Boulder Magic

Some warm-up at Chainsaw boulder began the day. It was wet in spots, and for me personally, I didn't seem to be climbing well. But as you see, one of my young friends is topping out as another spots.

And here he is again, polishing off another problem. Since various people are feeding me these pictures, and some formats don't work well with this format, size is either limited or picture quality.

Of the six of us in the crew this outing, one was female. Here she is trying Decepticon (V3). Never has a boulder problem had such an apropos name. It is very needful of balance, the set-up on the wall being the most difficult move. When you get it, the rating seems reasonable, but rarely do you get started. I have done it twice in a row in times past, but other times not done it in multiple sessions. Today was a no-go day for all of us.

So, you walk away frustrated, wondering how it could be rated such.

As I say, she was not the only one to walk away from this problem frustrated. We all did.

The next boulder has several moderates with scretchy topouts. This is a typical bouldering scene. Climbers resting, socializing, spotting, giving the problem a try, talking beta.

After those more encouraging tries, it was time to get down to business, so we went around the corner to Car Door, a classic V3. One of our crew mentioned, quite truthfully I think, that "classics" seem to regularly be sandbagged, that is, underrated. It is certainly true that these ratings have no resemblance to indoor bouldering ratings.

You can see that the crux of the problem is getting over a bulge via a difficult sloper. I think the name comes from the tendency just below that to swing, like a car door, but this may be arrested with appropriately placed feet.

We don't always manage to get the send on video, but this helps you to see the challenge. I was really happy about getting this send after many years since I had done it last. Listen to the encouragement of the guys. This is a really fun aspect of climbing. Really, you are competing against yourself, and everyone is cheering you on to be your best. That in term spurs others on to do their best, both because of the encouragement and the since of challenge, which I guess is a secondary competition.

Watch how much less trouble one of the young ones has doing it.

Just to left of Car Door is Crotch Rocket (V4). I had several unsuccessful starts, with and without a knee bar.

Crotch Rocket (V4) seems easier than the Car Door (V3). Our companion in the red hat anounced that he had certain special techniques and secret weapons. Here I am using one of the secret weapons, a knee bar pad. Before he brought it out, I tried a left knee bar, and I still have the strawberry just above the left knee to prove it. It wasn't videoed, but I did send it.

My right foot is smearing, but my left foot is on the smallest of toe pricks, supporting the majority of my weight. My daughter says that she can't see why anyone wants to go up the most difficult way when you could walk around back to get on top. My response: the challenge.

This move is just after exiting the knee bar. Starts this low to ground where you lift your bottom off of the ground to start are called sit starts. Frequently, the first move of getting off the ground is the most difficult.

Next we moved upslope to Book Shelf Boulder. Here the guys want to compete for first go on a V7 dyno. Check out a few tries.

This feels like it might have been the closest to getting it done. Slow motion gives you a feel for the struggle.

There were many tries.

Our female companion had to leave before session's end, so we neglected to get her in the group selfie. Here are the guys packed up to walk out from Book Shelf. I couldn't hope for a better set of guys to climb with, very decent and encouraging guys with a passion for life and climbing.

May God bless "The Crew", and may we have many good sessions ahead of us.

Winter Bouldering

On our way through Hampton, TN, I had to stop and make a phone call. The business there, which the locals would recognize from this photo, has many a yard sculpture. I always think that the Bigfoot Climbing Gym in Morganton, NC, should acquire one of the statues here to ornament their front entrance.

We were headed to Grandmother Boulders along the Blue Ridge Parkway. It is a beautiful area. The  approach is usually fairly short from an overlook just downslope from most of the boulders, but in winter after a snow, the gates are closed. It is still possible to get to the boulder field, because roads cross the parkway at intervals and the gates do not prevent these crossings. We walked in from one of these crossings into the parking area below.

At the top end of the lot is an unremarkable climber's trail. 

We had one member of our crew who was slated to come later, so we temporarily marked the entrance to the trail with caution tape.

When we arrived at the first boulder which is really a rock outcropping about 100 yards long, we encountered a skating rink. The snow and ice, freezing and melting and refreezing, had produced this treacherous approach to the boulder problems that I intended to begin.

I had seen this situation before, but just through that gap was an unexpected scene. The icicle at right is about eight feet long. These were the warm-up climbs rendered unclimbable.

We found other problems to warm-up on, and with exhortation to take pictures, the crew took many photos from above and below. The ice covered top outs were what really rendered some problems unclimbable.

If you are uninitiated to bouldering, the climber is secured by pads and spotters. The spotters' goal is to direct a falling climber onto a pad. Here you see me warming up on cold rock.

The sequence shows me topping out.

 When I got to the top, I spied one of my compatriots viewing and photographing the goings on.

Following is a sequence of the only girl to come along on this trip. You can see the two of the four pads that we had underneath the climber.

Does that mean that she didn't like for me to take her picture or that she was having fun?

These were easy top outs and obviously unfrequented owing to the moss and leaf litter.

The whole crew adds pictures, otherwise how could I be spotting and photographing simultaneously.

I like the perspective of this shot. It renders the climbers small and challenged.

After all of these easy warm-ups, we got serious. This next picture shows one of the crew attempting Joey's Arete, a V5. You start on a layback, heel hooking across a generous ledge. Then you reach to crimper on the arete and reposition your feet, the left on some tiny toe crimp. Then you stand up on the ledge, hugging the arete and reach for a small crimp. From there you make a long reach to a small horizontal crack, reposition your feet on the crimps and top out under an overhanging roof. The best of us didn't make it past the small crimp this day. We must go back.

 Then we moved on to another boulder not pictured. When the climbing is the most intense, you forget to take pictures. None of us topped it out, though two of us got close. Then we moved on to a boulder with just three climbs. Here the dog observes a little snack making.

The first problem everyone completed, though the topout was scretchy. You can tell which pictures I took. The lens evidently had some moisture on it, making the scenes have a soft, less than focused glow.

This first climb was a large layback crack.

The climb right next to it took some working out, with the smallest of crimps that kept us busy trying to figure out how to reach them statically. Several of us completed it, most after numerous tries.

The first move after establishing on the start holds was the hardest, making it frustrating.

At this point, three of our crew had to bail for other responsibilities. The rest of us moved on to another boulder. This next boulder, I had never been very successful at in the past- crimps and off width cracks.

Bouldering is quite amazing sometimes in how you can struggle so hard to get only a few feet off of the ground.

 When you reached this left hand crack the worst was over.

I actually completed this climb, too. In fact, here is the old man straining away at it.

Another hard climb only one of us got, and he was flat flashing the climbs this day. Then someone got the idea of traversing the wall. It wasn't that hard, but it was tiring.

I gave it several runs, too, in my boots.

I realized I was on camera.

Others were cruising it.

All worn out and satisfied with a good day of climbing, we went down slope 150' or so to the road to walk out. Along the road we saw this small icefall.

I love it when the road is gated. You walk down the middle like you own the road.

One member of the crew had not arrived when we took the picture before several left. One of these days I am going to forget to watch the camera and remember to smile, but there were plenty of young smiles to go around, and I think everyone enjoyed the climbing and the company.

I enjoyed the beautiful day, the great climbing, the crew that came along, and God's goodness to enable and protect us in the circumstances.