New and experienced climbers over 50, #3

Señor Arroz wrote:

Yeah, that's the right thread. Sorry the link broke when I posted it and I never checked it. Original link is now fixed, too. 

How sweet, Senor... thank you!  I read the posts, and may try to connect with a few climbers there to compare notes... I can relate to everything they wrote.  Except that they are all obviously strong and committed climbers who are willing to take some bigger risks.  So what else is new? ;-)  
The "CGM" is a device many of us now have.  It's a second device inserted just under the skin that measures blood sugars constantly and transmits data to the insulin pump.  It tends not to be accurate, but it can sure give warnings of impending low blood sugars.  
Diabetes is an ongoing quest... most of us are free spirits and are tired of all the gadgets which only work some of the time.  I have a professional climbing friend who threw it all away. Got rid of the pump, the other gadgets... tossed it all.  But he also gave up any kind of normal diet.  He eats almost exclusively meat (ie. 'ketogenic diet'... moving towards 'Zero Carb').  And he is still just one shot away from an emergency.  

So, when I get to J Tree next week with the group... how much do I stop and announce to everyone that I am diabetic, that it is under control, that here in this backpack is extra juice, here is the injection kit and how to use it... (which several climbers on that thread say they do).  At the same time, when preparing to belay anyone else, I ALWAYS stop for a moment to make sure my blood sugar is solid.  That could cause questions.  And concerns.  And if I need to take five minutes to drink some juice... does that hold eager climbers up?  (some self-doubts, on top of being a beginning climber... sorta).  

What I am so impressed about on this thread is that we all are climbing hard, and with more skill, endurance and strength than anyone is supposed to do 'at this age'--and almost everyone has some physical or emotional challenge they are dealing with.  I just want to commend us all.  I've worked with doctors now for 30 years, and I know how the medical community thinks on aging.  And I see patients who are unable to function, who require greater and greater levels of medications, who could not imagine becoming active.  I really want to congratulate the outliers.  

I have shared my beginner's journey, sometimes with a lot of embarrassment.  It has been a real blessing to read those who are far in advance of that.   Yesterday I went to Pipeworks (an extra trip) because I wanted to send a 10d that I floundered on earlier in the week. I absolutely did not send it.  As I stood there afterwards... feeling completely baffled and distressed... I had to realize that this whole journey is kinda crazy.  There is much to be grateful for, and more ahead.  Looking back in my little journal, I was panting up a 10b a few months ago.  After feeling sorry for myself, I hopped on a different 10d... and sent it.  So.  Kudos to everyone here. This isn't supposed to happen 'at our age'.   

Dallas R wrote: We made El Rito, not a good week. Water system went south.  Snow, ice, wind, rain.  Balloon Festival in Albuquerque loaded up the RV parks, no place to stay.   Ended up at Heron Lake State Park 75 miles away from El Rito.  All the logistical problems we ended up with only one day of climbing in the sport area.  Wonderful day.  We will be back to this area when we have more time and no agenda.  Here is Barbara R at the anchor of either Cobb It or Que.

.

If you get a chance to stop in at the Ojo Caliente Mineral Springs the restaurant and wine bar has really good fish tacos, and the Chicken Enchilada isn't bad either.

Wish we had more time here, but we have scheduled events with the Grandkids.

Oh, man!  Dallas, Barb!  What a journey!  I'm looking at this picture of Barb on what appears to be a steep, crumbling, flaky, unstable rock formation.  Is it so?  I would expect to see piles of fallen rocks at the base.  You guys get to try out every kind of rock, in every kind of weather.  How wonderful!  

Took the daughter out climbing yesterday on some real rock. We had a delightful time. This shot captured one of her rare quiet moments chatting with me before puling the crux. 

Was supposed to do some climbing/leading in Bolton, VT yesterday, but rain prevented that. So instead, headed to MetroRock Station in Essex Junction, VT and my friend Jackie showed me some Drytooling moves. It was fun, intense and hard!

Lori Milas wrote: So, when I get to J Tree next week with the group... how much do I stop and announce to everyone that I am diabetic, that it is under control, that here in this backpack is extra juice, here is the injection kit and how to use it... (which several climbers on that thread say they do).  At the same time, when preparing to belay anyone else, I ALWAYS stop for a moment to make sure my blood sugar is solid.  That could cause questions.  And concerns.  And if I need to take five minutes to drink some juice... does that hold eager climbers up?  (some self-doubts, on top of being a beginning climber... sorta).  

Not being a diabetic I don't know how bad it can get nor how fast it can get bad.  Living with a hypoglycemic I know the warning signs of her low blood sugar condition.  We take precautions, we don't over do it, but still, we have been in some less than ideal situations.   I have taken enough rescue courses and outdoor emergency care courses to know that recognizing the problem early on and pre-planning care steps pays huge dividends, turns outdoor emergencies into less than ideal situations that are manageable.  I would discuss it with one or two responsible people and leave it at that, you are a responsible person and would never knowingly put anyone in jeopardy,  As a precaution I would practice tying off a belay so that should you have to it is done smoothly and quickly.

If you are climbing with hard cores that do not have time for a glass of juice or don't want to wait for the old people to catch up find a new group.  In spite of our slowness we have never been "left behind".  Good people are good people. 

Lori Milas wrote: 

Oh, man!  Dallas, Barb!  What a journey!  I'm looking at this picture of Barb on what appears to be a steep, crumbling, flaky, unstable rock formation.  Is it so?  I would expect to see piles of fallen rocks at the base.  You guys get to try out every kind of rock, in every kind of weather.  How wonderful!  

We first encountered conglomerate rock in Maple Canyon in Utah.  We have seen lots of conglomerate rock that would not be climbable because it does fall apart easily.  The people that do first ascents on conglomerate are about as crazy a bunch of rock climbers as you will find.  They spend a good deal of time testing holds to ensure they are strong, tedious route cleaning.  My hat goes off to them.  When you first get on it you will swear that the little rock you are stepping on will just fall off, it takes some time to build trust.  Then about the time you decide it's ok something breaks off.  You end up testing and double testing each hold and step.  Routes that are climbed fairly frequently are pretty solid, the loose stuff has all been found and removed.  You always wear a helmet. 

The folks that have been managing the El Rito area have done a fantastic job.  New hardware, shiny mussy hooks (aka top rope anchor hooks).  The trail is well maintained, there is a lot of erosion control work done.  It's obvious someone has spent a lot of time and effort here.  Where do we send donations for hardware?

Weather wise we are running from the blue stuff.  Near Roswell, NM tonight. We had planned on sliding into to Texas and climbing at Point of Rocks near Ft. Davis, TX, but as you can see from the weather map we are in for more rain, wind, cold temps. These are not good things for glampbaggers, we like 65 degrees, blue skies, mild breeze.  Didn't get to do the Flat Irons, rain/snow.  But did get to climb in the gym with Wendy and Bruce, excellent.  Had to skip the Red Rock Open Area in Colorado Springs, rain/snow freezing conditions, plus several days of rain that makes climbing on sandstone a no-no.  Only one day in El Rito due to WX and lack of glampbagging accommodation's.    Maybe we will get some wild caving at Carlsbad tomorrow.  Sitting in the rain without an outdoors activity would probably end badly, I own guns.

Hey Dallas, High of 28 here today and about 6" of wet, heavy snow on the ground. Here's a link to Velvet Elvis, a Flatirons route with a crazy traverse on uncharacteristic cobbles.

https://www.mountainproject.com/route/105751474/velvet-elvis?method=dropdown&query=velvet%20elvis&search=1&type=route

I watched a Nova episode on live volcanoes last night and immediately thought of Constine.  A new challenge... rappel into live volcano.  It has your name written all over it.  If you go, I'll go.    Or at least I'll stand on the edge and watch. 

wendy weiss wrote: Hey Dallas, High of 28 here today and about 6" of wet, heavy snow on the ground. Here's a link to Velvet Elvis, a Flatirons route with a crazy traverse on uncharacteristic cobbles.

Wendy you are inspirational.  The fact that you would think that I could EVER do a 5.11 is inspiring. 

Dallas R wrote:

Wendy you are inspirational.  The fact that you would think that I could EVER do a 5.11 is inspiring. 

The traverse itself is pretty easy and well-protected. As I recall (from many years ago), the 11a pitch (which Bruce and I both took a short fall on) is thin face climbing with just one crux move. By the time you get back here, Barb will be good to lead it.  

Never encourage drone selfies in live volcanoes......

Read the last post about old people with "mental and physical" challenges and all that weather jazz this morning.....needed a laugh........here's my (non-climbing) trip report.

After 9" flooding rains the logical thing to do is try to hunt.......

We climbed into stands Sat morning after navigating washed out and muddy roads. Being underdressed for conditions was the theme for the morning. We all had plenty of warm gear but left most of it in the trucks based on forecasted high temps. Of course overcast skies and light easterly winds made for wind chills in the thirties......

Sun came out after lunch and it was pretty pleasant. I decided to try to get to a stand I didn't feel comfortable trying to access in the dark after a flood (good thing I didn't) after wading 10" deep water for a 1/4 mile I climbed a stand that I could see the other one from. Decided to sit there.....(not because I would have had to keep wading but because I'm a badass)
A young buck came within range but he was too young to shoot. I watched him for a while and he went to join some does about a half mile away.

Sank a 3/4 ton 4wd to the front axle (forgot to take a photo) while retrieving a camera that had been submerged....pulled it out with a half ton 4wd, minor inconvenience, got these cool pics.


At no time did I let my physical (or mental) infirmities enter my mind.....
probably because I was having too much fun. I've taught my children well, my youngest son and son-in-law were grinning the whole time......the tradition of "suffering is fun" is not lost on them.

John Barritt wrote: Never encourage drone selfies in live volcanoes......

Read the last post about old people with "mental and physical" challenges and all that weather jazz this morning.....needed a laugh........here's my (non-climbing) trip report.

After 9" flooding rains the logical thing to do is try to hunt.......

We climbed into stands Sat morning after navigating washed out and muddy roads. Being underdressed for conditions was the theme for the morning. We all had plenty of warm gear but left most of it in the trucks based on forecasted high temps. Of course overcast skies and light easterly winds made for wind chills in the thirties......

Sun came out after lunch and it was pretty pleasant. I decided to try to get to a stand I didn't feel comfortable trying to access in the dark after a flood (good thing I didn't) after wading 10" deep water for a 1/4 mile I climbed a stand that I could see the other one from. Decided to sit there.....(not because I would have had to keep wading but because I'm a badass)

A young buck came within range but he was too young to shoot. I watched him for a while and he went to join some does about a half mile away.

Sank a 3/4 ton 4wd to the front axle (forgot to take a photo) while retrieving a camera that had been submerged....pulled it out with a half ton 4wd, minor inconvenience, got these cool pics.

At no time did I let my physical (or mental) infirmities enter my mind.....
probably because I was having too much fun. I've taught my children well, my youngest son and son-in-law were grinning the whole time......the tradition of "suffering is fun" is not lost on them.

I love your pictures, John!  Thank you for taking the time to post these!!!  What beauty!  
But one little unclarity... are you saying you drove a 3/4 ton 4wd into a lake to fish out a camera?  And then pulled it out with a half ton 4wd?  Maybe I just answered my own question... the 3/4 ton got stuck in the lake?  It's not the camera you pulled out... it's the truck?

Physical infirmities.  Baaaahhhhh. 

Yes, it was the truck that was stuck...... ;) not the camera....... 

John Barritt wrote: Sank a 3/4 ton 4wd to the front axle (forgot to take a photo) while retrieving a camera that had been submerged....pulled it out with a half ton 4wd, minor inconvenience, got these cool pics.

At no time did I let my physical (or mental) infirmities enter my mind.....
probably because I was having too much fun. I've taught my children well, my youngest son and son-in-law were grinning the whole time......the tradition of "suffering is fun" is not lost on them.

And people wonder why I carry two shovels in the bed of my pickup, it's so I can have help getting unstuck. 

Life is full of adversity.  Most of my greatest adventures involved cold feet.

I scaled my nemesis today.  In no way a true send, but with lots of shouting and coaching I got there. On Saturday I wrote in my journal “miserable horrible route. Only a sadist would set this.” Harumpster if you’re checking in, hop on this and tell me what you see. And would we ever encounter something like this outdoors?

My first multipitch, on a trad follow! I actually greatly enjoyed it, even if I was so scared I almost went panic mode, at one point. I enjoyed doing a for real follow, cleaning the gear on the way up. Bigass two rope rap for the first long part to the pitch one ledge,then a second rap down. Easily the longest rap, so far, and the most height off the ground also!

https://www.mountainproject.com/route/105790350/super-slab

But first, on Friday, I got to meet one of our homies! We went on some easy stuff so my partner could make sure I could climb our multi the next day. Heaps of fun! I don't exactly have much in the "easy" category at home.

Tom, yes, our Tom, belaying my partner. Such a great guy! I'm so glad I got to meet one of our crew. He's a good climber too, but, tired woman wasn't thinking and didn't get much for pictures.


Me, climbing I dunno what. That's how far out my ass has to hang to get a dumbass knee to let me get a leg...anywhere.


Rich? I was soooooo thinking of you ("protect the second on a traverse!") This is the second pitch, a traverse, easy, but not much protection, if you're a noob like me. My leader did a great job, but it still gave me pause, staring across the horizontal expanse....with the vertical block at the end. I have good reason to fear pendulum swings. And I was following it. Crap. It took a bit to just suck it up and get it done, especially when it was time to clean the last piece. Calm down. Its just a lots of bruises fall, even if you manage to fall, not a break stuff one. You've had bigger falls in the  gym. On top rope. Sheesh. Spot hand and footholds. Think it through. Picture it. Launch. Done. YAY!!! You just managed a 5.4ish, you silly woman...  :-)



Thanks, all. Every time I've hit one of these "first times" I have been very well aware of all the good folks who helped me get to this spot, and continue to cheer me on.

Thanks so much. Truly!

Best, Helen

Had a great time climbing with you Helen and it was a pleasure to meet meet you. You definitely picked a cold morning for Super Slab.

Old lady H wrote: My first multipitch, on a trad follow! 

Helen you are in one of our most memorable places.  Tell me, is our little friend still hanging out in the visitor center?


Picture of us while volunteering at the visitor center yurt.

It's a bit of a hike but you will soooo have to do your first multi-pitch lead climb on Marsupial, Koala, Round River.  If you do Round Here and Round There next door take something to extend the anchor out, they are non-standard anchors.

Then if you are totally nuts as Barbara you can walk out on the end of this point at the top of Misery Ridge and get a really high photo.  I made her rope up, even carried the rope and gear up Misery Ridge to make sure she was safe. 


Should you find romance during your trip you will definitely have to find the Kissing Turtles Rock.


I am so excited for you, have a great time.

P.S.  It's an omen, Barbara found a volunteer job at Cove Palisades  36 miles north of there as Kayak River Guides.  We will have to put in for that.  

Lori Milas wrote: I scaled my nemesis today.  In no way a true send, but with lots of shouting and coaching I got there. On Saturday I wrote in my journal “miserable horrible route. Only a sadist would set this.” Harumpster if you’re checking in, hop on this and tell me what you see. And would we ever encounter something like this outdoors?

Lori,

Ah, sloper-jugs. We have holds not unlike this in our gym. Hard to tell, but these look maybe somewhat more positive than ours. Ours, also black, consist of a lighter grayish sloping pinch rail that protrudes from a darker slick shiny blacker bowling ball-looking thing. Color pattern is very similar to the picture but structure is a bit different.  Most folks really hate those holds. My default strategy when tackling them is to pull through and then mantle off the rail. That seems to work for the hands. Smearing on the "bowling ball"  section though is really tricky. Of course, they set moves to make you do that. Feels really ice-slick sometimes and other times ok.  Weird.

Old lady H wrote: My first multipitch, on a trad follow! I actually greatly enjoyed it, even if I was so scared I almost went panic mode, at one point. I enjoyed doing a for real follow, cleaning the gear on the way up. Bigass two rope rap for the first long part to the pitch one ledge,then a second rap down. Easily the longest rap, so far, and the most height off the ground also!

https://www.mountainproject.com/route/105790350/super-slab

But first, on Friday, I got to meet one of our homies! We went on some easy stuff so my partner could make sure I could climb our multi the next day. Heaps of fun! I don't exactly have much in the "easy" category at home.

Tom, yes, our Tom, belaying my partner. Such a great guy! I'm so glad I got to meet one of our crew. He's a good climber too, but, tired woman wasn't thinking and didn't get much for pictures.

Me, climbing I dunno what. That's how far out my ass has to hang to get a dumbass knee to let me get a leg...anywhere.

Rich? I was soooooo thinking of you ("protect the second on a traverse!") This is the second pitch, a traverse, easy, but not much protection, if you're a noob like me. My leader did a great job, but it still gave me pause, staring across the horizontal expanse....with the vertical block at the end. I have good reason to fear pendulum swings. And I was following it. Crap. It took a bit to just suck it up and get it done, especially when it was time to clean the last piece. Calm down. Its just a lots of bruises fall, even if you manage to fall, not a break stuff one. You've had bigger falls in the  gym. On top rope. Sheesh. Spot hand and footholds. Think it through. Picture it. Launch. Done. YAY!!! You just managed a 5.4ish, you silly woman...  :-)

Thanks, all. Every time I've hit one of these "first times" I have been very well aware of all the good folks who helped me get to this spot, and continue to cheer me on.

Thanks so much. Truly!

Best, Helen

Awesome job, way to go Helen!! 

Man, that slab looks beautiful!

Old lady H wrote: My first multipitch, on a trad follow! I actually greatly enjoyed it, even if I was so scared I almost went panic mode, at one point. I enjoyed doing a for real follow, cleaning the gear on the way up. Bigass two rope rap for the first long part to the pitch one ledge,then a second rap down. Easily the longest rap, so far, and the most height off the ground also!

https://www.mountainproject.com/route/105790350/super-slab

But first, on Friday, I got to meet one of our homies! We went on some easy stuff so my partner could make sure I could climb our multi the next day. Heaps of fun! I don't exactly have much in the "easy" category at home.

Tom, yes, our Tom, belaying my partner. Such a great guy! I'm so glad I got to meet one of our crew. He's a good climber too, but, tired woman wasn't thinking and didn't get much for pictures.

Me, climbing I dunno what. That's how far out my ass has to hang to get a dumbass knee to let me get a leg...anywhere.

Rich? I was soooooo thinking of you ("protect the second on a traverse!") This is the second pitch, a traverse, easy, but not much protection, if you're a noob like me. My leader did a great job, but it still gave me pause, staring across the horizontal expanse....with the vertical block at the end. I have good reason to fear pendulum swings. And I was following it. Crap. It took a bit to just suck it up and get it done, especially when it was time to clean the last piece. Calm down. Its just a lots of bruises fall, even if you manage to fall, not a break stuff one. You've had bigger falls in the  gym. On top rope. Sheesh. Spot hand and footholds. Think it through. Picture it. Launch. Done. YAY!!! You just managed a 5.4ish, you silly woman...  :-)

Thanks, all. Every time I've hit one of these "first times" I have been very well aware of all the good folks who helped me get to this spot, and continue to cheer me on.

Thanks so much. Truly!

Best, Helen

Woot! Super excited for you Helen! Reading the route description, that traverse pitch looks like no joke. Seconding a big traverse is always scary for me - leading them is better! Congratulations- that’s a great milestone in your climbing!