castle rock and anxiety

Some springtime warm weather sandstone bouldering at CSRP:

9am and already 75 degrees

KW Chou vs Static Reach V8

Markus vs Clam Traverse V9

Nooooo

Also I read an interesting op-ed in the new york times today about urban cycling being the antidote to modern anxiety, a kind of "meditation at gunpoint" or scenario wherein the usual brain chatter is quieted by a combination of one part mortal risk, two parts speed.  The author compares this to rock climbing:

When I’m balanced on two thin wheels at 30 miles an hour, gauging distance, adjusting course, making hundreds of unconscious calculations every second, that idiot chatterbox in my head is kept too busy to get a word in. I’ve heard people say the same thing about rock-climbing: how it shrinks your universe to the half-inch of rock surface immediately in front of you, this crevice, that toehold. Biking is split-second fast and rock-climbing painstakingly slow, but both practices silence the noise of the mind and render self-consciousness blissfully impossible.

I'm not sure about his second-hand understanding of climbing, but I have to agree that the analysis feels spot on.  After all these years climbing I find myself questioning more than ever why I devote so much time to the pursuit.  Perhaps it's a fear that I could be wasting time, a feedback mechanism or innate biological urge to be productive rather than idle -- always working towards something.  When I first realized that the time vs. achievement curve of my climbing endeavors wasn't exponential or even linear with a positive slope, but more likely sinusoidal or (damn it to hell!) chaotic and unpredictable, it threw me for a bit.  Worried that I might be climbing for fun.  Barf.  Or much more palatable, that I do it to spend quality time with friends.  Or to challenge myself with an artificial puzzle, something that blends body and mind.  Or less noble, that it feels good to feel fit and strong and not just sit around eating chocolate ice cream watching Game of Thrones, although I enjoy that too.  No, even Sharma, especially Sharma, wanted to identify the higher functions that keep many of us heading out to the rocks.  This may be it though: a quieting of the mind.

western gold

Alex Savage has made a bit of cinematic magic.  Western Gold was released for HD download yesterday, and I spent this afternoon skipping a lecture on respiratory tumors and watching it instead.  Good choice.  Spanning many states and focusing on smaller areas and local climbers, the movie felt authentic and entertaining in a way that is rare for bouldering media of the past few years.

Perhaps it was seeing people like our good buddy Kyle climbing stunning lines in Leavenworth that made it feel so familiar.  But also all the pad humping to remote valleys, the solo trip psychology, the failed attempt after failed attempt, the many women crushers, and the sketching of topouts -- this is what bouldering is really like for me.  I won't ever climb V15, and while it can be fun to watch a mega sponsored climber ticking another mega hyped line in Colorado, it isn't satisfying on some level.  Western Gold has problems up to V13 but the grades take a back stage to the personalities, landscape and aesthetics involved with each area.

I had high expectations for this film and was looking forward to it for a long time... and it didn't disappoint in the least.  Don't take my word for it -- support independent filmmaking and buy Western Gold!!!

kjuge, sweden

fine rocks in the swedish forest

portal, az

during a recent tour of the southwest, the wife and i spent a night in Portal, AZ. the main goal was identifying birds, but i ended up finding some climbing instead. the canyon is littered with large limestone boulders, which don't appear to have had any real traffic. some steeper ones too, right in the campgrounds.

the elusive Klinghoffers

Today I was shaken out of bed at 5:33am by a nice earthquake, and I felt the ache radiating from my elbows to the rest of my body. Summer weather drew Markus and I on a search for the Klinghoffer boulders, an area at Castle Rock State Park that was developed during the "reign of terror" in the 70's and 80's by Yabo et al. Far flung as it was, we were happy to climb a few old and new classics including the Klinghoffer Traverse and Right Hand Man. We made a wide loop back to the car via Goat Rock and climbed on problems like Planet Caravan and Way Dubious Contortionist, both directly adjacent to the trail. The stream of day hikers and families asking "what are those mattresses for?" and my personal favorite "omg, I can't watch!" as if I was on the threshold of certain death. It was a fantastic day of rock scaling and I'm happy to have found a local area to be psyched on for the time being. Markus also brought his super-camera (all pictures to his credit):

Markus on Right Hand Man v7

Right Hand Man @ the Klinghoffers

Markus climbing Way Dubious Contortionist v5

Way Dubious Contortionist @ Goat Rock

Groundation v6

Static Cling

Spring has already arrived to the Bay Area; the cherry trees are blooming; our winter lasted all of two weeks.  I'm not complaining, but I do wish I had had more time to take advantage of the greatest California climbing season in decades.  They finally closed Tioga Pass on January 17th, breaking the historical record for latest closure.

One person who did take full advantage of his first season in California is Kyle O'Meara.  As per his usual style, he has been going around making tall scary climbs look like casual warmups, and flashing nearly everything in his path.  I met up with him yesterday at Castle Rock State Park for a tour of the dog-friendly side of the road, and the weather was once again perfect.  Here's a short low-def video of Kyle running a lap on the "super low" start to Static Reach which I think Charlie B called "Reach Around".  The boulder is almost laughably small, but packs a lot of great moves into 5 vertical feet of climbing.  Ha.  We climbed a bunch of tall proud stuff too (well, Kyle did) but I thought people would appreciate the butt-dragging lowball video more.  Cheers!

texas drive-by

frozen lakes

This is Roo.  She's keeping my sleeping bag safe and secure.  And that is the BLM pit, lucky site #14, sheltered from the wind by ancient gravel burial mounds and wood pallet reinforcements.

My winter break from school included 4 days in Bishop, although it was unrecognizable without all the  ice and snow.  Really it was odd to have wished I brought shorts and sandals to the Buttermilks.  Every other time I've been there it was "double puffy" weather, water bottles freezing solid, escaping to Keough for survival and keeping your chili cheeze bread thawed in the foot of your sleeping bag.  This time around I was comfortable.  There were no epics, I climbed all day in great weather, had a nice dinner each night and drank a beer by the fire, before retiring to my -20F Marmot 800 fill-power furnace bag at 9pm sharp to sweat my way through another starry 30F night.  I felt like an old guy.

My favorite climb of the trip was Funky Tut V3, which took me more attempts than I'd like to admit.  It was like an old guy version of Soul Slinger in a way.

On the way home through Yosemite on 120 I ran over a small boulder that wasn't as small as it looked. It tore through every sensitive part of the undercarriage of my Saab, resulting in a repair bill upwards of $7k.  I may be in the market for a new car, if anyone wants to recommend a wagon (Jetta vs. Volvo XC vs. Outback).  At least I caught a few pictures of folks playing ice hockey at 9,000 ft:

grit

I feel like I work too much, and that my job is more stressful than it ‘should’ be. Not the best time to be complaining about a job, and there are many reasons that I feel fortunate to have this job. One of those reasons is that I have spent the last ten days in Sheffield, and I managed to slip out for a couple afternoons to go and check out some peak district bouldering. The weather was typical i think, with heavy winds and some rain, but Stanage plantation provided plenty of dry rock climbs. This peak district bouldering mecca is closer to the city than I would have guessed, and only wish Leavenworth or Gold Bar were as close to Seattle.

The local climbing shop sits in an charming village called Hathersage about 10 minutes from the climbing parking lots. I picked up a guidebook and headed for the rocks. After a quick walkabout and inspection of the texture and quality of the grit stone, I was immediately impressed. I don’t know why my expectations were lower but I was anticipating larger grained, sharp and unpleasant rock. The texture is very fine, and the holds and moves reminiscent of sandstone blocs.

After cruising through the guidebook and looking around the area, I feel like Stanage is to Peak District as Forest Lands is to Leavenworth, only the very tip of the iceberg.

Some shitty photos and a link to a marvelous slab-dyno video by someone else…

Deliverance from Matthew Gaddes on Vimeo.

Paul Nadler

My friend Paul was in Leavenworth for a short stay recently, in between the destinations of his life on the road. Living in his Toyota Camry with his husky, Karma, cooking with a lightweight stove, and pretty much wearing the same clothes everyday, Paul reminds me more of an alpine climber than a full-time boulderer. Last weekend Paul got it done on one of the few remaining obvious projects at a main destination in the Icicle Canyon- the "moon project" at Lower Forestland. Autopilot V11 starts on Cruise Control and veers left up the steep face, it was the last day of his trip... classic!