[shark]

M

T

W Up early and arrived at Red River Gorge 24 hours later 

T Raining. Late PM Despite rain headed to the Mother Lode. Nobody there in the bad weather. We did 3 routes on the Warm-up Wall

F Lovely weather and autumnal colours. Went to Roadside Crag – name didn’t sound promising but was great. Stopped at a nice pocketed short wall on the walk in and we did 4 routes there. Moved round the corner to check out a steep 5.12a classic – Ro Shampoo which was reputed to be soft. Keith despatched it and I got shut down on the mid height crux. Worked the crux and came down and managed to redpoint by the skin of my teeth. Solid 7a+ in my book. Next route was a real treat – The Return of Chris Snyder 5.11d. Steep with an unlikely lie down rest on the top headwall. A mile better than any UK Sport 7a. Finished off an easy slab route.

S Keith decreed it a rest day   

S Sunny and cold. Chocolate Factory. Crowded! My turn to start. Did Climactic Crush 5.11b which was a good technical route but not a good warm up. Some of the sections felt grit like. Then did a steep 5.10 on Chris and Sam’s draws. Ambitiously decided to have a crack at Icebreaker 5.12a up the intimidating undercut arete just right of Climactic Crush. Start went ok and got through the first crux – an unlikely deadpoint. Pumpy climbing technical wall climbing to a handjam rest then more of the same up to the sixth bolt and a second crux of technical and pumpy climbing traversing out left but ran out of beans. Dogged to the top. Keith had a go but thought the deadpoint was too aggressive for his injured shoulder and came down. Had a redpoint and put in another big effort  almost got through the second crux getting to the final sidepull but my footholds started crumbling and tried to peddle up but was off. Felt spent. Some locals informed me that they rarely saw anyone on the route! Belayed Keith on Snozzberries 5.12a which he sent. Was feeling broken and regretting having left the draws in Icebreaker. Went back fully expecting to fail on the deadpoint but dug deep and did it and got to the second crux and almost pulled off the traverse left but pumped out snatching for sidepull. Stripped it. A lot of effort and no tick. Was getting spanked by the place. Not just me either - we were all realigning our expectations.


Red River is living up to the rep. Some astonishing rock formations and its amazing how much rock is still unclimbed at relatively modest levels on even the popular crags. Settled in a cabin sited idyllically in quiet woods above a small lake. Good craic and gossip with Keith, Chris G and Sam G. Already met up with Mina and Ethan. Paul Reeve and Karl out today.   

Have a good day   

[Duma]

Where's that list of galpinos?






Oh yeah here we go

People I hate on Power Club
Coops_13
spidermonkey
Shark

[tomtom]

It'll be four 50+ year old men living in a wood cabin in the middle of no-where talking about their pension portfolios

[galpinos]

Where's that list of galpinos?

Oh yeah here we go

People I hate on Power Club
Coops_13
spidermonkey
Shark

You beat me to it! Good work.....

[SA Chris]

S - Quick lifting session before rushing back for the RWC final.

No ultra? I didn't do GO33 as I was still ill and forecast was awful, hope you didn't skip your run to watch that final..

[SA Chris]

M - nothing ill
T - nothing ill
W - short session before Reel Rock films. First climbing in about 3 weeks. Moving OK, skin shite though.
T - nothing
F - First of winter bouldering series. Was utterly rammed, too busy with too many young kids tasking part. Did OK, but crowds meant i didn't get back on some probs later in eve i failed on for another try. Skin flaying off in bits. Manage 2nd in veterans.
S - nowt
S - nowt.

[gollum]

S - Quick lifting session before rushing back for the RWC final.

No ultra? I didn't do GO33 as I was still ill and forecast was awful, hope you didn't skip your run to watch that final..

No and regretted it, as I did skip to watch the final, which was a bad choice. However, I have so been out and run/walked/crawled the course today. It was going well up to half way when we decided to nip off the route for a coffee and food break, which didn't serve me well. The last half was a battle. A bloody great day out though.

I think the next one I have entered is flat so should hopefully be a different game.

Hope you are feeling fit and well soon.

[kingholmesy]

Brent Fell - pleasant spot with the family about 2 minutes of climbing with only one climbing shoe

This almost exactly matches my experience of Brent Fell when on holiday in the Lakes the week before!

I remembered both my shoes but forgot the kids’ despite promising they would get to do some climbing. Managed about 2 minutes of climbing before the rest of the family got fed up and we called it a day. Fortunately the Langdale boulders the day before was more of a success.

[Stabbsy]

F Lovely weather and autumnal colours. Went to Roadside Crag – name didn’t sound promising but was great. Stopped at a nice pocketed short wall on the walk in and we did 4 routes there. Moved round the corner to check out a steep 5.12a classic – Ro Shampoo which was reputed to be soft. Keith despatched it and I got shut down on the mid height crux. Worked the crux and came down and managed to redpoint by the skin of my teeth. Solid 7a+ in my book. Next route was a real treat – The Return of Chris Snyder 5.11d. Steep with an unlikely lie down rest on the top headwall. A mile better than any UK Sport 7a. Finished off an easy slab route.

I thought Ro Shampo was hard (also short and not that great). I onsighted most 12a's I tried on that trip and Ro Shampo took at least 2 goes. There's way better 12a's there - the 12a left (I think) of Chris Snyder called Pine is superb if you go back to Roadside. Also, Too Many Puppies (12a) and Mercy The Huff (12b but used to be 12c) at Left Flank. Chainsaw Massacre probably the best at that grade at the Motherlode, but the other 12a/b's either side are all good.

If it's still accessible, my favourite crag was Torrent Falls - Bare Metal Teen at 12a was probably the most pumped I'd ever been at the time. The harder routes on the same wall are superb (Steelworker, Racer X, Big Money Grip less so as it's quite cruxy). That said, there's been loads developed since I was there - Muir Valley was new and Chocolate Factory wasn't in guidebook I've got.

[shark]

Thanks for recs Stabbsy. Some of those are on the radar but not all. We have all been finding the routes at all grades stout especially when the angle gets super steep and sustained. That aside having a superb time.

[cheque]

We have all been finding the routes at all grades stout especially when the angle gets super steep and sustained.

Everything at the Muir Valley is at least half a grade easier than elsewhere. The Solarium in particular has four or five soft 12bs unless they’ve been downgraded.

Funk Rock City is, if I remember correctly, an easier-angled crag than most. There’s a route there called Orange Juice that was popular with people who preferred tech to steep. It’s in the gorge itself and has a bit of a walk-in which might put your partners off but also means that it’s less likely to be crowded.

Military has a very cool wall of 12bs (Gung Ho etc.) that are in the “just keep pulling” category and will help you “git indornce” in much the same way that the Undertow Wall will.

[shark]

We have all been finding the routes at all grades stout especially when the angle gets super steep and sustained.

Everything at the Muir Valley is at least half a grade easier than elsewhere. The Solarium in particular has four or five soft 12bs unless they’ve been downgraded.

Have to agree to disagree. We were there yesterday. I ended up redpointing Manifest Destiny (5.11d) and both Keith amd Chris were shut down on Delicatessen (5.12a)
 

Funk Rock City is, if I remember correctly, an easier-angled crag than most. There’s a route there called Orange Juice that was popular with people who preferred tech to steep. It’s in the gorge itself and has a bit of a walk-in which might put your partners off but also means that it’s less likely to be crowded.

Military has a very cool wall of 12bs (Gung Ho etc.) that are in the “just keep pulling” category and will help you “git indornce” in much the same way that the Undertow Wall will.

Its all good. Not going on a search for lower angled stuff for the sake of the grade. Already resigned to just enjoying myself instead     

[Fiend]

resigned to just enjoying myself

 

[Stabbsy]

Orange Juice is superb, an absolute classic. I wouldn't call it technical (is anything in the Red?), but it is less steep. Still overhanging and sustained though. Worth going to Funk Rock just for that in my opinion - fell off the top on the onsight and never went back, but still one of my best memories of my first trip there. There is some other good stuff at Funk Rock, but nothing as good as Orange Juice. However, Skybridge Ridge is nearby and Super Dario (11a) and King Me (11b) are some of the best easier routes that I've done in the Red.

The wall Cheque mentioned at Military is also good. Four 5.12s in a row, all good - think I found Gung Ho harder than the rest, but it's got quite a cruxy start if I remember rightly. However, none of them are as good as Mercy The Huff that I mentioned in my earlier post - same parking as Military, but different approach path.

[SA Chris]

S: Keystone skiing. Lots more runs open.14 downhills with 25,000ft descent, 45.8 miles, max speed 36.4mph. Mostly blues with a small black run four times - similar to a hard European red

I like Keystone for it's lack of BS, just fast wide runs. Some fantastic tree skiing, but might need to fill in a bit first.

[Coops_13]

S: Keystone skiing. Lots more runs open.14 downhills with 25,000ft descent, 45.8 miles, max speed 36.4mph. Mostly blues with a small black run four times - similar to a hard European red

I like Keystone for it's lack of BS, just fast wide runs. Some fantastic tree skiing, but might need to fill in a bit first.

Yeah, can't wait for more to open! Had a v snowy October (44 inches at Keystone) but no snow yet this month (apart from the fact that it's snowing now in Denver...)

[SA Chris]

Head over to Winter Park sometime too, great place, I spent 2 winters working there. Some amazing tree skiing, and the BC gate is worth seeking out if you are OK with steeps and trees.

[shark]

A good proportion fall into those sort of categories but there are pockets, crimps, trad cracks, slabs, technical walls and bloc cruxes too.