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ravicai
Oct 24, 2005, 9:02 AM
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Registered: Aug 22, 2005
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[Sorry, I had to repost this so it would show up in the right section. Not my fault thou...]
Good times.
Well, I needed to go on a business trip to China, so I figured "Hmmm, I wonder if there is any climbing in Hong Kong". Sure enough, a quick search on rockclimbing.com revealed YES! The only time I'd have to rock climb would be in Hong Kong though, so I wrote down all the information for the bouldering gyms in Kowloon and away I went.
Why only gyms you ask? I only had enough room on my luggage for shoes and a chalk bag, so gyms would have to suffice.
YMCA Bouldering Wall
By chance, I happened to come across a YMCA in the middle of Kowloon.
So I checked it out and sure enough they had a bouldering room.
http://phoenixknights.net/...ing/hkclimbgym01.jpghttp://phoenixknights.net/...ing/hkclimbgym02.jpg
... but it was kinda small and cramped, so I thought I'd save myself for this bad boy...
King's Park - YMCA Wall
I followed the directions on rockclimbing.com and easily found the place.
http://phoenixknights.net/...ing/hkclimbgym03.jpg
This was my view as I emerged from the subway tunnel (sorry, hard to see once I resized the image). The climbing wall was very visable, and I immediately got an energy rush (kinda like I used to get when I was a kid driving up to Six Flags Magic Mountain in California... right after you see the red tower or Superman). Anydangway, so I made my way over to the YMCA and was happy to see the wall looked pretty dang nice.
http://phoenixknights.net/...ing/hkclimbgym04.jpg
Is there a happy ending to this story? Of course not. SOooo, I eagerly run into the lobby and ask about the wall AND GUESS WHAT? Apparently you have to pass some kinda "Accessment" test before you can climb, and you have to MAKE AN APOINTMENT to do that (which of course wasn't available til the next day)! ARGH... common man, I even brought my own shoes! Maybe I should have flexed for the guy. At any rate, I wasn't climbing and I wasn't happy. Sooo, I had to try the next gym...
Cn Bouldering Zone
The info page on rockclimbing.com says this page was last updated in the year 1970. I thought this might have been a typo, but apparently it wasn't. THIS GYM NO LONGER EXISTS. Some business named "Cyberware somethingorother" has taken it's place, and maybe it's a good thing considering this building probably looked a lot nicer in 1970. It was pretty tore up! You'd have to be an extreme climber to go to this building to climb. Meh.
Go Nature!
By now it was getting late and I was pretty much giving up all hope of climbing. To save myself some trouble I decided to call this GYM first and see if they 1) had any weird exams I had to take, 2) existed, and 3) had something decent I could climb. But of course the phone number was not in service.
I personally don't believe in bad omens, but if there is such a thing... this was one of them.
Sooo, feeling defeated and completely out of time I returned to the hotel to swim and relax. And on my way back to my room irony delivered me one last swift kick to the face when I found a kids bouldering wall next to the pool area.
http://phoenixknights.net/...ing/hkclimbgym05.jpg
Yup... good times.
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cutty
Oct 24, 2005, 3:32 PM
Post #2 of 10
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Registered: May 26, 2005
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Ack, sorry to hear about your poor luck! Since I may be heading to Hong Kong in January I figured I should do some research to see what sort of opportunities I might have while I'm there to keep myself sharp and strong. That wall in King's Park looks like it might be fun. Thanks to you, I might be forewarned enough to be able to climb it. :-)
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guangzhou
Oct 24, 2005, 4:32 PM
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Registered: Sep 26, 2004
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There's a ton of excelent climbing in HK, annd some really good outdoor bouldering too.
I don't realy agree that the YMCA gym a to small and cramped, but hey.
www.hongkongclimbing.com has more info.
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guangzhou
Oct 24, 2005, 4:33 PM
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Registered: Sep 26, 2004
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There's a ton of excelent climbing in HK, annd some really good outdoor bouldering too.
I don't realy agree that the YMCA gym a to small and cramped, but hey.
www.hongkongclimbing.com has more info.
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jimfix
Oct 24, 2005, 5:08 PM
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Registered: Aug 18, 2004
Posts: 314
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double post
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jimfix
Oct 24, 2005, 5:11 PM
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Registered: Aug 18, 2004
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Man, I gotta get me one of those
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ravicai
Oct 25, 2005, 8:31 AM
Post #7 of 10
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Registered: Aug 22, 2005
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In reply to: There's a ton of excelent climbing in HK, annd some really good outdoor bouldering too. I don't realy agree that the YMCA gym a to small and cramped, but hey. www.hongkongclimbing.com has more info.
Well, maybe I'm spoiled cause I have Hangar 18 at home (which is about 5 times the size). Oh well, turns out I have tomorrow completely free before my flight leaves, so I plan on returning and giving it a chance. If there is anything eventful to report, I will.
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ravicai
Oct 26, 2005, 2:17 AM
Post #8 of 10
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Registered: Aug 22, 2005
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haha, figures...
UPDATE
The YMCA will not let you climb unless
a) your staying at their hotel or
b) your a member of the YMCA
If you meet the above then it's $80 (HKD) to climb. I'm willing to bet this policy is the same for King's Park. So if you plan on going to any Hong Kong gyms when you visit, please heed the info I've posted.
Guess I'll have to wait til I get back to Cali. Oh well, hope this info helps someone out.... and for the love of god someone please update the bouldering GYM info for Kowloon with my info.
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tantrikclimber
Oct 26, 2005, 2:44 AM
Post #9 of 10
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Registered: Jan 9, 2004
Posts: 92
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I'm leaving for Hong Kong on Friday so I could have TOTALLY used your info. man. however I'm out of climbing for now as I'm recovering from ACL surgery....which ofcourse happened when I took a climbng fall...they definitely seem to have more climbing going on there than I expected.
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hongkongstuey
Jan 14, 2006, 6:04 AM
Post #10 of 10
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Registered: Aug 13, 2002
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In reply to: UPDATE The YMCA will not let you climb unless a) your staying at their hotel or b) your a member of the YMCA
not strictly true, you just have to do their assessment thngy (climb, belay, fall) and then it's open to you whenever you want
however, it is a pain in the arse that you cant just turn up and do it - a better option is this place :
http://www.hongkongclimbing.com/...uide/climberland.jpg
it's small but good, you can turn up when you want, and you'll find most of the local climbing scene there - so it'll be easier to find a belayer / spotter for any outdoor action
for anyone visiting - I suggest you look here before coming, you'll be suprised just how much good stuff there really is:
http://www.hongkongclimbing.com/guides/contents.html
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