The Red!EATS, SHEETS AND LEAVESFly to Cinncinati, Louisville, or Lexington (closest). Hire a car and head for Slade (stick Miguel’s Pizza into google maps as a good starting point).
http://www.miguelspizza.com/ Stay at Miguel’s for cheap ($2/night camping, $1/shower token), “spring break” scenes, greasy pizza & breakfast burritos with an unfathomable number of topping options. You can also buy gear and chalk from Miguel’s.
Alternatively, stay at the much nicer Lago Linda campsite for $5/night, inclusive of showers.
http://lagolinda.com/ Expect scouse expat sense of humour.
Self cater at either. Miguels does food all day, all week. Linda does breakfast only at the weekend. Linda’s coffee is better (but that ain’t saying much – US coffee tastes burnt by default, and take your own tea bags!) The bunkhouse at Lindas (not advertised on their webspage – enquire via their FaceBook page) has a coffee machine and microwave.
Gas cylinders that fit European style stoves are hard to come by – think about borrowing a MSR multi-fuel stove or buy a cheap gas stove when you get there that fits the US only fittings.
Eat at The Rockhouse
http://redriverrockhouse.com/ - their burgers are great, and the Nutella brownies rightly known as "crack brownies" owing to their addicitive nature.
The Rockhouse also has a liquor licence, but check the percentage of the beer as I made the mistake of having a pint of strong IPA and had to hope I didn’t get pulled over driving back down to Miguel's! (P.s. if you do get pulled over – don’t get out of the car – this is enough provocation for a hick US cop to use his gun on you!)
SHOPPINGThere are supermarkets in Stanton, 1 junction down from the turning for Miguels – no need to stop at a big supermarket en route to the red, unless you need to fill up on protein powder (yep – Alex and Eddie made us stop….)
Get a “Kroger card” to get the best deals – you don’t need to register an address. They sell very good value steak. Linda has a BBQ stand to cook it on.
BEERThe red is mostly in “dry” counties that never rescinded prohibition! No supermarkets sell beer. Nowhere sells liquor on Sundays.
Buy beer from the “beer trailer” 10min up the road from Miguels. Don’t go on a distillery tour on a Sunday either – no samples!
American beer has come on leaps and bounds in the last few years – mostly super hoppy IPA style beers. Strength varies, but there are some special brews (>10% by vol) out there to be found!
I have been reliably informed that the bar at the Hemlock lodge has a bar and frequently drunk college girls. What happens in the red, stays in the red, right?
BOURBONKentucky is home to bourbon and rye whiskey distilleries – I did tour of Woodford Reserve and enjoyed it, especially sampling their new Rye whiskey?
Top tip – stay to the end and hoover up the samples the others haven’t touched! The restaurant at Woodford wasn’t that special though.
WIFIWifi is now a human right, right? Connectivity at Linda’s was patchy 2 years ago – maybe fixed now? Miguels bandwidth saturated at weekends. Rockhouse stable. Take a rest day and go to McDonalds for free wifi in exchange for a coffee?
CLIMBING - I guess we had to get on to the boring bit eventually!
The red is home to the biggest holds you’ll ever fall off – you’re gonna get sooooo pumped!
Lots of routes have perma steel draws. Some of the routes have run-outs. Some of the routes have perma draws, big run-outs, spiders webs and snake skins in the lay down rests. I’ll leave you to find out which based on the recommendations below?
Take a 70m rope, and a rope bag to keep your rope as clean as possible – the sand wears gear out real quick.
The red is traditionally split into north and south areas, with a brand new guide to Miller Fork out now.
There’s an online guidebook
http://www.redriverclimbing.com/RRCGuide Miller Fork – Not been; apparently home to loads of great 5.11’s.
All the following are based on personal experience, or stuff that Alex & Eddie did on our trip 2 years ago. There's some obvious classics missing, like Roadside crag (only opened up again this spring) and Jesus Wept (12d) at The Sanctuary. i.e. loads more stuff to keep me coming back...
North Area – mostly trad area, with the exception of Left flank, Military wall and Phantasia.
Recommended;
Twinkie, 12a – super fun juggy roof
Phantasia, 12d – less juggy roof, funky crux on pinches.
Table of Colours, 13a – techy blunt arête
Fuzzy Undercling, 11c – good warm-up
Reliquary, 12b – I fell off into a kneebar rest, recovered and made it to the chains. This was the start of my slippery slide into the way of Barros.
South Area – home of the Motherlode, and the majority of steep classics the red is famous for.
Bob Marley (you can easily combine with a trip to Drive-by):
Toker, 11a – jump to the jug to start
Dogleg, sandbag at 12a – BIG reaches/short jumps on a vertical wall
Also home to a bunch of hard routes like Southern Smoke - the steep section of crag these routes are on seemed especially hindered by greasy conditions.
Chocolate Factory:
Malice, 12c – weirdly techy. The big block with a cross on has wobbled for years…
Oompha 10a and Loompa, 10c – great warm-ups – go look at Pure Imagination, 14c/d while you’re there?
Solar Collector: Great on a cold day as it catches all the sun going. Massive Huecos you can sit in.
Buddha Hole, 11d - the crag classic.
Gold Coast: Less steep crimping.
Golden Boy, 13b, Black Gold, 13c - both recommended by Alex.
God’s own stone, 14a - apparently a crimpy 7C into 12b climbing and seems to favour the little fingered.
Darkside:
The Force, 13a – pumpy pockets – many an OS ends just below the chains…
Elephant Man, 13b – a steeper and more bouldery version of The Force.
Drive-by: one of the most popular crags in the red, and a personal favourite.
Check your grip, 12a – an intro to RRG stamina climbing
Beer Belly, 13a – sweet bouldery moves between huecos
Dirty Smellie Hippy, 13b – soft – get beta’d up and flash this? Use a kneebar (or two?)
Angry Birds, 13c – super stamina route. Not as steep as some; maybe use a heel-toe on the crux.
Easy Rider, 13a – very approachable for peak-ist fitness due to the excellent rests.
Kaleidoscope, 13c – One of the best lines in the red. Boulder, shake, awesome overhanging arête. Locals were talking about bolting an extension?
The Motherlode: - f*ck yeah!
Stain, 12c. Good OS challenge – crux right where it should be.
Snooker, 13a. Popular stamina test with a high crux.
Transworld Depravity, 14a. The best 8b+ in the red? 7b+ into a kneescum rest, followed by a long v8 crux and stamina 7c+ outro? Victory whipper mandatory.
BOHICA (bend over, here it comes again!) 13b – soft f8a. Juggy roof romp, with a 13d extension.
Tuna Town, 12d. Simply super – builds and builds to a sweet finish. Take the victory whip!?
Chainsaw Massacre, 12b. THE crag warm-up. It’ll feel nails if warm/sweaty though.
Purgatory:
Skunk Love, 11b. Hard slab – Yosemite technicians will think it easy. I dogged this…
Paradise Lost, 13a. So good. Perfect 13a for Peak boulders? 13b extension for stamina louts
Hell Raiser, 12c. Another bouldery route. Only f6c to the top after the obvious crux in the slopey scoop.
Shady Groove:
Far from God, the softest 12b in the Red? Great fun though.
Taste the Rainbow, 13a – adventure sport. Check the state of the fixed gear before committing – if the mank has been replaced with steel perma-draws, then play on…