Cape Town’s King Line

Being back in home has inspired me to put to rest a number of projects that I’ve been wanting to do for many moons. While this may seem like a click-bait-y type of heading, I really do think that Gift of Gold is up there with some of the best climbs I’ve done.

Video: A glimpse into the KSA Leopard Initiative

A good friend of mine, Clément Brunet, made this video of the Saudi Arabian Leopard Initiative project that I have been working on for the past 8 months. It gives you a sneak peek into the beautiful landscape and culture of a country that you probably know nothing about. Check out https://www.panthera.org/ for more on […]

The Rocks & The Red Sea of Saudi

Working and exploring throughout Saudi Arabia has exposed my ignorance like no other place before. It has mountains! Coral reefs?! Tropical beaches!!! Extinct volcanos??? Wait, What! A simple Google search would have opened my eyes to a land blessed with natural gems, sadly I was still caught up in thinking that the “natural gems” were […]

The Search Begins: KSA Leopard Initiative

It’s incredible how 2020 evolved. Before we arrived in Jeddah, the world was in a total shutdown! This is new territory for all of us and it’s strange to think that we were even able to travel at all! But just before that, I lost my car in a fire while guiding on Table Mountain, […]

Saudi Arabian Leopard Initiative: an adventure begins

We are biased and that’s what it is. You’d have to be a robot or very much on the spectrum to eliminate your bias and judgemental ignorance completely, however, that does mean that you should try and acknowledge these biases as an incomplete truth or non-truth. One quote that I have sprinkled throughout my writings […]

KAYU Adventures | Travel + Experiences

Taking a break from my expeditions and getting my degree was something that I needed to do – for me. I took subjects that I enjoyed. However, 4 years down the line, I felt far too much like a desk jockey. Having worked my way through university to pay off my tuition definitely made me […]

Progress

Throughout the many mundane tasks that make up our lives there are relatively few number of experiences that define us and make us. Yesterday, Celestial Journey was that event. I got a job at the old Mountain Mail Order when I was 14. I was just getting into the hiking/climbing scene and I looked up […]

We’re Really that SICK?!

It’s funny how much of an echo-chamber my news feeds have become. Most of my life I’ve made the conscious decision to integrate myself into one of the smaller sporting communities as climbing and mountaineering are, inadvertently I’ve surrounded myself with some incredibly driven and talented athletes. In this obscure niche community of mountain jockeys, […]

How can you make a difference from NOW on…

There seem to be two types out there… Firstly, either you are COMPLETELY ignorant of the science, cruelty inflicted or the detriment of the environment that the egg, dairy and livestock industry causes OR you know all (or some) of the facts and CHOOSE to ignore it. If you aren’t aware, buckle up for the […]

Taking on uncertainty

Travelling solo is just amazing in so many ways. Being on the road where you get to decide what you’re doing, where you’ll be going and what you want to get done is incredibly freeing. Just living out your backpack, spending little and embracing the simplicity of it all. There are no discussions, arguments or […]

Why you should travel and not just go on a holiday

You may hear this every so often, but life is short. It may feel like an inexhaustible resource to most of us, but, on average, we will each get around 30,000 days over the course of our lives to do so what we please. It’s not that much time at all when you think about […]

How to coming back stronger and SMARTER

I’ve been hounded by injuries ever since I could remember. The whole analogy that when you’re a kid you’re indestructible and made of rubber was totally lost on me. Tendonitis, stress fractures, pulled muscles and blown knees have made me, weirdly enough, who I am today. Being injured sucks but, until recently, I thought I […]

Sometimes you’ve got to just buy that ticket!

Sometimes you’ve got to just buy that ticket and go on an adventure! This is what Marine and I got up to a couple of weeks ago… it involved some wild climbs, some wildlife and a whole load of dumb jokes and laughs. Enjoy. View this post on Instagram Sometimes you’ve got to just buy […]

Recipe: Eat like an Athlete for under 100 bucks!

My SUPER High Protein Plant-Balls! These are the real deal! 100% Vegetarian/Vegan, low in sugar, Gluten-free and packed with the good stuff … Plus they’re DAMN TASTY! All of this for less than 100 bucks (Rands- I guess that’s like 6 US$) and it keeps for 3-4 days (refrigerated). These are the real deal! 100% Vegetarian/Vegan, […]

It’s time to SUPERCHARGE your routine

We all have a routine of some shape or form. Some people manage to fit more into their days than others and some are most definitely healthier, but there comes a point where we need to stir things up and add a little bit of spice to the daily groove. Routine is, in my opinion, […]

Recipe: These bars are the business!

View this post on Instagram These bars are the real deal! Here’s a recipe on the best “Enduro-bars” for any adventure, run, bike or cragging day. They’re easy to make, plant-based, low carb, no need to bake and devoid of sugary, ultra processed junk. You’ll also save a heap of cash compared to buying rubbish […]

Apps don’t get you fit, the Mountains DO!

We’re living in an interesting time. Everyone and their dog seems to be wearing some sort of fitness watch and while counting the number of calories being burnt at all times we’re all jumping madly between some training App to the next, all in an attempt to get shredded in less than 30 minutes. I’m […]

Presentation Tonight: Europe on a shoestring

So this is a little announcement (last minute, though). I’m going to chatting about my Euro-adventure tonight at the Mountain Club in Cape Town. Swing through! “The Nose in a day, Spanish Limestone and French Ice Date: Tuesday 03 July 2018 Time: 19:30 – 21:30 In 60 years the climbing world has reduced the time […]

Exploring the Unknown: Barcelona, Spain

Arriving in Barcelona on the very first day of 2018 to Marine’s gleaming face was a relief and in our sleep-deprived state, we began jumping around, eager to explore the bustling streets of Barcelona. We were both in a place that we’d dreamed about for so long and we didn’t want to waste a single […]

Making this Euro-trip happen: money and planning

It was touch and go leading up to this trip for both M and I. Europe can be expensive so with the roller coaster status of our currency I wasn’t particularly hopeful at times that it would be absolutely possible . Spain 🇪🇸 🧗‍♂️ It was originally just a sport climbing trip. Sport climbing is […]

Welcome to the Alps- Part 1

The Écrins mountains lie in the southern alps. Compared to the northern alps where Mont Blanc and many of the other more famous glaciers, ski resorts and mountains stand the steep and sharp peaks of the Écrins tower proudly above the deep valleys below. It definitely holds its own. The ice festival has been going […]

Escaping the rains of Catalonia: part 2

Even though I’ve taken a ton of buses over the years I’m quite a weakling when it comes to motion sickness especially on the narrow and windy roads in the mountains, so I listen to plenty of podcasts to pass the time when I travel. I’d been listening to an interview of Yosemite big wall […]

Escaping the rains of Catalonia: Part 1

Barcelona may have been a little urban adventure but M and I were longing to get out the city and back into the mountains. We found a bus to Reus, where we rented a car that felt more like golf cart. Our tiny black and chrome (fake) hair-dresser wagon whined and groaned under the weight […]

A maze, but one you’re happy to get lost in.

The flight was long and going into the new year while being frisked by an equally resentful border security guard in Doha airport wasn’t ideal, but, I was so excited that I really didn’t care. Arriving 27 hours to the gleaming face of Marine who’d arrived a few hours before me was a relief and […]

Vlog 2: ¡Bienvenido a Barcelona!

Vlog 2- ¡bienvenido a Barcelona! Our Spanish may be a little rusty but it the games begin 🇪🇸🧗‍♂️🧗‍♀️🥐🥟 @hitec_sa | #inspiredbylife . . . . #barcelona #sightseeing #salsa #city #spain #euro #europe #travel #tapas #followme Una publicación compartida de Kai Fitchen (@klimb_ka

2018, make it interesting, make it uncomfortable

I’ve been wanting to take this photo for a long time. It may lack artistic flare and depth but it represents the start of a journey. It represents new languages, cultures, adventures and friendships that will come into my life over the next 5 weeks. Every exciting experience coupled with the many hard and uncomfortable […]

VLOG 1: Let’s get going!

Vlog 1: let’s get packing! It’s about to happen, which is just crazy 😜 Follow this Euro Klimbing extravaganza on my blog (linked on my profile). There’ll be plenty of information as to how to travel on a budget, the best places to climb and ways to make your European adventure a honest cultural experience […]

“LAZY TRAINING SYNDROME”: Time for a Rest

There is a dangerous circle that I get into when I train for a project, expedition or race. A self-induced and ego-driven syndrome of “Lazy Training” as I’ve come to understand it, is what anyone would have experienced when they get really passionate about a sport or a demanding goal. Recently, I’ve been pushing to jump […]

Injuries: An inconvenient “Reset” Button

Injuries. Anyone that has gotten deep into a sport can have some sort of understanding to the annoyance of having that niggle turn into something “less-than-productive”. I have a history of damaging myself, not so much with broken bones (touch wood), due to the fact that I’m quite a wuss and largely conservative at putting myself […]

Climbing: my vertical journey

Disclaimer: the following blog will have an unnecessary amount of climbing jargon 😉 For the past year and a half, I’ve devoted myself wholeheartedly to sport climbing. I was always pretty clunky when it came to technical rock climbing. As a good friend once told me, after my first climbing trip to Montagu ( I’d […]

Pole-Pole ¡Venga-Venga! An Intro to my journal…

This past year has been demanding in ways that I never expected it to be. I lost someone very important to me. I, like the people around me, have been dealing with this loss in our own ways. I’ve sunk into depression several times over the past 12 months and hit some almighty highs only […]

The mountains are calling and I, for now, must study French Subjunctive…

There are many things that I want to achieve in my life. I have my rather long- slightly-deranged- pipe-dream goals which include an 8000m peak without oxygen. Then I have my more realistic goals (this doesn’t mean that I’m not very much bent on doing the whacky pipe dreams) …. these realistic ones are broken […]

Krakadouw, feeling small in a big place

There was something incredible about topping out on the summit of Krakadouw just as the sun began to set and we found ourselves immersed in a maze of gargoyles and wind beaten sandstone formations. It had taken us 8 vertical hours, going through some of the most aesthetically stunning pitches on one of the biggest […]