Hi! How are you? Me? I'm just great! Thanks for asking! Oh, you want to hear a story? OK, here we go. . .

Colin and I have found ourselves living in the quaint hippy town called Takaka for the past month and a half. We live in a camp called Hangdog, which is a 5 minute walk from one of the greatest crags ever! Colin has been working at a cafe and I have been working at climbing even harder. Man, life is so hard here! There is of course lots of goings on between the last time I posted but because I am lacking time I will for now just have to let the photos speak for me!


Amy, The Rodge and I got to hang out in Christchurch before they left for home. We had a great time and it was really nice to see some family, being so far away from home. This is the view from their hotel room in the heart of the city. To think, I was sleeping in a tent 2 days before and am back to the tent know. Its OK though, I took all the "complimentary" refreshments!



Christmas at Hangdog. I normally hate Christmas but this one rocked.


For New Years some of us went to a rockin 3 day outdoor festival. The weather turned shit and we got rained/hailed on almost every day, be we persevered and danced our little butts off. The best new years ever!


Sunset off the wharf we go sea fishing off.


OK, this one needs an explanation! This outfit is a product of the first ever "International Tights Climbing Day." The suspenders shown are official "Police and Fireman" issue. I'm pretty sure I won the "Best Male Stripper" Category and got honorable mention in the "Tightest Tights" division, but the day was so informal I cant be sure. It goes without saying that climbing in this getup was anything but comfortable! Just another example of the shenanigans we see every day at Hangdog!


Don't know the name of this route but it is good! The guidebook lists it as a project that is suspected to be a 25 (5.11d/12a). These cliffs are across the road from the picturesque Golden Bay, you cant get much more beautiful than that. This is me on my redpoint burn.


This is Hobbie, the manager of Hangdog. Some HD locals buried this log very shallowly (about 1.5 feet) in the sand and challenged people to climb it without crashing and burning. Nobody hurt themselves but a few people came close to the big drop.




Ah, El Mustache. This was a joke that turned into a commitment. After shaving my beard I decided to keep the mustache as a lesson in dispelling pride and vanity. Unknowingly, I started a trend in camp and soon even the girls had grown their very own stashes. Later, I decided I would shave it off when I finally climbed a project I was working on. After taking the vow I sent the route next day and returned home to shave. After relieving myself of the stash I climbed like crap. I had gotten rid of the source of my power.