***LIFETIME LIFE THREAD***
01-15-2014
, 05:29 PM
02-12-2014
, 06:22 PM
02-28-2014
, 09:36 AM
03-02-2014
, 01:35 AM
04-01-2014
, 03:09 AM
Month bump. Kind of sad...
I just got back from my trip last night and am super tired. Here is my TR:
My climbing group decided that we would go to Horseshoe Canyon Ranch in Arkansas for this trip. We had a large (9 members) and very diverse group of climbers and I didn't really know what to expect. We left Omaha late and got into Arkansas around 11 pm. We stopped at L.C.'s BBQ in KC, which was pretty delicious.
This was my third time in Arkansas and I really wanted to push myself. That being said, it was more my girlfriend who decided to start us off on the harder routes. Horseshoe Canyon Ranch (HCR) is known for big holds, big moves, and overhung problems. It's pretty much just an outdoor climbing gym, one that I personally enjoy.
We started with an easy warm up and then did Crimp Scampi, a 5.10d classic. My girlfriend really wanted to lead it so I let her do so and top roped it afterwards. It was an alright problem; mostly technical crimps with two cruxes (a large bump off a bad crimp and the second a large gaston off a crimp).
We moved on to another really fun climb (and maybe my favorite climb of the weekend)- 'Big Top' (5.11c). The moves were all super fun and the route was just a big, pumpy, overhung route. We all took turns leading it and I had a blast.
We did one more easy route, an unusual pocket route that is overhung and hard to read. I didn't have a chance to climb it because it unfortunately started to rain hard at this point (3:00 pm). We all called it a day and went into this shelter while it poured.
We ate dinner, drank beer, sat around this grill for a fire, and hung out. The next two days were really fantastic weather wise. It was about 65 and sunny during the day, with not a cloud in the sky.
We climbed a few warm ups and decided to move to this wall we were at last trip called 'The Land Beyond'. We did a 5.11c called 'Something For Sophia', which was a very short problem (40 feet ]) but massively overhung and powerful. Overall, I didn't really enjoy this route much. While throwing to big holds and doing pull ups is something I generally enjoy; this problem was fairly reachy and the moves were not very fun.
We finished the day with a few easier climbs. I did this other problem (5.10c) that featured a bunch of small pockets that were later used as an under cling to move upwards. Overall, an okay climb but nothing I would do again.
That night consisted of beer, food, campfire, s'mores, and good times.
Our last day was PERFECT climbing weather. 73, sunny, and no clouds at all.
We decided to do another classic: Love Slave (5.11c). We watched some people doing this line the day before and it looked really interesting. They struggled heavily on this climb and had a tough time getting the beginning crux.
Love Slave might have been my favorite climb of the trip (that one or Big Top). It was a bouldery start with the first crux being a throw to a three finger pinch. The rest of the route is characterized by big heel hooks, a leg jam, and very over hung.
Here was the second clip, after the first crux. Once you get the pinch, you work your way up to a leg jam and rest. This rest was awesome and you could sit there for hours.
You continue to move up fairly decent holds.
I thought there was another crux in the route, where you had to bump into a very small crack on top of a sloper. The crack provides just enough for you to move upwards, where the rest of the holds are fairly solid. My favorite move of the entire route was the near the fourth clip, where you had to do a bad heel hook and the bolt was somewhat far from the last one (though not really super run out). Here is a picture of that move:
All in all, a fantastic climb. Here are some pictures of my girlfriend doing the same problem:
Leg rest:
Big heel hook:
We finished on a super lame 5.10a 1 star route that had some dumb moves and was overall forgettable. We met up with the rest of the group, stopped at a local cafe, ate a late lunch (I ate a 1 lb burger like a fatty), and then drove the 8 hours back home.
I had a really enjoyable climbing trip. I'm really excited to try some of those problems again and, now that I know the beta, will hopefully get them clean. My friends all climbed really hard and I felt like we fed off of each other and pushed ourselves farther this trip than on past trips. I still need to better mentally in terms of taking big falls and I'm hoping I will start doing that instead of being a nancy and just getting a take.
I'm really excited to get back into the climbing gym and will probably start training to get better and stronger. Now that I'm not injured, I'm really hoping to get in at least 4-5x a week and break into the 5.12 range (outdoors) by next year. There is an upcoming competition next week in Lincoln that I'll be competing it. While I don't expect to win the Advanced category (there are some sickos there), I'll climb my hardest and try to climb the best to my ability.
Thanks for reading.
I just got back from my trip last night and am super tired. Here is my TR:
My climbing group decided that we would go to Horseshoe Canyon Ranch in Arkansas for this trip. We had a large (9 members) and very diverse group of climbers and I didn't really know what to expect. We left Omaha late and got into Arkansas around 11 pm. We stopped at L.C.'s BBQ in KC, which was pretty delicious.
This was my third time in Arkansas and I really wanted to push myself. That being said, it was more my girlfriend who decided to start us off on the harder routes. Horseshoe Canyon Ranch (HCR) is known for big holds, big moves, and overhung problems. It's pretty much just an outdoor climbing gym, one that I personally enjoy.
We started with an easy warm up and then did Crimp Scampi, a 5.10d classic. My girlfriend really wanted to lead it so I let her do so and top roped it afterwards. It was an alright problem; mostly technical crimps with two cruxes (a large bump off a bad crimp and the second a large gaston off a crimp).
We moved on to another really fun climb (and maybe my favorite climb of the weekend)- 'Big Top' (5.11c). The moves were all super fun and the route was just a big, pumpy, overhung route. We all took turns leading it and I had a blast.
We did one more easy route, an unusual pocket route that is overhung and hard to read. I didn't have a chance to climb it because it unfortunately started to rain hard at this point (3:00 pm). We all called it a day and went into this shelter while it poured.
We ate dinner, drank beer, sat around this grill for a fire, and hung out. The next two days were really fantastic weather wise. It was about 65 and sunny during the day, with not a cloud in the sky.
We climbed a few warm ups and decided to move to this wall we were at last trip called 'The Land Beyond'. We did a 5.11c called 'Something For Sophia', which was a very short problem (40 feet ]) but massively overhung and powerful. Overall, I didn't really enjoy this route much. While throwing to big holds and doing pull ups is something I generally enjoy; this problem was fairly reachy and the moves were not very fun.
We finished the day with a few easier climbs. I did this other problem (5.10c) that featured a bunch of small pockets that were later used as an under cling to move upwards. Overall, an okay climb but nothing I would do again.
That night consisted of beer, food, campfire, s'mores, and good times.
Our last day was PERFECT climbing weather. 73, sunny, and no clouds at all.
We decided to do another classic: Love Slave (5.11c). We watched some people doing this line the day before and it looked really interesting. They struggled heavily on this climb and had a tough time getting the beginning crux.
Love Slave might have been my favorite climb of the trip (that one or Big Top). It was a bouldery start with the first crux being a throw to a three finger pinch. The rest of the route is characterized by big heel hooks, a leg jam, and very over hung.
Here was the second clip, after the first crux. Once you get the pinch, you work your way up to a leg jam and rest. This rest was awesome and you could sit there for hours.
You continue to move up fairly decent holds.
I thought there was another crux in the route, where you had to bump into a very small crack on top of a sloper. The crack provides just enough for you to move upwards, where the rest of the holds are fairly solid. My favorite move of the entire route was the near the fourth clip, where you had to do a bad heel hook and the bolt was somewhat far from the last one (though not really super run out). Here is a picture of that move:
All in all, a fantastic climb. Here are some pictures of my girlfriend doing the same problem:
Leg rest:
Big heel hook:
We finished on a super lame 5.10a 1 star route that had some dumb moves and was overall forgettable. We met up with the rest of the group, stopped at a local cafe, ate a late lunch (I ate a 1 lb burger like a fatty), and then drove the 8 hours back home.
I had a really enjoyable climbing trip. I'm really excited to try some of those problems again and, now that I know the beta, will hopefully get them clean. My friends all climbed really hard and I felt like we fed off of each other and pushed ourselves farther this trip than on past trips. I still need to better mentally in terms of taking big falls and I'm hoping I will start doing that instead of being a nancy and just getting a take.
I'm really excited to get back into the climbing gym and will probably start training to get better and stronger. Now that I'm not injured, I'm really hoping to get in at least 4-5x a week and break into the 5.12 range (outdoors) by next year. There is an upcoming competition next week in Lincoln that I'll be competing it. While I don't expect to win the Advanced category (there are some sickos there), I'll climb my hardest and try to climb the best to my ability.
Thanks for reading.
04-01-2014
, 05:24 AM
04-01-2014
, 11:35 AM
04-01-2014
, 02:04 PM
04-18-2014
, 07:44 PM
04-19-2014
, 01:09 AM
04-19-2014
, 03:06 AM
04-20-2014
, 10:50 PM
04-21-2014
, 04:44 PM
06-05-2014
, 02:31 PM
Sad days, bumping this thread. TR on Cali!-
Hey guys, so I'm back now and am going to give some of my trip reports now.
Our plan was a 2 week road trip out to California (Northern California). We were going to climb in Colorado and Utah along the way; go to Yosemite; and then finish up in Santa Cruz and San Francisco.
Colorado and Utah
Our first stop was in Clear Creek Canyon, Colorado. CCC is located right outside of Golden (which is right outside of Denver). It was easily accessible and the approach (walk to the climb) was 5 minutes ]. We didn't really take any photos of this spot but all in all, I enjoyed CCC.
Here are some photos of our drive:
Unfortunately we did not secure a campsite since we gambled and climbed first/searched after. The result was us sleeping at a rest stop for a few hours and then driving on to Maple Canyon, Utah.
Maple Canyon has unique rock and I think they're described as 'cobblestones'. There are a TON of routes in Maple Canyon and the approach is all pretty easy. One bad thing about the park is that it's pretty far out there and not super close to any major cities.
Our first day, we did an easy 5.8 (and by easy I mean super tough haha...). Here is a reference for climbing grades: LINK HERE
We went to the next area, which had a huge overhang. I wanted to do the best 5.12a in the park, a route called '49'. Here is a link on MP on this route: LINK .This route was rated highly in both the guidebook as well as online (mountainproject). This would be the first 5.12 I've ever done outdoors and I was really excited.
Here are some pictures of 49:
The wall:
49:
So the route was fairly sustained and very long. I used pretty much my entire 70m rope for this route and it being overhung didn't help. I climbed a few clips cleanly and then proceeded to get takes on pretty much every clip. My endurance SUCKS right now and, although the holds were all pretty good, I still struggle with reading outdoor routes.
About 3/4ths of the way up, I hit a snag. There is a larger distance between the quick draws and a very strange move (you do 2 big moves up to solid holds and then grab a massive sloper where you shove your entire arm over it for more surface area and clip). Normally, my mental game in climbing is pretty strong and I'm okay with falling/getting takes/etc. But for whatever reason, this move really creeped me out and I bailed on this route (the draws were already fixed into the wall).
My girlfriend gave me a pep talk and then she climbed the route. Weirdly enough, I would say she typically gets a bit more spooked on routes than I do (on average), but she NAILED the move I got scared about and finished the route. I got my head straight and climbed the route again, finishing it this time. I took a few 15-20 foot whippers but still was happy to top it out.
All in all, I was very happy with how my first 12 went. I was nowhere close to getting it clean, primarily due to my endurance. The moves were all very doable and the holds were solid throughout. I would love to live somewhere close to Maple Canyon so I could climb more there.
Maple Canyon Day 2
We mainly did easier routes on day 2 and explored a few different areas. The routes we did were very long and pretty cool. We went nearby the area we climbed at previously (with 49) and talked with an older couple. The woman was probably in her late 50s/early 60s and definitely didn't look like she climbed super hard (which was surprising, since the area was pretty much all 12+ climbs). She proceeded to warm up on a 5.11c and went up super smoothly. I was both surprised and envious of her excellent footwork and endurance. I guess it just goes to show that you can be old and still climb really hard!
We took a few pictures of each other while belaying (pretty dangerous but we always made sure the other was ok/on really safe ledges before doing so).
Anyways, we really enjoyed Maple Canyon (the hard areas). Some of the rock was pretty sketchy and we even had parts break off. However, it was really unique and I am glad I went there (thanks to Ian for referring me to that place).
I’ll write up the Yosemite TR soon.
Hey guys, so I'm back now and am going to give some of my trip reports now.
Our plan was a 2 week road trip out to California (Northern California). We were going to climb in Colorado and Utah along the way; go to Yosemite; and then finish up in Santa Cruz and San Francisco.
Colorado and Utah
Our first stop was in Clear Creek Canyon, Colorado. CCC is located right outside of Golden (which is right outside of Denver). It was easily accessible and the approach (walk to the climb) was 5 minutes ]. We didn't really take any photos of this spot but all in all, I enjoyed CCC.
Here are some photos of our drive:
Unfortunately we did not secure a campsite since we gambled and climbed first/searched after. The result was us sleeping at a rest stop for a few hours and then driving on to Maple Canyon, Utah.
Maple Canyon has unique rock and I think they're described as 'cobblestones'. There are a TON of routes in Maple Canyon and the approach is all pretty easy. One bad thing about the park is that it's pretty far out there and not super close to any major cities.
Our first day, we did an easy 5.8 (and by easy I mean super tough haha...). Here is a reference for climbing grades: LINK HERE
We went to the next area, which had a huge overhang. I wanted to do the best 5.12a in the park, a route called '49'. Here is a link on MP on this route: LINK .This route was rated highly in both the guidebook as well as online (mountainproject). This would be the first 5.12 I've ever done outdoors and I was really excited.
Here are some pictures of 49:
The wall:
49:
So the route was fairly sustained and very long. I used pretty much my entire 70m rope for this route and it being overhung didn't help. I climbed a few clips cleanly and then proceeded to get takes on pretty much every clip. My endurance SUCKS right now and, although the holds were all pretty good, I still struggle with reading outdoor routes.
About 3/4ths of the way up, I hit a snag. There is a larger distance between the quick draws and a very strange move (you do 2 big moves up to solid holds and then grab a massive sloper where you shove your entire arm over it for more surface area and clip). Normally, my mental game in climbing is pretty strong and I'm okay with falling/getting takes/etc. But for whatever reason, this move really creeped me out and I bailed on this route (the draws were already fixed into the wall).
My girlfriend gave me a pep talk and then she climbed the route. Weirdly enough, I would say she typically gets a bit more spooked on routes than I do (on average), but she NAILED the move I got scared about and finished the route. I got my head straight and climbed the route again, finishing it this time. I took a few 15-20 foot whippers but still was happy to top it out.
All in all, I was very happy with how my first 12 went. I was nowhere close to getting it clean, primarily due to my endurance. The moves were all very doable and the holds were solid throughout. I would love to live somewhere close to Maple Canyon so I could climb more there.
Maple Canyon Day 2
We mainly did easier routes on day 2 and explored a few different areas. The routes we did were very long and pretty cool. We went nearby the area we climbed at previously (with 49) and talked with an older couple. The woman was probably in her late 50s/early 60s and definitely didn't look like she climbed super hard (which was surprising, since the area was pretty much all 12+ climbs). She proceeded to warm up on a 5.11c and went up super smoothly. I was both surprised and envious of her excellent footwork and endurance. I guess it just goes to show that you can be old and still climb really hard!
We took a few pictures of each other while belaying (pretty dangerous but we always made sure the other was ok/on really safe ledges before doing so).
Anyways, we really enjoyed Maple Canyon (the hard areas). Some of the rock was pretty sketchy and we even had parts break off. However, it was really unique and I am glad I went there (thanks to Ian for referring me to that place).
I’ll write up the Yosemite TR soon.
06-05-2014
, 04:21 PM
06-09-2014
, 12:05 PM
Didn't really climb in Yosemite but here is my TR regardless:
Yosemite National Park
After Maple Canyon, we headed to Yosemite, National Park. I've been to Yosemite once before and climbed at Cathedral Peak, in the valley, and also hiked Half Dome. This trip, we really only had Half Dome planned. We were loosely planning on meeting a climbing friend in the Valley to do some easy climbing (he was going to do Half Dome in 1 day the next day, so he wasn't going to do anything hard).
We got there late at night and stayed at Hodgon Meadow. I reserved a spot earlier and was very lucky to get that (given I idiotically chose one of the worst weekends of the year- Memorial Day). My plan was to pretty much go to a first come-first serve spot the next morning.
Our plan was to wake up and go to Camp 4, which was located in the Valley. We got there at 6 a.m. and realized we *could* be **** out of luck given how many people were already waiting in line. Flustered, we drove to the campground reservation area and waited in line there, hoping to secure a spot there. Once we registered in the lottery (after waiting for a few hours until they opened), we were told to come back there at 3:00pm to see if we got a spot. We were very happy to find that we won 2 spots in the lottery for Half Dome as well. If you don't reserve a spot several months ahead of time, you need to go through the daily lottery system (where you're chosen at random). Half Dome only allows like ~300 of these lottery members daily, so it's important to keep applying if you're in the area.
So that essentially tied us down for the day. We didn't really have enough time to go on a massive hike and we had Half Dome the next day.
We decided to do some really easy hiking and take some photos.
We went back to the office and were pleased to find that we secured a spot for the night. At the office, we met a guy named Peter who needed a spot for the night. He was alone so we let him share our spot, which was located in the lower pines campground. This spot was great because it was right in the valley. Once we set up camp and ate dinner, we drove up to Glacier Point to check out a meteor shower that was happening at 10:00pm.
We sadly did not make it to the meteor shower since we decided to drive back around 9:40 or so due to the Half Dome hike the next day.
Half Dome
Half Dome is one of the largest single day hikes in Yosemite and certainly one of the most renowned. Half Dome is a ~14-16 mile (round trip) hike with 4800 feet of elevation gain. The last 500 feet of it is on a pure granite face (Half Dome part) and you need to go up steel cables to get to the very top. It's a beautiful hike that provides a wide variety of views and landscapes.
I definitely wasn't in the best hiking shape and haven't really hiked much over the past year. That being said, I was really just depending on my overall cardio/climbing shape to get me through. Knowing that I did it before also helped (albeit a few years back).
About 3/4ths of the way up, I got a pretty bad cramp in my right leg. I'd assume it was due to eating pretty mediocre on the previous days (probably not enough food/the right type of food). I had to take some frequent breaks while going up.
Finally at the cables:
Snow atop it!
A rock climber finishing Half Dome:
The descent of the Half Dome hike was the hardest for me. I was in pitiful shape compared to the first time I hiked it (where I never thought the descent was an issue). We hauled ass while down and just wanted to get the car.
Our plan was initially to go climb with my friend after Half Dome. By the end of the hike, we were really tired and we also had to get to Santa Cruz (only about 2.5 hours away) that night. My friend was cragging in the Valley and I couldn't really get a hold of him, so we decided to take a rain check on it. Overall, maybe a bad move but it seemed right at the time.
We arrived in Santa Cruz that night and slept for 10 hours.
Yosemite National Park
After Maple Canyon, we headed to Yosemite, National Park. I've been to Yosemite once before and climbed at Cathedral Peak, in the valley, and also hiked Half Dome. This trip, we really only had Half Dome planned. We were loosely planning on meeting a climbing friend in the Valley to do some easy climbing (he was going to do Half Dome in 1 day the next day, so he wasn't going to do anything hard).
We got there late at night and stayed at Hodgon Meadow. I reserved a spot earlier and was very lucky to get that (given I idiotically chose one of the worst weekends of the year- Memorial Day). My plan was to pretty much go to a first come-first serve spot the next morning.
Our plan was to wake up and go to Camp 4, which was located in the Valley. We got there at 6 a.m. and realized we *could* be **** out of luck given how many people were already waiting in line. Flustered, we drove to the campground reservation area and waited in line there, hoping to secure a spot there. Once we registered in the lottery (after waiting for a few hours until they opened), we were told to come back there at 3:00pm to see if we got a spot. We were very happy to find that we won 2 spots in the lottery for Half Dome as well. If you don't reserve a spot several months ahead of time, you need to go through the daily lottery system (where you're chosen at random). Half Dome only allows like ~300 of these lottery members daily, so it's important to keep applying if you're in the area.
So that essentially tied us down for the day. We didn't really have enough time to go on a massive hike and we had Half Dome the next day.
We decided to do some really easy hiking and take some photos.
We went back to the office and were pleased to find that we secured a spot for the night. At the office, we met a guy named Peter who needed a spot for the night. He was alone so we let him share our spot, which was located in the lower pines campground. This spot was great because it was right in the valley. Once we set up camp and ate dinner, we drove up to Glacier Point to check out a meteor shower that was happening at 10:00pm.
We sadly did not make it to the meteor shower since we decided to drive back around 9:40 or so due to the Half Dome hike the next day.
Half Dome
Half Dome is one of the largest single day hikes in Yosemite and certainly one of the most renowned. Half Dome is a ~14-16 mile (round trip) hike with 4800 feet of elevation gain. The last 500 feet of it is on a pure granite face (Half Dome part) and you need to go up steel cables to get to the very top. It's a beautiful hike that provides a wide variety of views and landscapes.
I definitely wasn't in the best hiking shape and haven't really hiked much over the past year. That being said, I was really just depending on my overall cardio/climbing shape to get me through. Knowing that I did it before also helped (albeit a few years back).
About 3/4ths of the way up, I got a pretty bad cramp in my right leg. I'd assume it was due to eating pretty mediocre on the previous days (probably not enough food/the right type of food). I had to take some frequent breaks while going up.
Finally at the cables:
Snow atop it!
A rock climber finishing Half Dome:
The descent of the Half Dome hike was the hardest for me. I was in pitiful shape compared to the first time I hiked it (where I never thought the descent was an issue). We hauled ass while down and just wanted to get the car.
Our plan was initially to go climb with my friend after Half Dome. By the end of the hike, we were really tired and we also had to get to Santa Cruz (only about 2.5 hours away) that night. My friend was cragging in the Valley and I couldn't really get a hold of him, so we decided to take a rain check on it. Overall, maybe a bad move but it seemed right at the time.
We arrived in Santa Cruz that night and slept for 10 hours.
06-09-2014
, 12:13 PM
06-23-2014
, 04:13 AM