Advice for a female climber that wants to dirt bag it on her own?

Well between the Chatt' area of Tennessee and Seneca Rocks, the New River Gorge, you've got plenty of great places to wander for that first trip. Been too long ago down that way for me to comment on latest dirtbag' conditions and locations, but now we have a target area at least.

New River and Sencea Rocks have good spots to camp and make friends... and only ones with assault rifles and pistols are the hillbillies. Dont worry, they're cool.

APBT1976 wrote: Lol perfect, Figures you just described my perfect girlfriend. On the other hand most men worst nightmar. Well most men worst nightmare might be over in the "Dude Raped By Three Women" thread" but dreads and armpit hair is a close second maybe a tigh? Give it hell, and post some trip reports off all the fun you end up having. Something to really stir the pot and get under the skin of all those that think you should get a gun lol... HAhahahahhahahahahahah

Hahaha is right - truth be told i used to have dreadies and I still love em on the ladies... very hot as long as they aint got bugs!

It's ridiculous how off topic this thread got. Mods, is there a way to fix it? Hope people with the same question don't have to wade through all the gun control arguing to find the useful advice.

I took a solo dirtbag trip this past summer. You will find tons of people our age, male and female (or older, or younger) on the road doing the same thing. Some travel solo, some in groups. Be smart, but don't live scared. I have never felt threatened by anyone from the climbing community, but that doesn't mean that I'm cavalier with my safety.

Finding partners can be tricky sometimes. I found it nice to have partners lined up for the first few days in a new area (people I knew were there, or from MP, etc). After a while climbing/exploring, you find out where the other people on long-term trips hang out. For me, these were the best partners, since they stay around longest and you're less likely to get dragged to the classic climbs for the 10th time. You will start to see the same faces around if you stay on the road for long enough--I have run into many people I met over the summer on weekend trips this fall and spring.

PM me specific questions if you like. Just go do it! You won't regret it.

I went on a road trip by meyself once.....I ended up with the guy who became my husband.

Let this be a warning!

Locker wrote:Better and safer (Albeit it more expensive in the long haul) than carrying a fucking gun like some PARANOID freak is a DOG. Not of the Chi Wah Wah/ TOY Poodle variety!

you should apologize to all dogs for that statement if you mean what I think you might have thought you meant

nice try at killing this thread

amber743 wrote:I am considering staying close to Virginia, West Virginia and around Tennessee

those ARE the places of all places to have some protection w/you if any. they might say "Bible Belt" down there but what they really mean is wacked out pharmaceutical addicts that live in shacks down by the river and hate anyone they have never seen before unless they have some pills to part with.

you'd be much safer out west, really.

Locker wrote:"you should apologize to all dogs" They should quit shitting on my lawn. and nice try making that corner at 90...

really its the dog owners that are shitting on your lawn, they just want you to think its their dogs.

try setting up a lawn chair in the front yard and sit in it with a gun in your hand and see how many turds end up in your lawn.

see, guns do help!

Now that the OP has expressed her gratitude...
Can we just concentrate on climbing?

Fuck Lahey!

I picked up some hitch hikers one day, young guy and girl and they were really nice, but it was a bit weird to me to be hitch hiking. Many states have laws that prohibit it in the East. Even though I tend to trust everyone, I don't know if I'd be rolling the dice with my safety like that.

My best advice, like everyone is to go with a partner or a dog. Short of that, even though I'm a gun nut, I wouldn't recommend a firearm. That's just too much to throw on someone that has no experience with/desire to carry or possess a gun.

West Virginia and Tenessee are great places to hang out. With the loss of Rogers at the New, I feel like the dirtbag scene has dwindled a bit. I spend a lot of time there and typically stay with a friend though so I'm not sure where everyone is camping and congregating now.

I tried it from 1994 to 1995 at the age of 30. It was an amazing experience! The best advice is probably try it for a week or two
before you commit to a longer period. I think the dudes gave you
enough reality to concider.

Sam Stephens wrote:Fuck Lahey! .

What's wrong with opinions from a drunk trailer park supervisor?

I never usually post, but this is a subject that is near and dear to my heart =)

I'm a girl in my early 20s and have done a number of solo trips (climbing and non, international and domestic), starting when I was 17. I think it's an unparalleled experience and encourage anyone who has a strong urge to do it, or even if someone is slowly persuaded that this might be a good idea...

This past summer I did a roadtrip for about a month and a half. Was meeting up with people along the way for good stretches, but also spent some time cruising around looking for random partners. Highly recommend having your car set up so you can sleep in it - I had an advantage there since I was happy sleeping in the back seat, and I also used various screens to block out the windows sometimes. But there were a few nights when I slept in the front seat with everything set up, ready to go at 10 seconds' notice if I had to. That gave me some additional sense of security. It does get cold in a car at night since it's not really insulated, but obviously a sleeping bag takes care of that.

In terms of where to stay, Wal-Mart parking lots are well-lit, have security, and won't kick you out if you really need to stop somewhere inconvenient. Otherwise I'd pull over sometimes on small roads and get up early and out of the way. The freakiest experiences I've had with unofficial car bivies were when I thought I heard animals sniffing around my car...probably just paranoia.

Food - groceries are cheap if you buy things that are in season and avoid things like bars, prepared goods, etc. Worth knowing how to use a camp stove although honestly, when I was completely solo, I could never be bothered to cook for just one person. But I made friends pretty quickly everywhere, and once you have a little group, it's a lot more fun to make dinner and talk nonsense about climbing plans and life plans.

If you're still trying to decide where to go, would second the suggestions from other people to go to "world-class" destinations since that's where you'll be able to find partners. Feel free to PM if you have destinations in mind or want other suggestions!

As people have said before, the first thing you want to look at is where you want to go, and how to stay there for very little or for free. Another thing to consider is the temperature of where you are going and when you should go there to find the good weather. If you have only been climbing for a year and want to stick to mostly sport routes, you have to find areas that fit good temps for the time of year that you are going there. The summer is the hardest time because it gets so hot. Maple Canyon in Utah has great summer climbing, the canyons are so narrow, it doesn't get a lot of sun. American Fork is nearby. It seems that if you picked major destinations in the west and just made a big circuit, you couldn't go wrong.

As people have said before, the first thing you want to look at is where you want to go, and how to stay there for very little or for free. Another thing to consider is the temperature of where you are going and when you should go there to find the good weather. If you have only been climbing for a year and want to stick to mostly sport routes, you have to find areas that fit good temps for the time of year that you are going there. The summer is the hardest time because it gets so hot. Maple Canyon in Utah has great summer climbing, the canyons are so narrow, it doesn't get a lot of sun. American Fork is nearby. It seems that if you picked major destinations in the west and just made a big circuit, you couldn't go wrong.

Some people replying to this are so silly. Self defense isn't a huge concern when you are dirtbagging. You are almost always either:
A. Hanging out in a climbing area surrounding by climbers.
B. Climbing
C. Driving between climbing areas.

Which of those activities do you think you'll need to mace someone in the face for? Traveling is no more dangerous than going about your everyday life and people who think otherwise simply haven't done it and are speaking with no experience in the matter.

HIghly recommending crested butte/ Gunnison Colorado. Awesome area tons of crags, lot of friendly people to meet and climb with.

Tom-O wrote: What's wrong with opinions from a drunk trailer park supervisor?

Want a cheeseburger Randy Bo Bandy?

Sam Stephens wrote: Want a cheeseburger Randy Bo Bandy?

cant the mods do anything with this thread???

lol

Hi Amber,
Also an early 20's female planning a large solo trip here out west next year. Done solo hiking/camping by myself and with my dog. Post in MP forums with a tentative schedule and dates of when you expect to be in areas and meet up with climbers or groups. A stun gun can provide some security (and you can find them relatively inexpensive). Just be smart, if you have bad feelings about a place/situation listen to your intuition and find another. Most importantly, go for it!