my new set of RPs. Nowadays when I visit Tuolumne Meadows or Eldorado Canyon with its intricate gear placements, I am reminded how simple and user-friendly the pro placements are at Long Dong.

Part of the problem in the past was lack of documentation of the best trad climbs at Long Dong. The old book by YumYum focused more on sport climbs of the 1990’s than on the better trad climbs. This situation should be improved with the new guidebook. For any climber who likes easy protection, perfect stone, and a great variety of roofs, dihedrals, finger cracks, hands, fists, and offwidths, the place presents endless opportunities… unless you consider 200+ established trad routes and perhaps another hundred unclimbed lines to be “limited.”

For those more interested in sport climbs, there are also many (perhaps 100-200, I’m not sure) newly-developed routes with high-quality glue-in bolts. The place has really changed in the past couple years.

Of course, different people will have different experiences and different opinions about climbing areas, which is one of the interesting things about climbing. Personally if I wanted to slag off LD, I would point out the pollution that washes in from the ocean, or the dreary winter weather, or the lack of bigger multi-pitch routes. But the gear-placement characteristics of the stone and the variety of hundreds of different trad climbs on 40+ distinct crags with beautiful scenery are some examples of what makes Long Dong one of the nicest seaside trad cragging areas in Asia.

If you still have doubts, let’s go climbing and I’ll show you some quality trad lines and a good time. And if you can dispatch my offwidth roof crack project using only nuts and wires, I’ll eat my #5 Camalot.

double-post deleted.

OK, maybe I’ve only been introduced to the first bay of cliffs. local knowledge is only good if the locals have good knowledge. :slight_smile: you mean there’s lots more if I walk around a ways further? I’m game…

anyway, what i saw was not really impressive compared to the Blue Mountains and Arapiles where i cut my climbing teeth.

But any off-width roof crack project is all yours, mate. i outgrew those urges a fair while ago.

Yeah, there’s a lot more than just the front sector (“school gate” as its usually called… I guess this is where many people get their introduction… including me). Bit of a hike to get to the good stuff. 10-15 minutes but always feels longer somehow.

But honestly, all the climbing in Asia put together probably doesn’t even begin to compare with the Blueys and Araps. Haven’t been there yet, but I definitely will. Word from those who know says those areas are as world-class as anything on the planet. You’re lucky. Nicer weather too, I bet.

Always up for some belay duty and a laugh…

Longdong’s lovely. I’ve climbed all over it. Love to try it with some protection sometime. Before I get too completely OLD.

pm if you’re game for climbing sometime soon. I’m game for whereever is cheap and has decent facilities. i’m a bit out of shape so the walls dont need to be too hard.

i dunno if any spammers haunt this board so i’d rather not leave my email.

We aren’t serious climbers (not really climbers at all), but might have something to amuse you if were prepared to venture down south. Later in the season we will introduce some rivertracing trips - surely the best climbing for this climate… barking-deer.com

Guidebook available at major climbing shops around Taiwan:

www.climbstone.com

Are you guys still climbing together? I just got to TPE and wld love to join you. I’ve been to Y17 once and survived the belay test :wink:

Been climbing about 6-7 years, I can do perhaps 6a, 6b grades. I have a 60m rope & some quickdraws.

Where do you guys climb?