Green Climber’s Home

Before Nick and I left for our Asia trip we took a climbing road trip west. While in Yosemite, a Spanish couple that had been traveling for 5 months came up to us and started petting Koa. The woman (Ainara) showed us a cell phone photo of their dog who was a white golden retriever and looked just look Koa. Through Spanglish and a game of charades we were able to convey that we too would be traveling for a year and missing our dog. We spent the next few days climbing and teaching Ramon basic English commands like “off belay” while 4 pitches up. We eventually parted ways and thought maybe (although highly unlikely) we’d meet again in Asia. Now, 6 months later we were reunited and climbing in Laos!

The Green Climbers Home is a remarkable climbing community with bungalows looking up at huge rock faces just outside of Thakhek, Laos. At night, the stars appear between jagged cliff edges. There are hundreds of dynamic limestone routes, friendly people and delicious food. Nick and I camped for a week while having an absolute blast with Ariana and Ramon. We climbed in caves, took some big falls, watched Reel Rock, celebrated Ainara’s birthday, pushed ourselves and rewarded ourselves with some good laughs and whiskey. Although we could have stayed here for months, it was time to continue exploring Laos.