Bouldering on Oahu, Hawaii

Photograph by Ryan Moss

“We found this boulder after being tipped off by a local hiker,” recalls Justin Ridgely, owner of the Volcanic Climbing Gym in Honolulu, Hawaii. “It's a short scramble through the jungle up a pig trail. The boulder is
about 14 feet tall, and the problem [the path that a climber takes] is called ‘All Boars Go to Heaven.’” This spot, which is known as Boarlomana, is canopied by a large banyan tree and surrounded by bamboo. “We shot this in the afternoon … the jungle is thicker there, which gives it that eerie light,” Ridgely says.
“I spend a lot of time climbing and exploring Oahu and the outer islands,” he says. “I've spent the past four years here developing the bouldering with the rest of the local climbing community. We've gone from two areas to about 44 in that time. The bouldering scene here is amazing, and the aloha spirit is very present in the climbing community.”
Getting the Shot
“I was standing on a tree with angry ants crawling all over me and was about 50 feet up in the air,” recalls photographer Ryan Moss. Moss found himself balanced precariously in the tree above the Boars Nest bouldering area, after Ridgely convinced him to take a break from editing for some climbing and photographing.
“There was a tree next to the boulder, and I was trying to get some new perspectives and angles,” Moss says. “I climbed the tree, but as I was doing so, realized I was walking through six major ants’ nests as I was climbing up the branches. The actual spot where I shot this photo from had the biggest ant nest of the six.”
The boulder is situated in a dark location in the bamboo forest, so Moss added light to make sure his fight with the ants was worth it. “I used an on-board flash in order to help with the lighting. All the other photos I shot that day turned out pretty average because of all the light being filtered through the forest. I was happy that this one turned out.”
Moss photographed with a Canon 7D and a 10-17mm lens.