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| Red River Gorgeousness! |
We never know what kind of weather we're going to get, and we lucked out this trip. Despite some fears of rain, none actually arrived. And, the weather was quite cool for Kentucky at this time of year, which was much better for climbing than the more common heat and humidity.
We had a large group this year with me, Brandon, Matt, and Brian driving down from Michigan and Carolyn and John flying into the Cincinnati airport and then driving from there. Carolyn and John had to leave on Monday rather than Tuesday when the rest of us left. But, as they left, Steve joined us. Steve used to be a member at Inside Moves (our rock climbing gym) before moving down to Louisville, Kentucky for a firefighting job. Since moving to Kentucky he's spent much more time at the gorge and knows it well. He also climbs at much higher level than us, and it was helpful to have someone able to lead some tougher routes.
Per tradition we did half days of climbing on Saturday and Tuesday and full days of climbing on Sunday and Monday. Our lunches consisted of the usual tortillas with peanut butter and nutella. We also ate at both Rock House and Miguel's for dinner, both of which tasted spectacular as always after a full-energy, hunger-producing day of climbing. Rather than staying at Lago Linda's, we camped at Land of the Arches as they had bunks available for Carolyn and John. That way we didn't have to squeeze more camping gear into the car or into airline baggage for them. Sleep, as usual with achy bodies and surrounding noises, was elusive.
On Saturday afternoon, we had Carolyn and John meet us at the Lady Slipper climbing area on the Global Village wall. We waited for them to arrive and stood in line for our turn on the popular 5.6 route called Eureka. It was John's first time climbing outside, and we figured it would be a good, easy place to start. The climbing area also has a fun approach through two deep ravines and up some rock slabs.
Brandon and I were antsy, so while we waited we checked out a 5.10a called Kentucky Pinstripe. Typically we like to warm up with an easier route than a 5.10a, but we broke our rule as Brandon led and I topped the route. We had no regrets. It turned out to be quite fun and not too tough with several places to take breaks along the way.
Eventually we all made it up Eureka following Matt's lead. John did well for his first outdoor climb and continued that pattern throughout the trip. We were all rewarded with dinner at Rock House and setting up camp in the dark as usual.
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| John climbing outside for the first time |
On Sunday we did a full day of climbing in Muir Valley followed by pizza at Miguel's:
Johnny's Wall:
- Thanks Holly, 5.8 --led by Carolyn
- Two Chicken Butts, 5.9 --led by Brian
Tectonic Wall:
- Plate Tectonics, 5.9+/5.10a --led by Katie
- Tall Cool One, 5.9 --tag team led by Carolyn and Katie
- Fifth Bolt Faith, 5.10c --led by Brandon
Inner Sanctum Wall:
- Neitzen Hacktivist, 5.9+ --led by Brandon
- Karmic Retribution, 5.10d --led by Katie
I think the highlight of the day was Brandon leading the 5.10c for the first time, and doing it cleanly. His form was excellent and it paid off.
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| Carolyn leading Thanks Holly, 5.8 |
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| Brandon leading Neitzen Hacktivist, 5.9+ |
On Monday we decided to check out the elusive Chocolate Factory Wall near the famous Motherlode. I say elusive, because we've heard many people say they've had a tough time finding the area. Unfortunately, our experience turned out to be the same. The instructions in our guidebook proved to be useless. By time we found the Chocolate Factory and narrowed in on the routes we were looking for, at least an hour had been spent wandering. We were all feeling like giving the author a piece of our minds. Steve showed up only about 5-10 minutes later and, knowing the area well, gave us cheery instructions about how he had found the place in just 5 minutes. Grrrr. Alas. Here's what we climbed:
Chocolate Factory:
- Augustus Gloop, 5.9 --led by Katie
- Sugar Rush, 5.10a --led by Steve
- Chocolate River, 5.9 --led by Brandon
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| Carolyn and John climbing slab routes right next to each other |
Carolyn and John were able to climb two of these three slab routes before leaving for the Cincinnati airport. The rest of us then moved to another area of Chocolate Factory to try these routes:
- Oompa, 5.10a --led by Brandon
- Loopma, 5.10c --led by Steve
- New route not found in the guidebook. Steve showed us the route and classified as a 5.10a --led by Steve
The day was a good mix of slab, pinchy, pumpy, overhang, and juggy climbing with both positive and negative angled walls. During a dinner at Rock House we thoroughly edited the approach instructions for the Chocolate Factory in our guidebook. Thanks for nothing, Ray Ellington.
For our half day on Tuesday we returned to Muir Valley taking advantaged of our valley floor parking pass. We climbed the following:
The Great Arch:
- Dyn-o-mite, 5.9 --led by Katie
- Black Powder, 5.10a --led by Brandon
- Lip Service, 5.11c --led by Steve
We had done the 5.9 and 5.10a before, but the exciting part was that this time both Brandon and I led them cleanly and with ease. This was especially impressive as it was the last day, and we're usually quite tired by then. It felt good to realize that our climbing skills had improved over the past years.
I tried the 5.11c, but the beginning of the route required moves over three pumpy roofs that my body was no longer capable of on the last day. Brandon proudly was able to complete the route with some problem solving. It was the first 5.11c he had ever topped outside.
And that was the end of our September climbing trip. We broke camp and said farewell to Steve. We then made the trip home listening to Ready Player One to make the long drive more bearable. Despite the distance and the fatigue, we're already looking toward another trip next Spring.
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