The CragBaby

After two wonderful weeks in Rumbling Bald, I packed up the little Honda Civic and headed four hours to Rock Town, GA.  Good bye granite, hello sand stone!

Robert on Rumble at the Bald.

Rumbling Bald is located outside the town of Chimney Rock, North Carolina and consists of granite trad lines and an expansive boulder field.  I initially hadn’t planned to add this location to my trip agenda, but was pleasantly surprised when it ranked as one of my favorite bouldering destinations. The town of Chimney Rock is quaint and boasts a beautiful view of granite walls (not open to climbing, but it sounds like might be in the future) and a small waterfall.  Rumbling Bald is within 5 minutes of the town’s edges.

Best Time To Visit

• The best time to visit Rumbling Bald, like many places in the South East, is in the in the fall, winter and spring when temperatures are in the 50’s and 60’s (Fahrenheit).

Guidebook

• A guidebook for Rumbling Bald was released within this last year and might be the best bouldering guidebook I have ever used.  The book includes over 900 boulder problems and is very thorough with topos and numerous photos, making boulder problem finding quite easy.  You can buy the book online from CarterBooks or directly from the author Chris Dorrity.  Other than that, you can pick it up in outdoor stores based in North Carolina (for instance FootSloggers in Boone).

Camping

• Coffee Crumbs – If car camping, you are allowed to camp for free at Coffee Crumbs, a coffee shop on the main street across from Duncan BBQ.  They allow up to 7 cars, but when I was there I was the only person staying in the lot for my whole two week visit.  The coffee owner is named Angel but often the whole family can be seen in the shop, including the daily presence of 2-year-old, Adler.  If in the area (and especially if camping at this spot) please frequent this establishment.  Their food is good, their coffee delicious (especially the snickerdoodle and caramel lattes), plus they have free wifi.
• There are campgrounds (Creekside Mountain Camping and Hitching Post Campground) around but the cost is usually $15 – 20.  However, free camping can be found along Highway 9.  Whatever you do, DO NOT CAMP at Rumbling Bald as it is strongly prohibited and can potentially impact access.

Food / Drink

• Restaurants: There really aren’t any good restaurants in Chimney Rock.  The best available is probably El Sureno, the Mexican restaurant located at the bottom of Boys Camp Road.  The food is ok and the service horrible.  I must admit that I really did enjoy their Sangria, but I have quite a simple palette. =)
• Beverage: Beverage can be bought at the Ingles on Highway 9.  Or there is a tiki bar behind The Geneve, which is just the typical bar.
• Other Coffee Shop: Another great coffee shop is Willow Creek.  It is a store with a coffee shop upstairs.  The coffee isn’t as good as Coffee Crumb, but two guys named Frank and Don run the store and are hilarious (especially Frank) and kind hearted folks.  When my friend Darvell joined me in my travels, they let us camp out on the back porch of their store since we couldn’t car camp at Coffee Crumbs.  It was one of the best camping spots I have had on this trip. =)

Personal Hygiene

• Showers and a laundromat can NOT be found in Chimney Rock.  The closest town with these amenities is Hendersonville, located about 30 minutes away.

Rest Day Activities

• Visit Asheville – On rest days, definitely check out Asheville!  What a fab city, that I definitely rank in my top 5 favorite cities.  This liberal city houses artists, great musicians and numerous fabulous restaurants.  I suggest Wasabi for sushi, The Sunny Point for breakfast, and the Noodle house (I can’t remember the name) on Broadway.  A local band I saw was The Firecracker Jazzband. They were superb!

Other

• Movie Rental – The closest movie rental place is Ingles on Highway 9, but they do carry only recent releases.
• Climbers Coalition – The local Coalition for this area is the Carolina Climbers Coalition, who were instrumental in keeping Rumbling Bald open to climbers rather than being developed.  Please join and consider donating if visiting the area.

If any of you readers have additional beta, please feel free to comment or email me.

I have been blogging 2 years and today (December 1, 2008) received my first scathing comment.

Blogging has been a very positive experience for me that I started solely for the reason to better understand the technology I was analyzing at work.  I started more as a journal blog but have tried to transition my site to include content that fellow readers would possibly be able to use in their own lives.  And funnily enough the only reason why I write a climbing blog was to help me feel comfortable to write my business blog.  But having an online presence is quite bold in the sense that as a writer you are putting yourself out there, completely open to attacks by strangers, which (I felt) was the case with this comment.  Not only did the person not leave a real name (providing only beezlebub) but I wonder the validity of the email address.

The comment was left on my Climbing Accident post and is pasted below.  I figure  I might as well make a momentous occasion of my first scathing response. =)

“Such an unfortunate accident, made worse by the sure and certain knowledge that it was entirely avoidable. This makes the third accident in the last month that I’ve read about where the victims failed to understand how to belay, which is THE most basic system in climbing. The first was the double fatality at Red River, where the teenaged victims apparently did not know enough to recognize a suspect anchor and then proceeded to lower from a single fixed anchor without backing it up. The second was at Pilot Mountain State Park, in North Carolina, where a group of military guys made a rappel needlessly complicated and ended up dropping a guy 60 feet to the deck because nobody knew how to properly rig or back up the system. The third was this accident, where BOTH climbers again failed to understand the most basic safety system AND the belayer allowed herself to get talked into a system that she had never used, had never seen, and by her own admission did not understand. As if this weren’t bad enough, her partner didn’t understand the system, either, and nearly paid for it with her life. Not to put too fine a point on it, but verbally explaining your new-fangled system to a confused belayer when you’re already 60 feet off the deck is not a good way to stay alive.

I see these sorts of behaviors constantly these days, and they are inevitably the result of gym and sport climbers who lack even the most basic technical skills. I for one am sick and tired of reading these gruesome accident reports and finding that the common thread is all too often the complete absence of even the most basic skills. What comes next will sound hard-hearted, and it is, and for this I will make no apologies.

Rule #1: The belayer is in charge and is responsible for keeping everybody safe.
Rule #2: The belayer is in charge and is responsible for keeping everybody safe.
Rule #3: Don’t forget rules #1 and 2.

If you don’t know how to belay, then please, go home and find a new trendy hobby. I am getting tired of picking up broken and dead bodies. If you’re really proficient at climbing 5.12a, then it stands to reason that you’re also proficient at the basic systems. That you apparently aren’t is alarming. You don’t turn into a 5.12 leader overnight, and you don’t do so without traversing some pretty sketchy terrain that demands climbing and anchor skills that far surpass what you learn in the gym. Well, unless you’ve only ever climbed 5.12 in the gym or on sport routes…..

The only possible way for this sort of disastrous combination of climbing skill and belaying stupidity to occur is if you continually emphasize one at the expense of the other. And the only way that can happen is if you climb mostly in a gym or on sport routes and, therefore, never have to learn these systems. How else can this accident be exlpained? In 30 years of climbing, I have never seen or heard of any belay system that remotely resembles what is described here. What I HAVE seen repeatedly, and it’s on full view here, is an increasing number of sport and gym climbers who treat safety like a game of chance, who apparently have no meaningful skill when it comes to belay systems, and who are manifestly incapable of recognizing obviously flawed systems that can get them killed.

It doesn’t get any more basic than top-roped belaying, and my sympathy is at an end for people who can’t be bothered to take care of themselves. I notice also from her website photos that the belayer climbs without a helmet. Make a note: The heads on 5.12 climbers smash open with the same ease as those on the shoulders of 5.4 climbers. People who climb without helmets are morons who deserve their fate. Get back to me when the nice people in the ER have rammed a chest tube into your ribs and a catheter up your urethra because you were unconscious and unable to tell them where it hurt. People in the ER don’t think it’s cool that you climb without a helmet.

Finally, it was more than a little annoying to see the repeated references to route grades in this report, as if being able to climb 5.12 somehow ameliorates the obvious absence of skill that caused this accident. It is simply unseemly to go and on about what a bad ass climber you are while simultaneously discussing how you dropped your partner 60 feet to the deck. Take a hint: No one really cares what grade you climb. The only thing any of us should care about is whether or not you’re competent. If this obsession with route grades doesn’t make you look like a clueless chump, then it does something very much like it.

If any of this has made anyone mad, then good. It is meant to. We’ve all been lucky, and we’ve all gotten away with things that were beyond our control. But I am sick of watching stupid people do stupid things, and then failing to understand their complicity in their own stupidity. Those of you who mistake my objections with an absence of sympathy for the victim are wrong. No one asks to get hurt, and if you’re trusting your life to someone else, it’s not asking too much that the other person pay attention.”

Wow.  Phenomenal.  I have to ponder ..

• Who actually posts such writings online?
• What good (if any) was this person trying to achieve?
• And of course I wonder (from an website analytics point of view) how did they find my blog? =)

I have to giggle at some of the comment content.  For example, I love how I am tagged with the “sport and gym climbers”.  (I actually do all forms of climbing, though will admit am the weakest with trad climbing.) I love how I get ripped for not wearing a helmet while on a sport climb.  (I personally know only 2 people who wear helmets on one pitch sport lines. Is this practice more popular outside of the Utah?  I don’t think so.  I have seen minimal one pitch sport helmet use in all of Utah, Red Rocks, Red River Gorge, Thailand, China, and Canada. Even on the one pitch trad lines of Ireland were helmets a rare site to see.)  I love his / her aggression to me mentioning on one (and yes, it was simply one) occasion that the route was rated 12a. (I must contemplate if I would have received this aggression if I had mentioned it was a 10a.  I doubt highly I would have. Why do people have such aggression when a grade is mentioned? It isn’t a bragging point, just a number that is attached to the name that I added to emphasize that it was a harder climb and part of the reason why we were top-roping. People on other climbing sites ripped us for not leading the line, so I was simply emphasizing the grade and the point that it is still in my potential project range. Grades are a way to quantify goals, not brag. Hell, it is only 5.12a… it isn’t like we are talking about 5.14 or something.) But my favorite is his thought that as a belayer I somehow have full control over what my climber is doing.  Ha! I can’t even understand this line of thinking … but ok.  (I actually must admit that I have two favorite lines with this being the other, “Well, unless you’ve only ever climbed 5.12 in the gym or on sport routes…..” He he he he he… classic!  What the hell does “or on sport routes” means?  So, if you climb a 5.12 sport route it doesn’t qualify as a real 5.12?  How is that possible?  Only true lines are trad lines?)

Name-less person, thank you for stopping by and reading my blog.  Glad to hear that you have an all-encompassing knowledge of climbing and have never in your 30 years of climbing been put in a situation where you were uncomfortable and asked advice of your climbing partner.  Good for you!  Keep on rockin’ on.  I am sorry, but I have not met this level of perfection and never will.

After 2 weeks in Boone, I cruised the couple hours south to Rumbling Bald to check out its 900+ granite boulder problems.  I initially didn’t expect to stay long, but was quickly enamored by the abundance of great problems and the ease of access due to the fantastic guidebook.

I luckily caught Rumbling Bald in prime season, being able to climb everyday except on my purposeful rest days and the 3 days it rained.

Andrew on the powerful Kung Fu.  This is the only “pant dependent” climb I have ever been on.  The beta includes using a knee to balance to a crimp, but without jeans or pants with some type of friction it seriously seems impossible.

One of my favorite problems was the uber classic Rotator Cuff.

This highball was such a aesthetic line.  Though not difficult, I was still scared at the top and I was unable to top it off.  Pictured is Nate.

One of the most ridiculous, yet fun problems I have yet to climb.  The problem is named Wrestling the Alligator and includes beta of double heel hooks, double toe hooks and moving in a complete circle before manteling.  Pictured is Colin.

The necessary campus move on Dime Crack.  Thankfully, since the problem is a little tall, the climb gets easier as you go.

Dan on a new highball line on the Devil boulder.

Issa on a “fun” (aka impossible) problem.  I have been fortunate that every spot I have visited I have met some really great people who have become good friends.  This was the case with the Charlotte crew, in particular Issa, Joe and David.

I met Fire Fly, pictured above, in Asheville.  We attended the most rocking concert put on by the Firecracker Jazzband and then he joined the crew at the boulders the next day.  Good times!

And of course the obligatory photo of CB. I believe she was hanging out in the Fire Fly’s jacket in this pic.

The view of Linville Gorge from Table Rock.

Boone, North Carolina might be one of my all time favorite bouldering destinations with its gneiss boulder problems scattered amongst amazingly beautiful trees.  I unfortunately was unable to get into Hound Ears, but perhaps that is for the best as it may have resulted in me never leaving the city. =)

Best Time to Visit

• The best time to visit Boone is in the fall and spring when temperatures are in the 50′s and 60′s (Fahrenheit).  If it happens to rain while visiting, certain areas (like Blowing Rock) dry lots more quickly than others (like Grandmother).

Guidebook

• There isn’t a guidebook making the best resource for information being Boone Boulders.  I usually would post up beta here on the CragBaby site, but the Boone locals take great pride in the lack of available information and so I will definitely respect them on this matter.

Camping

• Campsites: There are a couple campsites in the area, but they seem quite pricey at $15 – $20 per night.  I heard that the Julian Price campsite on the Blue Ridge Parkway is very nice, but I did not stay there.
• Free Camping: There are a handful of pull offs along 221 where one can find free camping.  Or there is a great spot on Roseborough Road about 5 minutes past the Lost Cove area.

Food / Drink

• Restaurants: I didn’t eat out while in Boone but did hear that Melanies, located downtown is a good place for grub. (I actually tried to go to Melanie’s but it was closed the day I attempted.)  Also, the restaurant next to the Boone Footslogger (I can’t remember the name) is known to have great burritos.
• Beverage: Beer and wine are sold in all stores.  I did stop by the Sixpence pub in Blowing Rock and really enjoyed my night there.  Delicious brews with very friendly locals.

Personal Hygiene

• Showers: A couple minutes off Blowing Rock road in Boone is a swimming facility with nice showers, cost being $3.  It is a little tricky to find, but the Visitor Information right on Blowing Rock road can give you directions and a map.
• Laundromat: I used a couple different laundromats, but preferred Village Laundry adjacent to the mall.

Other

• Locals: Boone was (so far) the friendliest place I have visited on my road trip.  I seemed to always have a crew to boulder with plus I had numerous non-climbers stop and talk to me, giving me their phone number in case “I happened to need anything” while in town.  Amazing!  The level of hospitality made me feel like I was back in Ireland. =)
• Irrelevant Grades: I noticed that Boone climbers seemed to never talk about the grades of climbs.  Seriously.  They would point out a problem, give the name and everyone would try it.  I sometimes would inquire the grade of a problem after working it, but there was something real fun about just enjoying the climb without a number attached.

Sites of Interest

• Blue Ridge Parkway: The Blue Ridge Parkway is one of the most beautiful stretches of road I have ever driven, being rivaled only by the drive into Denali Park, Alaska.  It is seriously stunning, especially when the fall foliage is still visible.
• Linville Gorge:  Wow! Linville Gorge is stunningly beautiful!  Though a bit of a trek from Boone, it is worth every minute spent driving there.
• Downtown Boone and Blowing Rock: Both these cities have quaint downtowns that can entertain while taking a break from climbing.

After my month stay in the Red River Gorge, I drove to Boone, North Carolina with my friend Pierre in search of gneiss boulders.  I stayed in the area for two weeks, but Pierre could only stay one before having to head home to Montreal to work.

The scenery around Boone is stunning!  It is filled with these wonders of nature called “trees”, something that I don’t often see being raised in the desert of Utah. =)  I was there during the fall foliage and was daily amazed at the beauty of the area.  This pic was taken on top of Table Rock and looks down on the Linville Gorge.

The climbing was extremely fun.  I have bouldered a bit back home, but I really feel in love with bouldering once in Boone.  Pictured is Erich sending M1 on the 221 Circuit.

One of the best aspects of Boone was the friendliness of the locals.  It seemed that people were always looking out for me, plus I was lucky enough to meet a great climbing crew.  Tilly was the first person Pierre and I met and he was such a great contact, joining us on numerous climbing days and providing us with climbing beta.  Here is Tilly climbing at the Main area at Grandmother boulders.

Daniel working a superb problem at The Grandmother Boulders.

I met two sailor boys (he he …I have to write that as I have NEVER known a sailor boy) and we hung out for the weekend they were in town.  The climbing was fun, the campfire HUGE and the bickering between the two amazingly hilarious! Pictured is Chris climbing at the Mushroom boulder at Blowing Rock.

I met JB in the parking lot of Table Rock where we ended up playing cards that evening and then enjoying the hike to the summit in the morn.  He joined the crew of us out bouldering the next day.  Here he is pictured bouldering at one of the local secret spots.

Tilly topping out a heady v2 roof on the 221 Circuit.

Pierre on the Roof of Death at Blowing Rock.  The problem is aptly named as the top out has a potential fall landing on a huge boulder.

The back room of Panera soon became the “traveler hangout” as the wifi was great and the hours reasonable.  Mark (on the left) and I hung out on a regular basis during the evening hours and he gave me continual great beta of things to see on my climbing rest days.

North Carolina is in the heart of the Bible belt, which means that I often found myself in Christian themed stores.  This Christian theme coffee shop wasn’t really up to par with the coffee, but they were incredibly friendly with good wi-fi and late hours.  Plus, they allowed me to print for free. Not too bad if one can deal with the scriptures written all over the wall and the music in the background. =)

On one of my rest days I went to the laundry mat and just happened to meet this house pet, Secal the goat.  The goat was cute, but kept trying to “play” with CB, which consisted of Secal trying to head butt CB.  Umm, yeah.  CB wasn’t too psyched on that idea.d

And… of course… a traditional last blog post picture of CB.  Here she is snuggled in the car one night.  Ah, the best traveling mate ever.

Ahhh, CB is so cute I better put up two photos. Here she is in her layers of clothing at top of Table Rock.  Yes, she IS wearing a bright pink sweater which is easy to spot as she runs through the woods. =)

Boone will always have a special place in my heart as it was in this destination that my road trip started to turn around.  Not only were all my worries at home started to dissipate, but I learned to really love to boulder while in Boone.

Two young climbers I knew from the Red River Gorge passed away this past Tuesday due to equipment failure. They were on a two-pitch climb and it sounds like the webbing on the anchor broke. If you are climber, please consider donating to their funeral fund.

The Red River Gorge climbing community mourns the loss of two of its own. Ben Strohmeier, 18, of Hebron, KY, and Laura Fletcher, also 18, of Brownsburg, IN were killed in a climbing accident on Monday, November 3, 2008. The accident was due to an equipment failure.

Ben and Laura will be sorely missed, and never forgotten.

A memorial service is planned at the base of Whiteout in Emerald City (part of Lady Slipper) at the Red River Gorge on Friday, November 7 from 3-5pm. Miguel’s will be closed during this time.

A fund has been established to help Ben & Laura’s families with the cost of funeral services. You can donate from a link on the homepage of redriverclimbing.com or directly at this link.

Dear readers, be safe out there.

Ginley on Kaleidoscope at The Drive-By crag.

The Red River Gorge is a stunning area consisting of long beautiful routes that give a whole new meaning to the word “pump”.  The area houses an abundant number of classic sport and trad lines, with a handful of boulder problems.

Best Time to Visit

• The best time to visit this is the Spring and Fall with ideal temps being in the 60’s (Fahrenheit) and below.  Plan on rain during your visit.

Guidebook

• The guidebook for the area is “The Red River Gorge: A Rock Climbing Guide Book. 2007 2nd edition” by Ray Ellington and can be purchased at Miguel’s.  New routes and areas, such as the La Bibliotech Wall, are listed online on the RRC site.

Camping

There are two main places were climbers camp: Miguel’s Pizza and Lago Lindas. Both have great access to crags, located at opposite ends of the Red.

• Miguel’s Pizza – Cost is $2 a night to camp (for tent or car).  There are showers, in little wooden shacks that are naturally decorated with cobwebs, and cost $1.50 per 5 minutes.  Food is available, at reasonable prices, as well as a climbing shop for any items you might have forgotten at home.  As a solo traveler, Miguel’s is the partner solution as crowds of 50+ visit each weekend during high season.  The downside to Miguel’s is the noise, especially on weekends. Also, there are only 2 bathrooms, a problem I hear that will be addressed this winter.
• Lago Lindas – Cost is $5 per night for car or tent, but includes a shower.  The facilities are a lot nicer with heated restrooms, with three stalls each, and a nice indoor shower.  The area is a lot quieter, due to the fact that population of campers are a little older (older in this case meaning 25+) and there are a lot of couples.  As a solo traveler it is definitely still possible to find partners, but you might just be a third wheel.

Food / Drink

• Grocery Store: The closest grocery store is Krogers in Stanton, 10 minutes west of Slade on the Mountain Parkway.
• Restaurants: I must admit that I only ate at two restaurants during my month stay in the RRG, and the only one I will really suggest is Miguel’s.  Everything I tried was delicious, but my favorite pizza combo (that was thankfully introduced to me by Ginley) included the toppings of chicken (or bacon), avacado, cilantro and tomato.  Yum!
• Alcoholic Beverages:  I thought Utah liquor laws were strange, but I think Kentucky might rival us.  Kentucky counties are either dry or not, dry meaning you cannot buy any type of alcoholic beverages.  I kid you not.  Miguel’s, the main climber hang out, resides in one of these dry counties.  Luckily it borders a non-dry county and so a beer trailer is about 5 minutes up the road on KY-11.  Prices are reasonable.

Personal Hygiene

• Showers: Showers are a non-issue when in the Red as they are completely accessible if you camp at Linda’s or Miguel’s.  However, if you stay at Miguel’s, which has the outdoor shack showers, you can go for a real shower at the hostel.  The hostel is located off the next exit on the Parkway with showers costing $3.  Note that the hostel has extremely odd hours.
• Laundromat: The closest laundromat is in Stanton.  It is located just down the adjacent street from Kroger’s and is open 24 hours.  Note that for some odd reason they don’t sell laundry soap.  I don’t understand why they choose to miss out on this revenue generator.

The Red River Gorge Coalition

• The Red River Gorge has a superb coalition, something I truly wish the Salt Lake Climber’s Alliance would emulate.  The RRGC is on the pulse of what is going on in their climbing community and is actively raising money that is directly used to buy crags, allowing permanent access.  Donations can be made on their website or by attending the annual Rocktoberfest.  If climbing in this area, please consider donating to this cause!

Other

• Theft: Theft is a problem in the Red.  Do not leave anything of value in your vehicle at the crag; rather keep these items in a vehicle back at camp.
• Torrent Falls Registration: Only a handful of climbers are allowed in Torrent Falls on a daily basis.  In order to climb there you must register the day of climbing.  Registration opens at 6am, is open Thursday through Sunday and can fill up quickly.  After registration the screen prompts you to print the page, but you can write the details on a sheet of paper if a printer is not accessible.
• Dogs: Two climbing crags do not allow dogs: Torrent Falls and Muir Valley.  Torrent is lax about the rule, as long as you call Dr. Bob (the owner of Torrent) prior to climbing.
• Snakes: There are two venomous snakes in the area, the most prevalent of the two being the copperhead.  The snakes are docile but will bite if you (or your dog) gets too close.  They have been seen on trails, underneath crags and in the cracks on route.  Also, there were two big (4 foot) snakes (non-copperheads) lingering at The Dark Side this year.
• Transportation: If you stay at Miguel’s, you can completely get away with not having a vehicle and still being able to get to the crag.
  

Sites of Interest

• The Natural Bridge – a natural arch located in a state park across the street from Miguel’s.  Very beautiful and makes for a good run on a rest day.  I did the Balance Rock trail, which is quite steep, but there is another trail that is more gradual in vertical gain.  The Balance Rock trail from Miguel’s door to door is probably 3.5 – 4 miles (I think).
• Keeneland Horse Races – Definitely fun!  They are located in Lexington which is an hour drive from Slade.  Races only run in April and October (I believe).
• Bourbon Tours – I did just the Wild Turkey tour (which I thoroughly enjoyed) but there is what is known as the Bourbon Trail that takes you to each of the distilleries.  I hear it is pretty cool.
• Snake Zoo – Everyone seemed to mention the snake zoo at the rest stop, but I heard it was closed and forgot to personally check.  Might want to check it out if you are in the area.

If you have been to the area and have any additional beta (or see a mistake in mine), please feel free to comment.

After the Red River Gorge I hit the road again with my friend Pierre (from Quebec), with the destination being Boone, North Carolina and its abundant gneiss boulders.

My whole vacation, which started on August 1st, has been a little “off” with lots going on at home and on the road for me to worry about.  Problems ranging from moving, car wreck, dealing with insurance companies (and in this case it was particularly long taking about 2 months to solve), looking for a new house and new car, breakups, job interview, car problems while on the road, the climbing accident and one of my dear friends at home being extremely sick (I actually considered calling the trip for the last two reasons.)

I usually climb to forget about my worries, but even climbing became stressful as being a sole traveler means that I am climbing with new climbing partners daily who I don’t know and who I am unsure know the technique of the soft catch. Add to that the fact that the bolt placements are more sparse in Rifle and the Red in comparison to home, and I catch myself really NOT wanting to fall.  Falling is always scary (my head still being messed up from the broken ankle) but knowing there is a potential for a big fall on a belayer I don’t know is even more stressful   On top of all that, there are so many strong climbers on the road and especially in the Red that my projects are often everyone’s warm-ups, resulting in me really starting to wonder if I truly am a “climber” since I am unable to climb 5.13.

But the past two days have started to turn around with me being truly happy each morning and excited to be on the road. I think it is because a lot of these worries have started to clear up:  my car is working, the girl in the accident is doing real well and I am starting to mentally recover, my good friend at home is home from the hospital and it is just real nice not to be stressing about rope climbing. Though I’ve never considered myself a “boulder-er” since my focus has always been more towards sport climbing, I have loved my time here in Boone and perhaps the end result of all my worries will be me also loving this form of climbing. =)

I spent 4 weeks of my vacation in the Red River Gorge, Kentucky. I would have spent more time there as the climbing is superb, but after the accident I was in desperate need of a break from rope climbing.

Yet, even with the traumatic climbing accident, I noticed that when I drove away from the Red I had nothing but good memories. And though I am really glad I am taking some time off from the rope for a bit, I am excited to return to the Red to climb many more of its abundant classic routes at some later date.

The Red River Gorge icon is of course Miguel’s Pizza. It is well known in the climbing community and rightfully so. The camping is open only to climbers, drawing in crowds of 50+ climbers each weekend during main season. The food is fabulous and the location superb for climbing access. As a solo traveler it is the place to hang out to find climbing partners.

The mornings were especially beautiful with the brightly covered tents glistening in the frost. There were three areas for tents, all of which would be packed on the weekend. I was in the main area and the neighboring tents were literally inches away.

I was fortunate enough to be introduced to Ginley prior to hitting the RRG. He was extremely kind and showed me a good number of highlights of the Red while introducing me to a crew of folks. Here he is climbing at The Gallery.

The Red houses the largest number of strong climbers I have ever seen in one location. It was not uncommon to see Chris Sharma, Lisa Rands, Alex Puccio, etc hanging around, plus all the locals were incredibly strong, It truly seemed like the average RRG climber was crushing 5.13. At home I am stoked if I hop on one 5.12 a week, but at the Red 5.12a is a warm-up. I tried to keep up to pace, one week ending up working on 10 5.12’s, but the result was me just being worked all the time. Pictured above is my friend Nick, who currently resides in Montreal, climbing at the MotherLode.

One of the numerous classics is Buddha Hole, a climb divided into three sections by two large huecos. Pictured is me coming out of the first hueco and into the crux section.

This climb is so fun and harder than it looks as those plate-like features aren’t as good as one would hope. The moves are big and dynamic and it is just plain out enjoyable. Pictured is Eva-Lyn.

One of my favorite days climbing was at the La Bibliotech wall. The wall consists of all 5.11s with a couple 12’s and one 10. I went with a crew to focus on getting in some mileage and working on onsighting. It was one of the few days that I felt quite comfortable on the rope and got in 7 really fun pitches. Thanks to Elliot who took this picture. I wish I would have actually worn matching clothes that day. Oh, the life of living on the road. =)

As I previously mentioned, the falls are BIG in the RRG. One friend had to cut his rope after a day of climbing because he had taken so many big falls that day. This video is Zach taking a practice fall off Kaleidoscope. On this climb it is common to skip the last draw as it is impossible to clip, but the run to the anchors is still a good 10+ feet.

Part of climbing at the RRG is constantly being on the lookout for snakes. Within my first three weeks of being at Miguels, three dogs were bit by copperheads. This one bit a friend’s dog and was sitting under a climb we had all been working. I was especially nervous of the copperheads because I doubt CB could survive a bite.

I usually just worked on my rest days as I am fortunate to have a job I can work from the road. But on occasion went to check out many of the local sites. This day was particularly fun as Lynn, Gary and I went to see the Wild Turkey distillery in Lexington. It was one of the coolest tours I had experienced as nothing about it was tailored towards the tourist. They simply gave you a tour of their facilities, in its rough and rugged nature. Plus hanging out with Lynn and Gary, both currently Utah residents, was hilarious and exactly what I needed on this rest day.

I lingered in the Red one additional day so that I could check out the Keeneland horse races. I am so glad I did because the experience was one of my favorites. Everything from the diverse crowd to the classy nature of the event to the races themselves was intriguing. I attended the day’s races with a fun crew consisting of Andy from the Czech Republic, Lena from Russia and Tom from Germany. Tom is literally a traveling carpenter with his carpentry apprecenticeship requiring him to travel three years away from home prior to going back to school. On this day, he had worn his attire that distinguished him with his trade.

The best thing about the Red River Gorge was the community of climbers. I became friends with a group of French speakers, some from Canada and others from France, and hung out with them quite a bit, especially my last week. Sandra was one of my favorite people I met. Just seeing her made me smile.

I hung out with David, from France, quite a bit my last week. He was a great friend to me after the accident and I greatly appreciated his support. He did, however, strongly dislike my dog.

Last but not least, is the tradition of adding in a photo of my little one. My friend Elliot took this picture and it might be my favorite picture of CB.

Overall, my time in the Red was superb. I met lots of great people, I climbed many real fun routes, I saw some of the local sites, I had lots of time to think and of course I enjoyed some of the best pizza in the world at Miguels.  Surprisingly one great take-away from my time there occurred the day of the accident. I cut ties with my family a year ago and this past year I have always believed it to be one of the best decision of my life.  After the traumatic accident my initial reaction was that I needed to call someone close to me while also analyzing the relationships in my life, immediately knowing which broken relationships needed mending and which did not. I thought about my family, and I immediately still felt vindicated with my previous year’s decision. This confirmation was actually quite nice.  So when I went back to Miguel’s I instead called my good friend Shaft, who was the perfect listening ear to my sobs.

Overall, great times in the RRG.