Trip: Malaysia, Palau Tioman-The Dragons Horns - Waking Dream V 5.10 A2 (Attempt)
Date: 6/12/2007
Trip Report:
Feburary, 2004-Malaysia, Tioman Island, The Dragons Horns, Waking Dream V 5.10 A2(attempt)
Sorry for the VERY retro TR
...but, people have been asking me to and I've been meaning to put together a TR for this place for some time and inspired by a friends recent Malaysian report on the Alpinist site:
http://www.alpinist.com/doc/ALP20/newswire-malaysia-kinabalu-barber
I decided to write down my experience on the Tioman Island in Malaysia. We didn't manage to do a ton of climbing in the end....but it's a good share, if for nothing else than to have the information out there.
Tioman can be reached in a 2 hour boat ride from the coastal town of Mersing on the southeast coast of peninsular Malaysia after a flight in from Singapore. From Mersing a bumpy ride across the seas dividing the Island from the mainland deliver you to a small village where you need to take a slow boat to the southern end of the island to a village called Mukut.
Mukut is a clean, organized little village dominated by the minaret of the local mosque. The mayor and some other locals came to greet us when we arrived, as they knew my climbing partner Sharin, who had recently done the 2nd ascent of the route to some national fanfare. We stayed at the home of a local woman and her son, he was apparently autistic, and had a incredible knack for Bonzai, of all things, and gardening... so much so that the mayor had named him village gardner and the whole village was this landscaped masterpiece....really quite remarkable.
Directly above us in the jungle rose the Dragons Horns, a formation I had first learned of from a Malaysian I had met during my time in Thailand. There was only one route on the Horns, an aid line that was put up by an expat American and Brit that had seen the Horns whilst living in Singapore, a six hour boat ride from the Island, and your best bet as an arrival airport.
After three tries and a lot of jungle warfare, the First Ascentionists managed to put up Waking Dream V 5.9 A2 on the southern face. Probably the most obvious line on the mountain, Waking Dream is mostly climbing on splitter cracks with a few face bits linking features. The rock is relatively young and from a relatively high level in the crust, and has alot of unusual pockets formed by gas bubbles that make for cool face climbing on granite.
Upon our arrival, the woman who hosted us went out, caught some fish and made the best fish curry I've ever had. The Malaysians, unlike most of their Southeast Asian neighbours tend to be better stewards of the environment, and it is obvious. The living Coral Reefs on Tioman are some of the best preserved I've seen anywhere on the planet, particularly that close to shore, and the water is the inspiration for sapphire. You can swim out to 3 meters of water and be on the reef....and the fishing is plentiful and easy. At nights we caught cuttlefish from the dock with the local kids. Patrolling sharks and sea-turtles (Ay, matey, sea turtles!) are also abundant near to the shore.
The day after our arrival we headed into the jungle to find the approach trail, that since the previous year had been reclaimed by the forest...although less than a kilometer and not particularly steep, it was one of the more unpleasant approaches I've done and had me longing for the ease of travel amongst the slide alder and devils club back home.
We arrived at the base of the route and I preceded to lead up the first "pitch" a vine draped nightmare complete with wasps nest....once that was out of the way the route began in earnest and was mostly climbing on clean, well-protected cracks and faces. Two long pitches led us too a large ledge below a roof where we made he first bivy. Here the original route made a rising traverse under and out the roof, but Sharin had put in a bolt ladder as a direct variation to avoid disturbing the nests of rare cliff dwelling birds. The bivy, overlooking the South China Sea is one of the more stunning views I've ever seen....I highly recommend it.
The goal was to try and free the route....The next day I freed the bolt laddder on-sight at 5.10. After the bolt ladder pitch there is a hand and 5.11 finger crack that is accessed via a short rivet ladder. I pioneered a variation, but was not strong enough to pull the moves at the time. I think that particular part will go at .11+ and will need a protection bolt to replace the highest rivet (which I'm sure is now dust). The hand and finger crack is one of the cooler pitches i've done anywhere.
Unfortunately, that's as high as we got, as Sharin had to return to home the next day for an unexpected engagement. I thought about aid-soloing the route.....but we were low on water already and without a source near the base, ferrying water would be a nightmare. Someday I'll go back, it's a good candidate for an all-free ascent (from what I saw) and there is a lot more possibility for development on the island for the adventurous, not the least of which is Mumbar, a Squamish Chief-sized wall just down the way from the Horns that remains untouched. The East side of the island apparently has big sea cliffs on it as well, and during the right swell the surf can be epic, or so legend has it.
A link about the first ascent: http://www.geocities.com/s1nelson2000/dragons_horns.html
The AAJ reference is here: http://www.geocities.com/s1nelson2000/aaj_submission.html
A link about cragging on Tioman: http://www.climb-asia.com/tioman.aspx'>http://www.climb-asia.com/tioman.aspx
The Malaysia guide book can be seen on this site: http://www.climb-asia.com
Here's some photos....please contact me if you'd like to know more. Tioman makes a great diversion on the Asian circuit for the adventurous. I believe there is a reference in the 2000 AAJ.
South end of Tioman with the Dragons Horns in the distance
Sharin and Harif on the slow boat
One of the many abandoned resorts on the south end of the island (take note dirt bags!)
Mumbar
Southern Horn, West Face
approaching Mukut village
The Mosque and the Horns
One of the many pristine waterfalls coming from the highlands
Sunset and the Horns
The pet monkey of the family where we stayed
Another shot of the mosque and the horns
At the first Bivy
Good morning sunshine!
Starting up the bolt ladder
On route
On route
Southern end of Tioman Panorama
Gear Notes:
Light wall rack, hooks etc...
Approach Notes:
Boat and Hell-Schwacking
