Krabi Town - rock climbing and kayaking

After recovering from the full moon party we headed to Krabi for a bit of adventure. We ended up staying at Hello KR Mansion, a guesthouse in Krabi Town. Most people stay in the area of Ao Nang but we were exhausted by the time we arrived and didn't feel like looking for another place. The room was pretty gross, a roach or two was seen, but the guesthouse itself wasn't so bad.

We got up bright an early Feb 22 for a day of rock climbing on Railay Beach. Once we were all geared up with harnesses, chalk and shoes, we headed to an area of the beach with steep cliffs. We were all pretty new to climbing, so it was quite an experience. When you're at the bottom and looking at the rock, it's easy to plan where you would step or put your hands. But once you are up there everything looks completely flat and you can't imagine how you would get your leg up or pull your body to another position. We took turns climbing and belaying. Getting to the top was pretty thrilling and all of us loved being up on the rocks. We each did two smaller climbs and Ianne did a third really high climb. After climbing we were exhausted so we ate a giant American pasta lunch and headed to the beach on West Railay. Jamie and Ianne climbed up a small cliff and took literally 20 minutes to jump into the water about 20 feet below them. It was a great day but our muscles took a beating. We were covered in bruises.

The next day we got up early again for a kayaking trip. After another rough songthaew ride through windy roads, we hit the beach. Kayaking was hard work! It felt like we were always paddling against the current. We paddled along cliffs and through a mangrove forest, but had to turn around before we reached the caves because it was low tide. That night we had sushi at a restaurant in Ao Nang and got sundaes at Swenson's. It was a very American evening. The next morning we headed for Phi Phi, another island on Thailand's coast.