Tag Archives: Trad Climbing

Oct25

Getting some outdoor leads in!

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Saturday, 25-Sept-2021


The Beacon, Washington State

Man… with the exception of my Devil’s Tower climbing adventure, I can’t really remember the last time I just went out to climb with friends in the great outdoors. Ehh, okay. That’s a bit hyperbolic – It was last November, or maybe October, climbing at Ozone / FarSide with Bri and Lizzie. I had to trundle a huge boulder out of the route when it nearly fell out.

Fun times.

But… distant times, you know?



When Imogen expressed interest in climbing outdoors… well, I jumped on it. I was psyched, and came up with a few ideas of where we could go – she’s a newer climber, so I didn’t want to overwhelm her just yet… so just some shorter and cleaner pitches to get the blood flowing, you know?

In other words, The Beacon called.



It’s not an easy area, but there are a few very well travelled, very clean, very moderate routes that I’ve gotten to know pretty well. Not so much that I could climb them blindfolded… but the “with one arm tied behind my back” phrase does come to mind.

I packed up the car, picked her up in Portland, and we made our way toward adventure!

What did we climb?

SE Corner, 5.6, Trad – I got to lead!

We also explored quite a bit around the base of the Beacon… I feel like I’ve explored these before, but I can’t quite remember any specific instances… so we crawled into caves, stared up at huge walls, and appreciated the open air and cool fall breezes.



It was a simple and fun day – we got one solid pitch in, but… I’ll admit, I underestimated just how intimidating outdoor climbing can be, in comparison to gym climbing… especially when you get an amazing view of the Columbia River Gorge. Great views are a double-edged sword, right? They’re awesome and beautiful… but they’re also intimidating if you’re not accustomed to them.

Which leads me to the real meat and potatoes of this post – Climbing today, I was reminded just how deeply immersed I am in my element. It doesn’t really fall into one of the four natural elements… but instead I’m just exceptionally comfortable outdoors. Which… I’m just going to say it, I’m really exceptionally proud of.

It’s neat to think of, you know? I’d been camping when I was younger, a few times, but I’d never really considered myself into the outdoors until I got to college and had a chance to really stretch into my own wings.

But once I did… I’ve learned a lot, and experienced such a huge bounty of amazing trips, places, and… well, let’s be honest here. Quite a few mistakes along the way as well.

But… It’s been at least 16 years that I’ve been doing this. 16 solid years of trips, adventures, mistakes, memories, and excitement. Highs and lows, great summiting and rappelling in the rain.



It’s good to step back and recognize just how awesome we really are, every once in a while. To look at ourselves from the outside, and see just how many experiences we’ve lived, and how comfortable we’ve become in our elements – be it work, adventure, hobbies, or what have you.

To quite a wise (if short) old master: “Luminous beings are we”

Sep17

Climbing Ozone again – 05-Sept-2020

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Saturday, 05-Sept-2020

 

Yeah climbing outside!!!

This time, it was a whole team of us – five people strong, laying siege to the hard routes and crushing the climbing.

 

I had a great time, if you couldn’t tell.  We all met up at the parking lot, and headed in together to check out a few routes that Lizzy had climbed previously – Going a bit harder this time that we had before, with a 5.10c on the target list for the day… actually, from what I remember, that was really the only route specifically on the list for the day, since Lizzy’d top roped it before, and was aiming to be our rope gun and lead it today.

There’s not really much to say this time – thankfully, no boulders or loose rocks showed up, and it was a gloriously simple and fun day of climbing.  We didn’t get quite as many routes in as last time, but I chalk that up to the larger group… but mostly to the harder routes that we were doing instead.

 

So let’s see…

Routes:

Variant Stairway to Heaven – 5.6, trad lead – Fun route, swings right away from the Heaven’s Ledge over a few blocks.  It’s a bit dirty, but was a lovely warm up / fun route.

Stairway to Heaven – 5.6, trad lead – Fun route, little bit less dirty than the right-leaning variant.

Heaven and Hell??? – 5.7 (5.10??) mixed lead – Our guidebook showed this as a 5.10, but it felt really easy for a 10… but maybe not quite as easy as a 7?  Man, routes at Ozone are confusing.

For Heaven’s Sake – 5.10c, toprope – Tried this one.  Fell on this one.  Really enjoyed this one, if only for the powerful dynamic moves that I couldn’t quite pull off.

??? a thing??? Maybe – 5.10c/d, toprope – This was the big one that we were here for.  I can’t really figure it out online, but the guidebook had it listed as a 5.10c, and it very much felt like one.  It was hard, sustained, and had two major crux moves that I loved working through.

Apr23

Joshua Tree, March 2019 – Rock climbing

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Thursday through Sunday, 21-Mar to 24-Mar-2019

Ohh man, we’re going climbing!!!

It’s been ages since Sarah and I were able to go on a dedicated climbing trip together – with the New Year successfully rung in, vacation days saved up, and strength and health in our limbs, it was time to get back on the plane and get some rock under our feet.  I set up flights, rented a truck, and we set off toward Joshua Tree…

This post will be broken up into three sections: Joshua Tree itself, Climbing, and the superbloom.  We took a lot of pictures, so… trust me.  This is for the best.

 

Just a quick listing of the routes that we climbed on Friday and Saturday, along with a few dozen pictures from the ascents!  We stuck to the fairly easy routes, though next time I think we’ll start into some of the slightly harder lines.  Climbs in Joshua tree aren’t easy – they’re not super hard, but they’re quite different from what we’ve gotten used to here in Oregon.

The rock in Joshua Tree is amazing granite, high friction that allows for a lot more delicate friction movement.  Cracks and friction are just a bit different than the small nubbins and ledges that we’ve got here in the PNW, so it definitely took some getting used to.  And some bleeding… off-width climbs (cracks that are too big to jam your hand in, but too small to shove your whole body into) are rough on the skin.

 

Day 1, Friday

  • SeCoVar (SouthEast COrner VARiant) – 5.5, Trad, 2.5-pitches, Ben leads – This was excellent, and a really pleasant start into Joshua Tree climbing.  A little wandering, a little off-width, and a lot fun.  It even has a tunnel half-way through that you have to walk through!
  • Mike’s Books – 5.6, Trad, 2 pitches, Ben leads – I did the direct start of this, which is a 5.8!  But I also pulled on gear the whole way because it was hard, so… not 5.8.  This was an excellent route, though the top was pretty hefty on lead.  We both loved it.

 

Day 2, Saturday

  • Beginner’s Three – 5.3, Trad, 1 pitch, Sarah and Ben both lead! – Sarah’s first outdoor trad lead post-injury!  This was excellent and pleasant, and Sarah crushed it!
  • Bat Crack – 5.5, Trad, 2 pitches, Ben leads – A very fun route that I remembered from the last time I was in Joshua Tree.  This time I took a variant to the first pitch though, climbing the bottom of “Billabong”, a 5.10 route that has a super-fun and easy start.
  • The Bong – 5.4, Trad, 1 pitch, Ben leads – This route was a ways away from all our other climbing, which is why we made a point to check it out.  Seeing another side of the rock formation was great, and this was a truly spectacular crack to cruise up.