- Rocklands 2011 - Part 1: Arrival

It's done, we got here! After endless hours spent on airplanes playing tetris, watching movies and vainly trying to get some sleep, we finally landed in Cape Town.

The car rental man was already waiting for us with two quite old Toyota Tazz: 4 gears, no power steering, but enough space for five of us, baggage and pads... quite a good deal for 330€ per month!

So after a quick research for a universal laptop charger (yes I did burn mine on the airplane's plug), we moved out of town heading north towards Clanwilliam and the rock we have been dreaming on.

Landscapes were at first quite green and familiar, but they got more brown and rocky as we approached our destination, leaving us astonished when we drove at sunset trough Pakhuis pass and what we could see was only endless fields of strange rocks brightened by the deep red sun light.

We got to our house that was already dark, ate some badly made pasta in order not to starve and just died in our beds, hoping to recover for next day. 

Next morning we were woken up as usual by some noisy sheep and barking dogs, but it was already 9am and we've been almost sleeping for 11 hours. Just time to have breakfast and take some pictures and we were already walking along the road towards Roadside sector, pads on our shoulders and smiles on our faces.

Yes, at first we did feel a bit shit, but it was a very nice place where to feel like that...
The first two days weather has been quite chilly and perfect for climbing, but it soon got warm during the day. Not a big issue as it's still really dry and we just wanted to visit a few sectors and get familiar with the place.

We've been climbing for 6 days now and visited most of the sectors at the Pass, 8 Days Rain and Dihedral Boulders, but there is still too much to see... I'm glad I've already climbed some great classic lines on this beautiful rock that stands in between Hueco and Fontainebleau and I'm getting to like every day more.

At the moment I will recommend "Barracuda", "Out of Balance", "Green Mamba", "Gliding through Waves like Dolphins" and "Tomorrow I will be Gone".   If you also like to get a bit scared you can't miss the big black slab on the way to roadside sector, we made an easier route with few gear up the obvious crack and a slightly harder direct solo... one of the best rest days I've ever had.

Now I won't bother you with grades and speculations... just watch some pictures and try somehow to feel here in Rocklands if you can't stand Europe's summer heat! Stay tuned...