So I am going to own up to the fact that I do love taking pictures every time I get out and climb. Its just that climbing has placed me in these gorgeous amazing nature settings, how could I not capture each magical moment interacting with the elements? … especially the geology aspect of it all. So the following is the pictures I have taken of my friends & I during the recent climbing season. FALL.

*update* so much climbing trips since my last post! too many I havent updated on… hopefully soon! But in the meantime Ive been posting on the homepage on tidbits

NOV/17/11 – THURSDAY
Joshua Tree National Park – 2054 ft (High: 59F)

Went TR Trad Soloing. Read my blog post about Top Rope Soloing HERE.

 

NOV/11-14/11 – FRI-SUN
Joshua Tree National Park – 2054 ft (Low: 45F – High: 68F) *Rain & Snow*

[11.11-12.11] Camped at Ryan Campground for Friday night. Took a group of 1st Jtree timers out to chasm of DOOM in the dark of the night, attempting to shave through the cave without any headlamps… that lasted for the first 40ft then we got terribly lost. From dropping under and over boulders, to laying flat on your back having a half a foot tall slab, then sliding your way to an opening on the other side. 9 of us entered the chasm, 7 came out. My friend Sarah dropped her cell phone down a 50ft chasm. She obtained half of her phone back… the battery. I dont know why she would bring a cell phone in a cave that has no cell phone reception (let alone no reception in the whole park!). But that friday & saturday I did nothing. Showed the new people easy climbs, and then took a nap as they attempted stout ass Jtree V1s. Packed up, went home, took a 13hr KO sleep.

[11.13.11] A few of my friends invited me to Jupiter boulders. A bouldering crag that is located at the base of San Jacinto Mountain. I woke up late to read the text on meeting up, so I got ready and drove out to meet them up. But apparently people were shooting up into the canyon (where the bouldering is located). Interesting to note that there is a shooting gun range right next to the bouldering area. So your spotting your climber, also spotting out for flying bullets over your head. So I arrived at Jupiter boulders… the decision changed to go climb at Jtree instead! So I left my car in a sketchy neighborhood in Desert Hot Springs and jumped into the car with my friends…. hoping to god that my car will still be there later tonight, rims and all.

• Hobbit Roof [10d]: A great classic, short & sweet face climb and small roof crack trad route. Crux is down low that has a protected bolt, where you have to do some balance moves on some non-existent holds to get to the first shelf. Then you approach a mushroom looking roof, pull the roof and cruise up on bomber hand jams. My friend Mike Conley decided to warmup and solo the Hobbit Roof. You can see on the floor the crashpads that we just placed there… but wont do much good that high! He cruised up the whole route, with no falls and no deaths.

 

 

• White Rastafarian [V3R]:This problem is located on a large boulder at the Southeast end of Rock Hudson. Climb a juggy crack on an overhanging arete until it dies out 15 ft. up. Lean out left, onto the overhanging face, to a large flake. Finishes with a mantel 25 ft. off the deck. One of JTree’s finest problems. Flat landing…. with a small boulder surrounding the landing zone. Few pads & spotters should suffice, but just go up there and do some rock climbing & send!

 

 

 

• Scatterbrain [V6]: Located in the back of Hidden Valley Campground. Start from a high incut edge and slap, pinch and heel hook your way up the overhung arete to a finishing jug. Classic. A sit start has more recently been done at around V11. I halfassed attempted this climb, but the boys had a nice sesh on it and had a send train on it after a few goes.

 

 

OCT/28-30/11 – FRIDAY->SUNDAY
Bishop – 4,200 ft (High: 78F)

MY FIRST TRIP TO BISHOP!! Finally I made a trip out to Bishop. Ive been excited ever since ive been reading the guide book and watching numerous pictures on the amazing problems located at the happys and buttermilks. My friend Issaku was great enough to drive me, Ice & Spinner in the subie for the trip! We stayed our first night in a motel, which was actually pretty legit. It wasnt fancy, but it had everything we needed to be comfortable. They had a DOWN COMFORTER bedsheets!! It was sooo cozy. Had breakfast at Black Sheep espresso bar then headed down to…

The Happys: The happys were packed. Every other minute you would see a new group of people enter the canyon in an army line of crashpads. We warmed up in the headbangers cave, directly afterwards the group headed up to the amazing gorgeous lines listed below.

• Atari [V6] – The outstanding Atari-shaped prow is an amazing line that provides an incredible amount of exposure, standing out at the edge of the canyon, with a slope of talus to its right. Climb it using heel hooks, a thumb-catch, and wide-spans on slopers to a thrilling slap for the summit (or just get a good solid left heel hook, and static reach with left hand; as proven by Issaku & Ice who sent it!). Add a low start if you can.

• Acid Wash Cave – This cave has multiple climbs that are just great. I worked on the Jug-start to Acid Wash Right [V7]. Amazing foot work in this climb! From the jug reach up high to a good left hand crimp, spread those legs and get a drop knee with your right foot. Keep close to the wall with that drop knee and catch an under-cling pinch. From there match feet, turn in the hips a bit and reach for a sharp dish… and bump for the top out hold! Arrange your feet and try to fight the swing when matching the top out holds.  A little more height would be great for me reaching the top out hold! but no excuses, a great climb. I enjoyed it very much… even though i got a gigantic blood blister on my right middle finger which began my demise for the rest of the trip. The afternoon heat hit the happys full on, so we decided to hit lunch at Shat’s Bakery (and apparently so was Peter Croft!!) then headed to the buttermilks where we would continue to climb for the rest of the trip.

Buttermilks: As we drove in I was blown away by all the gigantic scattered boulders that were on this slightly inclining hill. Immediately noticing the Grandpa Peabody boulder ive seen in all those videos and read when Jason Kehl first climbed it; it is amazing North American classic. Stunning boulder. We camped out by the sites near checkerboard, it was awesome being able to wake up make some breakfast and just look around me watching people climb to the left and right of me. Cheering on a guy sending Checkerboard Right [V9], it was crazy to see it from far away. We started the morning by warming up on the Tut boulder, fun top out on that boulder haaa. Then heading to the Bowling Pin Boulder, which continued to cheese off what is left of my fingertip skin. The boys then worked on Saigon for a while… then i ended my climb of the day on Smooth Shrimp [V6], after a few tries I got the beta wired and nothing was going to stop me… besides my bleeding tips. I had it! The jug was my next move, but my energy was spent and my fingertips non-existent! Next time its gonna go first try fur sureee.

 

OCT/25/11 – TUESDAY
Joshua Tree National Park – 2054 ft (High: 77F)

Solo day trip to jtree. I just got the new R3 from the guys at madrock the day before, so what is more perfect than breaking this baby in at jtree! I had a physics laboratory that I breezed through in the morning, from lab coat straight out to jtree it goes! I arrived mid afternoon, the sun was blazing hot but still chill in the shade. Warmed up on a solo up cyclops, then headed out with the R3 to false hueco to warm up on some boulder routes. It was a really chill day with my music quietly playing in the cafe, and I fell asleep on the comfy R3 for an hour!! I didnt know I actually fell asleep, until I suddenly woke up and caught myself snoring obnoxiously loud. Thats jtree for you, with people yelling “OFFFFFFF BELAYYYYYY!!!!!…… THANK YOU!!!” every 5 minutes. I ended the day at JBMFP yet again, my never ending project. I figured out a better way to hold the knife blade sidepull crimp. I hold it with most of the crank on the middle & ring finger rather than my index. Ive attempted this climb so much now the first half of it is cheese. I had no problem projecting this high vert problem on my own because the R3 has velcro so you can attach it to other madpads without worry of a cap and spraining ankles. The catch on the R3 is VERY very cushion. Without worrying about the fall factor helps me power through the moves. I stopped continuing because i wanted to safe some skin for BISHOP THIS WEEKEND!!!

OCT/11/11 – MONDAY
MT. Rubidoux – 1399 ft (High: 83F)

Im VP of a climbing group at University of California, Riverside. The trip I had the day before with Craig Brittian was great because I had a new area to show my club members.

OCT/10/11 – TUESDAY
MT. Rubidoux – 1399 ft (High: 85F)

Had a great climbing sesh w/Craig Brittian. He’s a really rad old school trad/slab climber I met a few months ago at Lake Perris-Big Rock. I climbed with him also to interview him for an anthropology paper I am writing. Cross culture comparison between the modern generation of climbers and the genesis generation. It was a great day of climbing and I learned a lot of new areas and climbs. Mt. Rubidoux is great in that it is a 15min drive from my university, and a 15min hike up. Rock is nice and gritty sharp just like JTree. Also there is some cracks! If I need my crack fix, I know where to go now.

OCT/9/11 – SUNDAY
Joshua Tree National Park – 2054 ft (High: 75F)

Sunday mass at jtree as I celebrate my religion of climbing. Chill climbing day with friends.

OCT/7/11 – FRIDAY
Frustration Creek – 4800 ft (High: 73F)

Another fun Friday Frustration Creek sesh with my friend Brian Murillo. As it follows

crush climbing sesh @ Frustration-> Cucas Burritos -> Stell Coffee -> Threshhold Gym

- Delusions [5.11d]:

Description: Easy climbing on the left face of the dihedral moves right across a triangular block down low. There’s a nice ledge for a good rest, use it as there aren’t many more opportunities. The climbing turns thin and reachy as you move back left into a seem where you’ll find side pulls, pinches, stemming and interesting moves. Keep your cool and finish strong as you pull over the final lip.

Description: Easy climbing on the left face of the dihedral moves right across a triangular block down low. There’s a nice ledge for a good rest, use it as there aren’t many more opportunities. The climbing turns thin and reachy as you move back left into a seem where you’ll find side pulls, pinches, stemming and interesting moves. Keep your cool and finish strong as you pull over the final lip. Ive been attempting to red point this dang route for the longest time. Its a good one for an 5.11. Ive attempted lead and toprope maybe 5 times total. And I really wanted to get this done. As I started my lead up, I knew my beta I knew what to do. I did the most controlled sport climbing of my LIFE on this day. As I started up the lead I had a calm head on, I knew my beta, and I knew what I wanted. At each rest I shook out and kept psyched. I pushed through the crux cheese, and I approahed the last clip until the anchors. I was on a jug that can fit one hand and a really crappy stem position. Then all of a sudden i was MAJOR PUMPED. I tried to shake out and get the pump out but nothing worked! The freggin clip was right there infront of my face! But I couldn’t do it! Then as fast as I can say “falling” I took a gigantic 20ft clean wipper. Even as I fell the pump still didn’t go away! I couldn’t shake it out, massage it out, slap it out. Within a few min my hands became numb and my fingers curled up and I had no grip strength. After freaking out for a few minutes I knew I had to calm down and just relax to get rid of the pump. As frustrated as I was how clean I climbed the route… I knew that is all I gave. Its that transition from bouldering to sport that kicks you in the ass. I can do all the moves no problem, but when endurance comes into play I lose the game quick. *sigh* next time… with more endurance!

But I did have some fun rapping down!

& had fun taking pictures in the sunset haha. Im playing leapfrog with the sun nbd.

 

OCT/6/11 – THURSDAY
Joshua Tree National Park – 2054 ft (High: 71F)

Arrived at 6:54am. Climbed with my first trad partner, Kevin Riley. This is the first day where the weather is reasonable for climbing in Jtree… and its not a fiery pit of hell. The previous week you would see highs in the 100s, but I arrived and it was a chilly 43F. It was a bit nippy, but once the sun came over the horizon it was AMAZING weather. The atmosphere had a cold bite to it, but the sun against your skin kept you warm. No jtree 20mph winds were present either, it was a perfect day to climb.
We started our morning in the shaded intersection rock.
– Intending to do the money pitch of North Overhang [5.9] I lead 1st pitch on Overhang Bypass [5.7]. A really chill and fun climb with perfect jam climbing and face movements. Where I only placed 3 pro within 15-20ft apart. Then to an alcove, followed by a short traverse left on a jam & finger lock with no feet which probably was the only crux of the whole section. Up to the large ledge, I then started up the 2nd pitch which was the last pitch of North Overhang [5.9]. With two bolts about 1ft apart, one on the roof and one on the face I lead up just clipping into the one on the face. This whole pitch is maybe a few couple moves long until your already at the wrap anchors. But nonetheless it was a really rad climb where you start on a rail then have to slot a jam over a corner. You have no feet and that whole section is completely exposed which adds fun to the climb. Once you slot that left jam I got a really high foot the the only good foot you can get. Rock over on that foot, jam, jam, jam, and BAM your done. Had a 70m, and it was perfect length to wrap to the base of intersection rock. I lead both pitches so I didnt bother to bring up a camera, so topo courtesy of Mike Morley off of MP.
- JBMFP [V5]: If I could choose any climb I wanted to hurry up and finish it would be this one. John Bachar Face Memorial Face Project. Its not a powerful climb in the slightest. Its controlled static movement, balance, and testy. I guess I would call this my project out in JTree. Its frustrating, I have all the moves continuous I just cant get the top out hold. My height handicaps me from reaching the top hold from the last good left foot. So im forced to smear on something in order to reach the hold… or I can just go all crazy and jump and dynamically reach for that last move. I need to finish this one, its been long enough.
- So High [V5R]: As I walked up in Real Hidden Valley and approached this monstrous boulder. My initial instinct was “there’s no way in hell i’m gonna get on this”. So High is a textbook highball, according to MP it is 40ft. Most of the crux choice climbing is located on the first 25ft of the climb. So my friend Kevin and I sat there beneath the boulder for a good 15min just taking on how intense this problem is… quickly got lazy from the gorgeous jtree weather, took a 15min nap, had lunch and became more lazy. After wasting a chunk of time I finally got up and touched the start hold. The start is really high, and can only be reached if I staked a couple pads. I had Kevin power spot me for the first few moves till the jug a bit higher. I still had no confidence I could even attempt this, but after a few power spots I decided to try it on my own. Surprisingly I got half way up! & Im glad I eventually tried, its a RAD climb! The start hold is this great pinch that I start crossed. Quickly pull up just smearing my right foot on a small tick, then core up to get a bomber left foot that is almost parallel to the hand holds. A move to a crimp, pinch, bump to a pinch… set up your feet then BLAM to a gigantic juggy jug jug. Its the perfect rest spot to prepare yourself for the rest of the climb which is all heady and intense. There are so many betas on where and how to finish the climb to top out I didnt know where to go. But I tried a variation straight up, out right and just some random stuff. This is a great project to pick up! Just gotta get a good head and finish it!

- The Eye [5.4]: Always have to end/start the day with a great solo up the Eye… to take in the gorgeous panoramic view of jtree & to get cell phone reception ha.