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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Original Post - Sep 4, 2007 - 08:53am PT
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Northeastern weather could not have been finer over the weekend, and I know a lot of right-coasters got outdoors.
Who's got some stories or pictures to show for it and share?
Leslie and I hiked the railroad tracks out to Mt Willard, above Crawford Notch.
About 23 years ago I had climbed Across the Universe and vaguely remembered it as cool.
Something I ought to revisit one day. That day finally came around this last weekend.
Across the Universe has a new direct start I didn't remember, leading into some 5.9 friction that just helps you wake up.
What handholds?
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Aya K
Trad climber
New York
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I didn't climb this past weekend, but I did spend a few days down in Seneca the week before. Unfortunately, my camera got sent home with my gear to my boyfriend's, and I won't be up there until Friday. I'll post a TR with photos after I get back next week. Basic summar is though: Lots of drinking with family. Drive to Seneca. Complain it's too hot. Climb only 6 pitches in 2.5 days. Leave early because of the humidity, climb 5 pitches at the gunks in one, start at 10 end at 4:30 day and vow enver to go south in August again. Or ask my family to change the date of our annual reunion.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 4, 2007 - 09:48am PT
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I'll post a TR with photos after I get back next week.
Excellent, we'll watch for it.
Meanwhile back on Across the Universe ...
A short headwall on pitch 2 provides the technical crux (5.10-). From the belay I thought Hah, that looks easy.
Then I climbed up to it and thought, Impossible! These crystals aren't holds!
Had to study it to find a sequence that worked, and reach through to better stuff.
Pitch 3 gave us 60m of cruising, not much interrupted by pro. It finishes with this big easy traverse.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 4, 2007 - 10:54am PT
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All the pitches are good, but pitch 4 has its own name: the Milky Way, 160' of steep smearing up an immaculate path of white rock.
As the last bolt gets farther below and the next is still a long way above, you just go with the flow (5.9).
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 4, 2007 - 11:16am PT
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Fine views out over the notch, with its scenic railway line. A hint of fall color in the trees.
We soaked up the scenery and sunshine for a while.
Then our dog called us from below. We'd been up there for hours, he was bored. Three long raps down to earth.
Day's end.
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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That's good livin!
So the colors go off in another few weeks?
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tradchick
Trad climber
White Mountains
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Nice TR and pics from Across the Universe!
Tomcat and I climbed in 3 notches this weekend. We went to Square Ledge in Pinkham on Saturday. Sunday was a great day on Cannon and my first time on Vertigo. The pendulum pitch is a hoot!! Yesterday we climbed the 7 pitch Lost in the Sun on Webster, right across from Across the Universe.
We'll try to post up some pics tonight.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 4, 2007 - 11:42am PT
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That's good livin!
So the colors go off in another few weeks?
Yeah, watch for increasingly bright colors in the backgrounds of northeastern TRs over the weeks ahead. Tends to peak in the first half of October, 'round here.
In good years, valleys can look like a bowl of Trix.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 4, 2007 - 11:48am PT
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Tradchick, I'll be interested to see your Lost in the Sun notes. I'd never heard of that route until you mentioned it.
On Square Ledge, didja do Thriller Arete? I want to go back there just for the photos.
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Aya K
Trad climber
New York
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Definitely starting to change. I'll be taking lots of pictures the next few weeks. Cold weather back in June screwed up a lot of my little planties though - a lot of them had their foliage change color as if it were autumn back when the temps were in the low 30's at the end of June!
That crux looks slippery Chiloe. Happy looking pup. Bring him up to the Dacks to frolic with my two sometime!
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tradcragrat
Trad climber
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Yay for northeast climbing!
Saturday I went up to Cannon and led Reppy's crack, which was phenomenal (despite bringing doubles on #3 camalots I still had to run out the last 30 ft of the crack). We were going to do Moby grape but the top pitches were too wet. The rest of the day was spent cragging at echo.
Sunday was North Conway; I'd never been to whitehorse and hadn't done much real friction climbing, so I thought Sea of Holes might be fun. I got the second pitch, rated a modest 5.5. Even though my partner warned me that Whitehorse was waaay different, I arrogantly said "it's 5.5, how hard could it be?" Well, I ran it out for 50ft before I got a tiny cam in and inspected the next section; it looked pretty blank. Guess I'm not much of a slab climber, as I found out the hard way. Fortunately a party was rapping the route and I used their ropes to bail off. It gave me a new respect for the 5.5 grade; I've followed 5.11 cracks in better style. Ugh.
Then I followed my partner up the classic Seventh Seal (5.10a).
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tradchick
Trad climber
White Mountains
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Chiloe: Lost in the Sun is a new route, 1100 ft., that a few guys just put up. neclimbs has a great route description plus a bunch of pics. It's 5.5 slab climbing but more interesting than what you find on Whitehorse, great views and no crowds. Was the ticket for us after the workout on Vertigo Sunday.
We didn't do Thriller Arete either. Ran out of time and I had to snag Tom away for his bd dinner.
Aya: We headed home from Cannon over the Kanc and the maples are purple up high. The ice is coming!!
Tradcragrat: We did Reppy's a few weeks ago. Tom slid the cams along while leading which worked out really well for him. Did you try Ethereal too? (The finger crack left of 7th seal)
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handsome B
Gym climber
SL,UT
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great looking old granite, thanks for the photo TR!
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GOclimb
Trad climber
Boston, MA
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Nice pics, Larry!
Wish I had a bionic hip so I could do this:
Me and some friends climbed all weekend in the Gunks. Glorious weather. I think I shat myself on Le Teton (5.9 - expoooooooosed), but unlike my underwear, the ascent was clean!
Good thing I don't have pics! ;)
GO
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girasol
Trad climber
Colorado Springs, CO
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Tar -
If I recall correctly, usually the Northeastern colors are at their peak in about mid-October. Estes Park's peak (and first snow) is usually around the first weekend of October, no?
Girasol
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 4, 2007 - 03:20pm PT
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GOclimb:
Wish I had a bionic hip so I could do this:
In a better world, I would sell the photo to a medical hardware company and finance another trip to Iceland.
But in this world, I suspect they'd look at the photo and think "Oh no no, we don't recommend that!"
So how was Le Teton? It's on my list although the stars haven't lined up right or something.
Lucander and I were out that way a week ago, but Mr P seemed stout enough for me at the time.
BTW props to Allison for Madame G, which IMO is a bigger, funner lead than High E.
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mack
Trad climber
vermont
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It was a fabulous w/e in Vermont. I stayed local and worked some old favorites that alternately stymie me and sometimes go just fine - this w/e went just fine. Lower West Bolton, a small crag just North of Waterbury. The big roof of Tea in the Sahara and the awkward slippery roof of The gates of Eden both 5.9d (we have a very funny rating system around here). Sorry no pics.
Mack
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GOclimb
Trad climber
Boston, MA
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Chiloe wrote: So how was Le Teton? It's on my list although the stars haven't lined up right or something.
Two pitches of mediocre climbing (that can easily be combined into one pitch) leave you at a very spooky ledge in a corner, covered with enormous loose flakes and blocks... and a semi-hanging belay. This gets the adrenaline flowing. And the actual pitch, traversing, overhanging, delicate and balancy, while powerful, and powerfully puckering, pays off!
No pics of it, as I was too sketched to have Allison take pics. Sorry.
But as a consolation prize, here's pics of me on Bonnie's Roof from a couple weeks ago:
GO
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tradchick
Trad climber
White Mountains
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3 days of climbing and 1 decent photo...guess we need a new camera or something. Anyways this is the fingercrack from the 3rd pitch of Vertigo on Cannon.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 5, 2007 - 02:17pm PT
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GOclimb:
And the actual pitch, traversing, overhanging, delicate and balancy, while powerful, and powerfully puckering, pays off!
Did you like the gear?
Plenty of Gunks atmosphere in Allison's Bonnie shots.
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GOclimb
Trad climber
Boston, MA
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Hey Tradchick, glad you got on it! How'd you like it? Do the half-moon offwidth or the quarter-moon variation?
Looks dry - that's nice!
Larry, the gear on Le Teton is definitely good. Takes a little work, but you can plug a piece, and then downclimb to a full no-hands rest.
GO
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perswig
climber
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Hey, tradchick. That wasn't you and your Cat climbing with doubles at Square Ledge Saturday, was it? Came and went quiet-like around mid-day? I took my pseudo-brother-in-law out for his second day climbing ever and had a stellar day dodging and weaving around the slowish 2 other pairs out there on the slab, and the Arete was the icing on the cake. That 'chimney' was pretty fun, too. I laughed out loud after getting to the chockstone exit and realizing I had no gear in. What a great little cliff. Dale
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tradchick
Trad climber
White Mountains
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Dale: Yep, that was the cat and I trying to be stealth like at Square Ledge, lol! I am working on my leading and thought we'd avoid the traffic jam on Thin Air at Cathedral. Great little cliff and hard to beat the view!
GO: We bailed off after the 3rd pitch. Had a dumb spell and didn't bring any water with us and forgot our "all day shoes" so had some hurtin' feet. We're headed back next weekend to finish it. Gotta say it's my new favorite climb, love the 2nd pitch! Wild!!
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GOclimb
Trad climber
Boston, MA
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Tradchick: D'oh! Oh well, next time. That move getting to the belay ledge where you took the picture is funky, huh? My partner led it, and didn't see the sequence right, so had to aid through it! No sweat, though, seeing as how there's already mandatory A0 on the pitch. :)
And I won't say any more about it, but the sequence to start the next pitch (that you haven't done) is pretty wild, too!!!
Have fun!
GO
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tradchick
Trad climber
White Mountains
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GO: Yeah, duh, no food, no water, wrong shoes! Guess you could say we underestimated the sun...it was a hot day for Cannon.
The move to that belay ledge is funky and not straightforward. It was Tom's 3rd time leading Vertigo so he knew to go out on the arete and then back to get up to the ledge. I paid close attention!
He couldn't remember what the sequence is to start the next pitch. Is it moving back out over the arete to the right?
It was my first time doing a pendulum too and I was kinda uptight prior to it but once I let go, woooohooo! I can't wait to go back!
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GOclimb
Trad climber
Boston, MA
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You sure you want to be told the sequence, or do you want to figure it out yourselves?
GO
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tradchick
Trad climber
White Mountains
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I'd want to know if I was leading it but no doubt Tomcat will figure it out. He's good at those cryptic moves too.
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GOclimb
Trad climber
Boston, MA
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Good for him! Well, you both have this to look forward to:
And to prove that it's not too hard:
GO
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tradchick
Trad climber
White Mountains
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Tomcat says we'll be doing the crescent moon and toproping the ow.
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slobmonster
Trad climber
berkeley, ca
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Hmm. I think I hosed myself by doing the Half Moon left side in.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 9, 2007 - 11:56am PT
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Tomcat says we'll be doing the crescent moon and toproping the ow.
Don't fear it, it's fun and as GO demonstrates, would be tough to fall out of.
The difficulties have been greatly exaggerated by latter-day Northeasterners who never saw a wide crack before.
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Zander
Trad climber
Berkeley
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Fun thread, nice pictures. Thanks for posting.
Zander
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Jerry Dodrill
climber
Bodega, CA
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Cool thread.
Say, Is there any climbing near Portland Maine? I'll be there on business late next week, actually, up at Lake Sebago, and will have Sunday-Monday free. Need something to do!
-Jerry
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 10, 2007 - 08:59am PT
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Wootles knows all about Portland. You might send him an e-mail if he doesn't check in here.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 10, 2007 - 05:30pm PT
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Following TK's Montucky example, I'll venture another climbing-related post from the weekend.
GOclimb pauses and thinks before going for it, on his onsight of Intimidation's intimidating first pitch.
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GOclimb
Trad climber
Boston, MA
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Sep 11, 2007 - 12:09pm PT
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Nice pic, Chiloe! That next move was definitely made harder by the two nuts I girth hitched together to take up all the available space for your hands!
Great first pitch, great route! By the way, that third pitch is rated 5.10 in the latest guidebook. So extra kudos on going back and nailing it after 20 years. Good thing you waited, otherwise you'd have only climbed 5.9!
Cheers,
GO
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TKingsbury
Trad climber
MT
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Sep 11, 2007 - 12:12pm PT
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Good stuff in this here thread...
That last route looks sweet!
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 11, 2007 - 03:50pm PT
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That next move was definitely made harder by the two nuts I girth hitched together to take up all the available space for your hands!
Yup, it was definitely all your fault! I didn't really wake up that day until I got above the ball-nut in the corner on P3, and by then the climb was more than half over.
Sorry you & Jen got rained out on Sunday. Saturday looks nice enough in the pictures to forget how godawful steamy it was, until the sun left us.
Tree branch in this picture removes any possible drama from the view across that "5.8 R" traverse on P2. You get a sense for how heavy the air was, though.
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GOclimb
Trad climber
Boston, MA
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Sep 17, 2007 - 01:36pm PT
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Just to prove that I didn't rope-solo Intimidation, here's Chiloe boldly leading pitch 3.
Start of the pitch:
At the crux, and still not intimidated!
And for those of you (Chiloe, tradchick, others?) interested in Le Teton, it turns out I do have a pic or two of me on it. This one shows that there *is* in fact decent gear:
GO
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tradchick
Trad climber
White Mountains
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Sep 17, 2007 - 02:40pm PT
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GO: Nice shots from Intimidation and Le Teton. Tomcat and I usually take a run down to the Gunks in November while waiting for the ice. Will have to add Le Teton to the list.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 19, 2007 - 05:47pm PT
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Famous Left Coast photographer/Supertopian enjoying life on New Hampshire's best 5.10 route last weekend.
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Jerry Dodrill
climber
Bodega, CA
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Sep 19, 2007 - 05:52pm PT
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I don't know about "famous" but I sure had a good time climbing with you guys! Thanks! I'll post some photos later too.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 19, 2007 - 05:54pm PT
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Looking forward to those. And of course, I'm holding back the best snapshots!
cheers,
L
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Paulina
Trad climber
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Sep 19, 2007 - 06:33pm PT
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Nice thread and pics!
On Sunday, a friend and I went to Cathedral. Got scared on Pooh, then had fun on Funhouse to Upper Refuse, then the first two pitches of Thin Air, then got really tired and rapped (WTF?!?) then went to the North End and screwed around, and finally went home.
I brought a camera, but it stayed in the pack, which we left at the bottom of the climbs :)... Oh well. Another time.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 19, 2007 - 07:13pm PT
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I brought a camera, but it stayed in the pack, which we left at the bottom of the climbs
I used to bring a good camera, but too often that's what happened. Now I've got this small digital camera that fits in a pocket, so it's no trouble to carry and I can take one-handed pictures while pretending to belay.
Jerry puts a lot more craft into it, so I'm looking forward to seeing what he got.
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GOclimb
Trad climber
Boston, MA
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Sep 20, 2007 - 11:12am PT
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Hmm, is this a "name that climb"? With a hint like "...on New Hampshire's best 5.10 route" you'd think it would be easy. But I'm stumped! Wait, don't tell yet. I'll wait to see what Jerry's pics show.
Best I can come up with now is one of the Cambers. Hmm... NH's best 5.10. I'll have to really think about that one.
GO
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BadInfluence
Mountain climber
Dak side
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Sep 20, 2007 - 12:12pm PT
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Last Unicorn
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 20, 2007 - 12:41pm PT
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Badinfluence good guess, The Last Unicorn it is. JD follows the second pitch in that photo.
So is it the best 10 in the state? VMC Direct Direct is the only one I can think of that compares, but I bet others have their opinions too.
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wootles
climber
I've moved
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Sep 20, 2007 - 12:43pm PT
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So is it the best 10 in the state? VMC Direct Direct is the only one I can think of that compares, but I bet others have their opinions too.
Of multi-pitch only(?)
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 20, 2007 - 01:47pm PT
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Of multi-pitch only(?)
I was thinking that way, and ruling out Rumney on principle ... but whaddaya got?
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wootles
climber
I've moved
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Sep 20, 2007 - 02:48pm PT
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Nothing comes to mind really. I was just wondering if single pitch could be included. Rumney can remain off limits. Craggona non grata, if you will.
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Jerry Dodrill
climber
Bodega, CA
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Sep 20, 2007 - 04:11pm PT
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That was the best in the whole state?
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wootles
climber
I've moved
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Sep 20, 2007 - 04:53pm PT
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It's debatable but probably in the top 5 anyway.
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Sep 20, 2007 - 07:42pm PT
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I gotta have it.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 20, 2007 - 09:18pm PT
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Then you gotta come back! Boston Marathon is a bit early season, but with global warming and all, who knows?
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tradchick
Trad climber
White Mountains
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Sep 21, 2007 - 12:43pm PT
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Chiloe: I think we saw you guys starting up Sky Streak late Sunday morning? Tomcat and I had planned on Recombeast but figured it'd be wet and headed to Whitehorse instead.
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Jerry Dodrill
climber
Bodega, CA
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Sep 21, 2007 - 01:23pm PT
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Not sure where we were in the morning before traversing over to White Unicorn. Was that you we were behind? (blue helmet?) Wootles, Kennan H. and I did Recombeast in the late afternoon. Fun simul-ing. Felt stiff for 5.9!
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 21, 2007 - 01:31pm PT
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You simul-climbed Recombeast? There are cruxy bits here and there, I'm impressed!
Tradchick, that was Jerry, wootles & me taking the Sky Streak start to Last Unicorn. We were originally heading towards Atlantis but there was a party on the first pitch of Inferno so we switched plans at last minute.
Later that day we heard nasty rockfall sounds to our left. Were you guys anywhere near that?
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Jerry Dodrill
climber
Bodega, CA
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Sep 21, 2007 - 01:34pm PT
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Well, Jim led, we all three simuled for a bit, then Kennan and I simul-seconded everything on the one cord we took, once Jim got a belay in above the beast flake. So, two pitches total. Good fun, followed by brews and burgers at the Moat.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 21, 2007 - 01:40pm PT
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Last Unicorn + Recombeast = welcome to the White Mountains! It's great you fit all of that in one day. There should be a TR.
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Jerry Dodrill
climber
Bodega, CA
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Sep 21, 2007 - 01:43pm PT
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TR coming soon. I'm buried in work right now.
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tradchick
Trad climber
White Mountains
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Sep 21, 2007 - 06:08pm PT
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Chiloe: We say you guys on Sky Streak from the road on the drive in. We were going to do Hotter than Hell and Inferno, thinking it would be dry but headed for Interloper on the slabs instead. Sounds like we made a good choice if there was rockfall to the left of you guys.
Have you done Jacobs Ladder yet? 10c face climb, 3 pitches, left of Cold Day.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 21, 2007 - 06:12pm PT
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Nope, I don't even know where Jacobs Ladder is, sounds like I should look it up.
Interloper, I remember that as a good stout slab route. Lower crux little crystals, upper crux bouldery? Leslie and I might be up the slabs Sunday, looking for a low-traffic route (but not that one).
From what we could hear, a lethal rock fell but fortunately hit nobody. There were several parties in the general area of Inferno.
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tradchick
Trad climber
White Mountains
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Sep 21, 2007 - 06:13pm PT
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Jerry - Did you guys do the overpass from the beast flake back to start the last pitch? We heard the overpass stays wet for a few days and were trying to avoid the chimney and that's how we ended up on Whitehorse.
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Jerry Dodrill
climber
Bodega, CA
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Sep 21, 2007 - 06:28pm PT
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Uh, I don't know. From the top of the flake we climbed down right, across a steep exposed void, liebacking up into the corner. It was dry. Wet down lower, getting across into the flake, stepping left into underclings though. Was my first time there, so I don't know what I'm talkin' about.
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Tomcat
Trad climber
Chatham N.H.
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Sep 22, 2007 - 04:02pm PT
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Chiloe,Jacob's Ladder is the leftmost route that starts up the gully from Hotter than Hell/Cold Day in Hell.There is a small birch and steep stance to start with a step right onto a face.P1 is 9+ overlap to ledge.P2 is two mostly bolted face steps,one like 20' and the next is a little more.The last pitch(we do it as one with doubles)is the money pitch,up a black coarse face to a small stance below the left side of the overhang.One bolt sans hanger,do the wire thang.We just clip the anchor and do the last 35'as one,up an excellent steep exposed face,really cool situation.NeClimbs reports that bit at 10c but we find it 5.8,dunno why.Tradchick and I did it for our first date.
Cold Day you probably know,the arcing bolted line left of Hotter than.10a....link it to Tranquilities upper finger crack,or pull out all the stops and fire that spicy bulge at the top,this is a quality link up.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 22, 2007 - 08:18pm PT
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Sounds like fun. We're thinking about the slabs for tomorrow, haven't actually been up there in years.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Sep 23, 2007 - 01:24pm PT
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The Henry Barber thread elsewhere made me recall doing Subline (5.10d) at Ragged Mountain while building the Go Vertical gym in Stamford, Connecticut. I am always stoked to get on Barber routes when I have the chance. I recall minimal pro, off balance moves and a keen awareness of groundfall potential up high. Had a wonderful time! Any of you gents roll the dice on that one?
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Aya K
Trad climber
New York
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Sep 23, 2007 - 04:34pm PT
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I know I promised a TR when I got some photos, but I don't have too many so it's not that exciting anyway. Unfortunately, the stuff that should have been exciting turned out not to be, but what are you going to do? I pretty much ripped this striaght from my blog because I'm lazy.
At the end of August, Joe & I drove down to Bedford, PA, where my family was having its annual reunion. My father rented out an entire 520 acre sheep farm, and the whole situation was pretty sweet. We had our own bedroom and bathroom right off the porch with the hottub. Apart from the three straight days of pretty hardcore partying with my family (my cousins, my uncles, my aunts... all of them outdo me by far! I was good for one night only!), the highlight was probably the day we went golfing at the Bedford Springs Resort. $140 a round- but Arnold Palmer was there. I don't even need to get into the round we played; that would take ages. I was winning until the 13th hole, though, when the heat and lack of sustenance finally caught up with me and the wheels just totally came off. We got back around dark (we'd started at 2PM) and the round involved, apart from Arnold Palmer, a lot of balls lost in the rough, and my cousin's husband hitting a kid in the face (he was hidden up a hillside behind a tree!).
At any rate, on Monday morning we closed up the house and took the two and a half hour drive down to Seneca. We arrived a little after noon, in the heat of the day, and pulled into the parking lot to grab a quick bite to eat from the cooler (grilled corn, homemade refried beans, chilaquiles) and then proceeded to lay on the picnic tables and watch climbers. And watch, and watch, and watch. It was just too hot and humid out to contemplate much else, nevermind that one of us was feeling slightly hungover (and *I* did not drink the night before). At some point when the sun started going down, we headed over to the Southern Pillar and Joe somehow found his way up a 5.8, Block Party. The rock is orangey, blocky quartzite that basically looks like you took the gunks' Madame G's and turned it on end. Either way, I think it was a 5.8 *wink* *wink* rather than a 5.8, and pretty strenuous; I don't think i'd have led it. The air in the little amphitheater was stifling so we quickly ducked out, grabbed some pizza and crashed in the back of the truck. It was perhaps not the best introduction to Seneca, but not too bad. I'm not really sure what I was expecting; I didn't know much about the area except that it had a similar quartzite to the gunks except stood on end, with all vertical cracks rather than horizontals. I think I may have been expecting more of a climbing community and a bit more of a town, but basically I guess you have the cliffs, a couple of campgrounds, a couple of general stores and that's pretty much it.
The plan for the next morning was for me to lead West Pole, 5.7+ while the west face was in the shade in the AM, then Joe to do Madmen Only, 5.10, and then to duck to the east face in the afternoon for me to do something else of my choosing. The stairmaster getting up to the climb nearly killed me and I was about ready to call it quits right then and there. It wasn't the steps (beautiful staircase!) so much as the humidity; I must have lost 2 liters of water in just the walk up alone, nevermind my gimpy knee.
At any rate, West Pole was a mega classic moderate, going through a couple of roofs before finally arriving at the top. I did it in one short pitch and one long one; the only difficulties were at the first roof. Not so much because it was difficult but because Joe freaked me out with horror stories of people crashing back into the slab below and breaking various limbs. I got a pretty bomber nut slotted in, though, and there were no worries. I guess Joe had some issues actually getting my nut OUT though. I'd slid it through a crack and so it wasn't something that could be hit out with a nut tool; he had to get in there, lift it up and slide it back out, and I guess his hands were a little bigger than mine and so he had problems getting at it. Since West Pole is so well travelled, the rock was really nice and clean, and very solid.
At the top, we met up with another couple whom we let rap on our ropes; this procedure ended up taking a bit longer than expected and so by the time we got our ropes pulled and we soloed up over the gunsight notch to the base of Madmen Only, the sun was threatening to creep over and start beating on us. Madmen Only didn't go quite so well for Joe as West Pole had for me. He will kill me for divulging this, but the cursing started almost immediately thereafter. The startled looks from the Johns Hopkins students across the way shortly ensued, and finally I noted the father and small child looking up the telescope at the base at us. I won't reiterate his rantings, but I think the humidity had a lot to do with the problems. After he got through the difficulties down low (mostly consisting of figuring out how to get atop a sizeable, really friendly looking block, the true deviousness of which I didn't fully appreciate until I tried to move after the big sigh of relief I had breathed when I grabbed the huge incut jug behind it), he ran into more problems up high. A traverse move across the face was to bring him to the anchors, but he didn't have any gear to protect it. He clipped in, untied, lowered the rope and I sent some micronuts up to him. Sweet! The move takes you to a hole that goes fully through the fin that forms the north peak, which is only about two feet thick at that point and quite loose. In a word, scary! Screw it, I pulled on gear down low (Joe doesn't know that and he doesn't get on the internet so hopefully it will stay that way). We were basically done after that climb; we'd taken too long and gotten caught in the sun. We scampered back down, took a dip in the swimming hole (passing a little girl who said hey, we saw you climbing! saw, or heard?), and finished the day with a quick run up Judgement Seat (5.10). Joe redeemed himself on that climb! It's got a very cool, very slopy seat right in the middle of it, and getting off of it everyone seems to do the same thing - reach up into the perfect hand crack above and just slide their hand around for a while, realizing that it's too perfect and slippery and harder to jam in than expected. We had subs for dinner and crashed in the back of the truck again.
Breakfast the next day was amusing, as I listened to a woman at Yokum's start in on a loaded topic: religion. She started off by announcing that last summer, she'd worked with an atheist. He was a nice boy, mind you, but an atheist. She was just waiting to get into it with him, though, of course, to be as simpleminded as to be an atheist to begin with, she wasn't expecting much of a fight. After all, no atheist, with all their supposed and self-proclaimed genius, had ever been able to answer he one question.
Ah, I wonder, what will this be?
Rainbows.
Rainbows?!
God said that He made them as a promise that there would never be another flood. So if God said He put the rainbows in the sky for us, and we have rainbows, how can you explain them if you don't believe in God? I have to admit, her logic is impeccable. Her premise is flawed, but the logic impeccable. Her coffee wasn't too bad, either.
At any rate, with some good toast and eggs in us (btw, in WV you put mustard on your breakfast eggs and sausage. Not ketchup.), we set out climbing. Scary as the rock quality at the top of Madmen Only was, it was NOTHING compared to what we encountered on our climb the next day: Circumflex. The route (5.9) climbs through a huge, circumflex shaped (go figure) roof on the Euro Wall. From the ground, it just screams PLEASE CLIMB ME! (upside down v-shaped roof on the left wall in the photo)The approach is not bad, though it's described as exposed and scary in the book, and I settled down at a tree at the base. Joe half heartedly offered to let me lead, but I really didn't feel up to it. Good thing. From the getgo, it's "5.9 MY MOTHERF*#KING ASSWIPE!" and it degenerated from there. All angular blocks that are slippery and slope in the wrong directions, the climbing is never secure, the rock is never really secure, the gear frequently sucks (the potential for a 50 foot whipper is very real) and it's all terribly exposed. Fine. What was going through my mind while I belayed? The whole climb is on the Euro Wall, which is basically a big, 4 foot wide at the top fin that's detached from the marginally wider fin of the North Peak and all overhangs slightly. The whole thing could go! After what seemed like hours, with a lot of cursing (and maybe some pulling on gear - I didn't see it!), Joe got to the top and I started up after. It went ok for the most part, though I was scared to even weight the rope when I couldn't loosen a yellow TCU (it seemed like whatever Joe was anchored in to at the top couldn't possibly be secure and I was afraid!). The crux roof, just to the right of the apex of the circumflex went ok; I think I got some intermediate crimpers that Joe didn't. I tweaked sometihng and my index finger goes numb to this day, but no biggie. The scariest part was the top - the 4 foot leap across the gaping chasm of No Dally Alley. Even with the top rope I was a good ten minutes of hemming and hawing. I can't even imagine what Joe, with all the rope drag of a 180 foot pitch behind him and NO gear (he even used his gear sling as a draw) was thinking. I didn't have the mental energy after FOLLOWING that climb to contemplate leading something, so we decide to hightail it out of town. Too hot, too humid, too scary, whatever. We were bailing. It was Wednesday, I had to be back at work on Friday morning, and it seemed unlikely that it'd be much more pleasant to climb on Thursday.
We stopped by to say hi to Tom Cecil (runs a local guide service), who told us he reckoned that Circumflex had been climbed 20 times total (a little exaggeration perhaps??) and gave us some kudos for climbing a scary and rarely repeated route, a couple of t-shirts (http:www/tradclimbing.com) and sent us on our way (can you believe the man's enver climbed in the Dacks??). We driove the rest of the afternoon and got to the gunks that night where we hoped it will be cooler. Thursday was unfortunately not much cooler nor less humid, but we tried to catch some shade in the Nears. It was midweek and the cliffs were empty except for us and the dogs. Since I didn't get my crack fix at Seneca, we figured we'd walk down to Eastertime Too, which I had not climbed. Figured that another party was racking up for it as we arrived. The only other party at the cliffs. Ah well. I headed up Boston Tree Party (5.8) instead, and was stymied for a bit by some thin face moves up top once you pull around a roof. Me? Stumped by face moves?... what's going on?? Joe's corrupted me, I guess.
Eastertime Too(5.8+) presented no difficulties, and was a very nice, typical gunks crack: A lovely, jammable crack with a multitude of face holds that make the crack almost extraneous if you're not a crack climber. Joe sent Good Friday Climb(5.9), which was nice, too, and on our way out I scampered up Grease Gun Groove(5.6) to finish off the day. Not too shabby for an 11AM start and 4PM finish. I went back to the city to work for the next week or so.
A couple of weekends later I was up in the Dacks for a wedding.
This is Slim Pickens, a crack/corner at the Spiders Web in the Dacks. Mostly the web is a bunch of overhanging, beautiful cracks, but this one is a bit different in that it goes up the corner, turning into a stemming problem. Mellor rates it at 5.9+; realistically I'd drop the + (and I think the new Adirondack Rock book coming out next year does). Either way, Saturday morning before the afternoon wedding, but after the 7AM rainstorm that I thought would make the day a washout (can you believe the blue skies?!), I led it. No problems. Not to toot my own horn, because let's face it, it's only 5.9 and it's mostly an exercise in stemming, which as we all know is mostly footwork, which as we all know is apparently my forte, but all the same, I've only led a handful of other 5.9s on gear before (They Died Laughing over in NH and Wasp and No Glow down at the gunks) so it was pretty good to get up there so easily!
Joe's climbed everything at the Wed a gazillion times, but this is the chimney start to TR. I did it entirely differently, facing the other way and using face holds instead of stemming.
I partied really hard at the wedding that night and after we got back home; apparently I was dancing around on top of the picnic table alone for a good long time. Apparently I did some rollies, too, because my back was sore the next morning!! Some of the guides from Seneca had come up to visit and wanted to climbo on Sunday; it was pouring rain so we digured we'd give them a tour of the area, even if we couldn't climb.
The King Wall overhangs quite a bit (draws clipped to the bolts hang quite far from the wall) and so the boys took turns trying to get up an 11c called Kingdom Come. They both too whippers, too!
Thought Monday was going to be a washout, too, when it dawned as misty and miserable as Sunday did. We took a drive up to Poko just to show the boys, though, and as we were pulling up, the clouds broke and the sun came out. Sweet! (Image platantly stolen from Carl Heilman. Nice poster. I think I'm going to buy one) It's pretty amazing to me how few NYC climbers have climbed up in the Dacks, because the amount of quality climbing there is NUTS. There is sooooo much more than the gunks in NY, boys and girls! There're trad, sport, mixed, whatever routes, cracks, slabs roofs, everything! Get your butts up here! We figured we'd take a look and see if the rock was dry - it was - so we sent the boys up Gamesmanship, while Joe ran up the Sting. Both classic crack climbs. We then sent them up Bloody Mary in a single pitch (SWEEEET. Don't stop at the belay up there. Just do it!), and while they were on that, Joe gave me a choice between a bolted route called Casual Observer which he'd bailed off of the last time he'd tried to lead it and Fastest Gun, which I'd previously followed but not led. I was feeling a little ambitious because looking at the first route, it seemed manageable; Joe told me he figured that it was 5.10ish and so I grabbed some draws, and few small cams and set off. There was definitely a lot of whining and a lot of squealing; a lot of f*#k I'm pumped f*#k I need a rest oh man I still have to climb that far to get to the next bolt oh god can't I just lower here, but eventually, after slipping off while downclimbing to a rest under the third bolt (I thought that was the crux), I grunted my way through the climb. It's very cool, climbing a steep face on the ubiquitous dacks squarecut edges, then traversing left over a huge gap to another face up to a roof, then chimneying up between the wall and a jutting flake, and finally shooting up twin bulging cracks to the anchors. Jim Lawyer and Jeremy Haas give it a 5.10b in the new guide book they're working on (www.adirondackrock.com), but come on, I'm not leading Dacks 10b so I'll call it just 10. It was bolted, sure, but the only other 10s I've led were bolted, and they were either out west or at Rumney and so hardly count. Very draining physically, less so mentally. We went down and did the first pitch of something (I followed in my sneakers) and then Joe led the first pitch of Pilgrim's Progress, whcih I thought was marginally easier athn Casual Observer. I led it with Joe's draws in place (cheating) and it was pretty much no problem until the last move. That move rocks you right onto your foot with only bad, slopey little ripples on top of the bulge to hold you up; clipping risks knocking you off balance. I'll be honest; if I'd had to clip my own draws to the anchor bolts that move would definitely have taken me far, far longer than it did.
We climbed at the gunks last weekend after a wedding, and blah blah blah, we climbed a lot, but I did a few classics I hadn't done before, like Mainline (tried to do it in one, but ended up bringing up my belayer so he could see me while I pulled the roof) and Honky Tonk Woman (yay, my third gunks 9), as well as some crappy climbs like Twisted Sister (about 30 feet of solid 5.8 G climbing, and then some contrived bits, a long traverse across a ledge, and then a pitch of 5.6 R. Great. The Swain book calls the whole thing 5.8+ PG so I was stuck halfway up the 5.6 R section with no way to really bail, no gear below or above me, and dirty, dirty, dirty licheny rock and a ton of rope drag). I'm staying home this weekend to work on vet school apps, which are due in a week. I'm pretty stressed out.
I am totally looking forward to catching the tail end of leaf peeping in the dacks next weekend. If any of you northeasterners haven't been out to the dacks before, I think it would be the prime weekend to get in some rock there. Let me know if you're coming out that way!!!!
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 23, 2007 - 07:32pm PT
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Now there's a Northeastern TR with real mileage. Also eastern humidity and heat, the season for which is fortunately passing (up north anyway). You guys managed a good stack of high-effort leads despite conditions that would have persuaded lesser folks to go swimming. And westerners to stay west!
The weather could not have been nicer at Whitehorse Ledge today, where Leslie and I tiptoed up Slabs Direct/Wavelength.
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Sep 23, 2007 - 07:42pm PT
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Jeepers Aya!
Get off your butt and put out a TR for us, won't you?
I'll have to print that one out for bedtime reading.
Nicely composed photo Larry,
Lots of sweeping atmosphere in that one.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 24, 2007 - 08:58am PT
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Thanks! I was racing to catch that lighting while belaying with one hand. As you saw on the TM thread, I've been shooting the same model for, um, 35 years now.
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Sep 24, 2007 - 12:56pm PT
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Lost soles should be right up there with the unicorn though a bunch easier. Duet Direct!!
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 24, 2007 - 01:23pm PT
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You got a photo of Duet Direct? I just have vague memories of a pretty layback corner with insecure small stopper placements.
Lost Souls, I know that one better. Here goes GO on the second pitch this summer.
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tradchick
Trad climber
White Mountains
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Sep 24, 2007 - 01:40pm PT
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Tomcat and I tossed that "best 5.10" question around this weekend. While Lost Souls, Last Unicorn and Duet Direct are all great, we think Loose Lips is pretty stellar especially with Ethereal as the start. Hard to beat that wild step onto the wall, then the thin face climbing on white granite followed by that perfect finger crack. The crack eases up just in time too.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 24, 2007 - 05:36pm PT
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Yep, now that you mention it Loose Lips combined with Ethereal Crack or Seventh Seal makes a fine candidate too. What else have we got?
Snakefoot leading Loose Lips last spring:
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tradchick
Trad climber
White Mountains
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Sep 25, 2007 - 07:57am PT
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Chiloe: Nice pic of Loose Lips!! You get some great shots, what do you have for a camera?
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 25, 2007 - 09:45pm PT
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Thanks. All this recent stuff is just one-hand shots with a pocket camera, a Canon SD 550. I'd get the newer version with image stabilization if only this one would break, but despite mistreatment and many dents it has not (I did learn the LCD is not talus-proof, and after repairs covered it with a stronger piece of glass).
Jerry brought a real camera and photographer skills along on Last Unicorn, and put effort into setting up shots, so I'm look forward to seeing how the climb looked through his lens.
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climbingjones
Trad climber
grass valley,ca
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Sep 25, 2007 - 10:32pm PT
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Cool photos and good times. But I think you people would have more fun if you used more ropes when you climb. Maybe, say, one for each appendage. Maybe?
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Jerry Dodrill
climber
Bodega, CA
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Sep 27, 2007 - 03:53am PT
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A teaser will have to do for now
Chiloe leading off on The Last Unicorn.
Wootles cruising the third pitch.
More later.
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Tomcat
Trad climber
Chatham N.H.
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Sep 27, 2007 - 08:52am PT
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Nice pics Jerry.Great route !! My first trip up The Unicorn was in October of '84 or '85 with Geoff Tabin and a buddy.I got to lead the first and third.Geoff led P2 and buddy nothing.After the "approach" I tossed off my extra shirt so went on up in a single layer of polypro.Buddy was stymied by every pitch,by the time I had brought them both up,Geoff had done P2 and his bud took an hour or more to follow I was near death hypothermic...lol !!Feeling was just returning when I made that hanging belay,fun spot with three of us,I just grabbed the gear and started firing for the top,Geoff,of all people, admonishing me to "slow down".
Whenever people ask me "Isn't ice climbing cold?"I always say..."not as cold as the Unicorn in October"
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 27, 2007 - 09:14am PT
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Damn, Jerry, those are professional grade!
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Sep 27, 2007 - 09:24am PT
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I wish i knew how to post photos on this forrum. I have some good ones from Duet Direct three weeks ago and also a cool unknown bolted job o the Flatiron.
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Sep 27, 2007 - 09:29am PT
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Chilloe, I imagin DD protects a bit easier these days with micro cams. Alex did use stoppers but he also plugged in the aliens and TCUs :)
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 27, 2007 - 10:14am PT
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Tradman, first step is opening a free photo-hosting account on some website such as www.photobucket.com. They'll give you instructions on how to upload your photos to photobucket. Once you've done that, linking them into a SuperTopo post is easy -- get that far and I'll tell you how it's done in one easy step.
I'd like to see your pictures. Vermont crags are even more under-photographed than Poko.
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Sep 27, 2007 - 01:15pm PT
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what if I post them on neice?
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tradchick
Trad climber
White Mountains
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Sep 27, 2007 - 01:58pm PT
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Nick: LOL!! At least neice has some action, unlike neclimbs!
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Sep 27, 2007 - 02:00pm PT
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What I mean is if I have them in my gallery on neice can I then link them to the taco?
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 27, 2007 - 04:07pm PT
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Tradman, it should be easy. Beneath the photos on NEIce.com, there's a box labeled UBBCode, which contains the file photo's URL address enclosed by img and /img in square brackets. Just copy that whole address, including the two "img" parts, and paste it into your SuperTopo post like so.
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Jeff Wagner
Ice climber
Maine by way of Vermont
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Hey, the above is a picture from my recent climbing trip to Bolivia. it's huayna potosi's south summit from the top of the East Face. Killer climb.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 8, 2007 - 11:30am PT
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Hah, hope you don't mind that I grabbed it as an example of how to link a picture from NEice.com. It's a nice photo you took.
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Jeff Wagner
Ice climber
Maine by way of Vermont
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Don't mind at all.
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slobmonster
Trad climber
berkeley, ca
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Nick -- gotta put (remove spaces) [ img ] before and [ / img ] after
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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That looks like very compact rock Tradman.
Hmm, I want some...
Got more pics?
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 8, 2007 - 06:37pm PT
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I've had many fun days on the nearer crags up thataway, Echo & Profile, but Hound's Hump looks outta my approach league. Like Tar says, more pix welcome now that you've learned the trick!
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james Colborn
Trad climber
Truckee, Ca
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Chiloe, my friend you have, each time you've posted photos, made me miss New Hampshire and its fine granite. I've made only one return trip since my return to California 22 years ago. I didn't climb when we had a house in Idylweis in the town of Madison but loved exploring the Whites. However on my return visit I did get to do many classics, a month of hanging around Conway was a blast. Keep the photos coming. Thanks James.
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Isa Oehry on th FFA of The Scenic Loop 5.10+ 10-25-07 Approach to Eaglett, Flatiron and Rt66/Scenic Loop area is about the same as Cannon but easier hikeing.
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snakefoot
climber
cali
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sort of distracted lately,or is this as usual... been around here and there
Ragged boulderin for you hard men
with nobody as my witness and i do like it that way, on the solo, the green wall.. ragged
northern mass a few weeks ago
Doanes falls
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Alex spencer on duet Direct 8-27-07
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 9, 2007 - 09:29am PT
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Chiloe, my friend you have, each time you've posted photos, made me miss New Hampshire and its fine granite. I've made only one return trip since my return to California 22 years ago. I didn't climb when we had a house in Idylweis in the town of Madison but loved exploring the Whites. However on my return visit I did get to do many classics, a month of hanging around Conway was a blast. Keep the photos coming. Thanks James.
Well that's an encouraging note. Maybe this thread still has a ways to run. We've got new stuff by snakefoot, and tradman has come to the table with what I'd guess is a full deck of cards.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 9, 2007 - 09:38am PT
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I've done only the indoors kind of trip lately, taking off on yet another one tomorrow, so I've got no new stuff to offer.
In the spirit of L's thread about fashions in 1977, here's a late-fall scene on Vertigo that year. Fashion notes: leather-covered EBs, wool sweater and balaclava, nothin' but one set of hexes and one set of stoppers for gear.
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Ya, we generaly place a wee bit more gear these days:)
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 9, 2007 - 12:15pm PT
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Ya, we generaly place a wee bit more gear these days:)
Funny how the more stuff you have, the more you need. New things come along, latest fad for me is a couple of link cams, and I drift from "Who needs that?" to "Can't climb without 'em!"
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Zander
Trad climber
Berkeley
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Nov 10, 2007 - 12:19am PT
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This thread just keeps on a'comin'.
Thank you , thank you, y'all.
Zander
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Nov 21, 2007 - 12:30pm PT
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Let the games begin:) Ice season cometh! thats me leading the 2nd pitch of EHG Smuglers notch VT yesterday.
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perswig
climber
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Nov 21, 2007 - 09:42pm PT
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Trad, we climb with lobster buoys on our haul loops here in Camden, but we're pretty close to the ocean; it's not impossible that we might fall in. What's your excuse?
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Nov 23, 2007 - 11:31am PT
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Nice one. it's a belay jacket in a stuff sack:)
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clustiere
Trad climber
Rock Ridge/ Oakland CA
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Nov 23, 2007 - 02:31pm PT
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Gee the east coast really was a good as I remember. I barely remember the classics. Does anybody climb out on whites ledge any more?
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Nov 23, 2007 - 05:34pm PT
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Which Whites ledge?
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Nov 26, 2007 - 04:15pm PT
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Isa topping out on the Black Dike 11-25-07
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Me leading Blue Room, Smuggs, VT
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Dec 3, 2007 - 03:00pm PT
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Hey TMC, it's great to see somebody's still tough enough to be Northeastern climbing.
My ambition level has declined to the point where shoveling the driveway this morning felt like enough adventure.
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Willoughby is in!! China shop is good to go! Run right up there and break trail:)
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Isa at belay, Float like Butterfy land Like A Tomato WI4+
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Aya K
Trad climber
New York
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Dec 12, 2007 - 09:33pm PT
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Let's see if a straight, lazy, cut and paste job works... from last weekend in the Dacks...
The start of Polar Soldier, 12/9/07. Note: The sign of a true local? They duct tape their gaitors to their legs.
Good,smart dogs keep warm and stay out of the way of falling ice.
Secrets of the Ice Age has a bit of tricky sidestepping to actually gain the column, as it basically has no ice at its top.
It's starting to look almost like ice season Sunday night when we all get in on the inaugural 18-hole game of Caps at the bivy. Instant classic!
Monday morning 12/10/07 finds Lions on the Beach fat and already stepped out.
The sun came out on Monday afternoon so we decided to run up RBF on the way home.
Boy, oh boy am I glad I didn't lead the first pitch. It was totally open and running to begin with.
Dripping deathcicles swayed overhead; every once in a while one would cut loose and punch through when it landed. The ice we were climbing was not super solid nor particularly frozen.
There was a nice tub at the top of the first pitch.
Soloing the middle bit, I punched through with hands/tools at least half a dozen times. No way I was going to lead the lest pitch either and good thing. My butt was puckering just belaying... The entire top was basically a thin rind of ice, and the final ten feet basically consisted of front pointing gingerly along the bubbles on the left wall of the cleft, a leeeaaaaan across the chasm to get a right handed stick in questionable ice (it took a few swings before a tool actually held rather than shattering the ice) and then a leap of faith across. Pretty spooky, even with a rope above me! I was too nervous to futz with getting a camera out. Interesting way to make foot holds though; you could kick through and then stand on the edge of the window.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Dec 13, 2007 - 11:10am PT
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Aya, it's great to see that somebody's getting out and having adventures. Your photos reminded me of what I loved and feared about ice climbing, back when I was doing it often -- the wild cold places, surge of excitement leading, and terror that the whole icicle was gonna break off taking you and all your shiny gear with it!
Your doggy's got the drill figured out too, I'm glad to see.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Dec 18, 2007 - 09:14am PT
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While Aya, Tradman and Wootles are still climbing proud, I suspect a few other Northeasterners (like me) have been more indoorsy of late. Long evenings make some time to scan old slides from Northeastern trips past, though.
Age 11, hiking down after a no-falls ascent of Arrow on his first trip to the Gunks:
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Jim E
climber
Mountain Road
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Not really a TR but still a recent outing.
Emac preparing to send his new mixed rig on Mt Willard in Crawford Notch, NH.
Dial M for Murder, WI4+, M8. Climbs up and out the overhanging rock and ice above upper Hitchcock Gully. A true 'mixed' line that has has about 50/50 proportion of rock and ice.
the avatar formerly known as wootles
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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looking down Jaws, Holts ledge, Lyme NH
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Jan 12, 2008 - 02:20pm PT
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Some more old frozen shizzle from the unfortunetely shortlived North American Climber, inaugural issue, July 1975. I just posted this on the NH thread too.
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Aya K
Trad climber
New York
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Jan 13, 2008 - 12:16pm PT
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Just a mishmash of stuff from over the past month or so...
Polar Soldier 12/9/07
Roaring Brook Falls 12/10/07
Lions on the Beach 12/10/07
Scotch Tasting 12/25/07
Multiplication Gully 12/29/07
North Face of Pitchoff 12/30/07
The Surfer. 18th hole of Bivy Caps. 12/31/08
PowerPlay 1/5/08
Rhiannon 1/5/08
Stupid squirrel 1/6/08
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Jan 13, 2008 - 11:12pm PT
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Scotch on the rocks! Nice shots Aya.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jan 14, 2008 - 08:42am PT
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Looks like a fine season for ice climbing. Thanks for sharing the fun.
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Ed Hartouni
Trad climber
Livermore, CA
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Jan 14, 2008 - 11:42am PT
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thanks for the posts... making me feel like there isn't nearly enough time for me these days to play all those games that I'd like
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Jan 14, 2008 - 08:20pm PT
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Makes this armchair climbing all the more envigorating in some strange way! LOL
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Aya K
Trad climber
New York
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Jan 14, 2008 - 09:34pm PT
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That scotch, I should mention, was only part of our Christmas haul.
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Jim E
climber
Mountain Road
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Jan 15, 2008 - 07:48am PT
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All you Northeastern climbers ever do is drink.
hey... wait a minute...
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GOclimb
Trad climber
Boston, MA
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Jan 15, 2008 - 10:26am PT
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Aya - that looks like a helluva good time.
And you *know* I'm not talking about the climbing!
GO
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pcousar
Sport climber
White Salmon, WA
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Jan 22, 2008 - 04:59pm PT
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Runmey before sport climbing, 1984, was all about the ice.
I still get a chuckle from the handsewn ripstop pants, and the pitons too!
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jan 22, 2008 - 06:07pm PT
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Back when Rumney and ice gear were whole 'nother things.
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Jan 28, 2008 - 01:17pm PT
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Smugglers Notch VT looking down Grand Illusion WI4+ 1-27-08 photo by Isa Oehry
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Dave Powers on the Long Hard and Sustained 3rd pitch of Called On Account Of Rains lV WI5+ This was definatly the burlyiest thing I have climbed in a few years. Glad I didn't hve to lead it;)
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Matt on the never ending 1st pitch of Called On Account Of Rains. 2-7-08 Steeper than it looks and sustained. Never any moves harder than grade 5 but every move is at the grade for a full sixty meters
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Feb 15, 2008 - 07:18am PT
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Beautifull bluebird day at the Lake. Its valentines day and my sweetheart is accross the ocean in Litchenstine so I have to fight off the blues somehow. Meet dave in the parking lot at 9;00am and head up to the cliff. It is brisk and clear, the sun just coming arround the corner and warming the ice. A party of colege kids has allready broken trail so the hike is easy. Neither of us feels like a big day so we have headded for the right end of the cliff,mostly 2 pitch climbs in the 4+ to 5 dificulty. We settle on Extensive Homology Wl5. this is cool as I have never done the route. wadeing into the chest deep snow at the base of the cliff we stomp out a platform and gear up. My lead so after a short thrash to the ice I head up a steep thin narrow runnel that gradualy steepens to verticle. Nice fun climbing untill the pillar ends at some bushed and I have to make an akward move left to gain a snoe covered ledge. I sling a slendar bush and grope blindly with the tools. My glasses are fogged up and I can't find any purchace in the unconsolidated snow. In frustration i stow my prescriptin glasses in my pocket as i am better off nearsighted and half blind than all fogged up! A few vigerous swings and some fancy foorwork and somhow I gain the ledge without ever getting a solid stick. All the lower angle stuff is covered with an ice crust and afoot of snow under that to clear off before you get a decent stick. Knargly snow cones and a lot of work. I thrash up a low angle ramp clearing huge slabs of theis crud as I go with my frontpoints scating on veraglass under the crud to gain a step curtain and hopefully a decent screw;) No luck there, my first swing cracks the curtain clear through and all the way accross. I keep moveing left accross the slopeing ledge kicking off big slabs of crud which lazily float the 100ft of vert to the ground below with a solid Whump! Finaly some decent ice, a few steep moves and then its back to clearing crud for 30ft to the headwall and a screw belay. Dave makes short work of the pitch arriveing with a big grin and ready to tackel the steep ice above. Its nice and sunny now but still cold enough to be dry and brittle as dave cranks up the curtains and Pillars. Grade 5 is easy stuff for this kid and and he is haveing fun headding for the steepest exit up a nice pillar gaining the trees 200ft above in short order. I clean the belay and launch into the pitch. After the first 20ft the ice softens up and the sun is doing its thing. Plastic and sweet, the sky so blue it looks allmost black. A bit more brittle stuff at the top and its a done deal. No one has done this one in awhile so we have to make threads for the 2nd rap. Awsome day. Dave on the 2nd pitch
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Feb 15, 2008 - 11:06am PT
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Next best thing to a cold shower is a frozen shower curtain! Sorry to hear that your sweetheart is away but thanks for posting the cool frosty shots. Just got a new pair of Superfangs on ebay that need something to do although the ice is a bit harder to come by out here in Cranktown. Were you refering to Lake Willoughby as the lake?
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Feb 15, 2008 - 12:00pm PT
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Good stuff there Tradman!
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Feb 15, 2008 - 03:13pm PT
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Yup, Lake Willoughby is THE LAKE! Climbers on 20 Below Zero Gully 2-14-08
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Feb 15, 2008 - 09:31pm PT
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Climbers on The Last Gentleman lV WI5 The Lake 2-14-08
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 16, 2008 - 09:01am PT
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Tradman carries the flag for Northeastern TRs, with no help from us couch potatos.
Love the Willoughby and Smugglers Notch scenes. Those are wild places to be out on a winter's day.
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Feb 16, 2008 - 05:33pm PT
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Chilloe shoot me an email an I will get you off that couch and up something big at the lake.. I am starting to get an itch to go have a look at Fafiner......
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 17, 2008 - 09:51am PT
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Thanks, tradman, kind offer, but I'm retired from ice climbing these days. I should look to see if I have a few ancient slides from the Notch, though.
Maybe once the hills thaw out and green up, we could meet at North Conway or somesuch?
cheers,
L
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perswig
climber
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Feb 17, 2008 - 02:26pm PT
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Despite the 'retired', good money says Chiloe off the couch would kick ice ass better than alot of us NE regulars. I'd take him up on his rock offer, trad - LOTS of history and miles there, it seems. Dale
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Feb 19, 2008 - 06:56pm PT
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perswig:
Despite the 'retired', good money says Chiloe off the couch would kick ice ass better than alot of us NE regulars.
Hoho, thanks perswig, that rumor is positively true so long as no one asks for proof!
In honor of tradman's contributions to this thread and the fact that I really am couchbound or at least deskbound these days, here's a 30-year-old shot from Smugglers Notch. Wood skis, Silveretta bindings, I think we was heading towards Origins of Intelligence in Children that day.
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Mar 13, 2008 - 06:30pm PT
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A wonderfull March trip up The Last Gentleman lV Wl5 single digit temps in the am gave way to perfect hero conditions on the middle pitches and a bit too soft for comfort on the top out. this is the start of Pitch 2. Photo by Bob Brandt
Bob Brandt following the 1st pitch rock traverse,
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Paulina
Trad climber
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Mar 16, 2008 - 10:23pm PT
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Today - the second time this season - I went ice climbing (yeah!). S. and I went up to Crawford Notch for a beautiful day: Silver Line, Elephant Head Gully and some climb on Mt Willard that I can't id right now.
No pictures, no great numbers, just a super day. Why do I post? Dunno, just feel really good and want to spread the feeling.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Mar 17, 2008 - 12:43am PT
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It's very cool that you NEice climbers are keeping the faith. It was drinks & nuts at a hotel bar, for me tonight. I hope I have an honest climbing note to contribute next month!
cheers,
L
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Mar 24, 2008 - 09:26pm PT
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Thanks to Hoss Julia,
I've got all three parts of this series right here in my lap.
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Mar 24, 2008 - 09:27pm PT
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Part one is from Climbing number 59, March - April 1980.
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Mar 24, 2008 - 09:34pm PT
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Mar 29, 2008 - 04:16pm PT
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It's still full on winter for some of us. We had Cannon all to ourselvs in full conditions on Friday. Constant spindrift cascadeing from above every few minuets. We had a pretty good bout with Fafnir but she won on the last pitch. It must have taken a hammering wed. and thursday in the sun because the start of the last pitch was baked out and delamed so we rapped back down and recovered my pack. We had gotten a late start so it was after 5:00pm now but we were feeling sheepish for retreteing from Fafnir with the convenient excuse that I forgot the rock gear so we felt we should redeem our dignity by climbing the Black Dike and glissadeing down the back side. Naturally we finished in the dark. Eric savoring the spindrift on pitch two 3-28-08
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Mar 29, 2008 - 05:50pm PT
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From a Northeasterner not in the Northeast today.
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Mar 29, 2008 - 05:52pm PT
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A bit past yesterday, Climbing number 60, May/June 1980:
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Mar 29, 2008 - 05:53pm PT
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 4, 2008 - 09:02pm PT
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Nice work, Tar, adding history to the ST archives. A lot of the old print stuff otherwise fades away. Photos from prewar climbs bring home the fact that "The leader must not fall!" was no idle slogan.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Nice Jolly Roger for the summit!
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Zander
Trad climber
Berkeley
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Thanks Tar,
That's some good readin'
Z
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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I'm out in in California today,
'Was in Joshua Tree yesterday & met George Hurley for the first time!
Chatted him up on some climbing history -he's a vibrant character.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 7, 2008 - 02:08pm PT
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he's a vibrant character.
He is indeed, with a long rich career of FAs -- still continuing to this day.
Here was George sporting one of them newfangled Patagonia pile jackets, at Rainbow Slabs back in winter 1980:
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TrundleBum
Trad climber
Las Vegas
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Kudos for the post TarBuster.
Classic pic of Hartrich at the end.
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emac
climber
New Hampshire
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Apr 16, 2008 - 10:40am PT
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Larry, I think you are right, unfortunately this New Englander has not been climbing in the Northeast for over a month. But still climbing. Here are a few (your azul water photo was a little thread drift, so I am just adding to it :-)
Mt. Lemmon
Superstitions
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 16, 2008 - 12:03pm PT
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Looks cool, Eric. I need to get out to AZ one of these years.
Thread drift ... Northeasterners tripping to seek the sun elsewhere ... could be promising.
Then again, so's the spring weather today.
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Apr 16, 2008 - 08:31pm PT
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Apr 16, 2008 - 08:33pm PT
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Apr 16, 2008 - 08:34pm PT
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Apr 16, 2008 - 08:36pm PT
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Aya K
Trad climber
New York
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Apr 16, 2008 - 08:42pm PT
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My camera is temporarily out of commission :(
I guess I could always bust out the old one...
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Apr 16, 2008 - 08:45pm PT
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...You must.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 17, 2008 - 09:23am PT
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The initial photo set of personality-rich climbing shots, and Macklin's poetic/historical intro writing, drew me into the article that Tar posted above.
Interesting perspective, linking the North Conway climbing boom to a tourism/real estate boom underneath in the local economy -- not too many climbing histories make that sort of connection.
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Apr 17, 2008 - 10:32am PT
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Sumptuous prose indeed:
"On a clear evening, sunshine slips behind the Canon Mountain backdrop like quicksilver dripping from a tabletop."
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Apr 17, 2008 - 08:31pm PT
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Guy leading Center Crack 5.7 Deer leap VT 4-17-08
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 18, 2008 - 06:54am PT
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Shorts and shirtless? Clearly an early spring outing -- Northeasterners know what I mean.
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cowpoke
climber
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Apr 27, 2008 - 08:57pm PT
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Not really a trip, just a few hours of spring sun at Echo on Saturday. Is this not the cutest lil' crag in NH?
A shot of Dave sporting the look of a man who is just days away from finishing a semester of teaching 3 writing-intensive (i.e., grading-intensive) courses:
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 27, 2008 - 09:20pm PT
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Dave does look like he just escaped. Things look almost reasonably dry up there!
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Ran into one of my heroes, George Hurley, out in Joshua Tree last month.
George, on the right, with friends:
One of the reasons he's my hero, is because he's been at so long, still does it still loves it!
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 5, 2008 - 07:34pm PT
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George and I were part of a small crew developing a new Northeastern cliff, some years back.
This was before the sport era, but even so there emerged two distinct styles of first ascents.
The "service" style basically aimed for routes that they hoped would become classic, or at least
enjoyed by later parties. This required a top-down approach not with drills but with wire brushes,
and much scrubbing, hacking or trundling to unearth cleaner lines.
George belonged to a different school, the "adventure" style of FA. He climbed mostly ground up,
on sight, and with minimal effort at route improvement. He seemed to care less about posterity,
and more about the experience of pioneering a new route.
I was more persuaded by the "service" perspective on that cliff myself, and grouchier than I wish
I'd been about George's different view. Still, it was a learning experience to watch these contrasting
styles played out not on a great face such as Half Dome, but on the microcosm of one tiny eastern crag.
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Good one Larry!
Got any pictures of George out there in action, from back in them bad old days?
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 5, 2008 - 10:28pm PT
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Not many, alas. The best is probably this one I posted upthread. I'll look to see if there's anything else.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 6, 2008 - 08:30am PT
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So in response to Tar's request for George Hurley photos, here's a SuperTopo exclusive photo TR ...
previously unseen by anybody due to obvious lack of quality.
The 1979 FA of Regression, 5.9 (5.8R).
George pioneers the big traverse on pitch 3, with unknown country above.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 6, 2008 - 08:34am PT
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George's partner follows the runout face above the roof on pitch 3,
then leads over a headwall on pitch 4 (FA of Regression, 1979).
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cowpoke
climber
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very cool, Chiloe!!! Offering any insight into the name?
Webster says: "The reunion of two old friends, one time Colorado climbers George Hurley & Larry Hamilton, saw the first ascent of this bold climb made on June 15, 1979."
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 6, 2008 - 09:08am PT
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Offering any insight into the name?
An inside joke that only Cowpoke and a few others would ever get ....
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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Thanks for that Larry!
As much as this forum benefits from its California-centric nature, and I am a Cali boy (I hail from LA), it is good to keep this forum's scope inclusive of national diversity: there is so much good rock and quite a rich array of perspectives and experiences to be found in this country.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 6, 2008 - 09:35am PT
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Quite agree about diversity, Tar. Colorado content is another thing I'm always glad to
see, for reasons our friend Cowpoke (also an old CO hand) alluded to above.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 6, 2008 - 09:39am PT
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Fashion statements from the era of leather-patched EBs: some dude in spring weather on Regression,
and George Hurley dressed more alpine for Union Jack, Cannon Cliff.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 10, 2008 - 08:54am PT
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One more shot of George Hurley (1980), more in the spirit of Tradman's chill views from this winter.
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Tomcat
Trad climber
Chatham N.H.
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May 10, 2008 - 09:04am PT
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Tradchick and I run into george everywhere we go.Acadia...check.Standard at Frankenstien he's guiding a young wealthy Quebecoise lad.Few weeks later he's guiding another wealthy young fellow with a Range Rover that cost more than my first house.George is the guy leading in some stylin'purple one piece suit.Last summer we bumped into him at the base of a new 5.10 he just put up.We call them George sightings.
I often giggle at the Lycra thread,I still have mine.Just had my cord knickers let out....They're "choppers" now...lol.
Maybe we need a knickers thread.
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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May 10, 2008 - 11:01am PT
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From CLIMB!
I vaguely recall this photo used elsewhere and captioned indicating the climber as George.
I definitely see the trademark shades, knickers, (plus the Robbins boots are a nice touch).
George Hurley sighting?
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 10, 2008 - 11:08am PT
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Yep, looks like George.
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perswig
climber
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May 10, 2008 - 11:56am PT
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My first thought was that was Lightning Crack, Cannon, but the buttress looks too small for Triple S? Somewhere out west, then? Dale
Thanks for the i.d., Tarbuster.
As well as making the pic look suspended, the cropping suggests your focus when climbing: the last pieces of gear, what's immediately ahead, and what's within reach to the sides. All else can be temporarily willed away. (Foreshadowing, of course, the tunnelvision of terror :))
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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May 10, 2008 - 12:00pm PT
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The photo that I just posted is Jackson's Wall Direct, Castle Rock, Boulder Canyon Colorado.
I love the way the photo makes the route looks sort of bottomless and airy.
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L
climber
Ocean of dreams....
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May 17, 2008 - 12:16pm PT
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Chiloe,
This is such a great thread!
The history and photos from BITD are what make today's climbing even more rich and interesting to those of us relatively new to the game...seeing how far we've come in some areas, and how far we haven't it others (and that's not necessarily a bad thing, either).
I've never seen an appreciation thread for you, Larry, and figure it would probably embarrass the heck out of you, so I didn't start one. But I do want to say that of all the postings on SuperTopos, yours encompass the spirit of what I think CMac had in mind when he set up this Forum.
Incredible photos from all over the world. Historical and current climbing TRs, mixed in with just the right amount of OT to show that you not only have climbing skills, but a remarkably varied and interesting life as well.
I particularly like the way you include Leslie, your lovely wife, and those great kids of yours in so many of your posts. Lots of "loners" out there thinking climbing is all about them; you keep reminding us of a different perspective, one that encompasses so much more beauty and shared experience.
Please trust me on this: There is a silent majority of Lurkers out there that feel the same way.
When you read what Roger Breedlove, Doug5.10 and Mal write about sitting around the campfire sharing stories, your posts are the epitome of what they're talking about. I hope for their sakes as well as yours that you will always be able to wade through the bog of nonsense here, and continue to share your experiences with this great group of people.
And don't forget: Back story is good! More back story!
Aloha and Mahalo,
Laura
PS. I'll be toasting you with a rum boat drink on the beach at sunset tonight...hope you and Leslie are doing the same. :-)
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 17, 2008 - 02:41pm PT
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Aloha and Mahalo
Thanks, Laura, your appreciation brightened my day.
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Tarbuster
climber
right here, right now
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May 17, 2008 - 07:02pm PT
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Three cheers for Chiloe!!!
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 18, 2008 - 09:34am PT
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A last couple of old GH shots for Tar ...
On Rainbow Slabs, hacking our way up a summer friction climb:
On Humphreys Ledge, some mellower route that gave us the idea for Regression:
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Islander
climber
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May 19, 2008 - 11:15am PT
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So, I'm reading this thread on Supertopo this morning (Monday) and who walks in the door of my office in Bar Harbor? George (fit as ever)-- looking to climb.
Will try to get some pics and post.
Jeff Butterfield
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 20, 2008 - 06:55pm PT
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Yo Jeff, got TR?
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adamiata
Ice climber
Fremont, NH
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May 20, 2008 - 09:12pm PT
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From an aspiring trad leader interested in climbing history, thanks for all the pics and articles.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 30, 2008 - 06:17pm PT
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Finally got up to North Conway today for the first time this season. Lovely weather on Whitehorse with Jim E.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 30, 2008 - 06:28pm PT
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 30, 2008 - 06:37pm PT
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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May 30, 2008 - 06:40pm PT
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Childrens Crusade? Or Total Recal??
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L
climber
A place with cats...bare naked cats...
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May 30, 2008 - 08:15pm PT
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Chiloe,
Please don't tell me folks are still using that...what is that piece of worn webbing with the rusted thingymajig? That's not an anchor is it????
Nice pix of Jim and that lovely purple rope. Those climbs looked like fun, especially that well-featured one.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 31, 2008 - 07:38am PT
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L:
That's not an anchor is it????
Well, it was one. There was a second piece of webbing on the same rig, but that came off in
my hand. This photo could go well with Crimpie's desert webbing cartoon ... Northeastern
black streaks are a tough place to be a rap anchor too.
We replaced it with some faded old tat we borrowed from a higher anchor on the way down.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - May 31, 2008 - 07:50am PT
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Those climbs looked like fun, especially that well-featured one.
Tradman called it right, the climb is Children's Crusade, a classic 5.9 face climb.
You're looking at pitches 1, 2 and 3 in the pics above.
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TrundleBum
Trad climber
Las Vegas
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May 31, 2008 - 05:41pm PT
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Wow thanks for the images Chiloe
(brings back memories for sure)
Tradman beat me to it but I took one look and went "ahh Children's Crusade" what a beaut.
Some great routes right there:
C's C, 'Ethereal crack' and 'seventh Seal'
The Picture up thread:
"On Humphreys Ledge, some mellower route that gave us the idea for Regression"
Is "Regression" on Humphrey's and is the "mellower route" pictured "Dedication" ?
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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May 31, 2008 - 07:15pm PT
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The little ripple to the left is total recal...
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 2, 2008 - 07:17am PT
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TrundleBum:
The Picture up thread:
"On Humphreys Ledge, some mellower route that gave us the idea for Regression"
Is "Regression" on Humphrey's and is the "mellower route" pictured "Dedication" ?
Yes, good eye for Dedication. Here's another ancient slide from that outing with George.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 2, 2008 - 07:20am PT
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(brings back memories for sure)
For TrundleBum and anyone else who has nostalgic memories of the Northeast, here are a couple
of more atmospheric shots taken Friday at Whitehorse.
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Ed Hartouni
Trad climber
Livermore, CA
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the snow "welcoming mat" as you voyage onto friction/slab... and is that Poison Ivy?
leaflets three
let it be
it's Poison Oak
or Poison Ivy
-1944 Boy Scout Field Book
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L
climber
A place with cats...bare naked cats...
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Thanks Ed.
All I have to do is look at that stuff and...
oh...
dang it...
well, time to dig out the Technu.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 2, 2008 - 11:50am PT
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I'm more afraid of that stuff around our crags than of wolves, lions and lunch-mooching mutts combined.
For good reason.
I've often had thoughts (not acted out) of agent orange-ing plants in particularly unwanted locations.
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Isa was haveing a strong headded woman moment a few years ago and didn't believe me when I told her those big green leaves were poision IVY. She didn't think it grew that big and what does a stupid stuborn guy know anyways;) . A while later she used it for TP OOOps.....
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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Hey L
I'm terribly allergic too. . .
but if you want me to scratch it. . . . .
he he he
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L
climber
A place with cats...bare naked cats...
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Tradman,
My sympathies to Isa! That would be a ticket to hell IMHO.
There's also the hideous way poison oak/ivy loses its leaves in the winter, but none of its ability to bring out the oozing rash with those sneaky bare branches. Not fair. Not fair at all.
Steve,
Too early in the day for you to be naughty! Why aren't you at class? :-)
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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It certainly did put a damper on our love life for a month or so. Between the rash and me saying " I told you so" it was a serious dog house summer.... Watch out in that whole area from VMC over to WG...
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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L
Are you suggesting that I have NO class?
Bwaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!
hee hee hee
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GOclimb
Trad climber
Boston, MA
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Jun 29, 2008 - 02:44pm PT
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Sometimes, in climbing, you have to make the best of what you're given on a particular day. Fortunately, yesterday, in addition to some limitations (such as the weather and slimy seeping cracks) we had some great assets, such as superb company, and excellent climbs.
So anyway, Chiloe, my friend Jen, and I, had a day on Cathedral. Not your typical late June day. Felt more like early fall.
Here's the view from the cars, first thing in the morning:
From left to right: Chris, Greg, Jen, and Larry. And above us all is Cathedral, completely enshrouded in clouds. Not the most auspicious start to the day. And in fact, it misted on us all day long.
To start the day, Jen got a sweet onsight lead on Bombardment (5.8):
And Larry sees how well his new approach shoes work for climbing, as he follows Bombardment:
Then I wanted to lead Nutcracker (5.10a):
Which I managed to onsight.
Larry toproped it cleanly. Here he is pulling the crux move:
As did Jen:
Then Larry led Chicken Delight:
After that, we moved over to Book of Solemnity (5.10a). I led both pitches. I *barely* managed to keep on the rock on P1. I had previously fallen while leading this pitch. So it felt good to check that one off. It's really superb climbing. Sorry, no good pics of that on my camera.
Then we said goodbye to Larry, who had another commitment in the evening. We got great eats at The Muddy Moose, in Conway, and then headed home.
GO
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 29, 2008 - 05:13pm PT
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GOclimb:
After that, we moved over to Book of Solemnity (5.10a). I led both pitches. I *barely*
managed to keep on the rock on P1. I had previously fallen while leading this pitch.
So it felt good to check that one off. It's really superb climbing. Sorry, no good
pics of that on my camera.
Well, I've got a few pictures of GO's lead yesterday and it was something to watch, thin
face in very slimy conditions (this looks like a crack pitch, but it's not). He stayed on the
rock just barely, which was more than I managed to do.
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TrundleBum
Trad climber
Las Vegas
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Jun 29, 2008 - 05:46pm PT
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Woot Nice pic's :)
Keep'm coming guys you really are bringing back the memories for me.
If the weather turns a little sour on you after making the drive up, a good rainy day diversion is the beginning of the Beast. It stays dry unless it's been rainng a long time or it's coming down monsoon.
Actually the start to the Cathedral Roof is a good rainy day thrash as well.
~~~~~~~~
Glad to see that 'Nut Cracker' is cleaner and been given the .10a rating it deserves.
(it was another of those infamous Cathedral 5.9's)
Funny I miss read the captions at first and I thought the last shot was 'Book of Solemnity'. I was looking at it thinking ... "nah Chicken Delight, with 'Layton's Ascent' visible to the right.
Ok so I slugged a few more gulps of Jo' and caught up lol.
~~~~~~~~~
Thinking back too Humphrey's:
Larry ever do the P.Ross route 'Soul Survivor' ?
That's a good one.
One of my all time memorable days out, ever, was on Humphrey's.
It was mid February and I was going to go ice climbing with Kurt Winkler. (Is K.Winkler still around N.C area ?)
The weather however was not conducive to our plans. It was right in the middle of a February thaw. You know those crazy times when you get 50 degree days for 4-6 days straight and the Saco busts up and starts to move with crashing freight train noises.
That thaw almost took out the covered bridge in Conway at the south end of 'West side Road'.
Anyway, Kurt and I went down to Humphrey's and did Wiessner's in our DBL boots. That was a such a cool outing and one of my more memorable winter climbing days in N.H.
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TrundleBum
Trad climber
Las Vegas
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Jun 29, 2008 - 05:50pm PT
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Passing thought:
Anybody ever do girdle traverses anymore such as 'King Crab' or 'The Big Plum' ?
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perswig
climber
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Jun 29, 2008 - 07:45pm PT
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Nice job, GO and Co. - the Book and! Nutcracker on such as dank day! Pretty brave - tricky balance and overcranked fingerlocks. Thanks for the pics. Dale
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L
climber
Eating sand on the shores of Malibu...
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Jun 29, 2008 - 08:12pm PT
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Aaaahhhhh! A GO/Chiloe TR...now yer talkin'!
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 29, 2008 - 08:24pm PT
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trundlebum:
Larry ever do the P.Ross route 'Soul Survivor' ?
Never got around to that one. I've done the more fashionable, less hard Robinson Crusoe
right next to it a couple or three times.
As for Wiessner's Route I did climb that way back before cams, towing some near-beginner
along on my one and only ascent. Last spring, Cowpoke and I did a climb right next to it,
George Hurley's Guides Route. I looked over at the long unprotected chimneys of Weissner's
and wondered, what was I thinking?
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 29, 2008 - 08:28pm PT
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Since people are likin' this ... a few last shots from our Cathedral climbs yesterday.
GO leading the second pitch of Book of Solemnity.
Jen following the same pitch.
That top o' the climb feeling.
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divad
Trad climber
wmass
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Jun 29, 2008 - 08:31pm PT
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Good job and nice TR.
Not the best conditions this weekend for climbing in the NE.
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L
climber
Eating sand on the shores of Malibu...
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Jun 29, 2008 - 08:37pm PT
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Real rock (even if slimy), good company and great smiles...makes up for weather any day, don't cha think? ;-)
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divad
Trad climber
wmass
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Jun 29, 2008 - 08:44pm PT
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That's the perfect attitude L.
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GOclimb
Trad climber
Boston, MA
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Jun 30, 2008 - 08:50am PT
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L said: Real rock (even if slimy), good company and great smiles...makes up for weather any day, don't cha think? ;-)
Absolutely!
Perswig said: tricky balance and overcranked fingerlocks.
Bingo. You just exactly nailed the crux of each climb. I just did them, and I couldn't have said it as well myself!
Thanks for the kind words, folks.
Side note: Switch my helmet for a cowboy hat in that last pic, and I think I'd be a shoe-in prize for the Tarbuster-look-alike contest.
GO
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Jun 30, 2008 - 09:20am PT
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If you really wanted the wet humid slimy experience you could have finished the day with the first pitch of Three Birches ;)
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GOclimb
Trad climber
Boston, MA
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Jun 30, 2008 - 11:48am PT
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Three Birches? No thanks! God I hate that climb. Smooth-as-glass polished feet slab with your hand in a slime-filled crack, followed by 100 feet of nondescript climbing. The only good thing on it is the ankle-breaker mantle near the end of the last pitch.
GO
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perswig
climber
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Sep 21, 2008 - 08:19pm PT
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This thread has gotten way too forgotten (Jim - no cross-post from your daughter's Whitehorse trip? Shame.)
I think my first day back to N. Conway since skiing the snowfields and GoS in spring? Weather was iffy but showers held off and Troy and I did Wavelength for the first time and I took him up the Saigons (somehow P1 was way easier than I remember and P2 was harder; why is that?)
Watched a pair loaded with clanging hexes and BIG packs spend 20 minutes bogged down at Thin Air P1 anchor at 1430. We're hoping they weren't "gunning" for the top? May still be there.
Last time I climbed at Cathedral was like Chiloe and GOClimb's day - the Book, in August, 85F+, humid; being a chalkless climber, needless to say it sucked. Today - MUCH nicer.
NE climbers - get some now. It's damn near perfect.
Dale
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divad
Trad climber
wmass
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Sep 22, 2008 - 08:13pm PT
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A perfect weekend at the Gunks.
Beatle Brow Bulge
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perswig
climber
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Sep 22, 2008 - 10:33pm PT
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Ahhh. Nice.
Colors starting to change down there yet? Didn't notice much in NH and what's started here at home is fading, not coming out bright so far this year.
Thanks for the NE bump.
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 23, 2008 - 08:18am PT
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perswig, divad & all ... could be we need a new Gunks thread for the fall, eh?
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Mar 18, 2012 - 12:23pm PT
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Drip dry Bump!
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perswig
climber
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Mar 18, 2012 - 09:00pm PT
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Steve bumped the first thread - might as well push it a bit further...
A showery morn made for a short day in Acadia today.
Gargoyle 5.8.
Beautiful spring afternoon.
Dale
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Chiloe
Trad climber
Lee, NH
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Topic Author's Reply - Mar 18, 2012 - 09:04pm PT
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Nice, Dale, glad you got out. We worked through the day
here, but went out for burgers, beer & watching the stars
come out on our patio. I can't recall such a summer-like
March day here.
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lucander
Trad climber
Shawangunks, New York
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Mar 18, 2012 - 09:25pm PT
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The weekend here in NY was great, no pictures thought =(
5.9's keep getting steeper every time I get on them at this place. Recent exploits and adventures include: Keep on Struttin, Casablanca, Insuhlation, Wegetables, Tennish (tr), Directissima, Vadre, and Filipina/Boldville. Gunks are basically in late spring condition: chalk on the good holds, no drips in the way of otherwise exceptional climbing.
DL
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tradmanclimbs
Ice climber
Pomfert VT
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Mar 18, 2012 - 09:50pm PT
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isa follows Celibacy a super cool 9+ that I lead bolted about 12 years ago and Isa freed. Isa follows it today after sking Killington all morning:)
Isa leads annother of our GU creations Wild Woman 10a
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