Ha Long Bay Castaway Island Cruise
Morning was greeted to the sound of a furiously beaten gong… just what an island of hungover people need to hear. After breakfast had been dispatched we got on the beer pong, well why not eh? (oh, I’ve picked up some Canadian slag, eh!) I knew that drinking and being drunk on the cruise would be a bad idea for me so I didn’t bother after that first round of beer pong. I was rubbish as it turned out anyway. Leemee (I don’t know how to spell his name other than phonetically) and I teamed up last night and we didn’t get to finish a game against Big Bear and Mike so that had to be settled. I must have lost the mad skills that I spent 2 summers in France developing.
The pleasure boat arrived and the music started. We loaded up with food and beer and set sail. It was amazing phut phut phutting around the bay. All the rocks were spectacular and I longed to climb them. I made do by mentally new routing the hell out of all the crack systems and bubbly pocketed limestone. I reckon I can Mental Climb™ to at least E3 now. New PB. I vow to come back here and actually climb something when (not if) I get the chance. I am glad there were games and dancing to be done. Drifting along seeing the rocks and the floating villages is amazing. There are a lot citation required of islands in the archipelago and while they are all amazing and don’t lose their appeal they all start to look the same. I felt fine while we were within the protection of the bays but we had to cross a less protected stretch of water and it got a bit choppy. Soon I was feeling the effects of the heaving boat and heaving myself but managed to keep my breakfast – much to Mike and the GoPro’s disappointment.