Wanaka

4 hours from Babylon is Wanaka, a small town around a nice lake...Here, nothing compare to babylon. The walk to the crag is very easy, 2 min from the car park, it's nice sometimes ;-)
There are a few little crags with more easy routes, from 15-29 (from 3b to 8a).

babylon

After these sunny days, the rain start again...heavy falls! so we were obliged to take 3 rest days. Then, even with the rain, we decided to climb again.
but after 2 more days of climbing, and walking up to this ugly and steep track in the mud... we've decide to left to the North, were the weather is better!

Climbing in Babylon

Babylon is situated in the "fiordland national park" and has approximatively 10m of rain per year. it's more than in Belgium!!!! amazing!











Before we arrived, it was raining for 1 month in babylon and the climbers told us we were very lucky to have 5 days of sun!



It's possible to climb in the rain, but the problem is the track to go to the crag.



It's a "jungle" track, you walk in the mud, you pulls you in trees and sometimes has fix ropes, to arrive there.






After 15min walking, you arrive to Babylon, a 10 years old crag, but for the moment, all the climbers go to Little babylon, 15min walking upper from Babylon, in a same kind of horrible track (Ceuse is an easy walk compare to here!). It's a crag discovered 1 year ago with routes from (23-33) 6c+ to 8c

While some are climbing...

...others are taking some nice rest...

The Keas

Near the crag, is a Hut were every climbers sleep. It's a nice place but you've to take of you tent each morning because of the Keas.
It's the New Zealand's mountain parrot.









Looks nice, play with you, but pay attention, it likes to eat car's caoutchouc and tents!

South Island, from Christchurch to Babylon

For climbing in New-Zealand, you have to check out first at the weather. We wanted to climb in Castle hill first, 1h30 from Christchurch, but locals climbers told us to go directly to babylon because the weather is often bad there and for the next 5 days it'll be ok!

It's 9 hours driving from Christchurch: long drive, but trough a really nice scenic road.

The surf

Une nouvelle passion? oui, mais difficile a pratiquer en Europe!!! et ca demanderait beaucoup d'entrainement!! Meme apres s'etre entrainee sur la plage, Mu a assez difficile a reste sur sa planche, on peut pas etre douee pour tout!!! et ju est tres fiere d'etre restee 4 sec sur sa planche en haut d'une grosse vague avant d'etre emportee sous l'eau et de boire une mega tasse!

A new passion? yes, but it'll be difficult to train in Europe! and it'll be hard training! Even after training on the beach, Muriel has still difficulties to stand on her surf! we can not be good in everything!! And Julie is very proud to standed 4 seconds on her surf on a very big wave before falling in the water and drinking a lot of water!!

Hot water beach

Une plage peut paraitre tout a fait normale pendant la journee, et le soir, se transformer en baignoires naturelles. A maree basse, des dizaines de personnes arrivent sur la plage avec leurs pelles et se mettent a creuser le sable...on peut vraiment regler sa temperature entre l'eau sortant du sol a 64ºC et l'eau froide de la mer. Et si on a trop chaud, on court se jeter dans la mer...sympa pour regarder le coucher de soleil sur la plage...




An ordinary beach, during the day, can become at night a natural bath. At low tide, a few people arrive on the beach with spade to build they own spa in the sand! if the temperature of your spa is too high (64ºC), you can ajust it with water from the sea! and if it's really too hot, you just run into the sea...really nice to see the sunset

"Climbing" an active volcano

Dans l'ile du nord de la NZ, comme il n'y a pas beaucoup de spots de grimpe majeurs, nous avons decide de grimper sur un volcan en activite, le mt Ruapehu au Tongariro National Park. Au debut, c'etait une rando tout ce qui a de plus classique, mais nous avons ete bloquees a 1h du sommet par la neige.
In north island, they are not many major climbing places, so we decide to climb the mt Ruapehu, an active volcano in the Tongariro National Park. We start walking on a path and it end climbing (and playing) in the snow ;-)

Et evidemment, muriel a trouve un autre sport; And of course, Muriel find a really fun sport there!

Volcanic activity