I tried to learn rock climbing. I thought it was too dangerous. There was no snow.






You can't ski/snowboard on rocks, so I lost interest.

goldenhopper wrote:I'm still in somebody's digestive tract

Thank you for sharing - everyone was wondering about that

Petit Grepon in RMNP is a great CLIMB AND SUMMIT- you climb for like 9 or so pitches, and when you get to the top you look around you & think 'Oh $#!+- now I have to get down this thing!' I felt like a cat stuck in a tree. Good thing for rappel stations...

Ya Dirk, I keep reading good things about such places as Devil's Tower, the Grand Teton, a bunch of other great climbs ... Congrats on the SE Face of Clyde Minaret -- that thing looked beautiful



Gonna have to do the Rock Route in the meantime .. imagine, that volcanic Ritter range rock is more ancient than the Sierra Nevada itself ..
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So a couple of weeks ago I took my friend Laura up The Grack. I tend to think of it as a classic, and a fun romp .. one of those must-do's for new climbers in the Valley.

At the top while waiting our turn for the rap station, she was discussing with the other party about which of the three pitches was the most fun, and which was the most satisfying. Intriguing, because up until then I would have considered the two equivalent (certainly for this climb anyway ) The consensus seemed to be that the 2nd pitch was the most fun (joyous jamming), and the 3rd the most satisfying (finger crack, smearing, kinda delicate footwork).
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I'm still bathing in the warm glow of last weekend .. I managed to do my first bona-fide Valley 5.8 lead -- Bishop's Terrace. I guess a good bit of it is 5.7 with super secure jamming, which I consider fun to the 10th power. The 5.8 sections were pretty heady for me and a bit tenuous, but so satisfying I have wanted to do that climb for years. Two years ago while learning how to walk again I would never have dreamed I'd be leading it ..

Later on we went and did most of Super Slide, in the Royal Arches area. It's hard to describe the feeling of being several pitches up above the valley floor and being surrounded by all that majestic scenery. At a belay I watched clouds come into the west end of the valley, an amazing sight. Well, it was a little scary because those clouds would soon start drizzling on us

The day before while slab climbing on the Cookie Sheet I watched a hawk circling on a thermal. Words fail me, really ..

Thanks, Rob. SE face of Clyde was one of the funnest climbs I've done. Do the Rock Route, then come back & go for the SE face- solid rock & way different than the typical Sierra granite- angular, smooth, & sharp. Was really glad that Gordon had already done the Rock Route so we didn't have to worry about route-finding (esp. the latter half of the descent, which was in the dark!).

Props on leading Bishops, too- one of the bona fide hand cracks of the Valley! You might want to check out Ejesta- similar crack & also super fun. Keep crankin', man.

I love them both! Everything has its place. I like technical challenges, but I also enjoy just being happy and enjoying the views on a nice hike/scramble. I've been migrating towards the crags recently because I want to build my technical skills, but also just because they are fun and easy ways to practice your skills in relative comfort without having to haul stuff in for miles.

I haven't been hiking/scrambling in a while though, I need to get out.

-Mark

Not long after I found out what a mountain was only a few year ago I joined what I now know is the "MikeTX School of Thought"

MikeTX wrote:I just do what I can. Beggars can't be choosers.

Drive to the start point full of apprehension. Fear of the unknown if I've not walked this route before. Or pure naked fear if I have walked it before!

Set out after convincing myself I am gonna enjoy the walk up.

Scare myself shitless if there is an exposed bit or some scrambling on the way up. Or, more accurately, scare myself totally shitless if I meet such sections on the way down when it is so much harder.

Get back to my car and realise I don't need to change my trousers.

Start getting brave again as I drive away with my back to the mountain.

Sit in the bar later that evening and find that after the first beer I am planning to do the same mountain again the next day. But via the harder route.

After the third beer I'm convinced I have just done the harder route.

Wake up next morning and drive to the start point of another mountain walk full of apprehension.