Since 1980, I’ve been pretty much married to Yosemite. It was hard for me to fathom spending time, effort, money, and of course, money, to travel to other areas when I was so happy living and climbing right here. (I like Asia too but that’s no road-trip) In recent years however , business gets slow during the winter for my girlfriend Susan and I, so we jump in my camper van and drive around.
Susan’s not a climbing fanatic, but she likes it, and is particularly good at slab climbing. I dig slabs too. Since they can be a bit run-out, I can get a thrill leading something that she can follow. Out of her non-fanaticism, we make a point of hiking, sightseeing, and visiting relatives and friends on our road-trip as well.
We hadn’t much discussed our first destination until we got behind the wheel. I’m more of a spontaneous road-tripper, who likes to watch events unfold, rather than a planmeister. I’d never been to Red Rocks so I suggested skipping Josh on our way East and checking it out. As we arrived in the Vegas area, it was so windy that the van was sailing all over the road. Climbing was out of the question that day so we went for the marathon hike down the strip and back, rubbernecking at the confluence of art, edifice, and human folly. We couldn’t decide where to eat until most places were closed so we had breakfast at 11pm at Circus-Circus and crashed in their parking lot. Seemed pretty "Vegas" at the time.
The next day, armed with beta from the climbing shop, we got a site at 13 Mile and hit the Panty Wall. My irritation at the BLM’s rules stewed under the surface from this point forward but I determined not to let it kill the fun. I don’t like my outdoor adventures to be like a chaperoned date with a curfew, especially when I suspect Mom and Dad may be the Vegas Hotel and Gaming industry. Red Rocks was closing at 5 pm so they wouldn’t have to worry about gang activity and "drug parties." Heaven forbid somebody do something immoral in Las Vegas! You can get a late pass by calling a phone number, but there’s no phone in the campground. It’s bad enough that the gate closes, why not hand out late passes at the gate on request for the first three hours of the day? Are gang-bangers going to wake up at 6:30am to reserve their party time until 8pm?
The Panty wall was crawling with folks and every route had a rope on it. Folks were nice and it worked out that we got to climb most of the moderate pitches there before we were the last to leave. I totally enjoyed the awesome stone. It’s very different climbing than Yosemite so I had to get used to pitches that looked like 5.10 being 5.8 (better than the other way around) We returned to the windswept wasteland of the only campground, grateful to hole up in the womb of our little camper.
Susan realized that she likes cragging, where you can putter around on the ground, chat with folks, and otherwise shirk exposed dangling high above terra-firma. Despite that, I convinced her that Cat in the Hat (5 pitch 5.6+) would be moderate enough to keep her happy. We puttered grievously in the morning and miraculously our late start had us smoothly merging into the extreme traffic on the route. I thought it was one of the most classic 5.6 routes in the universe so I was surprised when Susan had to remind me how she doesn’t like to be hundreds of feet off the ground in the howling wind. Her stress wasn’t bad enough for a formal bust so I merely had to promise cragging for the next day. There was a Ringtail Cat waiting for us at end of the raps. It must have been the climb mascot! Even though there was a fair amount of daylight left, we had to race against the late parking ticket. Luckily, we escaped unfined.
Next day we headed to the Brass Wall. Ever greater puttering (like a delicious breakfast) got us to the rock late enough that all routes were taken. No matter, it started to snow hard, so we bailed. The parties on the rock seemed surprised that we were turning tail after hiking all the way there. I was surprised that they were surprised. If I only got a few tiny vacations every year, I’d climb in the snow too. I declared that this day fulfilled her request for a "hike" day.
We headed to Calico Basin the next day, lured by the prospect of curfewless cranking and free admission. We hiked across the ledge where Valentine’s Day starts. I don’t know why I was surprised that nearly every route had a large number of people doing laps on it. We ran into Rec.Climbing friends Michael Golden and Monty Blankenship before we bailed to hike up the basin. Once the canyon got narrower Susan spotted a small crag that wasn’t in the book but had a few bolts shining in the sun. We relished the chance to climb without impedance for the first time. It was fun to launch up without knowledge of route or rating. Just then, some other guys show up and rack up for the only other route on the crag. We asked them where we were. They didn’t know. They just saw us and decided to climb! We made friends and swapped routes.
Life was good as long as we didn’t let our expectations drown the perfection of each moment. I was free and outdoors with someone I loved and the climbing was secondary. We just enjoyed being together, singing silly songs making fun of each other. The climbing served as a backdrop for the fun and adventure.
Time to go! We were flying out of Phoenix to New Yawk so we scrambled around Sedona, Arizona for a few days. Why is it that girlfriend’s don’t climb as hard when there’s no rope? I’m posting my Gunks Trip Report separately so we have to skip forward to a few days in Josh on the way home.
We fly back West and it’s 85 degrees all of a sudden! We habitually visit Josh the first week of December so suddenly I could take Susan up some shady routes that are usually too cold. I knew she would like "Run for your Life" 10b, if I could only get her to the base of it without being murdered. She’s no fan of scrambling approaches. My best patient and diplomatic efforts (and a belay at the end) proved successful. I wasn’t out of the woods yet. I realized the route traverses in the beginning so she faced a swing climbing to the first bolt. I crank the route with joy and indeed, she takes the swing a time or two. She reaches the top just fine however, and belays me on the neighboring 5.11. I don’t want to give the impression that Susan’s an overly demanding or touchy person. In fact, she’s strong, emotionally and physically. I just have to consider her preferences and tastes in the same way she had to encourage me to eat Matza Ball Zoup and Gefilta Fish with her New Yawk relatives. In a relationship, you earn some points and then spend ‘em before they expire!
The first day at Josh cost us valuable finger skin. More than I realized until I finally reached the first moves of "Solid Gold" 10a in the Wonderland. A fantastic route but needlessly painful without calluses. Susan was having trouble hanging on until I recommended she use a different part of her finger pads. Then she sent it! Having enjoyed the right combination of climbing and wandering in the magic desert, we headed for home. Susan had been disappointed that we didn’t see a burro in Red Rocks, and that the Lancaster Poppy preserve wasn’t blooming. She took it in stride but I thought it was auspicious that we saw lots of poppies and a burro on the drive home.
Now if feels great to reunite with the smooth stone in the big Valley. I’m grateful for the fun times on the road but it’s great to host some old and new friends back home. Thanks Rec.climbing
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