- General trip timings: Avoid the months of May and before -- it's likely to still be within the rainy season. Locals say that the rainy seasons usually last till about between mid to late May. Rainy season is marked by waves of heavy rain or stormy weather starting at night and sometimes stretching into the next day. During these times, you'll get to see perculiar local habits like keeping all activities to a minimal and staying indoors. The most activity we've seen at times like these was our neighbour smoking weed and other people at the local restaurants channel-surfing. June and July are still during the tourist low seasons, so prices shouldn't get jacked up too high. Nevertheless, your cheapest sources of food and drinks will still be from Ao Nang.
- Guidebooks: Get the one that Climb Asia carries -- Rock Climbing in Thailand. It's got the best picture-to-crag guide you can get your hands on. The sketches are more accurate than the ones in King Climbers. You'd do well to get as many guidebooks as there are climbing parties. Basically you don't want to have 3 groups of climbers sharing one book. And of course, you wanna have a spare one in case it gets wet or dirty too.
- Equipment: Depending on where you climb, watch your equipment. Tonsai has got lots of sand and Railay has got lots of dust. You might wanna give it a brush at the end of your day and make sure that the ropes don't get soiled while you're climbing. Bring enough clips and ropes for all climbers cos renting is gonna cost a bit. Nevertheless, you could rent from places like Wee's Climbing School at Tonsai, near to the Banyan Tree Resort (look for Elke, an english-speaking german lady who runs the school).
- Good Climbs: Hardest send of the day were Tidal Wave (7B+) by Jups. No hardest red-point yet, but we were close to it on Tiger Queen (7B?). For boulders and people who have been packing it in at the Gym, Tonsai wall is great for short and intense climbs. The wall's steep and consistent overhang makes for almost long boulder problems, with single or multiple cruxes depending on your climbing style and strength. Fire wall has got some nice long routes too. A must try there is Groove Tube (6A), which packs an interesting segment where you'd need to chimney your way up an almost completely closed rock tunnel -- great fun.
We've found a bouldering cave further down the road from fire wall (if you're coming over from the direction of Dream Valley Resort, that is). It's almost 12m long and packs several nice and sustained lines, from a flat wall to a wicked long roof to an inclined wall. Plenty of lines available at the cave, from juggy routes and obvious holds to slopy surfaces and even crimps on the roof -- worth a trip. Dum's Kitchen has got several nice routes too, like By Way of Deception (7A) which packs a tricky start and a sustained finish. Do spend more time on the Tonsai and neighbouring walls to really enjoy the more technical and harder routes. These are the lines that are really beautiful and worth the trip. However, try not to go running into the hard grades without adequate warmup and some easy foundations first. Most of th 6Cs in the area are still worth a go, like Vikings in Heat and Cowabungalow. They're nice routes to get you familiar with the rock and adequately warmed up. - Relaxation: I think you could find some of the longer term residents smoking weed around; they're usually quite friendly and willing to share. There's a book cafe along the inner coastal road in Tonsai. Great food at Andaman Resort and generous helpings at Dream Valley Resort. Freedom Bar is still a great hangout anytime of day. Oh, and bring along the mahjong set -- it makes a great before-bed game for the restless souls.
JKLM
