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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Original Post - Sep 7, 2012 - 10:55am PT
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In between my 2nd and 3rd year of college, I told my parents that I was going to Boulder to live in a friend's apartment to work for the Summer. I had never ventured further west than NY state, but I felt a strange pull, and so I packed up two backpacks and hopped a Greyhound.
Once there, the mountains called daily, so I applied for food stamps and sold my blood plasma twice a week for spending money. I would leave the clinic on Pearl Street and hitch into Eldo, hooking up with a variety of characters and ticking off classics that I had only seen in pictures in my dog-eared copy of "Climb!" I was fortunate to hook up with john Rosholt, and we climbed together most of the Summer, including forays into RMNP and Boulder Canyon.
That trip was a turning point in my young life, and I swore to myself that I would return someday to live there. I made a half hearted attempt a few years later, but life has a strange way of dictating the timing of things, and I returned to NH after two months. Instead I roadtripped to Yosemite for 4 seperate 2 month trips, and after a successful first trip to Cham, I was introduced to the love of my life and we settled into an apartment to start a family. My Electronics Engineering degree held no sense of purpose, and I entered the building trades to earn money and self taught finish work, then cabinet making, and eventually fine furniture. We found a beautiful New Englander that we made our home, the classic "big house, little house, back house, barn." That was 19 years ago.
My wife was also interested in moving to CO, but insisted that the kids finish high school, and so I bided my time, waiting. When my youngest entered college, we listed the house, and nothing, I mean nothing, happened. In four years we had no more than 5 showings, and my resentments accelerated an already heavy drinking career. I was shipped off to rehab for two months, but the bottle proved too powerful and I continued to be a black out drunk as my life crumbled around me. I gravitated away from climbing, gained weight, and signed over my interests in the house to my wife, who feared that every time she saw me would be the last.
Most people who fall in a ditch would climb out, but a committed alcoholic tends to move in and start picking out mud curtains. Months from divorce and lost in a continuing downward spiral I finally hit bottom, and this time I checked myself back into rehab. This time, I was ready.
That was 26 months ago. It took time to rebuild relationships and my life, but the miracle of sobriety returned my career, my marriage, my climbing, and my life. Every day brought healing and new gifts, but the house still sat, unwanted.
Last week we had a rare showing, and I paraded around smudging the rooms with white sage smoke and asking the Universe for an answer. I offered tobacco to Mother Earth, and set my intentions to move and evolve wherever I needed to go. It was now out of my hands.
We left last weekend for a 4 day canoe camping trip on Squam Lake of "On Golden Pond" fame. I brought my new iPhone, despite our strict "no electronics" rule; something told me it would be useful. On the second day I retrieved an e-mail with an offer on the house! We countered, and the price was accepted; their only demand was that we be fully moved out of our home of 19 years within 30 days. Hell yes, we can do that!
To end an already long story, a chance encounter at the General Store led to a 6 month rental 10 miles away. I have 25 more days to finish the bed and nightstand I have been crafting, and then the shop will be culled of years worth of exotic hardwoods, unneeded tools, and the necessities moved into storage; the rental has no viable shop space.
I will not be able to ply my trade over the Winter months, but I have a variety of skills to keep me pulling in a meager outcome. Having lost my license for 3 years after a DWI, I will be rental-bound until I get it back in early December. I offer popular workshops in holistic healing, sell and teach Native American drum and rattle making, and will probably do some writing for various trade journals.
After the 6 months are up and Winter behind us, my wife and I will be buying a truck camper or similar, loading up our two Welsh Corgis, and taking a three month road trip with the Colorado front range as a final destination. We plan to hit the Black hills, the Tetons and Yellowstone where we honeymooned, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Bryce and Zion, Mesa Verde, anything and everything that calls.
We both have no idea what we will do for work when we get there. My wife is burned out from 20 years as a mortgage officer, and I may or may not re-open my shop.
It really doesn't matter, we're just along for the ride.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Very cool slice of personal history!
Thanks for sharing it with us.
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murcy
Gym climber
sanfrancisco
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Congratulations, Edge.
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10b4me
Ice climber
dingy room at the Happy boulders hotel
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Very inspirational. Good for you with your recovery.
I am looking to make a change also, and you have motivated me to get my but in gear.
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Boymeetsrock
Trad climber
the east
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"Big house, middle house, back house, barn." Made me laugh, I haven't heard that is a while. Schooner Fair has a fun song by that title.
Congratulations on your recent successes, Edge. Best to you and your wife as your adventure continues.
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BBWolf
climber
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Great story. At some level it resonates with all of us.
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Fish Finder
Social climber
THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART
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Glad to see you have a handle on the paddle.
Looks like you made it to the edge and are now back.
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Rhodo-Router
Gym climber
the secret topout on the Chockstone Chimney
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Thanks Edge. Good luck with the new adventure!
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meclimber
Trad climber
Dover, NH
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Lauren, pumped to hear it. It's been great seeing you get after it again, FA's and FFA's and taking care of demons keeps us strong. Have a great time on this 'next' next phase.
-Jon Howard
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TwistedCrank
climber
Dingleberry Gulch, Ideeho
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An honest and compelling story. Much appreciated.
As a side note, it continues to impress me how many lives John Rosholt touched. I was introduced to the loads on the ledge technique in Colorado (western slope) as well.
Also, the sobriety thing gets even better as well. I cracked 20 years in June. Keep up the good works!
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Good for you Edge! Much happiness to you and yours even if it will all be
for nought as of Dec 21. ;-)
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nature
climber
Boulder, CO
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Neat story. And very appropriate for my day.
I'm heading to Boulder right now to sign a lease.
I'm moving to Boulder, ColoRADo.
Joto is on the way - Naked Edge calls.
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ydpl8s
Trad climber
Santa Monica, California
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Great to see that picture of Rosholt, it certainly is him, those Chouinard pants and the forearm guns are a dead giveaway...miss him.
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karodrinker
Trad climber
San Jose, CA
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Happy Trails fellow life traveler.
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nutjob
Gym climber
Berkeley, CA
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It is wonderful to feast on a world full of possibilities!
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jogill
climber
Colorado
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Love them Corgis! Mine is 10 years old and has an incredible personality. He's even written poetry that I post occasionally on ST.
;>)
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Brandon-
climber
The Granite State.
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Wow! What a sudden change!
Great write up, let me know if you want someone to take care of any unneeded tools. :)
And, congratulations!
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Don Paul
Big Wall climber
Colombia, South America
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A friend of mine builds fences for the rich people in Boulder. The last couple of years have been hard for him, but now he says its picked up and the construction industry is hot again. There's a lot of illegal construction workers from Mexico in the Denver area, and some animosity. My friend's an old climber, let me know if you need a contact.
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dee ee
Mountain climber
citizen of planet Earth
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Awesome Edge!
The future is bright,
the world is your oyster,
possibilities are limitless.
Git some red dirt on them shoes.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 7, 2012 - 02:41pm PT
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Thanks everyone for sharing your thoughts and support.
Dee ee, there will be "red dirt" in my future. Growing up, the two most influential books in my life were "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" and "Desert Solitaire".
Hunter S Thompson helped get me where I am today, now I figure it's Abbey's turn...
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crusher
climber
Santa Monica, CA
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Edge,
What an awesome story. I think we can all relate in one way or another to what you've gone through. It takes a sh*tload of courage to pull yourself up, decide it's time (for whatever) and do it. It's hard! Talk about timing - the universe listened. Good luck to you both, sounds like an awesome adventure with much fun along the way.
And to top it off, two corgis! The most wonderful dogs - love the face peaking out from the canoe. I grew up in a "corgi" family.
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Bldrjac
Ice climber
Boulder
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Wow!!! Sounds like you have been fortunate indeed. Best for the road ahead!!! :-)
pam
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Cole
Trad climber
los angeles
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Great story Edge! Wish you and your wife the best of luck on your new adventure, sounds like a lot of fun.
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survival
Big Wall climber
Terrapin Station
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Never too late man, never too late.
Congratulations!
Let the adventure begin! (After some serious hassles...heh..heh...)
Just remember the survival mantra. Getting rid of stuff is liberating!
Or rule number one of an old climber buddy: "If you haven't touched it or looked at it for over a year, you don't need it!"
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perswig
climber
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Way to kick at the darkness...
Welcome back.
Dale
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FRUMY
Trad climber
SHERMAN OAKS,CA
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TFPU...
Your work is always amazing & I have enjoyed seeing it here on the taco.
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guido
Trad climber
Santa Cruz/New Zealand/South Pacific
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Awesome Edge-admiraton galore to you for opening up to ST with your saga and best of luck in the new direction.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 11, 2012 - 12:45pm PT
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Whew, just survived the home inspector's visit with the buyers. I was projecting too much apprehension into the inspection, knowing our home so intimately, but it was all for naught. It looks like this is finally going to happen...
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Brandon-
climber
The Granite State.
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How goes the adventure Edge?
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Jaybro
Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
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How's life on the edge, Edge?
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 9, 2012 - 10:51am PT
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How goes the adventure Edge?
Well, I spent all of last week moving our belongings in the rain. I cobbled together a Beverly Hillbilly cab for the truck out of some left-over plywood and the canoe racks, problem was the ply had been saturated with red mahogany dye which the rain reactivated and it would drip in through the one seam in the top.
The ghetto truck cap and the new (unheated) shop space.
It took us two 16' trailer loads and about 15 pick up truck loads to fully move, plus about 7 pick up truck loads to the dump; we also had a massive yard sale that netted a fair amount of cash for our unwanted junque.
We've now spent 4 nights in the new rental, and the dogs have transitioned perfectly. The cat, not so much. He was the king of our old neighborhood, and he cries here constantly to go out. He will return after 12 hours at a time to eat, and so far we have been able to get him in at night to protect him from the fisher cats that populate the area. The people who bought our old home have graciously offered to take him in, and in the long run it would probably be best for him as we can't imagine carting him cross country and letting him outside in a more urban setting.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 2, 2012 - 10:05am PT
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Time for an update.
Last night we sealed the deal on our future road trip chariot and brought home a gently used Toyota Tundra 4x4 and Nomad 24' RV. I never thought I would be one of those RV people, but three months road tripping with two corgis can have its own special challenges, so why not? The Tundra should be perfect for Colorado, and we can always resell the camper once we have completed the trip, or maybe not.
We've been in the rental house for a full month now, and while its comfy, it's not exactly our style. Still, it will only use all winter the same amount of oil that our old circa 1850 home used in a month. The unheated shop space is getting cold, but I am now crating my last furniture project for delivery to Sacramento and after that should only have smaller projects (like something for the Taco Secret Santa exchange) to draw me out there. I will probably do some small jobs to pimp out the RV as well.
We are looking forward to hunkering down this winter with maps and ideas to plot our big trip beginning in May, once our son graduates from UMass. So far it looks like we will be doing a big loop through South Dakota, WY, MT, ID, OR, CA, and the Four Corner states before rolling into the Front Range and looking for a new home, or perhaps another temporary rental.
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Mark Hudon
Trad climber
Hood River, OR
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Edge, if you wander up to the great northwest and Hood River, be sure to look me up and stop in! We have a driveway you can camp in for a few days.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 16, 2013 - 01:53pm PT
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UPDATE:
Our departure for the open road was delayed due to my wife's job, but we are now planning on leaving NH on the 24th or 25th. After a brief stop in NY, PA, and OH to visit family, we will be making a beeline to the desert SW.
The storage POD is slowly filling up, and my climbing partner is helping me load up the shop machines tonight.
The dogs are getting squirrelly as our belongings diminish, and Friday night we bring our cat of 13 years to a loving new home with my oldest friend from childhood. Anything we haven't used in the 6 months since we sold our home and moved into the rental house is getting sold, donated, or off to the dump. It feels great to rid ourselves of "stuff". The RV and truck have been set up with a 12V TV (why not?), a trailer hitch bicycle rack, and we still need to get a bumper mount for the spare tire. Clothes for the trip are starting to be packed in the RV.
My son graduated from UMass last weekend and is looking to stick around New England, he is now loaded up with job interviews. He'll be fine; he graduated top ten in his Sports Management major and has options to couch surf until he gets an offer.
I just scrubbed a 150' pitch at Longstack Precipice that should go at .10+/.11-. I will equip it with 3-4 bolts on Tuesday, then hopefully have time to send. The working title is "Edge's Swan Song"; New England climbers will get the reference.
To be continued...
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micronut
Trad climber
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May 16, 2013 - 02:17pm PT
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What a poignant story. Thanks for sharing your journey. May the sun keep shining for you both and may God give you strength and resilience when you have not enough of your own. If you're in Central Cal and looking for rock, let me know....we got plenty to show you around.
Scott
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perswig
climber
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May 16, 2013 - 02:34pm PT
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Whoo-hoo!
Fair winds and following seas, Loran.
Thanks for your work at Longstack. Planning to get there this year, just gotta retrain the horse not to follow its nose to Conway.
Hopefully, your Swan Song doesn't get the sinister rep of Sam's (any loose blocks we should know about...).
All the best, and write when you get work...
Dale
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jogill
climber
Colorado
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May 16, 2013 - 02:45pm PT
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Corgis: AID
active, intelligent, determined!
Love 'em
;>)
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survival
Big Wall climber
Terrapin Station
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May 16, 2013 - 02:46pm PT
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GO GO GO GO!!
ON THE EDGE!!
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 16, 2013 - 03:16pm PT
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GO GO GO GO!!
I think Jasper is going to take a little time getting used to the idea.
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Gunkie
Trad climber
East Coast US
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May 16, 2013 - 03:58pm PT
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Looking forward to the next chapter. Well done.
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crusher
climber
Santa Monica, CA
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May 16, 2013 - 04:35pm PT
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Edge this is getting exciting! Thanks for posting the corgis again - I miss having one (or two). They'll get into the spirit of adventure, I'm sure. Keep us all up to date - lots of pictures!
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climber bob
Social climber
maine
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May 17, 2013 - 07:15am PT
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best of luck with your future adventures! p.s. ive been to rines a couple of times and love it...looking to check out devils den and longstaff..
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Magic Ed
Trad climber
Nuevo Leon, Mexico
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May 17, 2013 - 11:00am PT
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Anyone has Corgis is OK with me.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 27, 2013 - 08:41am PT
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Edge's Whirled Tour - Day 1
With our storage POD leaving days ago and the contents of our rental home diminishing, the endless stream of last minute details had reared its ugly head. My son Max had similarly cleared out of his college rental in Massachusetts, and dropped in to visit us, sort out a new post college direction in life, and say goodbye. During these brief few days he was offered a position at a small start up which specializes in arranging travel accommodations to the sports industry, and accepted. Since he can work from a home that he didn't have at the moment, he began looking for an apartment, moving his own belongings into storage, and helping us (kinda...)
Our intended departure was delayed by a day, and we scrambled to get ready to leave Sunday morning. It had been raining for days, complicating things, so when I went outside to fill the 45 gallon RV water storage tank an hour before leaving and it fell to the ground, I was less than impressed.
So I spent an hour under the RV laying on my back like a five dollar hooker, fiddling with hoses and a fat white plastic dead weight which bobbed unsatisfyingly up and down until it finally climaxed into place.
At last, we said our tearful goodbyes to Max (sorry kid, yer on yer own, we don't have an address or a plan either.)
I had never towed an RV before, let alone something as heavy as this, but that wasn't going to stop me. We opted for our initial run to be a trial by fire, driving up and over the mountains of Vermont's Rte 9 in the rain and wind, arriving somewhat un-eventfully some five hours later at an RV park just outside of Schenectady, NY (between Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and Whogivesadam) where my wife's sister, sister-in-law, and niece dropped in for a visit and tour of the mobile casa.
After a dinner and figuring out the various camper hook-ups, I walked the dogs by the shore of the Hudson River in a now cloudless and star filled sky, using no headlamp and aimlessly wandering in the dark wherever the Spirits guided me.
I type this on my iPhone from bed this morning, the first day of hopefully many more without pressure to complete some self-inflicted task in some self-inflicted world. Yeah, I'm on vacation. Cheers.
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perswig
climber
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May 27, 2013 - 08:54am PT
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Nothing like a late-season Nor'easter send-off.
Dale
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hobo_dan
Social climber
Minnesota
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May 27, 2013 - 08:59am PT
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Look up "on the road with Steve Angelini" for climbing road trip suggestions.
You're going to have a great time
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Studly
Trad climber
WA
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May 27, 2013 - 10:19am PT
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Life is oh so bitching man~!
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couchmaster
climber
pdx
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May 27, 2013 - 10:33am PT
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Respect. Quite the transition Edge, wishing you all fair winds and smooth sailing.
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wilbeer
Mountain climber
honeoye falls,ny.greeneck alleghenys
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May 27, 2013 - 12:46pm PT
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I know you are probably blowing right by me today on the 90,but have a great trip Edge,et al. Have fun in Colorado,and as a friend told me ,keep looking upward!
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Brandon-
climber
The Granite State.
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May 27, 2013 - 12:57pm PT
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So rad that you're beginning a new chapter in life. Kudos!
And post pictures!
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 28, 2013 - 10:50am PT
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"...and I live in a van down by the river." Chris Farley
One more day in upstate NY where my wife is from, visiting her family and friends. Tomorrow morning we will be striking south through PA and probably find a quick spot to overnight before visiting my Internet friend Jay Young in Fayetteville, WV for a whitewater rafting trip. Depending on his and our schedules, I may even be able to sneak off to the New River Gorge for a climb or two or three. Never been there.
I thought our 25' trailer looked decadently huge parked in our old driveway, but here at our first RV park we look like the poor bastard stepchild dwarfed by ginormous metal behemoths, most of which are parked here for the entire Summer. I tried to permanently fix the water tank that had fallen off, and what should have been a 20 minute job turned into an hour and a half. The neighbors see fresh blood, and everyone wants to chat, "Where you from? Where you going? What do you do?" No sooner do I go through the whole story with one neighbor, then the next one pops up. Maybe I can just schedule a single informational meeting at dusk?
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wilbeer
Mountain climber
honeoye falls,ny.greeneck alleghenys
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May 31, 2013 - 09:15pm PT
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Enjoy West Virginia,secret of the east.
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MisterE
Social climber
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Missed this the first time around, Edge. Great process - thanks for the story, and may it continue to be a wonderful adventure!
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 1, 2013 - 11:04am PT
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Going With the Flow
Wednesday morning we left NY and my wife's family, heading for the New. It felt strange driving by the exit to the Gunks, but I've been there, done that, and we had other plans and adventures to look forward to.
We clipped the northern end of the Delaware Water Gap, then south through Pennsylvania past an inordinate number of road kill deer carcasses (18+). Just south of the MD panhandle we stayed in an unspectacular RV park for the night, refueled the propane tanks and then struck out south through VA before turning west through WV. The relentless hills wreaked havoc with the truck overheating and then cooling on the downhills, so in true I'm-not-a-mechanic-so-I'll-just-turn-up-the-music-and-drive fashion, we pulled into Fayettesville and parked in the yard of an Internet acquaintance. West "by God" Virginny.
Friday morning we drove across "the bridge" to the National River Visitor Center and tuckered the dogs out on a short hike and then the 200 odd stairs to the Gorge overlook, then returned to secure them in the RV for the afternoon. Karol and I were hooked up for a 7 mile rafting trip down the Lower New River with a roller coaster tide through multiple rapids to Class V, and had a blast. Unfortunately my camera is not waterproof, and the commercial photographers only offered 8x10 images at $23/pop which seemed a bit unnecessary. We left with only memories.
Back at the trailer, my gmail delivered a message from the "Daily Om" which seemed particularly appropriate:
Going with the flow means we are open to multiple ways of getting where we want to be.
The expression going with the flow is a metaphor that applies to navigating a river. When we go with the flow, we follow the current of the river rather than push against it. People who go with the flow may be interpreted as lazy or passive, but to truly go with the flow requires awareness, presence, and the ability to blend one’s own energy with the prevailing energy. Going with the flow doesn’t mean we toss our oars into the water and kick back in the boat, hoping for the best. Going with the flow means we let go of our individual agenda and notice the play of energy all around us. We tap into that energy and flow with it, which gets us going where we need to go a whole lot faster than resistance will.
We had a lovely BBQ with our hosts of pork tenderloin, asparagus, Yukon Gold potatoes, and fruit salad and turned in early. My wife had sensed my deep desire, and gave me a blessing to pump some sandstone the next day.
With plans to climb around 11, I took off to the local mechanics to investigate a chirping/grinding noise from the front tire. I was able to get right in, and a worn brake pad and sticky caliper proved to be the source. I'm writing this from the waiting room, and should be on the rock in an hour.
Oops, I just got summoned.
"Mr Smith, they sent the wrong caliper and the right one is a special order."
"Can I take this to Cincinnati tomorrow?"
"Yeah, but they'll have to replace the pads again when they do that."
So be it. I'm just going with the flow, and if I close my eyes I can hear the sandstone whispering, "Loran. Loran..."
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klk
Trad climber
cali
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deer apocalypse.
u making venison sausage?
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 2, 2013 - 06:09pm PT
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I had long heard of the fabled sandstone of the New River Gorge, but thought, "Why would I travel 14 hours away from the Granite State to climb there?"
Well it's confirmed (again), I am an idiot. The rock was amazing and the climbing intricate, thought provoking, and FUN! Having only a half day, it was suggested that the best intro to the New would be the Bridge Buttress Area. I was able to hook up with an Internet acquaintance from VA, Bryan, to jump on a handful of moderates.
I arrived just as Bryan and a friend were about to pull their rope from a stout 5.9 called "Chockstone" which follows a bit of face leading to a diagonal crack and eventually a right facing corner. I took a TR run to familiarize myself with the new stone and its coefficient of friction.
Next up was "Maranatha" which offered a steep juggy start leading to a .10c crux layback up a rounded edge up high.
I
Next door was a fun corner that was only 5.8, but worthy of a quickie lead.
My favorite climb of the day, by far, was a 90 foot .10a called "Tree Route." It involved lie backs, jamming, wide stems, and a bit of off width which all combined packed quite a punch. Lowering off the anchors deposited you 8' back from the starting holds.
Finally we jumped on "The Layback" which looks 5.7 but climbs 5.9 thanks to some polished sandstone for your feet.
So, that was my taste of WV climbing. I would have loved to spend more time, but we woke up this morning to rain, packed up the RV, and drove the 5 1/2 hours to my brother-in-law's in Cincy. I almost took out his mailbox trying to back into the driveway, the truck overheated as I struggled to get it out of the culprit drainage ditch, and his 45 year old daughter, who is expecting twins as her first children, just had her water break. Tomorrow the truck gets dropped off for some quality healing with the best damned mechanic I can find, and I will do whatever the Ohioans do for fun. Does anyone else know what that is, I sure don't.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 3, 2013 - 06:17pm PT
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Site of our three day Cincinnati layover; the lack of rock and abundance of shopping malls and golf courses is a bit disconcerting, to say the least.
At least we were with my bro-in-law this morning to receive the news that his daughter has delivered his first grand kids, Charlotte & Alexander. Mom and babies are doing well, dad went home to sleep. The poor guy, it must have been exhausting for him...
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 5, 2013 - 10:54am PT
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The truck has been fixed for the road ahead; new brake calipers and the mechanic removed the thermostat to help with the overheating problem. He said the only downside would be we wouldn't have heat, but we won't need heat where we're heading, and he said adding some block sealer should help, suspecting a head gasket leak. We'll see, we'll see.
Our plan is to break up the 22 hour trip to southern CO/ northern NM by overnighting in the Ozarks, then across OK and northern Texas; if I don't see Kansas that will be fine by me. Family and friends are nervous about our chances of getting caught up in a tornado, but I refuse to let "what ifs" dictate our journey.
We saw the new Star Trek flick last night in Newport, KY then walked the banks of the Ohio river. Nice views of the city.
The Reds "Great American Ballpark" are the bright lights on the left just past the bridge. We will be there tonight to catch a Reds/Rockies game, then striking out west in the morning. My brother-in-law keeps suggesting a swing through Nashville, but I have had my fill of cities for a bit; the deserts are calling, and I must go.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 11, 2013 - 12:28am PT
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I'll let the pics do the talking.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 11, 2013 - 12:51am PT
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New Mexico! Not new, and not Mexico.
My daughter will join us in Santa Fe late Wednesday, so I should have some climbing shots soon after that.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 11, 2013 - 01:22am PT
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Tad, pulling the trailer is like a PG13 runout; it keeps me on my toes. I blew a tire on the RV on Rte 40 in OK which necessitated a 40 mile detour to get a new rim and spare. The truck is still dangerously close to overheating on long up hills, and thanks to reading Happiegrrl's posts here on the Taco I was able to manage by putting the heat and fan on high to help cool things down; not ideal and certainly not pleasant, but it worked. We will try to limp her into an extended base camp in Santa Fe on Wednesday morning before it gets too hot. Once my daughter shows up with her car I will try to get the Tundra into the Toyota dealership to find out what's making her ache so.
And yes, my wife and I are both avid Red Sox fans, and through some minor miracle we have been able to watch the last three games on major networks including tonight's 14 inning thriller.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 11, 2013 - 01:36am PT
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Dingus, I have been energetically connected to the West for some time, and have also forsaken the East coast. This is where I belong.
We will probably stay around Santa Fe for 5-7 days, day tripping to Jemez, Taos, and other spots hopefully way out in the deserts. Hopefully Tres Piedres for some trad and Gilman Tunnels for some (gasp!) bolt clipping. Many thanks to Survival for exchanging beta and recommendations through email. After that we hope to take Rte 550 towards the Four Corners then Bryce, Zion, and the north rim of the Grand Canyon, but who knows?
The dogs have been great. As long as they are with us they are happy, but it's a little limiting finding trails that they are allowed on and not being able to leave them for more than a couple hours in the RV with the AC on. Today we took them into Old Town ABQ, and my wife and I took turns going into shops while the other sat in the old town square park with them in the shade. Luckily the restaurant where we had lunch was OK with having them sit with us on the patio, and even served them cool water in a big bowl. Much appreciated, that was!
Tomorrow I will hit the 3000 mile mark on our trip to Petroglyph National Monument. With the trailer we get about 200 miles for every $75 fill up. It is what it is.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 11, 2013 - 09:59am PT
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So how do you like pullin a trailer?
I'm working tirelessly at it.
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survival
Big Wall climber
Terrapin Station
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Jun 11, 2013 - 11:39am PT
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WOOO HOOOO!!!!
The Sandia Tram is the longest in the world, depending whether you're talking single span or multi-spans. There's a foody bar on top!
Perea's in Corrales for lunch!
Rancho De Los Golondrinas is near Santa Fe.
Dude, I'm so Jeally.....
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Karen
Trad climber
So Cal urban sprawl Hell
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Jun 11, 2013 - 02:07pm PT
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Living in this heaterless trailer (it had a tiny and I mean tiny wood burning stove, was vertually useless), pipes repeatedly froze but it was fun in a masochistic way.
Got to live my dream and skied 69 days that winter:-)
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 12, 2013 - 11:45pm PT
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More pics.
Finally got the shots from the Lower New River, WV.
Petroglyph National Monument. We learned a lot about the desert that day, mainly that it's not a wise place to be during a 100 degree heat wave. Our female corgi, Penny, needed to be carried the last 1/2 mile out because the sand was burning her feet.
This morning we stopped at Coronado State Monument before cruising up to our new Santa Fe base camp.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 15, 2013 - 11:15am PT
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Finally got a nice walk in the high desert yesterday while my wife and daughter enjoyed the mud baths and hot springs at Ojo Caliente.
Tomorrow for Fathers Day Meaghan and I will be climbing at Pecos Canyon on nice pink granite. Psyched to get out on a new crag!
We finally got the overheating problems with the truck ironed out to the tune of $920. They replaced the thermostat and flushed the block sealer from the coolant system (which was unnecessary) to correct the misdiagnosis in Cincy. Replaced the fan clutch, then repaired a leak and recharged the AC. The Tundra is finally purring like a the powerful kitten that I knew she was.
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Brandon-
climber
The Granite State.
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Jun 15, 2013 - 11:23am PT
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Awesome!
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survival
Big Wall climber
Terrapin Station
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Jun 17, 2013 - 02:16pm PT
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BUMP FOR UPDATE!!
Rock on Edge!
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up2top
climber
Phoenix, AZ
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Jun 17, 2013 - 03:24pm PT
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Loran! So glad I stumbled onto this thread. I haven't been on the Taco or RC.com much at all in the past few years -- crazy that I'd run across your "adventure" post at just the right time. Congrats on the changes you've made and the challenges you're conquering. Are you heading into AZ at all? If so, I'd love to meet up with you.
Epic Ed
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 18, 2013 - 01:21am PT
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Cell phone reception sucks in large parts of New Mexico, and campground wifi is next to useless.
We spent the last 4 days in Santa Fe. I bought myself a proper sun hat.
My wife bought me a nice Zuni wolf carving for Fathers Day.
My daughter Meaghan joined us from Denver. We drove 35 minutes for some Fathers Day cragging at Pecos Canyon, only to find out three miles from the cliff that the entire National Forest was closed for extreme fire danger. No fires, just potential for fires. Bastards.
Plan B was to do touristy stuff in the Old Town. Like the "Miraculous Stairway" at Loretto Chapel.
Closer to camp, I found this beauty on a dead end road.
Went on some nice walks in the desert, then demanded (please, Honey...) some dessert.
This morning we drove US 550 towards Shiprock and had our first, and possibly last, Lotaburger. At least the side trip into Jemez was nice, and the desert beautiful. The truck repairs worked like a charm.
This afternoon we rolled into Durango; tomorrow is Mesa Verde.
Sorry for the lack of climbing pics; it's killing me too.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 18, 2013 - 01:31am PT
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Are you heading into AZ at all? If so, I'd love to meet up with you.
Ed, we will be at the Grand Canyon, then Sedona, and maybe Flag in about 2-3 weeks give or take. Stay tuned to this thread for updates as we approach.
Where you at?
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
Nothing creative to say
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Jun 18, 2013 - 01:39am PT
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wonderful thread, thx Edge.
Glad the truck got dialed in. It will make the rest of the trip about the other stuff, and not about making sure you can even get to the other stuff.
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Les
Trad climber
Bahston
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Jun 18, 2013 - 10:17am PT
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man, nothing more American than a serious road trip! Loving the travelogue, Edge. Told my wife when I retire from current (Fed LEO) job, I'm taking a 2-3 month summer climbing roadtrip as my reward for crossing the finish line. She wasn't exactly supportive of the idea, but that's not gonna stop me!
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 18, 2013 - 10:25am PT
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up2top
climber
Phoenix, AZ
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Jun 18, 2013 - 12:05pm PT
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I'm in Phoenix. This time of year we usually make it a point to get the hell out of town and into cooler climates on the weekends. Just spent the weekend in Sedona over Father's Day. Plenty of sight-seeing for you to do in all the destinations you mentioned. If you're looking for climbing in those spots you have plenty of options. Paradise Forks, Oakcreek Overlook, the Pit...even Jack's Canyon isn't too far south of Winslow. Keep us posted about your plans and I'll see if I can head north to meet up with you.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 18, 2013 - 09:56pm PT
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Mesa Verde, listening to the spirits of the Ancestors. Amazing!
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 19, 2013 - 09:30pm PT
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Jasper enjoying his top dog status.
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wilbeer
Mountain climber
honeoye falls,ny.greeneck alleghenys
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Jun 19, 2013 - 09:45pm PT
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Love that last pic Edge.Bikes must yield to dogs,awesome.Have Fun.
Durango is cool.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 19, 2013 - 10:19pm PT
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We leave Durango tomorrow morning. Temps in Moab are hovering near 100*, and we had our fill of that in S New Mexico, so we will save Arches and Canyonlands for weekend trips from our eventual Colorado home.
Instead we are heading to Page, AZ. My wife has wanted to see Antelope Canyon ever since our honeymoon 26 years ago when she first saw pictures of it. Other than doing Edward Abbey proud and blowing up the Glen Canyon Dam (kidding here, Feds...) what else is there to do near Lake Powell? I want to take a day drive to hike in Grand Escalante, but what else is a "must do" there?
Tentative plans after that are Zion and Bryce before dropping down to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. We'll be allowing a lot of time at each of those.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 22, 2013 - 02:50am PT
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Antelope Canyon by foot and then by kayak.
Third classing the Mesa behind our campsite at dusk, under the nearly full moon.
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Jun 22, 2013 - 10:18am PT
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Great thread!
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steveA
Trad climber
bedford,massachusetts
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Jun 22, 2013 - 10:37am PT
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Hey Edge,
Glad your having a great time.
My son and I sent Halfdome--quite an adventure and I'm still sore.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 30, 2013 - 01:07am PT
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Steve, congrats on Half Dome! What a great adventure to share with your son.
I would have congratulated you sooner but we were in Zion with no cell reception or Internet.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 30, 2013 - 01:34am PT
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So, enough of this heat already. The limestone I collected in Illinois just metamorphosed into marble here in UT/AZ.
From Lake Powell we headed for a campground just outside of the East entrance to Zion for five nights. We hiked Angels Landing and part of the Narrows, and I even got to get in a couple pitches in the late afternoon shade on Ashtar Command Tower.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 30, 2013 - 02:06am PT
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We skipped out of Zion for a one day trek up to Bryce. I did a 4 1/2 mile hike down through the hoodoos while Karol stayed above the rim with the dogs, then we contemplated pies.
Yesterday we drove to a campground 1 hour from the North Rim of the Grand Canyon to escape the predicted 105* temps in Zion. This morning we drove 17 miles of single track dirt road to get our first glimpse of the Really Big Hole at the Rainbow Rim; we only saw 4 people the whole time we were there.
Karol borrowed my ghetto mountain bike to ride part of the Rainbow Rim trail.
Meanwhile, I embraced the Canyon.
I even witnessed an attempted unkindness.
Back at camp, there were lurkers about.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 30, 2013 - 01:00pm PT
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Today is our last day on the North Rim.
Tomorrow is not only my birthday, but my 3 year sobriety date as well. I'll be spending it driving through Navajo land and down to Sedona for 2-3 days.
Is it too hot to climb there now in the shade/afternoon? How about near Flagstaff?
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howdy
Social climber
Donner Lake
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Jun 30, 2013 - 08:28pm PT
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Just found this thread.
Amazing and inspiring. Thanks for sharing.
Keep on keepin' on...
(Nearly completely out of current topic/location, but a few years back, I, and a friend of mine, painted the Sandia tram towers. That was an experience. My favorite part was when I was painting one of the cross arms [the arms that protrude out in to the abyss]. There was a car full of people on their way up the hill. I let about 50-60 feet of rope out, and as the car nearly got to the tower, I was standing on top of the arm and pretended to lose my balance and fall from the arm. The look of shock and horror on their faces was priceless. My friend received a call about 3 minutes later from one of the Sandia managers who kindly explained just how inappropriate that was and if it happened again he would send us packing.)
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Gene
climber
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Jun 30, 2013 - 08:32pm PT
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On a hot day, this is the adventure I've been wading for...
You just couldn't resist, could you? :)
Tomorrow is not only my birthday, but my 3 year sobriety date as well.
Happy Birthday and ReBirthday!
g
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steveA
Trad climber
bedford,massachusetts
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Lucky you Edge!!
At least it's dry out there. Cheers from soggy N.H.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 5, 2013 - 11:47pm PT
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Our last day at the Grand Canyon was June 30, and we decided to drop over the rim on the Kaibab Trail.
The Coconino sandstone formation looked pretty damned climbable.
We went down 2 miles to the Supai Tunnel.
From our turn-around, we could see the trail below, including the Redstone Bridge.
Then we walked our way out and took one last photo op near the Lodge.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 6, 2013 - 12:00am PT
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The next day was my birthday. We stopped at a roadside pull-out where four Navajo ladies were selling wares. I fell for a Sun Face pottery vessel, the most expensive item there...
I was preparing to walk away when I decided to look at the bottom, and it was signed with my name! With a sign like that, I bought it straightaway. Happy B-day to me!
We drove on, stopping to walk out on the old Navajo Bridge.
Supposedly the rafts floating the Colorado under us were full of nudists, but if you have to wear a life jacket, what's the point?
We drove on to Sedona that day, following my phone's GPS down Zoak Creek Canyon with the RV. I'm glad we didn't know this ahead of time because it was exciting in a twisted sort of way.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 6, 2013 - 12:28am PT
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We planned on spending two days in Sedona, but ended up staying four. We loved it, and I'm sure we'll be back in more seasonable temps.
The first day we hit Airport Mesa for the loop hike.
That afternoon we got thunder stormed out of the Boynton Canyon trailhead (after paying the $5 fee) do we returned early the next morning.
Kachina Spire was catching the rays.
Further down the canyon, and again up high on the walls, were more ruins.
It's hard to take an unimpressive pic here, so I didn't try.
The Tundra wanted to do some dirt-roading-verging-on-4X4ing, so we went up Schnebly Hill to the Cow Patties.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 6, 2013 - 01:28am PT
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On our last day we hiked into Cathedral Rock.
Then in the afternoon I swung by the iconic Church of the Holy Cross.
Then on to Bell Rock with my "Many Hands Drum" to climb as far as I could without a rope and play a Fourth of July tribute. I made it as far as the top of the tower above and right of my noggin.
I had the entire tower to myself, so I played until the sun set.
Today we left Sedona for Cali, stopping in Needles and it's 110 degree heat. Tomorrow: Sequoia (We think. Maybe.)
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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bravo, edge.
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Brandon-
climber
The Granite State.
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Maybe you should go dip your toes in the Pacific and take a break from the heat. Big Sur!!!
Sweet trip man, thanks for sharing.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 22, 2013 - 09:37pm PT
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Like, whoa! Cali has kept us busy, too busy to post regularly anyway. I'll try my best to summarize with pics; I read the "What Makes A Great TR" thread and while I acknowledge the benefits of clever, poignant verbiage, it's too much of a pain in the derrière typing on an iPhone.
Our first night out of Sedona was spent in Needles, CA. 110 degree temps and nothing to do but spend a night in the RV AC and escape for some elevation. We went to Lake Isabelle in the Kern River Valley for the Fourth of July.
From here we went into Sequoia NF and the "Walk of 100 Giants".
I didn't get to climb, but we visited Dome Rock.
From here my wife insisted on visiting an old roommate in Calabassas. I managed to find some relief from the whole Malibu suburb thingy.
Our eventual escape was via Morro Bay. First place in 7 weeks where we needed long sleeves.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 22, 2013 - 10:07pm PT
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From Morro we headed to Sacramento to spend 5 days with a friend. Mostly city stuff, but I did get in a solo overnight away from the wife to climb with Dingus and Lady Scarlett in Sonora Pass. Big thanks to both of them for including me on their adventures.
In true Dingus fashion, he refused to give ratings or beta for anything, "If it looks good, climb it!"
So we did.
We did jump on one bolted route that did its best to thwart us. Dingus and I traded off pushing new high points, but it only fell at A0 with assorted trickery, cheating, and debauchery in order to reach the anchors and clean the gear.
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nutjob
Sport climber
Almost to Hollywood, Baby!
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Jul 23, 2013 - 12:09am PT
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The adventure continues! I grew up in sight of Morro Rock. Just up the coast in Cayucos you get the mild temps from the sea, but a lot more sunshine. Morro Bay is nice, from the breakwater to the back bay estuary and chaparral hills to dwarf oak forest to the dunes, a lot of variety in a small place.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 23, 2013 - 02:20pm PT
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Tad, after Sacramento I needed to beeline it to the mountains, so we headed for Lassen for a couple days. I wasn't sure what to expect there, but it was beautiful!
Lassen Peak was closed for trail work (Closed? The whole freakin' mountain?) so we did the whole tourist circuit and a bunch of lesser stops to avoid the crowds.
This was on the day of our 26th wedding anniversary. We had honeymooned in Yellowstone/Tetons, so I guess our long term marriage has something to do with blowing off steam.
We swam in one of the lakes. "Isn't that cold?" "No, we're from New Hampshire."
More to come; we're now off to explore our own "Private Idaho" in Boise.
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Jul 23, 2013 - 02:34pm PT
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The Earth - what a great place to be - as caught by your camera... TFPU!
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ladyscarlett
Trad climber
SF Bay Area, California
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Jul 24, 2013 - 03:48am PT
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Pretty cool!
Was fun hanging around with you, next time, we gotta find a climb where you have to bring out that hex you keep talking about ;)
Cheers
LS
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10b4me
Ice climber
Middle-of-Nowhere, Arizona
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Jul 24, 2013 - 10:51am PT
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This is a a great tr. can't wait to read more of it.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 25, 2013 - 01:14am PT
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More catching up from the end of our swing through Cali...
When Googling "Lassen" I stumbled upon a description of four legendary obsidian mines near Lassen Creek in the Modoc NF. They were located on gravel or natural surface roads anywhere from 4.8 miles in (5000 feet elevation) to 11.8 miles in (over 7k elevation). The descriptions and directions were poor, the wife was skeptical, and I was amped. We had to do it.
The first day involved driving up from Lassen NP to the Modoc NF, then getting a permit for recreational mining at the Field Office. Finding the gravel road from our meager maps was hard, but we pulled the RV in 5.3 miles to a nice, undeveloped Forest Service campground on the tiny Lassen Creek. It had a pit toilet and nothing else, and the "We'll resupply at the next town" attitude on the way up left us with scant water and provisions, but we had enough food to avoid eating the dogs.
That afternoon we spent 3 hours at the "Rainbow Mine" and collected some beautifully colored stone, mostly black with green highlights if struck along the right axis.
On the way in my wife had been lowering my expectations, based on previous experiences with amethyst and tourmaline mines back East, but all for naught. I'd never seen so much "target" stone lying everywhere. We easily could have collected 50 lbs in 15 minutes just from other people's trailings, but it was more fun to dig in the pit walls.
We dug until our backs were sore and then returned to the camper for rations of leftovers from the back of the tiny fridge.
Next morning we drove back out to the paved road, then 10 miles on that, to another single width gravel maze of roads in search of the "Pink Lady" mine. 11.8 miles in and at just over 7000 feet in elevation, it was listed as the hardest to access and find. It was all that, but after 1 1/2 hours of explorations we found it.
The rough stones here were best found by digging pits only 1-2 feet deep.
At this point we were only interested in obsidian with hints of color. Found some!
And finally, the "Pink Lady" began revealing some of her namesake undies.
By midday we decided to drive back toward the highway and find the "Obsidian Needles" mine that we had bypassed on the way in. The size of the tailings here was ridiculous, and it was no problem picking out the rare needles of volcanic glass, presumably only found at 2-3 mines in the world.
The place was also chock full of mahogany obsidian, which appealed to the woodworker in me.
When the sun had taken its toll on the back of our necks, we drove back the 20+/- miles to camp, picking up a shard of the razor sharp stone and getting a slow leak in a front tire. It lasted until we got back before having to "retire" for the evening with car jacks, lug nuts, canned chicken breast, and a can of soup.
The next morning was Sunday, and we limped the spare-less truck and RV over the Oregon border where we found a guy who was willing to open up his tire shop just for us, patch the original tire and replace the leaky stem valve on the spare, and only charge us $25 to do it. It was a nice welcome to Oregon, probably undeserved, but greatly appreciated.
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Norwegian
Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
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Jul 25, 2013 - 04:44am PT
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modoc is sweet country.
north-eastern california is
a rarely visited gem.
thanks edge.
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steveA
Trad climber
Wolfeboro, NH
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Jul 25, 2013 - 07:07am PT
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Hey Edge,
I'm glad your both having a great time!
My son and I sent H.D. and I'm off to the Wind Rivers in a few weeks, to enjoy some less humid weather, like you guys are having.
I really enjoyed the obsidian photo's. My first hobby was mineral collecting.
Best, Steve
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hobo_dan
Social climber
Minnesota
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Jul 25, 2013 - 09:46am PT
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Ball the Jack!
What a great road trip!
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perswig
climber
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Jul 25, 2013 - 04:47pm PT
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He's the genuine article! As real as can be. Fit and strong, a good and confident climber. He even took a grounder and laughed it off. He can clearly out climb me and I feared my duffer routes would bore him.
There's been quiet and respectful use of the descriptive "sandbag" over some of the new routing he and his fellows have done back here in the NE. Continuing a proud local tradition, old-school style.
Dale
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
Nothing creative to say
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Jul 31, 2013 - 08:16pm PT
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cool to see some SPH love on the great adventure!
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STEEVEE
Social climber
HUMBOLDT, CA
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I'm new to this forum and I think I found some inspiration.
I breathe in the Edge and call out his name for he is true and his path is heart and his dogs are pretty f*&king cute too.
Thanks Edge!
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 4, 2013 - 11:14pm PT
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Thanks everyone for the kind words and comments.
Dingus, I thoroughly enjoyed climbing with you and Sasha at Sonora Pass! It was a fun, low pressure day of adventure, laughs, and I would gladly rope up with either of you again should the opportunity arise.
Perswig wrote:There's been quiet and respectful use of the descriptive "sandbag" over some of the new routing he and his fellows have done back here in the NE. Continuing a proud local tradition, old-school style.
Can I plead the fifth here? I'm not sure who is slandering my good name (or what's left of it...), but after 36 years of climbing I grade 'em as I see 'em. If people want to reach a different consensus they will still be the same grade for me. What else can I say?
Anywho, after our obsidian adventures in Modoc we bee lined it through SW Oregon and into Boise, which my wife had an interest in checking out. I knew nothing of the area so I joined a couple fellow explorers in asking Chief Twisted Hair for beta.
We hiked and biked the River path, kicked around downtown a bit, and floated 6 miles of the Boise River on rented inner tubes.
We escaped the city after two nights, and headed for Craters of the Moon. I had blitzed through here on my way to the Valley some 30 years ago and wanted to spend more than a couple hours checking it out with my main squeeze.
It was a fun diversion, but the mountains and trees were calling and we needed to answer. Our trip funds were starting to wane and my wife was showing signs of road trip burn-out, so reluctantly we skipped potential trips to Glacier NP, which neither of us had visited before, and the Tetons/Yellowstone where we had honeymooned 26 years prior. Our new route turned south towards the Wasatch Front.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 4, 2013 - 11:57pm PT
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I'd never visited the cities around the Great Salt Lake; my only Utah experiences had been in the high deserts of the southern part of Utah. I found our two nights in Brigham City to be "weird." Can't explain how, but this New Hampshire Yankee in King Young's Court felt out of place.
I had pinched a nerve in my back from all of the driving, and the symptoms that had showed up in Sacramento had progressed to shooting pains down my whole left leg from ass to calf. Climbing was out of the question, but hiking only hurt so we decided to check out Antelope Island in the Great Salt Lake. It was a rare overcast day which kept the crowds down, and the dogs were able to accompany us.
So with that being quite enough, we bought some fresh fruit and picked a short drive to Park City for the next evening. We managed to catch a craft fair at the ski area on Sunday afternoon and ate Vietnamese food (delicious, and no one else was there) before camping near the banks of the Provo river. I had contemplated breaking out my fly rod, but the "Blue Ribbon Trout Stream" designation meant that the river caught more fishermen than the fishermen caught trout. I had no interest in shoehorning myself into that mass of humanity.
As a consolation, I explored a soupy marsh stream side and saw four Sandhill crane, who I watched for a half hour or so. First I'd ever seen, and I was amazed when I first stumbled upon them, all of 4+ foot high!
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 5, 2013 - 12:41am PT
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I still have a lot of catching up to do, now that I finally have reliable 3G; my apologies for the glut of posts.
Near the start of our trip in Late June we made the decision to skip Canyonlands and Arches due to the extended 100* heat wave and went to the slightly cooler Lake Powell and the E Rim of Zion. Now, however, it seemed right off if our path towards I-70 so we lined up three nights at a campground in Moab. I had been to Moab once in 1984, during which I spent two nights in Fringe of Death Canyon at Indian Creek. We had climbed Supercrack, then put up a FA in Fringe of Death, plus 3/4 of another FA which we had to bail off of. I wanted to go back to Indian Creek, but it was still hot and not being able to climb we opted to do the touristy thing at Island in the Sky.
First stop was Mesa Arch.
I knew enough that you weren't supposed to climb on the arches, but this one only required walking, albeit 975' straight over Buck Canyon. In retrospect, it probably wasn't worth freaking out the elderly onlookers.
Crater Dome was a nice hike, and the previous night's thunderstorms had left small pothole pools perfect for an ephemeral graffiti sesh.
I had wanted to take the Tundra down the Shafer Path Trail all the way to Moab, but my passenger vetoed me due to the patched tire courtesy of our obsidian mining mishap.
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Edge
Trad climber
New Durham, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 6, 2013 - 12:45pm PT
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Tad, you got it, there are pros and cons.
Pros: traveling with two dogs, we needed the extra space. My wife didn't want to sleep in a tent for 3 months, and the full size bed is nice, particularly with the pillow top cover we added. There is lots of space for storage and feels like luxury when we are parked. Set up takes about 10 minutes and is no big deal even in a rain, of which we have had virtually none.
Cons: my wife is still a nervous wreck riding shotgun when we are towing. The fact that I manoevered it down Oak Creek Canyon to Sedona with no issues was a minor miracle; it pays to plan your travel routes well in advance. It can be challenging finding gas stations big enough to pull through, but really not an issue so far. I honestly don't know how the bigger rigs, which seem to be most of them, manage. Our biggest expenses by far are gas and RV parks. We have been getting around 10 MPG, or 200 miles on a $75-85 fill-up on average (to date we are just under 10K miles on this trip.) RV parks are anywhere from $27.50 - $42; it pays to enroll in both KOA and Good Sam Club. You will make up the small initial fee after 3 nights. Independent campgrounds tend to be cheaper, as are sites with only water & electric. You can always dump the waste water somewhere on site and we can usually go three days before those tanks are filled. National Park/Forest sites are beautiful and really cheap, but usually do not have electric, or often water. If it is hot you will want electric to run the AC.
This has been a magical trip in many ways, but now that we are in the Front Range of Colorado and about to look for jobs and a new home, we will be looking to sell the RV. Any future camping trips will be much smaller in scale and we have always been fine with a tent or sleeping in the cap on the back of the truck.
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survival
Big Wall climber
Terrapin Station
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AWESOME! The adventure continues!
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