Realized I haven't written about rock climbing lately, you must be biting your nails! Let me regale you with some shots of our ventures around Southern California where the granite and sandstone run deep.
James and his lady friends at Echo. Learned to multi-pitch on this day! We got up around 150 feet over the beautiful Echo Valley.
Trad master T doing some uncharacteristic sport climbing
Done a couple days of bouldering at the legendary Stoney Point* just north of Los Angeles city. I'm still not very good at bouldering (Bouldering: climbing without a rope "short" routes, usually below 15 feet, usually big round rocks). I'm not muscular enough and falling is not an option once you get halfway through your route, ie when it gets hard. It is, however, exceptional for your balance and technique. I've free climbed things and then gone back to the high walls and been shocked at how much better my form was.
Hiking to Echo is a slug with the ropes and gear. Mostly we all complain the whole way and then eat everything we have the minute we get to the base of the cliff.
Are we there yet?
Made it. Oh, NOW we climb? pshhhh
Ash trying to retrieve gear on a tough route.
We got the place locked down like a compound
Taking a break in a tree!
And Leang always looking like an REI ad. They should sponsor her.
Dylan and Nak hooking up some anchors at Stoney. He saw a huge tarantula, but I was too slow to get a shot.
I got a good perch to take some action shots.
Some not-to-be missed climbing links:
2 comments:
Where's your HELMET???
As you'll note from the one shot of a belayer here, we ALWAYS wear a helmet when belaying to protect from falling rocks. Most of the routes were very easy on top rope or very closely bolted lead routes, so a generally a fall is only a couple of feet. An extremely uncharacteristic failure of multiple bolts up the entire route would be like getting hit as a pedestrian walking across the street.
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