Tag Archives: Hammond Pond

Jun4

Bouldering at Hammond Pond with Johnny and Kirsten before I leave

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Friday, 22-May-2015

 

 

Hammond Pond was basically where I grew up rock climbing. I learned to set anchors on my own there, and I placed my first pieces of trad gear there. I’ve gone to the various boulders and cliffs there more times than I could ever count, and done more variations of routes than I can imagine.

So, obviously, I had to go at least one time before leaving Boston.

So Friday morning, I headed out toward Chestnut Hill. Johnny and Kirsten met me (the advantage to all of us having unique schedules), and we set up a few routes to explore.

 

The thing about Hammond is that the anchor trees are pretty far back and rather poorly spread out , so it makes for some really interesting anchor setups. We really spent more time going over anchors, knots, and various ways we could set up than we did climbing – but I’m completely ok with that. It’s the danger of being both an Engineer and a rock climber. I love all the systems and setups nearly as much as the actual motion and movement of climbing.

So we climbed. We set anchors and played with knots. We chatted with some other random folks who showed up to climb. We enjoyed ourselves immensely.

 

 

Routes:

I honestly can’t remember any names of Hammond, and we did variants of the “classic” lines anyways. But the best map is…

Main Cliff (routes go far right to left)

Far right finger crack – Top Roped

Finger & Hand crack – Top Roped, and Johnny did a mock-lead on trad gear

Climb between the previous two – Top Roped

Milk Run (5.4) – Top Roped

Aug5

A weekend of shows and relaxation:

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A weekend of shows and relaxation:

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21-Jun-13 through 23-Jun-13

Friday, 21-Jun-13

Seeing Dylan Moran

  • Friday night, bike home from work quick and early
  • Take the T to the show
  • Long line to get in, and booze is $14 a cup… screw that
  • Sit down with Marla in our seats… cool Irish folks next to us!  Chat, laugh, show starts
  • Very good… doubly good when you picture him in the TV show Black Books
  • Intermission is chatting and flirting with the Irish girls… quite fun 🙂
  • Second act is just as good as the first, if not better
  • Head out afterward, and take the T to Cambridge Commons for beer with the Irish
  • Drink, laugh, and make merry with them and the table next to us.
  • Walk home to take Minor for a walks, and crash

Saturday, 22-Jun-13

Quick climbing day at Hammond

  • Nothing crazy, just a few quick runs up the climbs before dark.

Seeing Avenue Q

  • Meet Allison at my place ~7:15
  • Drive over with the help of a confused GPS
  • Sit down – small theater, but still pretty cool.  The set is really good looking!
  • Play is excellent!  The actors / singers are great, and they get the voices perfect.  The stage is amazing, and I almost get caught up in how well it’s designed (from a multi-purpose standpoint)
  • It’s over, hang out with Allison’s friend, and shoot the breeze for a bit
  • Home and crash

Relaxing around the house on a Sunday

  • Basically relaxed and nothing… good Sunday
Jun19

Hammond in April with Marla

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Saturday, 06-Apr-13

 

I usually have a good breakfast on the weekends. During the week I just have a simple Banana Smoothie, but when I actually have time on the weekends? I make sure that I eat well.

This morning was no different.

This morning also found me on the back veranda (I am going to keep calling it a veranda until it sticks) eating a massive omlette – Eggs, Cheese, peppers, onions, ground beef, and a bit of bacon. With, of course, a cup of espresso, and a cup of orange juice. In a bathrobe. Like a boss.

From there, Marla and I packed up her car, tossing the gear into the trunk and minor into the back seat, and we rolled out for Hammond Pond. Simple and efficient.

At Hammond we climbed nearly all the main cracks there – I took the leads, with Marla giving me a belay and seconding the climbs. It was actually a pretty solid setup, because we didn’t have to make super-complex anchors; instead, I just slung a tree and pulled in rope as Marla climbed up. With that setup we got four or so leads done in roughly an hour and a half – not bad for the outdoors, to say the least.

And it was nice – a good relax and practice for me to get used to leading again. It’d been a few months at that point, so a solid little chance to lead a few routes was definitely appreciated.

  • We took turns climbing – I would lead a route up and set the anchor, and Marla would follow me up while Minor ran around. We cruised through three or four routes this way.
  • After getting bored of the main wall we moved onward – Marla and Minor taking a bit of a hike, while I headed to the main bouldering area to hang out with some gym-rats we had met earlier.
  • While bouldering, a random guy’s dog “marks” my bag. He shrugs and walks off. I yell at the dog, yell at him, and fume.
  • After Marla and Minor’s return, we move on to the Temple wall area to do a bit of exploring. We find a cave, a few interesting cracks, and I get some more bouldering in. It’s fun, but not overly strenuous.
  • With climbing done and hiking complete, we head on home.