Climbing

Climbed the 3rd Flatiron today with Matt and Dave.  That was the first time I’d done the 3rd and it was a fun cruise-fest.  The descent down the scree, however, was a miserable icefield… probably WI1.  

We’ve tried four times….once a year ago, where we set out to climb the Diamond and ended up getting engaged instead, twice this spring under rough conditions, and finally yesterday…Victory!

We set out at 3:00 am from the Long’s Peak trailhead with our friends Sarka and Jakub. Apryle set a quick pace up the trail; we passed a bunch of other parties (blew my mind how many folks were out there) and arrived at Chasm Junction by 4:30 am, Granite Pass by 5am, and were getting set to climb at the base of the route (after screwing around looking for water, found a nice little cascade up high just below a snowfield fyi) at 7am. We passed some former CMS clients on their first independent alpine route. The route was easy – almost painfully so after we suffered and toiled to climb it without success earlier this year. We breezed through the “technical” section on a running belay, stuffed the rope in my pack and scrambled the last couple hundred vertical feet to the summit. Summited at 9am. Incredible views. Felt good to get there, but almost a cheap experience by how easy it turned out to be.

We decided to return via the keyhole route – what a nightmare. we must have passed a hundred people on their way up. sort of upset me….people shortcutting trails, blaring radios, kicking off rocks onto the hordes below….not my kind of mountain experience. I don’t think I want to climb Longs again in the summer, for that reason.

I slipped trying to pass a handful of idiots on the trail on the way down and hit my knee pretty hard, but made it down just fine. We reached the car at 2pm, even after spending 20min or so soaking our feet on the hike out. an 11 hour roundtrip. unbelievable to me, after this spring.

I’m tired this morning, and sore. I feel like we can climb mountains, though…..like we actually have a shot at something big someday.

Apryle’s take:

So…we made it. We picked up Sarka and Jakob at 2:30am, drove to the Longs Peak trailhead and began the 6 mile hike to the boulderfield around 3am. We easily cruised the hike in about 2:45, passing probably 12 other parties and having no one pass us.

The amount of people hiking to Longs was incredible.

After a time-consuming search for a water source, we began climbing the North Face of Longs at 7am.

The North Face starts off with a bunch of scrambling over talus, which leads up to about 200 feet of 5.4 rock climbing. The 5.4 section is adequately protected by slinging the old eye-bolts that are still around from the days when there was a thick cable handrail running up this route. Jakob led easily. After the climbing let up, we unroped, scrambled about another 650 vertical feet, and that was it. Done. No false summit. No route finding dilemas. It was straightforward and just plain easy.

After enjoying the breathtaking views, signing the summit log, taking the customary summit photos, and grabbing a bite to eat, we decided not to rappel back down the North Face but to instead take the standard hiking route – the Keyhole route – back to the boulderfield. In my opinion, the Keyhole route had more consistently tricky, exposed sections than the North Face, in part due to the slick, pollished granite that day after day takes a pounding from tourist feet. This route was made increasingly challenging due to all of the moving obstacles – tourist hikers and falling rock due to tourist hikers. Looking down into the trough of the Keyhole route, you could see them queued up like ants.

At the car by 2pm. Came home, showered, napped, ate.

Abby and I rocked it out at Lumpy on Friday. I led more confidently than I ever have before and she was not scared at all. We met at the parking lot at 7am and started climbing around 8 probably. Finished the first 2 pitches quickly – especially considering it was her first multipitch climb. She had a hard time getting a few nuts out – to be expected. The

party behind us kindly removed about 4 pieces of various protection that she couldn’t get out. She liked the 3rd pitch best. Around 3:30 we were sitting on top of the summit. My camera batteries had died so we did not get any summit photos. No sunburn, even!

Gorgeous weather, great company, great climbing… and dinner at Casa Grande with Abby’s family and Phil to put the perfect end to a great day!

Abby and I rocked it out at Lumpy on Friday. I led more confidently than I ever have before and she was not scared at all. We met at the parking lot at 7am and started climbing around 8 probably. Finished the first 2 pitches quickly – especially considering it was her first multipitch climb. She had a hard time getting a few nuts out – to be expected. The party behind us kindly removed about 4 pieces of various protection that she couldn’t get out. She liked the 3rd pitch best. Around 3:30 we were sitting on top of the summit. My camera batteries had died so we did not get any summit photos. No sunburn, even!

Gorgeous weather, great company, great climbing… and dinner at Casa Grande with Abby’s family and Phil to put the perfect end to a great day!

While Jakub and Sarka were staying with us, Apryle found out that her friend Abby Senseney was in town. We decided to all go out for a day of sport climbing at Jurassic Park. It was a great time – I worked on a 12a and whipped a few times, but topped out and eventually went back for the redpoint. Jakub took a few whippers on some slabby sport lines, and Abby had a grand time for her first real rock climbing experience.

In the fall of 2005, we heard that Jeremy, Dana, and their friend Mark were coming to Colorado. We insisted that they come to Estes and stay with us. It was a great visit, and despite all being crammed into our tiny little apartment, Apryle and I were sad to see them go.

While they were in town, we did a bunch of climbing up at Lumpy. Apryle talked Jeremy into leading George’s Tree, a deceivingly hard 5.9 flaring handcrack that lends little confidence. I lead the first pitch of Osiris, next climb over, and photographed Jeremy as he climbed from above…