New and Experienced climbers over 50 ##24

I went looking for water today at the Barker Dam area and didn’t find any so I must be looking in the wrong place. But I got sidetracked looking at the rock formation that I’ve been studying well over a year. I see a link-up of three routes on those three beautiful rocks. No one else seems to see it. I ask you who wouldn’t want to climb this? I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

there is already a Bob Gaines route on the far right so that formation might not need another one.

Meanwhile I had to stop and gasp at this wall. it always tickles me to think “I climbed that.”  An Eye For An Eye and A Route For A Route (10b) Houser/McCollum/Malloy.  WHO WAS MALLOY? 

and admire some new flowers.

Where you are standing to admire Eye for an Eye is right about the edge of the lake.  If you turned around you should be staring at it if there is any water in it.

Jan Mcwrote:

Where you are standing to admire Eye for an Eye is right about the edge of the lake.  If you turned around you should be staring at it if there is any water in it.

I am going to be so embarrassed if I find out that I walked past A LAKE and didn’t see it.    

Lori Milaswrote:

I am going to be so embarrassed if I find out that I walked past A LAKE and didn’t see it.    

It's been empty for a few years and I don't know if Josh has had enough rain to make a difference this year.  If you walk south from where you were standing you will find the dam.  If there is any water will be right behind the damn.  There is some cool old water trough stuff just on the south side of the dam that you can either scramble to or walk in from the Gunsmoke area if you just keep going past Gunsmoke.

This came off an old Canon digital camera I used to carry around. The metadata dates it at March 27, 2005. An Eye For an Eye and A Route For a Route is on the slabs just outside of the right frame of the image. Barker Dam, then still capable of holding water, is out of the frame to the left. Astrodome is dead center.

Kristian Solemwrote:

This came off an old Canon digital camera I used to carry around. The metadata dates it at March 27, 2005. An Eye For an Eye and A Route For a Route is on the slabs just outside of the right frame of the image. Barker Dam, then still capable of holding water, is out of the frame to the left. Astrodome is dead center.

WHAT?  That's the Astrodome?  Oh, man!  

I've been so busy getting to know all the areas I can easily walk to... and believed that the Astrodome was 'too far for you'... in my mind it is somewhere 'far away' and too far to wander to alone.  Have I been looking straight at it all along?  More embarrassment.

Ok... so even with all the rains, the only water I saw was the brackish water behind the dam, and very little of that!... as Jan mentioned.  No lake with sail boats.  

Thanks for the picture, Kris!  

Just substitute “climb” for “run “.  

It was so good being warm and cozy in Indian Cove yesterday.  Bob took this pic of me on Tarawasi Wiggle, shaking out.  I thought I had climbed Sweat Band last year but I guess not. Maybe this year?  

I kept thinking of Rich’s formula of “steep and easy”. This was definitely steep but not totally easy.  It was still a lot of fun because there are good rests and holds all the way. 

where’s Carl? 

Lori Milaswrote:

where’s Carl? 

I've been hanging around.  Checking in every now and again.  I sort of get lost in all the conversation about things I have no idea about, such as skiing, different areas in the US ect.  I go to Nowra in three weeks for two weeks of sports climbing so I'm trying to get fit; I want to get back to the shape I was in 5 years ago (in the picture) so I've been climbing four days a week, leading outdoors and in the gym and indoor bouldering.  About to go to the bouldering gym and try and send the problem in the video without cutting my feet!!

https://youtu.be/K0v0I14NcOY

Carl Schneiderwrote:

I've been hanging around.  Checking in every now and again.  I sort of get lost in all the conversation about things I have no idea about, such as skiing, different areas in the US ect.  I go to Nowra in three weeks for two weeks of sports climbing so I'm trying to get fit; I want to get back to the shape I was in 5 years ago (in the picture) so I've been climbing four days a week, leading outdoors and in the gym and indoor bouldering.  About to go to the bouldering gym and try and send the problem in the video without cutting my feet!!

https://youtu.be/K0v0I14NcOY

Holy moly, look at you!  

Where is Nowra and are you saying there’s no snow anywhere in Australia ever (for skiing)?  

Stay with us, Carl.  Don’t fade away! 

Lori Milaswrote:

Holy moly, look at you!  

Where is Nowra and are you saying there’s no snow anywhere in Australia ever (for skiing)?  

Stay with us, Carl.  Don’t fade away! 

Nowra is on the east coast. About two and a half hours from Sydney. A 14 hour drive for me. I went skiing once when I was 19 at Mount Hotham and found it a lot easier than surfing. Thing is, the ground doesn’t move all the time like the ocean does.
Didn’t get to even send my problem let alone do it without cutting the feet, couldn’t get the second toe hook to stick today. I impressed a lady who was there with her some by campussing an entire problem. Also get a V2 on the Kilter board which is set at 45°. Had a fun sesh. 

Carl Schneiderwrote:

Nowra is on the east coast. About two and a half hours from Sydney. A 14 hour drive for me. I went skiing once when I was 19 at Mount Hotham and found it a lot easier than surfing. Thing is, the ground doesn’t move all the time like the ocean does.
Didn’t get to even send my problem let alone do it without cutting the feet, couldn’t get the second toe hook to stick today. I impressed a lady who was there with her some by campussing an entire problem. Also get a V2 on the Kilter board which is set at 45°. Had a fun sesh. 

The Kilter is fun, we can share the exact same V2 from opposite sides of the planet. I usually set it around 20° and do 4x4s in that range of difficulty , I tried doing routes on it for a while this winter and found it too hard to follow the lights. Which v2 was it?

Carl is Jacked.

It’s been a few months since we’ve watched anything climbing related so I turned on Dawn Wall last night and made Tony sit through it. What a treat! (For me, not him.   ) With each viewing I gain greater respect for the achievement, especially of that impossible traverse, and, of course, for Tommy as just the most decent human being on the planet.

I’m still discovering what I love in the climbing world. Steep slab, vertical walls with thin edges and tiny crimps. And I realized last night while watching Dawn Wall… Hey! We have so much of this kind of climbing here in Joshua tree that I am fortunate enough to experience at a level of 9 or 10. Doesn’t have to be 15. The last route I was on really got to me—it was fun all the way, a challenge to stay still and focused through the harder moves. I joke about wanting to do a Dyno “right here” on a crux move when what it really requires is a meditative mindset and deep control to get through it.  Anything where you’re flat up against the wall is pretty exciting. It has me thinking about just a little bit harder….

Props to Kevin Jorgenson for his persistence on that traverse.  That wasn’t his thing but he did it. (Pic of Tommy) 

Watched that one on the big screen. same thing with free solo and meru. pretty special. lori if you have not watched Meru you should . 

M Mwrote:

The Kilter is fun, we can share the exact same V2 from opposite sides of the planet. I usually set it around 20° and do 4x4s in that range of difficulty , I tried doing routes on it for a while this winter and found it too hard to follow the lights. Which v2 was it?

Does your board keep the same grade at different angles?  I thought that some of the V2s and 3s were super stiff at 45 degrees.   Then I realized that they were supposedly the same grade at 20 degrees, lol. 

Lori Milaswrote:

It’s been a few months since we’ve watched anything climbing related so I turned on Dawn Wall last night and made Tony sit through it. What a treat! (For me, not him.   ) With each viewing I gain greater respect for the achievement, especially of that impossible traverse, and, of course, for Tommy as just the most decent human being on the planet.

I’m still discovering what I love in the climbing world. Steep slab, vertical walls with thin edges and tiny crimps. And I realized last night while watching Dawn Wall… Hey! We have so much of this kind of climbing here in Joshua tree that I am fortunate enough to experience at a level of 9 or 10. Doesn’t have to be 15. The last route I was on really got to me—it was fun all the way, a challenge to stay still and focused through the harder moves. I joke about wanting to do a Dyno “right here” on a crux move when what it really requires is a meditative mindset and deep control to get through it.  Anything where you’re flat up against the wall is pretty exciting. It has me thinking about just a little bit harder….

Props to Kevin Jorgenson for his persistence on that traverse.  That wasn’t his thing but he did it. (Pic of Tommy) 

After our recent bouldering outing?

I can for sure say that no longer having disproportionately huge body parts sticking out the front side means my climbing has changed! 

And, although I haven't tied in to a rope yet, I should be able to see my tie in knot now without bending over. Ditto for feet. 

I'm not any better at any of this, but this feels much more like who I actually am, if that makes sense?

And yeah, geez Carl.... 

That 19 year old that's still in there sure wishes I met up with pretty much any of you way back when!

Of course, I might have ended up with 8 kids by 20 different fathers.....

H.

Ward Smithwrote:

Does your board keep the same grade at different angles?  I thought that some of the V2s and 3s were super stiff at 45 degrees.   Then I realized that they were supposedly the same grade at 20 degrees, lol. 

All different problems every 5° of wall movement. 

My biggest beef with the Kilter is having to have my old person reading glasses so I can read the app when switching problems.

M Mwrote:

The Kilter is fun, we can share the exact same V2 from opposite sides of the planet. I usually set it around 20° and do 4x4s in that range of difficulty , I tried doing routes on it for a while this winter and found it too hard to follow the lights. Which v2 was it?

Ours isn’t adjustable. I don’t know which V2 it was my mate who had the app on his phone.  It was fun though. Maybe not all that effective to try it at the END of a two hour bouldering sesh!

Nick Goldsmithwrote:

Carl is Jacked.

Was. That was five years ago. I’m a bit podgy now. This was also before both biceps tendons snapped, so my arms look different. But I’m motivated to get back into the same shape. Generally I can lose weight (fat) pretty fast, my metabolism still seems to be fast as I eat shit most of the time, Doritos etc.