As usual, we climbed two half days on our first and last days of the trip and two full days in between. We headed to the North Gorge on our first half day to complete two 5.9 climbs that I had picked out. It turned out that this was not my best decision. 5.9's were a bit much after sitting in a car for 8+ hours with no warm up and not a lot of advanced training. Still, we finished the climbs and moaned about our forearms that were already feeling pumped.
The two routes we climbed were on Military Wall:
- Moonbeam, 5.9 --led by Katie
- Sunshine, 5.9+ --led by Brian
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| Getting ready for the climb |
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| Leading Moonbeam, 5.9 |
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| Finally at the top after a psychologically intimidating crux |
After climbing we filled ourselves with delicious tacos and burgers from The Rock House and set up camp in the dark (per tradition) at Lago Linda's Campground. We managed to get set up before several raging thunderstorms crossed the campground. We were pleased that even our tents were protected from the downpour since we set up under the protective roof of an old horse barn. This area worked so well that we did not need to move our tents halfway through the trip which seems to be another tradition of ours much to Matt's displeasure.
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| Rock House tacos |
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| Our tent and hammock set up in an old horse barn |
The next day we headed to Muir Valley to climb. To our surprise we had been selected to receive a parking pass for Muir Valley due to past donations. With a 4WD vehicle this pass would allow us to park down in the steep-sided valley and avoid the strenuous walk up and out at the end of a long, tiring day of climbing. As Brian had bought a Subaru Forester this year we could take full advantage of the pass. It was fabulous. I totally want a Subaru now. Here's what we climbed our first full day:
The Great Wall:
- Glory and Consequences, 5.7 --led by Matt
The Bone Yard:
- One Armed Bandit, 5.9 --led by Brandon
- Cinderella, 5.9 --led by Katie
- Boltergeist, 5.10a --led by Brandon
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| Matt leading Glory and Consequences, 5.7 |
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| Me using some leg technique on the 5.7 |
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| Brian on the 5.7; it was a good warm up for the day |
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| Brandon almost at the top of the 5.7 to clean it |
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| Me leading Cinderella, 5.9 |
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| Brandon impressed by my climbing prowess |
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| Showing off my finger wounds after finishing the lead. It was a tough route, and not nearly as fun as One Armed Bandit, 5.9 |
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| Brian climbing Cinderella. The start of this route was awful with barely any holds. Even Brian with his height had to struggle to get started. |
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| Brandon leading Boltergeist, 5.10b with me belaying |
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| Brandon in a classic "Brandon-pose" reaching to get a clip on Boltergeist |
We were all ready for pizza at Miguel's after our climbing day. It's a delicious reward and a must-do tradition.
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| You can get just about anything on a Miguel's pizza. Brandon and I had chicken, feta, spinach, and sweet potato. Mmmmm pizza. |
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| Group shot outside of Miguel's |
With the advantages of the Muir Valley pass and Subaru we continued climbing there for the rest of the trip. On our second full day the weather was perfect for climbing--not too warm, not too cool, and not raining. Excitingly, we were able to explore some more newly developed walls that were not in our original climbing book. And, we must have been feeling more energetic, because we led and climbed seven routes.
Land Before Time:
- Prehistoric Extermination, 5.8+ --led by Katie
- Ryanosaurus, 5.9 --led by Brandon
- Sabertooth, 5.10c --led by Katie
The Guide Wall:
- Built for Life, 5.8 --led by Brian
Sunnyside:
- Jacob's Ladder, 5.7 --led by Matt
- Machete, 5.10b --led by Brandon
- Kokopeli's Dream, 5.9 --led by Brian
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| Me leading Prehistoric Extermination, 5.8+ |
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| Matt climbing Prehistoric Extermination |
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| Brandon leading over the ledge on Ryanosaurus, 5.9 |
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| Brian climbing over the same ledge with his own style |
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| Me at the top and very happy to have finished the lead of Sabertooth, 5.10c |
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| Brian getting creative to get past the difficult start of Sabertooth, 5.10c |
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| Brian in action leading Built for Life, 5.8 |
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| Brandon making good use of an undercling |
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| Hamming it up for the camera on Built for Life |
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| Looking down from the photographer's perch. Built for Life route was great for pictures |
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| Me hugging the rock on the way up |
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| Taking a break on a ledge and contemplating my next move on Built for Life |
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| A rare sighting of Matt looking away from the wall |
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| Matt leading Jacob's Ladder, 5.7 |
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| Brian on Machete, 5.10b which shared the start of Jacob's Ladder and was led by Brandon |
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| Me successfully making it over a series of ledges/roofs on Machete. I was able to climb it clean on my second try. Kudos to Brandon for leading this highly pumpy section. |
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| Brian finishing his lead of Kokopeli's Dream, 5.9. The rock face looked like it could be free-standing for climbing in an urban park somewhere. |
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| Brian re-climbing Kokopeli's Dream on top |
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| Matt looking like he's hanging on for dear life on Kokopeli's Dream |
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| Brandon pulling a cool move on Kokopeli |
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| Me using a high foot and the arete to my advantage |
On our last day, we headed to back Muir Valley before making the long trek back to Michigan. We were able to fit in two climbs before leaving around noon. We hit rain fairly quickly on our drive, so it seems that it was a good day to leave rather than dealing with a rainy climbing day.
Bruise Brothers:
- Ohio Climbing, 5.8 --led by Katie
- Send Me On My Way, 5.9 --led by Brandon
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| Me leading Ohio Climbing, 5.8 |
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| Matt waving from a nice ledge on Send Me On My Way, 5.9 |
So, another successful climbing trip is in the books. We hope to return to Red River Gorge again this fall for another spectacular climbing trip and time with friends.
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