Yesterday I went rock climbing in Yugawara. This is a pretty cool outdoor location, because it is very easy to access from Tokyo, and you can actually use public transport to get to the rock.
From Tokyo, you just take the Tokaido line towards Odawara, and get off at Yugawara station. From there, you need to go to Maku-yama koen: you can take a taxi, or take a bus (number 3, I believe, to Kajiya; from the bus you have a 30 minute walk to the park).
Anyway, we had 6 people come, which was actually maybe 1 or 2 too many, but it was really fun. The rock was busy, so there was a lot of waiting, and all 6 of us were used to climbing in the gym, so at first we were all pretty clumsy on the wall. One of the biggest differences between gym climbing and outdoor climbing is placement. In the gym, everything is brightly colored and it is obvious where your hands and feet can go. Outdoors, everything looks like rock, and you will spend a good part of each climb exploring the rock for good hand holds, and convincing yourself that a 1cmX3cm slip of rock is a good place for one of your feet.
Michi (belaying), Daniel (smiling), and Patrick (climbing)
Michi and Ayako
Me: leading a 5.10c. Easy enough to get to where I am, but after that it is painful. Patrick somehow made me look dramatic up there, but I felt really clumsy.That day was my second time leading a climb outdoors, technically speaking. The first time, my brother and I were climbing near Harrisonberg, Virginia, and I successfully made it to the first bolt before chickening out. I was literally shaking with fear when I came down. At Maku-yama, I'd been leading climbs in the gym for 3 weeks, and I lead almost every climb I tried.
Some Japanese Climbing Terms:
oriru - let me down
noborimasu - climbing
Hopefully, this long weekend will feature good weather and more rock climbing. One possible trip is a 5 day camping/climbing visit to Ogawayama, which is one of the top climbing spots in Japan.
Cheers,
