Sending Season

Its that time of year, when fitness finally catches up with expectations and projects start to fall. On Saturday a big Oly crew headed up to Little Si where conditions were prime. Lisa finally managed to take down her long-term project Psychosomatic, likewise Nick with Propaganda. I don't have a big project at Little Si, but I wanted to get back on Dairy Freeze a 12b I tried and failed on back in 07 and 09. I put the draws up and felt the moves, it didn't feel nearly as hard as I had remembered, and I managed to finish it off next go. I started off a sending train with Jimmy and Nick getting it straight afterwards. Its not often that we come away from Little Si with any new sends let alone a handful. That night we all went out in Seattle to give Micah a good send off.

After a well needed rest day, Jimmy Lisa, Kevin, Micah and I checked out Rosario a crag up on Whidbey Island. I was skeptical since I had never heard of it before, but it was well worth the drive. It is a small 40ft overhanging cliff with about half a dozen good independent lines (and a bunch of random bolts smattered in between). What makes this crag unique is its beautiful surroundings. I can't think of a more picturesque setting for a crag. The climbing is very fun as well, bouldery powerful routes, very gym like. After warming up on a couple of moderates I managed a 2nd go send of the crag classic Sissy-Boy. It felt basic for 12d, but I'll take it. Jimmy managed to flash it, and Micah, Kevin and Lisa all made really good progress on it. Jimmy also managed another 12d, which I got agonizingly close on, but no send. I look forward to coming back to this crag though. For more (and better) photos check out Micah's blog.

Lisa working Sissy-Boy

Kevin and Micah belaying

The view from the crag

We couldn't have asked for a more perfect day

My 100th 5.12 and Monkey Space

The weather in Washington has been pretty bad this summer so far and I was getting tired of climbing at Little Si. So Chas, Jimmy, Lisa and I headed down to Smith Rock on Wednesday night seeking some better weather. I've never climbed at Smith in the summer before, but this week was unseasonably cool, and in the shade the temps were perfect. I checked out some areas I hadn't been to before; the lower gorge, upper shipwreck, mesa verde, and the monkey face, and was not disappointed by any of them. At the lower gorge I managed to climb the amazing stemming route Pure Palm on my second attempt (note to self don't climb at the gorge in the blazing AM sun). At upper shipwreck I surprised myself with an onsight of Undertow a very fun gym-like 12b. According to my scorecard that route marks my 100th ever 5.12 or harder. Starting with my first one back in September 2005, I've climbed 52 12a's, 22 12b's, 17 12c's, 6 12d's, and 3 13a's. Pretty cool huh?

Lisa manages to climb Pure Palm without all the whining

Jimmy shows us how not to climb Smith 5.11s

Lisa making 5.13 look cool but hard

The highlight of the trip was definitely climbing Monkey Face though. I had often admired the 350ft free standing pillar before but had never gone up it. Chas who had been up via the Pioneer Route, encouraged me to go for the all-free Monkey Space route which is named for the super exposed 11a pitch which traverses out into a scary position high on the face. The first couple of 5.8 trad pitches were a lot of fun, we each took a lead. When it came time for me to go for the airy third pitch I was prepared for the worst. The holds which started out great soon turned pretty bad, but I took solace in the not-too-badly spaced bolts. The crux involves pulling over a bulge on sloping holds with awkward feet, I looked down to try to get my feet placed well, but seeing all the air below me made me a little queasy so I focused on my hand holds and managed to pull through. I guess the pitch is technically mixed, but I didn't read the description very closely so was forced to run out the 20ft flake to the mouth of the cave, since I didn't bring gear for this pitch. It was awesome! Once we were in the cave Chas tried to send me up what he was "sure" was our next pitch. I started up it, but the lack of chalk and crappy bolts led me to think this wasn't it. After checking the guidebook later, we found out the route was a sketchy 5.13 project, I'm glad I didn't get much further up it. Instead I took a look up the other side of the cave where I found a well chalked line of holds that looked a lot more like the 11b that we were supposed to go up. Although the hard climbing on this pitch only lasts for 3 bolts, it packs it in there, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't think I was going to fall. But I pulled it out, latched the victory jug and romped up the final 5.4 section to the top of the Monkey Face. Success! It was a great trip with Chas, Jimmy and Lisa, and it has me excited for upcoming Fall trips back down there now that I know what some of the other areas at Smith have to offer.

We should have read the description a little closer before heading up

The view looking up from the base of Monkey Face

Chas getting sunburned while waiting for me to follow him up pitch 2

Starting up the airy 11a pitch. Its hard to tell, but I'm actually very scared.

After the crux, holding on to a huge jug.

Chas following the 3rd pitch. This photo doesn't do the exposure justice.

Chas and I on the summit of the Monkey Face.

Back on the rock

Its been a while since I last wrote a blog simply because I haven't been out much lately. In fact I think I had four weeks without any climbing outside, which is unheard of for me this time of year. There's a few reasons, the main one being the weather has been pretty atrocious here for the start of summer, we don't have a car so have to rely on others for rides, I was really busy with school at the start of June and since then the world cup has taken priority over some climbing days. Enough excuses, I hope to be getting out a lot more this summer.

I went climbing at the quarry for only the second time this year on wednesday, it wasn't completely dry, but it was getting there. It was good to get the feel for the routes there again, Laura redpointed The Manly Wham for the first time, I wonder what else she can send down there this summer. Then on friday I climbed up at Little Si with Jimmy, Lisa, Laura ,Andrew and Micah. It was a good day out, mostly dry. I realized I need to improve a lot on my stamina, I couldn't even repeat Technorigine, but I did manage to figure out how to do the crux on Chronic, I'm still a long way off that though. Andrew has been climbing really well recently and sent Aborigine on his second go, Laura should have sent too, but she took on the last moves, the redpoint crux.

Then on Sunday I got out to Exit 38 with Laura, Sierra, Melody, Justin, Sara, Sarah and Erica. It was a really good day out. We hung out at Interstate Park which everyone seemed to like, I finished up a few routes I hadn't done there before, including a couple of new ones that aren't in the guide. I did a really steep burly climb that was a lot of fun, I reckon it was 11+ish, but its hard to say. Laura did well, cleaning up a 10c that she had tried previously, and climbing her first onsight of an 11a! Justin and Sierra also got flashes of the 11a, so it was a good day all around. We finished off the day stopping off at the Harmon Brewery in Tacoma for some delicious microbrews and all you can eat fish and chips mmm.

I plan on getting a car soon which will make trips a lot easier and now that it seems like the summer has finally arrived it should mean a lot more climbing, especially as the world cup winds down. So, hopefully it wont be as long a wait til my next blog entry.

Procrastinating at Leavenworth

I probably should have stayed home and done school work this weekend, but its hard to say no to a ride out to Leavenworth. We headed out Friday night and barely managed to get a spot at the free camping spot, it was packed. On Saturday we met up with Jeremy and Derik, and later Lisa as well which made for a good group sending psyche. Laura sent another V4, The Real Thing a long term project of her's that she made look pretty easy this time, and also a great tall V3 Arrested Development. The highlight of my trip was sending The Cattleguard Arete only my third V8 at Leavenworth to date. To be honest it didn't feel that hard, but then again it repelled the efforts of Jeremy, Derik and Lisa and they're no slouches. I think it just fit my style/size well. Saturday night we met up with Whitey at the campsite, and we played a game of whiffle (sp?) ball with some other climbers, we totally kicked ass. On Sunday my skin and energy was low, but I did manage to squeeze out a redpoint of The Physical a tough V4 that I had tried previously, it was nice to put that one to rest. Right now its time to hit the books, I don't think I'll be getting out again for a couple of weeks until school gets out for summer. Derik sticks the crux match but can't finish off the Cattleguard Arete V8

Whitey on Fedge a cool V2 highball slab

Micah reaches precariously near the top of Bad Moon Rising perhaps the best slab problem I've climbed

The other side of Little Si

Yesterday Laura and I headed out to Little Si with Jimmy and Lisa. But unlike the other fifty or so times I've been there over the last few years, this time I took my trad rack. Yes there is trad at Little Si, don't tell anyone though cause its pretty sweet. Instead of being crowded on the Ledge at World Wall I, we had pretty much the whole of Repo I to ourselves down below, it was awesome. We started out warming up at Blackstone, where Laura and Lisa onsighted a 10b and 10c respectively. Before Jimmy and Lisa headed up the path to hang on their projects at WWI, and Laura and I took in some easy trad at Repo I. I did a 5.5, 5.6, 5.6, and 5.9, which were all excellent except for the 5.5, don't do it, its a chosspile. Laura cleaned all the routes, getting a feel for trad placement again. Laura has led a handful of trad routes in her past, but like me its been a while. In Scotland she led a VDiff and a Severe (5.6 and 5.7) at Reiff, although it was more a case of placing gear down low then run it out to the top. And in Squamish a couple of years ago, she led a couple of 5.5 and 5.6's, although she had an epic on the last route she led and has been scared to return to trad ever since. She felt up to trying a route today, so she led First Things First, a really fun 5.6 with great gear placements, all her gear was bomber, and I think this gave her a lot of confidence for getting back on more trad routes.

The easy routes were just a warm up for my main objective of the day, to onsight Mambo Jambo a classic 10b trad route. The route starts out easily in a finger crack going up a short dihedral to a ledge, you place your first pieces here and go up the slightly overhanging crack that starts out with ring locks then gets wider to hand and fist jamming. I was feeling good on lead up to this point, I placed my biggest cam above my head and it looked good, but there was another 20 ft or so of wide crack that I knew I couldn't really protect, but I figured I'd just go for it. I climbed up past my cam, to really insecure hand jams, in fact I was pretty much just holding onto slick slopers in the crack. I was really sketching out, both legs were shaking uncontrollably, then I realized I had a big hex I could throw into the crack, I jiggled it around in there but it didn't really settle, I was getting pumped fast, and I knew if I didn't keep moving up I'd be coming off, so I clipped the rattling hex, jammed my feet in and sketched my way up, to what looked like a ledge, it was just more slopers, so i kept on going until eventually a jug! Phew, that was scary, I threw a sling over the jug spike, and looked down, that would've been a big fall, there was no way the hex was holding, but the cam below would have prevented a ground fall. I climbed up on to a ledge above the spike, the route wasn't over yet, I still had another 20ft of tricky slab climbing before the chains. The slab was protected by two bolts, but I knew I couldn't clip the bolts after getting this far on trad gear. I managed to fiddle in a sideways nut in a small undercling flake, it didn't look amazing but when I gave it a tug it held. Ok just trust it I thought to myself and you'll be on top before you know it, a few precarious high steps and rockovers later and I was on top. Yes! It was a sketchy lead, but I had done it, this is what onsighting trad is all about.

Although it only gets the lowly grade of 10b, (6a+) I felt this is one of my hardest trad onsights to date. I have onsighted routes that get harder grades, but this was definitely not my style, because of the wide cracks, and the mental aspect running it out during the crux and at the top on the slab. If this were in the UK, I would think it would probably get E3 5c, since it is both physically quite hard, and you could take a big fall especially on the top section if the nut on the slab didn't hold. I came down feeling great, but both physically and mentally drained, Laura was sure glad to have me back on the ground, I know she wasn't looking forward to having to catch my fall.

We headed up to WW1 to join the masses of sport climbers and see how Jimmy and Lisa got on, sounds like they had a pretty good day, Jimmy managed a repeat of Psychosomatic 12d, and Lisa made progress on some 12s. I gave Girls in the Gym a quick repeat, and watched Jimmy onsight End of the World 12a, then we headed back to the car, and I slept the whole ride back to Olympia, looking forward to being back safe and sound and ready to climb an other day.

Lisa going for the flash of End of the World

LW

Sorry for the delay in this blog post, but some of us have jobs ;) (at least for a little while longer!)


Last Saturday Micah, Jimmy and Me headed out to Leavenworth for our first bouldering trip of the year! A lot of impressive stuff went down, Jimmy and Micah picked up right where they left off last year and sent a few V8's and a V9, see their blog for more details. Lisa impressed us all with an amazing send of The Lonely Fish V9!!! To put it into perspective before Saturday her hardest send was a V4! I actually got close to flashing the Lonely Fish, but it wasn't meant to be. I'll definately be back for it though. I managed to send Cruise Control a sweet V6 at Forestland though which I really liked. And I repeated some great problems V5 and below. We also met Jeremy out there and he sent his first V5's; One Summer, and Arrested Development Variation. But enough about grades, here's some photos I'll let them tell the story of our weekend.

Lisa on Arrested Development a fun highball at Forestlands that feels a whole lot easier with a bunch on pads down.

Jimmy negotiates his way up the technical corner of Pretty Girl at the Pretty Boulders. Contender for best problem in Leavenworth?

Jimmy denied by the slopers on Pretty Woman on his flash attempt.

Lisa focusses on the big throw on The Lonely Fish.

Micah slaps slick slopers at Swiftwater.

Jimmy commits and latches the jug of Pretty Hate Machine.

Lisa on a possible FA in Upper Forestlands on a really sweet boulder.

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