Craig – the teasmade

If you are keen click on this link to find out what Craig said about me.  While not essential reading to find out about Craig, there may be some cross referencing in my words about him.

I met Craig by chance.  For my first outdoor climb in the South West with someone else I had organised to meet Mick, a local outdoor pursuit tour operator, but he never showed.  Walking down to Willyabrup I found Craig self-belaying up a route, and since then we have explored every crag possible in the South West and beyond.  As luck would have it he lived, at that time, at Capel farm not far from us and was super keen to climb.  We got out just about second weekend, and being a farm hand he was no stranger to early starts.  He was very dependable and nearly always available to get out when asked.  Both of us were strong and not afraid to give anything a go, and went for it:

He was a regular visitor round our house, and soon became one of the family.  He has a hunger for rock, and we wouldn’t waste any time when we were out.  Not limited by what a guidebook told us we spied many new lines and bagged heaps of first ascents.  Craig liked any climbing whether bolt clipping, trad, bouldering and even just indoors.  But trad is his favourite and preferable long multi-pitch routes at remote crags away from the crowds.  The travel, camping, walking and being out bush is all part of it.  Our first trip away for a few nights was out to Peak Charles, and interesting one where he forgot his climbing shoes.  It didn’t rattle us and we made do and still climbed heaps:

We are similar in many ways, and I can’t remember a time when we have disagreed.  Even when things have gone pear shaped, like when my safety sandals didn’t protect me from slicing the back of my heal off after just one day at West Cape Howe.  He would simply look at the situation and work out a way of making the best of it, and he never looked back or cast blame for a situation.  Safe, confident and talented is how I recall Craig on rock, and I couldn’t have asked for a better person to bump into when Mick left me hanging.  He is also generous and happy to take anyone out, taking the time to show them the ropes.  He like Rongy had planned to travel and climb, he was all set to go when he got invited to work/volunteer in Mongolia and everything changed:

There he met Oyukha.  Above we are taking her dad out climbing, something that I would imagine he would never have even knew was something that people did if Craig hadn’t fallen for his daughter.  After he returned from that trip we got back out climbing, and then he would spend hours on the phone to her at our house before getting a feed from us.  Not surprisingly he went back out there and the next time he returned she came with him.  Craig and Oyukha’s life has since then been entwined with Lisa’s and mine.  We help each other out in many ways and I have to say that Craig was instrumental in building my climbing wall, for which I am very grateful. He is still keen to get out and we continued to find new places to explore, but his confidence on rock was affected by the need to balance his time with other aspects of his life.  While he may not feel it so much while on the pointy end these days, he is still a technical and strong climber so great to get out with and eager to follow up any route:

Life changes and so does where we need to focus our attention.  But like me Craig needs something that allows him to flush out his brain once in a while.  In recent years he has done that with mountain biking, as opposed to climbing.  It suits where he is at as he can fit it in round his life more easily, especially since he and Oyukha had Henry and Charley.  When the chance to climb does comes along, which isn’t all that often now, he is still keen to get out and we still find new routes.  There is however one thing that hasn’t changed, Craig will still pack a thermos of tea.  As much as climbing is the goal there is nothing better than a rewarding hot cup of tea at the crag before it is time to head back: