Speed.

One of the coolest aspects of Europe in my opinion is how quickly and easily you can change countries and people and your surroundings, your experience and lifestyle. Only a few hours by car, but Switzerland is quite a change from the lifestyle I experienced over the last 6 weeks in the french country-side. I've always wanted to visit Switzerland. Despite traveling through Europe extensively as a kid and also adult, I'd never quite made it here. 

Clean streets, sexy German cars, a modern feel, proud people and a tight population strewn through stunning mountain valleys -- this place is much like what I expected. In an awesome way.

On Monday I wrapped up the incredible Arcteryx Academy event in Chamonix, and hit the road. Many years back I had seen this Rob Frost film 'Autoroute' that followed Joe Kinder, Luke Parady and Dave Graham through Europe, hitting many of the rad bouldering and sport climbing spots. This is where I first saw Beat Kammerlander's test piece route 'Speed' 14c at a little crag in eastern Switzerland called Voralpsee. I did not know what to expect with my journey on Biographie but when I finished the route with still a healthy chunk of time left in Europe, the very next thing on my mind was to go and find Speed. So after another 10 days of climbing in Céüse and then a rad weekend in Cham, I hit the road. Truly with no plans, no partners, no place to stay, I quested towards this place and through a series of random encounters and dumb luck / good fortune I made some friends, found a place to crash and got some belays on this amazing cliff. Many rad people reached out to help me and I feel super super stoked for this!

So Voralpsee... is truly a gem. It's as though Little Si (Washington State) and The Fins (Idaho) had a beautiful, beautiful baby boy. The style is thought provoking, finger intensive, technical and demanding. For me, this cliff is heaven. The routes are long and very sustained with varied holds, hard foot work and sizable run-outs. Did I mention that I love this place?

The first day climbing, Tuesday, I had no partners, but I was too stoked after 4 days off so I just rope soloed a few of the crag classics, 'Paradigma' 7c and 'Alaska Kid' 8a, both amazing. On Wednesday I came back with my friend Toby and made two attempts on Speed. There are certainly hard moves but it's keeping yourself together for the length of the pitch that is the real challenge. Brutal crimping, slippery feet and mind bending technical body work make up this brilliant route. I made some nice links but I knew that it would take some time to learn the climb.

Yesterday we returned. I was feeling tired from the two previous days but the weather was perfect and Toby was also stoked on his new project. First try I linked to the boulder crux at the 4th bolt, and then pieced together a nice link from there to the top of Speed, however falling in the extension. 

I wanted to do the extension that Cedric Lachet did in 2010 (Speed Intégrale ~9a), which to me is very logical. It adds a pretty damn hard boulder problem to the top of Speed. Some have said that this boulder problem does not add significant difficulty but I can say with honesty - and those at the crag yesterday will agree - that this is some of the hardest climbing on the whole pitch for me. If you're short there's a really hard move up there! Sure, the bulk of the difficulty is over, but it is by no means over at the first anchor as far as I'm concerned. 

Second try yesterday I had zero expectations, in-fact I considered just saving myself for the weekend. My shoulders were exhausted, skin was wearing thin and fingers swollen. I was just so inspired by this climbing that I had to try again. I fought my way through the bottom gaston crux, resting above, and yelled my way through the red-point shoulder move near the finish. I rested well at the break below the final boulder. I knew that this could easily spit me off, and having miraculously clipped the chains on Speed already, it might be hard to climb back up here...

http://www.bernardogimenez.com

It was pouring ran. Pouring. The temps were perfect for me and I often thrive in humid conditions. I stuck the finishing moves and clipped the anchor. Mostly, I was surprised. 

I planned to be here for another 10 days to make sure that I would have enough time to do this route. I was even afraid that I would fail with this much time because I'd heard that it was so demanding time and time again. So, obviously, this is super exciting for me. I feel so stoked! Another route that I had dreamt about for years, finally I get to touch the holds and even send. Amazing. 

I'll stay here for another few days and try to climb the remaining routes at the cliff... and then I suppose I will journey somewhere else in Switzerland... any suggestions?

Céüse, moving on.

I'm always amazed at how much my attitude can change post sending. It's a testament to how emotional the process can be. For the last 10 days it's felt like a completely refreshed trip. I completed my primary objective and now, even still, I couldn't be happier. So much relief. I walk to the crag cheerful and excited, gone is the anxiety of conditions or beta or my level of fatigue or wrecked skin. I'm just simply stoked to climb again, and enjoy great climbing at my favorite crag with good people. It's nice.

But I also know that momentum can be a powerful ally, so the next day after finishing Biographie I put my draws on an incredible route I was hoping to climb over on the Berlin Wall - it's a stunning line that homeboy Dave Graham bolted a while back, and was eventually opened by David Lama in 2010 and to the best of my knowledge has resisted any repeats since. Lülü is a low(er) angle, finger tweaking, resistant, hyper technical, airy masterpiece. It's brilliant! Some of the most run out hard climbing at Ceuse that I've done, and some of the rarest holds and generally in your face throughout, I really loved piecing it together. Quite hard for 14c no doubt, maybe it's harder? who knows. Hopefully my chalk will inspire another repeat.

Lülü

Next up for me was a super classic over on the Demi-lune that I had yet to check out. Dures Limites 14b is one of the areas most coveted hard routes - bullet stone, cool hold variety and two well separated nice punchy cruxes. It's been warming up here a lot recently, so I was really pleased to finish it in a day before it got any hotter - this route has some very small grips on it. Next I wanted to revisit Chronique de la Haine Ordinaire 14b over on the Biographie wall. I had tried it once back 2 years ago and found the opening boulder problem to feel super hard! I was hoping that in my current condition it would be much easier but I was wrong, ha! This route was super hard for me. Maybe it's my size, or maybe it was in part that I had poor beta until just before my send go, but I had to fight for this thing and I got a gnarly flapper in the process.

Chronique de la Haine Ordinaire -- http://bearcammedia.com 

Yesterday Bear Cam and I got some work done, shooting a few last random clips for an EpicTV piece that should release in about 10 days. Otherwise I was really keen to try this incredible, enormous pitch called The Black Bean 14a. Beginning with the crag classic, Les Colonnettes 8a, this 65meter route starts from the ground and climbs to essentially the very top of the massive Biographie wall. It's a journey for sure, and was such a pleasure to do as perhaps my last route in Ceuse this trip. It's logistically a bit of a bummer, but it's a unique and thrilling experience - well worth the hassle! And maybe not much harder than Berlin wall 8a+..
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The crew shares some Rosé on the Med. 

And that basically wraps up my time here in Ceuse.... I absolutely love this place - my favorite cliff on earth no doubt, but I'm also excited to move on, and explore some other new zones. I feel very fortunate and grateful for my time here, and I trust will find more incredible routes and rad people as I work my way towards Switzerland!

But first, a weekend at the Arc'ademy in Chamonix... Hope to see you guys there!

Biographie

Since I last wrote quite a bit has happened in my life. For the last couple weeks I have continued my efforts on Biographie, although in reality, unfortunately I was climbing very little. Through freezing wind, aggressive work sessions and generally just trying hard I had essentially ruined my skin. It was a terribly frustrating process and it seemed as though just when one finger split was healing, another one was opening up. For the last 2 or 3 weeks I had only really climbed on the route a handful of times, otherwise I was resting, diligently taking care of my skin and hoping for some of it to recover. In the off days I would sometimes do little work outs in our gite, lifting bags of wine bottles, doing core exercises and hanging on random door jams. It was really, really difficult for me to rest so much, especially when I was so stoked to climb and moreover especially because last week I made some very inspirational beta refinement in the upper crux that I though could be my ticket to success.

http://bearcammedia.com

In the end I think that the rest was highly beneficial. If not for my battered skin I would have stuck with my 2 days on 1 day off schedule and likely worked my whole body into total exhaustion. I don't usually rest very much, but this route and the long walk were taking their toll on my body and especially my mind.

On Sunday I walked up the hill, headphones in my ears and stoke high. I had rested 5 days in the last week, and although my skin was thin I knew that I would have at least a couple good goes in me. The crag was crowded with people on vacation for a long weekend and the day was sunny and beautiful. Warmer weather was a welcome change for me, after a frequently bitter cold May. I warmed up as usual, and then tried the route. My first go I felt great getting to the final rest, as I usually did. The days of rest had helped I could tell, but it was difficult for me to wrap my head around my new beta.

http://bearcammedia.com

I had visualized my other method so so many times in my head that I was still having trouble breaking free from it. For a solid month now I had used an - ever so slightly different - method and climbed into the upper boulder problem over 25 times, inching my way closer to the send, but repeatedly failing. I fell off in the usual place on my first try. I pulled up the rope, brushing as I returned to a familiar spot. I practiced the new method several times, while also aware that I needed to save power as it was intensely powerful on my shoulder. I lowered off.

Next try a sizable crowd had formed to watch my effort. I had just one more try left in my skin. Among the crowd were old friends, new friends and a group of stoked people that had seen my struggle and over the last month had watched and cheered me on as I repeatedly threw myself at this incredible route.

I made it to the crux. I nailed the move. I woke up from a dream, in a place I'd never been before. Exiting the upper boulder problem coming up from the ground with dozens of friends and strangers below yelling towards me, cheering for me. I knew that this was my opportunity and I eagerly sought to take it. As I drove leftward towards the final jug I screamed at the top of my lungs, releasing all the stress, all the anxiety and all the excitement that I felt in the moment. I rested shortly and made my way 50 feet through 7a terrain to the anchor. I clipped the anchor, the people below cheered and I felt pure elation.

A moment that I doubted would ever come had arrived and I was indescribably excited. I was greeted with champagne and high fives back on the ground. Now, 4 days later, I still feel excitement. I'm super proud of this one. I feel fortunate, I feel lucky and I feel very stoked. Thanks to everyone for the huge amounts of support over the years but certainly over the last few months.

http://bearcammedia.com

Thanks to my friends and family for all the support. Thanks to Tommy, Jai, Thibault, Emily and Colette for all the great, patient belays. Huge thanks to Mark and Mike Anderson for significantly helping with my training. Thanks to everyone who wrote me emails, cheered me on at the crag and sent me good vibes through the process, it all was immensely helpful. Huge thanks to my sponsors Arcteryx, LaSportiva, Maxim Ropes, Metolius, Smith Optics and Climb ON - honestly this dream would not have happened without their continued support.

Okay... well... Onward! 

a week off-ish

Life continues here in the french country-side. Nice and slow. Most days are quite mellow and the pace is very relaxed. My gite is just across from the trailhead so between eating, sleeping, walking to the crag and back, there is plenty of time to just... chill. The last week I've been by myself here - Tommy and Becca had moved on to their next objective and flew over to Kalymnos for some fun in the sun.

In some ways it was perfect timing to have a lack of partners, because the weather over the last week has been less than desirable. The wind is mostly what made things rough. Temps were typically comfortable but when the 'ice wind' - as we've been calling it - started up it was over, for me at least. I took the chance to take some rest and tried to remain patient as I waited for my skin to heal, weather to improve and partners to emerge. It all worked out quite well really. I met some amazing people and shared a few belays, took plenty of rest and also got to escape a few times and enjoy some other amazing parts of Southern France.

As for my project- it's been going really well. I felt like I was getting closer and closer before Tommy left, which made it difficult to take basically a week off from the route, but this last Saturday I had without a doubt my best try yet. I stuck what I imagined to be the 'last move' for me - literally shocked that I had made it there - only to fumble the crux exit while trying to adjust my grip. It was inspiring and exciting and also humbling. I was beginning to worry about sticking that move from the ground so in that sense it was an enormous break through. For a moment I felt like, maybe, just maybe, I was sending. And despite the fact that only a second later I was in flight, I remained exhilarated. Back on Earth I was describing to my friend Thibault that sometimes for me, these attempts - the ones that are so close, the one hangs, the near misses - sometimes these are the most exciting moments. Knowing that something is within your grasp, that it could be a reality, is a cool feeling.

Unfortuntely I tore a pretty big hole in my skin, so after a rest yesterday, I will go up to the crag just for some fun, taped finger climbing, and save a good attempt for tomorrow. It really feels close to me, but I'm still not expecting anything. Patience is the key for me at this point. Patience and psyche.

Wish me luck! 

the route

Ever since I first visited Southern France for climbing 2 years ago, it's become a pillar of quality in my mind - the near perfection of routes and the beauty and purity of the stone. By all means, the climbing here is the standard to which I measure almost everything I see - consciously or subconsciously. This doesn't necessarily mean that everything must measure up, it only means that I am aware of how unique these places are, and also how special this degree of quality really is. Just as I remembered it, I'm again blown away by the climbing, the setting, and the almost impeccable nature of experience that is Ceuse climbing. 

I've been dreaming of my return ever since I left 2 years ago, and furthermore, I've been anxiously planning for an objective. Since last December I've been approaching my climbing differently. For the first time in my climbing life I solicited the help of a trainer. I've quite dramatically changed the way I train - finally trying some new things. I've adjusted my lifestyle, and like I once did many years ago - in pursuit of my first 5.14s - I've anxiously looked ahead and worked hard towards a lofty goal. It has been an awesome awakening for me. I had a great line of success in Las Vegas, while also maintaining a relatively strict training program, and continuously looking ahead. In general, I feel like I saw the end of the line for my long used methods for training and my general approach to climbing - and that line did not include my new climbing goals, so I made some changes and now I feel more prepared.... hopefully. In the end, I'm satisfied knowing that I've improved, and knowing that I worked really hard - so in many ways, regardless of the outcome of this specific trip, I'm quite happy that I took the plunge and made a change.

Rest day exploring Briancon.

So, as some of you know, I, in essence, came to France to climb Biographie, or as many Americans know it, Realization. I can remember the first time that I saw the route - it is truly magnificent. I was shocked to see that such a bold and impressive, seemingly perfect line exists. Add to that, the historic significance of this climb not to mention its unique and brilliant holds and movement -- it really is a proud route. I trained to improve my climbing, not necessarily for this climb specifically, but I had it in mind all throughout. I've been here in France for a little more than a week, and already it has been an exciting journey. 

Alpine glow every night from our brilliant gite!

I met the always stoked Caldwell family here right away, and on my first climbing day I began trying this amazing climb. Immediately off the ground is a burly 4 move boulder problem - which broke in 2010 - rendering it several V grades harder. To me it feels similar in difficulty to the opening boulder on Necessarily Evil. Some 5.13- climbing right after leads to the main rest - a huge right facing flake. It's a very good rest. After the pause, a series of super resistant two and three finger pocket moves, with cross-throughs and underclings and high steps and all kinds of interesting and varied movement, lead you to the old anchor (now removed). To here the route is considered 14c, although some have suggested an upgrade due to the bottom boulder breaking. I'm not sure really, it's hard though! There is an okay rest at the old anchor, then a bolt more of resistance climbing leads to a slightly better rest just below the finishing crux. The finishing crux is essentially 12 moves, with a bunch of foot movement, and some very fickle pockets and crimps. It's hard to say how difficult this crux section is on its own, but it is certainly the effects of climbing from the ground that make this crux - and thus the entire route - so difficult. From above the crux there is an okay rest, and some 5.11 climbing (that is deceptively hard when you're pumped!) for another 50 feet leads to the anchor at around the 35 meter mark. 

It took some time for me to suss the route, especially the finishing boulder which has quite a few options depending on your size and strengths. On my third day I climbed up to and beyond the old anchor, which was very very exciting for me and also encouraging. But I was still quite baffled by the upper crux. It took some pretty serious time hanging and experimenting to find a method that worked well for me. The next step was a one hang on the route - falling setting up for the crux move and then taking it to the top. And yesterday I fell off what I feel personally is the *last* hard move, and also I have linked now several times in various states of fatigue from the final rest below the biz to the very top - an important link both mentally and physically. 

Find the longest, darkest, most prominent blue streak on the left side of this photo. This is Biographie. 

So, on paper, it seems I've very close. But I also want to remain extremely humble in my efforts. I know how many times climbers much greater than I have fallen in this upper crux and yet never broke through. I know that even though I have 2 more months, there are a plethora of ways in which my efforts could be fruitless. I'm confident that I can do the route, but that's not to say that I will do the route. Sorry if that sounds pessimistic, but the best road for me is to stay stoked on the process and to not get too hung up on the results. I'll keep trying my ass off, resting well healing skin and giving it everything! 

Wish me luck! 

made it.

Well... I made it. Back in the French countryside. Quite surreal really. A landscape and a pace of life that's something from a dream. And of course the climbing... is as close to perfection as I've ever tasted. It's fun to revisit this area and this country 2 years after my last adventure here.

I landed in Nice last week and spent the first afternoon relaxing by the beach, catching up from the long flights. The next few days I met up with my good friends Tommy, Becca and Fitz Caldwell and we settled into our wicked little gite nestled in the hills below Ceuse. Life is good here.

For now, I'll offer up a handful of photos from the last few days. In time I'll write a proper blog, but just know that things are going great and we're all so stoked to be here!

Nice. Always been one of my favorite European cities. Beautiful stone beaches, a melting pot of the Italian and French Med culture and charming people and downtown area. I'm excited to spend more time here. 

I'll never get tired of the view from Ceuse... 

Becca and little Fitz man.

Street art in Aix. 

Fondation Vasarely. An impressive and very unique art museum in Aix. 

The beautiful and unrelenting Biographie, and the expanse looking towards the Med from Ceuse. Becca Caldwell Photo. 

Aix. 

training. 

a few days left

Well, I'm off to France in under a week. I've already been checking the weather there, corresponding with friends in the area and making a packing list. Needless to say, I'm really stoked. My trip to Southern France 2 years ago was such a magical and eye opening experience I really can not wait to return. That trip was by all means a success and radical but now I feel much, much more prepared and even more inspired. I'm hopeful that the past several months of training and climbing will pay off, but I know that regardless of my sending, I'll be drinking wine, sharing laughs with many different great friends and waking up to the sound of goat bells in no time!

Plan B. Super good. 

Like I mentioned I've primarily been on the training program but I did get out this week to a new (to me) crag in Boulder Canyon. I had essentially written off the whole canyon, after several pretty crappy climbing experiences there over the years (there are a few good routes.. I think I'm just spoiled) but I was very surprised and stoked to get out there. I did a pretty damn fun little climb that Peter Beal established 13 years ago and has somehow remained unrepeated since. It's called 'Agony and Ecstasy' and it's a little 3 bolt boulder problem direct start to a fantastic 12d granite arete. It was rumored to be 14a - I'd say it's like v9 to 12d so maybe 13+ is a better fit but who knows? It was fun! And the crag classics 'Plab B' 12b, 'The Juice' 12d and 'Hot Wire' 12c are all pretty damn fun too. It was a good day out. But I think at least to some extent I was just stoked to get outside and climb rocks instead of hang on hang boards and lift weights for once!

Okay.. more training and packing.
Wish me luck over there...

And in the meantime - have a look at this new video from Smith, produced by my good friends at 3 Strings. It's a unique piece and one that we're all pretty stoked on. Hope you guys enjoy it!

GREAT DAYS 2: Jonathan Siegrist's Spectrum from smith optics on Vimeo.

TBPodcast

As I mentioned in a past blog, some of my very good friends have been working hard, putting together a really cool new online resource for climbers, called Training Beta. As part of the site, they are doing a podcast series - basically sitting down with a slew of random people (pros and trainers and more) and asking training questions and also life questions and all that. I did one with Neely a few weeks back before I left Vegas and she just recently put it up. If you've got an hour to kill have a listen... and let me know what you think!

Here's a link to the site and this podcast, or,

here's a direct download link. 

It's also available in the iTunes Store. 

And while I'm at it... have a little peek into a new web series from Smith Optics on Great Days. I did a really cool and unique short piece with Andy Mann / 3 Strings back in Vegas and it should launch on this series any day now. I'll keep you posted..

Great Days Teaser from smith optics on Vimeo.

Enjoy! 

leaving las vegas

Last couple weeks were pretty burly. After success on the Buffalo Wall, I remained pretty fired up for a while. It reminded me of my experience in years past - the bigger the objective, the longer the red point buzz lasts. Walls are so cool because they force you to adopt a strategy for not only climbing so many pitches in a day and avoiding fatigue but also for things like gear, water, approaching and descending. I think in part it's this extra stress that makes an accomplishment more rewarding.

A throw back from the first time I tried Crystal Dawn, a day with Tommy a few years back - Andrew Burr photo of the crux pitch. 

My legs were blown out from the long day but I had plenty left for climbing so I spent the next 2 days training hard - which was likely a mistake in retrospect. Sunday I followed my good friends Seth and Neely up to the Promised Land to finally get a chance at Seth's rad new route, 'Crown of Thorns' 13d. It's seriously an amazing pitch - certainly one of the best of its grade in the Vegas area.

Seth on his route, 'Crown of Thorns'

Monday and Tuesday I was back to Lime Kiln Canyon outside of Mesquite. I hooked up with a good friend and talented photographer / videographer Celin Serbo and worked with him and Dan Gambino, alongside a hovering drone to put together a short piece for Outside TV. I'll let you know when more details emerge. They got clips of me bolting what would become a stunning pitch - a 165 foot mega route that I called 'Voyager One' 13a/b.

On day one, Seth and I climbed the hyper-classic 2 pitch 'Vesper' 5.12 and as we were lowering off I spotted a line of barely there rounded pockets and Verdon-esque edges on the clean wall below. It's moments like this that we route developers straight freak out. We were all set to wrap the day and jet as the sun was low in the sky, but suddenly my mission was to get a static line back up there. I was so shocked by its exceptional quality and the fact that it had not yet been bolted that I seriously think some part of me was worried that someone would come and bolt it that night in the dark. How could people have missed this!?

Seth ran back up Vesper and hung a line for the next day. Tuesday we went out and finished up shooting and afterward I hurriedly jumared up the line and sunk the metal, easily cleaning the entire route with just a brush in under an hour. In a state of extreme fatigue from 6 days on, I threw myself at this beautiful route. It gradually gets thinner and harder as you approach the shared finish with Vesper - and on my first two tries I couldn't quite keep it together til the end. Thin, sloppy and slippery pockets pepper the otherwise blank face. Absolutely bullet stone. I puled the rope knowing that I probably hard energy for just one last try (not that I had energy for the first try) and that with just 5 busy more days left in Vegas I may not get back here.

Keith Ladzinski shot of Whitney Boland crushing 'Vesper' - my route 'Air France' ascends the dotted line below here to share the same finish. 

Somehow I put it together and 'Air France' 14a was born. It's truly one of the highest quality pieces of stone I've ever touched and certainly ever put bolted in. So excited to get it done!

The rest of the week I trained and packed up before doing 2 full days of clinics at the Annual Red Rock Rendezvous, which went very well as usual. I had stoked people in my clinics and despite some other-than-ideal weather we got a bunch of climbing in. Big thanks to Metolius for bringing me out there!

The morning after the event I hit the road. With Vegas once again in my rearview, I was especially saddened to be saying goodbye. It was a particularly great year for me, no doubt thanks to my training efforts beginning in November and also thanks to a great crew of motivated people out there. Every year I return to the desert I find a hundred new rad things to sink my teeth into and I love the place that much more. I'll sincerely miss you Las Vegas! Until next time.

One quick note. If you're in the market for a training resource - this is the single best book out there, and it's just about to be available. Mark and Mike have their science and methods nailed down - and both have seen the process work very well for them. Have a look here. 

a show, a wall and whatnot

Last week for my slideshow in Vegas I presented something a little different than I usually do. Typically my slide-shows are trip focused, or just a slew of geographically focused climbing porn to get people stoked and show off some rad images. On a few occasions I have also done the 'here's how I got into the whole climbing thing' show, which I really like presenting. But after a conversation over drinks and a game a pool with my roommates here in Vegas a month back, they convinced me to try something a little more meaningful. At the time I was expressing to them my nervous / excited energy about my goals, and about preparing and also looking back at failures and successes. Maybe it was the hard cider but they thought that this could become an interesting topic for my upcoming presentation and after several hours of deliberation and collecting images, collecting my thoughts I came up with a slide-show about failure, accomplishment and ambition. I presented it to an awesome crowd last wednesday.



I'm really happy with the way that the show turned out and with the feedback I've received. We raised nearly $2,000 for the Las Vegas Climbers Liaison Council to help fund rebolting among other efforts. My sponsors came through in a great way as they always do. Maxim Ropes, Smith Optics, La Sportiva and Metolius all made sizable contributions to the event and the LVCLC had beer and pizza on the house. My always rad friends at the Access Fund helped promote the event and sent some give-aways as well. It was cool to raise money and try to inspire the community but the main win for me is just to see over a hundred climbers in one place - a rare occasion in Vegas - and share a beer with a passionate group. I wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone that attended and donated and heckled and everything. Thanks. Photos are here. 

Brilliant Andrew Burr photo of an effort I had with Tommy a few years back. 

Otherwise I've been training and climbing and preparing. I went back out to the Cathedral and finished up 'Slaughterhouse Five' 14b/c, I got back out to a rad little spot called the Grail (Lime Kiln) and started bolting an enormous pitch out there. I also got fired up on this incredible wall in Red Rocks - the route is called Crystal Dawn and it's a truly amazing free route on the Buffalo Wall. I tried the route one day a few years back with Tommy Caldwell and loved the experience. It had been in the back of my mind for the last couple years and I'm so happy that I revisited it. All three of the hardest pitches have super reachy sections so it ended up being actually something of a battle to figure out. I spent a day sussing on mini-trax and then came back yesterday with the help of my good friend Seth Lytton to finish the route up. On paper the route breaks down to pitches of 12a, 13a, 13c, 12c, 13a, 11 R, 11, 10 R but I would not hesitate to bump all 3 of the 5.13 pitches in difficulty for my size, most notably the crux, which felt like it could have been 14a honestly. I had such a rad day up there yesterday finally taking this thing down. Thanks so much to Seth for the support and also to homeboy Nik Berry for sharing beta and large cams and whatnot! - Nik did the route a few days back as well. I really love getting into long routes and walls from time to time... always such a cool change and just dealing with logistics and all day fatigue offers such a unique and interesting challenge.

Andrew Burr photo

Seth Lytton turns the corner on the first 5.13 pitch. Sick. 

what rope?

Alright, now I'm off to Ibex! See you in the west desert...

march so far

3 weeks left in Las Vegas. It's been an incredible winter for me out here. The weather has held up beautifully, I've had a plethora of psyched and awesome partners, and I nabbed a handful of incredible new and old routes. As you may have gleaned from this blog, I'm something of a list fanatic. I always make a list - of only in my head - before a long climbing trip or season. A few goals, ambitions and otherwise, to keep me stoked. It usually helps motivate me to set intentions or make plans for what's to come. It offers me training stoke and just inspires me to look ahead. Another interesting experience relating to said lists is that I get to reflect on my expectations for a trip as that event is winding down or after it's passed. It's rare - if ever - that I complete the list, but it's still fun to see how I anticipated the trip and how it actually happened.

Shooting Horse at the Black and Tan on a terribly windy day. Great route. James Lucas Photo 

It'll be a busy few weeks left here between my slide-show with LVCLC this wednesday, a few days in Utah's West Desert, a cool film piece that I'm doing for Outside TV and of course the Rendezvous - not to mention friends and maybe I'll even get one or two more things wiped off my list. Oh and then there's training. Got plenty going on.

Speaking of which..  The last few weeks have been busy and great. I revisited the Gorilla Cliffs to have another go at Dave Grahams bouldery test-piece 'Psychedelic'. My first try on it was after a hard training day so I wanted to give it a fresh effort. I did feel much stronger on the holds but I still had a really hard time finding the length (no feet high enough) I needed to properly reach the crux hold. I found an alternate sequence that could work, but by then my motivation was waining. Darn. However, just around the corner my spirits were lifted. 'The Present' 14a was exceptional! Super fun to finally do such a classic route. I finished the day on 'The Realm' AKA 'Connect the F*cking Dots' 13c to the right of the Present.

The short and powerful - and amazing - Present. Misty Murphy Photo

Next up was to check out a crag that I'd heard a lot about over the years but never quite made it out to. The Grail - in Lime Kiln Canyon - is a massive limestone wall just a short drive outside of Mesquite, NV. It's always been really hard to find accurate info about this zone but I pieced together what I could and despite some confusion finding the place and the exact routes I had a killer day. The hang is amazing, the stone is unbelievably high quality and the density of routes is great. The main objective was a Todd Perkins classic, 'Magnum Opus' 14a, that is tall and wicked thin through edges, tough footwork and a few very small pockets. Can't really compare the difficulty to a 14a at the neighboring VRG, so maybe 13+ would be more accurate. Next I did an amazing and quite hard 13b called 'Horse Platitudes' with a rowdy thin finish and lastly, 'Homofaber' 12d/13a was nothing short of amazing. The 12's we did there we incredible as well. Cool crag. Highly recommended if you don't mind climbing on your feet and grabbing bad holds.

The Grail. Much bigger than it looks. The blue rock on the left side is featured and incredible. 

Last week I journeyed back to The Cathedral in the Utah Hills to see if a couple of notoriously wet routes had finally dried out. Even after a pretty intense rain storm the previous weekend I was pleased to find them both dry. On day one I took down the massive cave route 'The Incredible Huck' 14b, featuring a powerful and tensiony finish. Day two I tried my luck at Andy Raether's 'Slaughterhouse 5' 14b/c, essentially a tough bouldery ending to the classic 'Treebeard' 13c. It took me a little while to suss out beta for this powerful route and unfortunately by the time I had it figured out I was quite pooped. Not sure how awesome my beta is but man, there's a few super hard moves up there! Something to get back to.

Hope to see some of you at my slide-show this week! Cheers.