Perlis climbing was pretty interesting. Gua Kelam was bee-infested and some of the guys who went up got stung numerous times. I think Claudia got some too. The routes weren't that interesting, and loose rock was common.
Bukit Keteri was a different story. Less insects (still a lot of mosquitoes and sandflies), long routes that are quite fun and beautiful cave structures to explore, coupled with a balls-in-your-mouth hike up to the Belly Button cave. The Keteri Ultimate route was a 7a+ called Kerengati or something. Quite a few of the guys managed to finish it. A juggy 8 metre start, a very sharp and crimpy 5 move boulder crux, then a easy finish on jugs again. Most of the guys tried the 8c+ which David Lama and Cedric Lachat did on their Mammut trip. We left a mulien (or however you spell it) up there.
Ipoh was a breath of fresh air, with zero trekking and cleaner belay spots. Fuzzy Lama gave the most problems, not with the climbing, but finding the right anchor points. And projecting La Sculpture, a 7c+ boulder route which we did on toprope was fun and inspiring. Natural bouldering rocks la.
I don't know how the professional climbers climb for so many days straight. I'm aching like mad all over, bitten infinite times with my legs all scarred badly from scratching in the middle of the night, and the mind can be so tired that I don't feel like putting a rope to myself. But the company was most enjoyable, with like-minded teammates with light sabres and the endless singing on the bus.
Photos from Daryl will come soon when we're back. We've got thousands of them.
