After I brought Kurt up to the top of p1 (pictured), I decided to take on the short second pitch even though the unprotectable chimney at the top freaks me out a little. And I ended up getting shut down. I Climbed above my last piece (a boomer #3 and then back down to it several times before I decided it wasn't worth the risk to me. I built an anchor and brought Kurt up to lead the last 10-15 feet of the climb and then he brought me up to the anchors. Kurt led the 5.9 and 10a pitch with no problems and I followed clean except for a spot where I had to hang to get a nut out. I still don't think I'm ready to lead those yet though ... I'm way more cautions than I used to be about what I'll lead! I did lead the rope up to the top of the easy last pitch of Rock On -- which isn't much to brag about since I've done it so many times before.
Kurt got a picture of me taking the nice rest mid-way through the 10a pitch of Rock On.
We took some time to sort out the gear, eat some food, and rehidrate a bit at the top of Rock On.
Then we headed off up the trail to The Ultimate Everything. It was a pretty hot day, but we felt okay hiking through the forrest. But once we got to the base of the route, we reliazed the whole route was baking in the sun and would be for the rest of the day. It was over 30 degrees (almost 90 fereinheight), so we contemplated a bit and in the end decided it would be too uncomfortable climbing for that long in the hot sun. We hiked back down the trail and found another party toppingo out on Rock On and were able to share ropes and rapped back down the route.
We went into town and got some gatorade and snacks and then headed over to Shannon Falls. The only picture from that is the one Kurt took of my leg. I somehow got into a fight with a tree stump at the top of Rock On and came away with a pretty nasty scrap. Usually Kurt is the one to get all bloody, so he had to document my injury. LOL
The base of the wall was in the shade, but the routes were in the sun. I led Klahanie Crack and Kurt followed in his approch shoes. We were both too hot after that to do any more climbing and all of the routes were baking in the sun. So we called it a day and headed to the brew pub for dinner.
We woke up to clouds and some rain on Sunday morning. It cleared up by mid-morning, but we decided to give the routes some time to dry. So we went Valhala Pure to check out the sale and so Kurt could exchange the 5 tennies he got from the silent aution back at the Mountain Festival.
We headed over to the upper Malumute to do High Mountain Woody (5.9). But the heat quickly took the energy out of us and it wasn't windy up there like it usually is to keep things cool. So we laid around and hung out together in the shade for a while until a breeze came up and got us motivated again. I put together a very excessive rack and we rapped down. I was really nervous to lead the route, but I got on the pointy end of the rope anyway. I have seconded it twice -- clean both times. And the last time felt really easy. So I knew it was possible for me to lead it if I could just stay relaxed and focused. But that proved to be challenging for me through the short crux of the climb which is right at the beginning. I was kind of freaking out and ended up putting in a couple pieces and getting lowered to re-collect myself.
After a short break and some Om's (thanks Kurt!), I managed to pull myself together and got back on it. I was still scared, but I was able to stay calm enough and focus on the climbing. Once I got through the tricky section, the rest was very fun! 
We had planned on doing more climbing up there, but it was getting late and Kurt wasn't feeling well. So we called it a day and went home.
We woke up to clouds and some rain on Sunday morning. It cleared up by mid-morning, but we decided to give the routes some time to dry. So we went Valhala Pure to check out the sale and so Kurt could exchange the 5 tennies he got from the silent aution back at the Mountain Festival.
We headed over to the upper Malumute to do High Mountain Woody (5.9). But the heat quickly took the energy out of us and it wasn't windy up there like it usually is to keep things cool. So we laid around and hung out together in the shade for a while until a breeze came up and got us motivated again. I put together a very excessive rack and we rapped down. I was really nervous to lead the route, but I got on the pointy end of the rope anyway. I have seconded it twice -- clean both times. And the last time felt really easy. So I knew it was possible for me to lead it if I could just stay relaxed and focused. But that proved to be challenging for me through the short crux of the climb which is right at the beginning. I was kind of freaking out and ended up putting in a couple pieces and getting lowered to re-collect myself.
After a short break and some Om's (thanks Kurt!), I managed to pull myself together and got back on it. I was still scared, but I was able to stay calm enough and focus on the climbing. Once I got through the tricky section, the rest was very fun! 
Although I have led harder routes, I have never been that scared and then gotten over it an been able to complete the climb. I think this may have been in important step in getting my lead head back since I broke my ankle last year.
We had planned on doing more climbing up there, but it was getting late and Kurt wasn't feeling well. So we called it a day and went home.
Since the forecast was calling for rain all week, I decided to take a break from Squamish and headed back to Seattle with Kurt. Hopefully next week will be nice --
I would really like to get up The Ultimate Everything, Angel's Crest, and maybe the actual Birds of Prey route (instead of whatever variation we ended up doing last time) before the summer is over!
1 comment:
Hi Julia. Your blog is so cool to read. It's like listening to a close friend's story. It's amazing we share the same passion, the same job despite thousands of miles between.
Good luck.
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