My fingertips are toast--some skin is missing & it hurts to type & do practically anything. but, it was all the in name of a good cause--climbing! we've had an incredible time this weekend, playing in the Golden Bay area w/ Cat (of Port Ligar, our wwoofing place in Marlborough Sounds) & another of her wwoofers, Jen, of Belgium, who's currently traveling w/ us. we did so much cool stuff!
climbing, caving, sleeping on a fine white sand beach, watching the sunrise & sunset on the beach w/ spectacular rockfaces before us, swimming w/ baby seals (touched one!), doing tim tam slams (into cream liqueur-delicious!), drinking beer & wine yet again on the beach mostly, drinking champagne & eating strawberries & chocolate for breakfast on the beach, more swimming & climbing, climbing & midnight by moonlight, eating Big Brekkies (cookies 'n cream icecream bars), being amazed by the green glowworms in a cave, viewing the largest cavern in the southern hemisphere w/ incredible stalagtites & stalagmites, you name it, we did it! we're a bit worn out now!
to recuperate, we stretched out on the beach last night, then took a walk to Wainui Falls this morning, bathing in the freezing cold water of the falls. brrrr! today is errand day, then we've got just over a week to kill before we meet up w/ Cat & Seb (bro & sister) again in order to hike the Fox Glacier (she used to be a guide there) and partake in the Wild Foods Festival, but that's not until March 9 or so. we're planning to explore the west coast w/ Jen until then, which makes a squeeze into the van, but I'm sure we'll manage. we don't have an itinerary, just guess we'll see what we see along the way.
my highlight of this weekend was night climbing, which I've never done before. We did some 17's (which I think is a 5-8/5-9 for the U.S. scale) on a beautiful night w/ a 2/3rds moon that set while Liz & Jen were on their way up the limestone rockface. I chose not to use my headlamp & just ascend via moonlight & feel, which was incredible! It was esp redeeming for me b/c I'd bombed my climb of earlier that day, leaving quite a bit of blood on the rocks, which is why my fingertips hurt now. it was nice to actually make it to the top, esp of The Bellringer, which actually had a bell @ the top to ring!
