Tuesday, October 2, 2018

Laughing Gull - Rock Climbing


Redrock, Gloucester
Pano of Main Crag

Super fun, super mellow day of rock climbing at Redrock in Gloucester with Etha! I didn't expect to climb my second 5.11 slab today, but sure glad I did. The start of Laughing Gull was so polished so I started to the left just under the cresent. Found a really good foothold to gain the cresent. Finding holds at the mid-section was definitely challenging. But that left-leaning crack was a sweet finish. 

Etha also didn't expect to climb a 5.12 today, but she did and she killed it! She climbed the Andromeda Direct Start, without even knowing she was doing the Direct - we both hadn't looked at the guidebook or MP beta on this climb. While belaying her I kept telling myself, "this couldn't be a 5.11!" Sure enough, after she finished the climb, we looked it up in the guidebook and got all giddy when we realized that she took the direct start and climbed her first outdoor 5.12 -- Congratulations!

Zipper was a fun layback. I started up the Zipper route climbing it like a crack, but meh, it's more of a flake climb and I quickly had to layback on it. The climb is fun, but way too short. 



Etha also didn't expect to climb a 5.12 today, but she did and she killed it! She climbed 5.12, Andromeda Direct Start, without even knowing she was doing the Direct - we both hadn't looked at the guidebook or MP beta on this climb. While belaying her I kept telling myself, "this couldn't be a 5.11!" Sure enough, after she finished the climb, we looked it up in the guidebook and got all giddy when we realized that she took the direct start and climbed her first outdoor 5.12 -- Congratulations!
Left to right: Andromeda Direct Start (5.12), 
Zipper (5.6), Laughing Gull (5.11)



Toe Jams was an interesting crack. Etha, who lead Toe Jams and is smaller than me, could get her legs including her knee right into the OW section at the start of the climb. She lead it and then I tried to lead it. I found it wasn't going to be as easy as Etha made it out to be. It was too wide for foot jamming, but too narrow to even get my knee into it. As a result, it sketched me out and I backed down. That's the first (and I'm sure not the last) time I ever backed down from a lead climb. I TR'd it afterwards and still found the start sketchy. Near the top is perfect (for me) #2 handjams and smaller. Perhaps having doubles of #3 and #2 to place at the OW beginning may have lessened the sketchy-ness?



Lots of polished surfaces on a lot of these routes, but it was fun to get out to climb before the rain. We had this crag all to ourselves today. Last time I climbed here was 7 years ago. Hoping to get back soon to get on those routes we didn't have a chance to climb.


The top of the Masters Wall from the top of the Main Crag


Along the trail

Sunday, September 16, 2018

The Dome, Pawtuckaway - Rock Climbing



Dome Face Right (5.8)

Another stellar day for climbing! This morning Noreen, Nuno and I headed out to The Dome at Pawtuckaway State Park. At first the weather didn't look promising, but forecasts called for afternoon sun. The morning fog did eventually burn off and blue skies warmed up the slab quickly. It was peaceful and we had this crag all to ourselves. 


Nuno setting up top rope


Nuno start, Another Face (5.7)

Noreen on the Pine Tree Crack (5.5)

This crag is perfect for a hammock!


Left: Start on the Half Moon Crack (5.7)
Right: Making my way up the crack in the short corner.



Looking down from the finish, Dome Face Right


The Dome overlooks the marsh that feeds Round Pond


Sunday, August 26, 2018

Lower Slabs & Upper Cliff Pawtuckaway - Rock Climbing




Besides having crack climbing goals, I also have goals for climbing steep slab above the 5.8 grade. Today I got a chance to climb my very first 5.11! On a whim, I climbed Thin Face, a 5.11, one pitch route on the Lower Slabs at Pawtuckaway State Park in New Hampshire. It sure was balance-y, finger-y and lock-offs came in handy in several sections, but the climb was so fun!. Slab climbing, what's not to love! *grin* Joined good climbing friends Noreen, Nuno and his son Daniel. We started at the Lower Slabs and then moved to the Upper Cliff. I tried The Horn and it was tough. Had Noreen lower me from the top to see if I could jam the right leaning crack. It's also a bit overhanging! Think I'll stick to leaning cracks on a slab! :-P








Monday, August 6, 2018

Salt Pump Climbing - Indoor Climbing





Noreen and I spent several hours climbing at Salt Pump Climbing gym in Scarborough, ME. Originally we were supposed to climb at the Lower Slabs at Pawtuckaway but with heavy rains for the past 2.5 days and the crag being under tree shade, we cancelled and did some indoor climbing. This gave me a chance to work on the wide crack and Noreen a chance to climb at a gym she's never climbed at. 

In addition to top roping some of the other climbs in the gym, I did 3 runs on the crack route. My second time I made it half way up the crack before having to stop to rest. Working on building more stamina to finish the route in one sweep. Also, I noticed that if I didn't place my feet well, it was painful. If I placed my feet well, there was just pressure. I have to look at where I'm placing my feet, and purposely place them so that the rubber on the side rand makes good contact with the rock surface. I'm learning that It's really important to calculate just how deep or shallow to place my feet in the crack so that I don't experience any pain, and do it as quickly as possible. Having a really great pair of crack climbing shoes (Butora Altura Green) also helps! 
A short clip of my climb on the wide crack


Same climb, another angle - before my iPhone fell over! LOL!


Noreen crushing the 5.9 Pipe Master

Sunday, July 22, 2018

Rose Ledge - Rock Climbing




rose ledge, rock climbing

Met up with Nuno for some craggin' at Rose Ledge in Erving, MA. The last time I climbed here was back in 2015 and I don't remember the hike up to the Main wall at all. Today Nuno and I did some "extra hiking" to get to the crag. ;) But on the way out, we found the trail to be straightforward after all.

Surprisingly, there were no crowds today and Nuno and I pretty much had the Main Cliff to ourselves. Couple of boulderers hiked past, a couple climbed Guillotine, and then left. And there was an AMC group that hiked up to the Amphitheater and back out. A quiet day great for Nuno's first time climbing at Rose Ledge!

Nuno's first experience climbing at Rose Ledge

Greeting Crack (5.4) at Introductory Buttress



Main Wall
Top Left: Tennessee Top Right: Marie Antoinette -Guillotine
Bottom Left: Beginners
Bottom Right: Double Helix - Pumper Pillar - Off Width



Approach Directions:
Park in the lot and pay $3 in locked box on tree. 
Walk uphill to the left fork in the road with a yellow gate. 
Take this paved road uphill until it turns right. 
When the paved road turns right, look left and there should be an opening in guard rails.
Continue through opening in guard rails and follow gravel road slightly right and uphill.
Continue uphill through woods.
Follow until you come to the Rose Ledge trail junction.
Turn right at "Rose Ledge trail" sign. Tree behind trail sign has red blaze and "snowshoe trail" signs on it.
Trail will take you to Introductory Buttress on the left.
Continue along trail to the Main Face.

Friday, July 20, 2018

Crack Climbing Instruction #6





Fantastic crack climbing lesson with Tino today!! After warmup worked on “Pressure Garden” the green route (right) to practice, what else, cross-body tension - and it was so fun!! The route is a dihedral and is supposed to mimic the 5.11, 5th pitch of The Prow on Cathedral Ledge - "Stemming" used to ascend. Climbing on vertical cracks is super strenuous but I have to admit, it makes the low-angle cracks outdoors easy. #crackclimbinggoals

Tuesday, July 17, 2018

Rock Garden - Rock Climbing



rock climbing, trad, onsight, lost horizon, sundown ledges


Rock Garden (5.4)
Lost Horizon, Sundown Ledges
Albany, NH

Got to onsight Rock Garden (5.4) this morning. The chimney was damp and dark and smelled a bit of urine. Got to hand jam, foot jam, face climb, friction and stem on this climb. But I didn't need to do any liebacking as listed on the MP description for this climb. It was a fun climb and hope to get back there to climb again! Lost Horizon is a super nice crag with clean rocks and the base is well shaded. We were the only ones climbing at Lost Horizon and it made for a mellow day of climbing.





Thermacell Backpacker Mosquito Repeller


Eric brought this cool mosquito repeller to the crag and I was impressed! It's very lightweight and kept the bugs and mosquitoes at bay while we climbed. You can order one online here at Thermacell.com











The Main Cliff
A couple of years ago I had hiked the Boulder Loop Trail at Sundown area off the Kancamagus. At the time I didn't realize it was a rock climbing area. Today, Eric showed me the Lost Horizon and Main Cliff area. 

Sunday, July 8, 2018

Betty - Multi Pitch Rock Climb



Day at the Gunks
Right to left: Lovena, Richard, Alisa & Nicole


Betty (5.3)
Trad, 150 ft, 2 pitches
Jackie and Friends, The Trapps, The Gunks

Such a stellar day for my first trad lead in the Gunks! I've second several routes at the Gunks many times, but this was my first time leading at the Gunks and it was a most memorable day for me! I lead the 1st pitch of Betty and Nicole lead the 2nd pitch. For the second pitch we took the variation up instead of the chimney. At the finish there were a lot of horizontal cracks which makes the rock look like its stacked - these made for lots of good hand jams! A route doesn't have to be a 'crack climb' in order to utilize its crack(s) as a hold. If you know how to jam, it can make a lot of the climbs easier.

Richard and Alisa paired up to climb Belly Roll and Easy Overhang. Afterwards the four of us checked out Rock and Snow as well as the Rock and Snow Annex. Then sat down for drinks and dinner at the Schazti's Pub & Bier Garden of New Paltz. 


Bringing Nicole up P1 of Betty
Gunks, rock climbing, Betty, trad lead

Tuesday, May 29, 2018

Connecticut Rock Climbing



Shaka from the top of Wiessner's Slab
Ragged Mountain, Connecticut

Spent the Memorial Day weekend with Nicole and climbing in her neck of the woods. It was amazing an amazing day!







On the first day Nicole and I went to Ragged Mountain. I wanted to lead a slab so Nicole showed me the Wiessner's Slab. I quickly learned their slabs aren't the same as the slabs I'm accustomed to in NH. 













Nicole didn't want me to miss an opportunity for an on-sight - so I lead Wiessner's Slab and it sure was fun. There were a couple of hand and finger jams as well as a couple of foot jams to satisfy my crack fix! LOL!

Right: bringing Nicole up!







Rain the second day so we shopped at REI. It was cool to see Wilson hanging out!















Afterwards we headed over to Prime Climb climbing gym to do some indoor climbing. There are two crack climbs (in the wall) and I got on both. They're both narrower than the crack I get my lessons on, but I was able to climb both several times. Still fun and it satisfied my urge to climb crack!










The last day we climbed at Pinnacle Rock. I followed Nicole up Double Crutch.  

Nicole at the belay up top!!
Trad is Rad!












Vee Zee (5.4)
FA: 1988 Claude Mallegol & Nunzio Marino

Then I saw this crack that I just had to lead. It's located immediately right of the Emerald City Slab. The start was tough and a reachy for me. It was wide in the beginning and my small hands and feet weren't jamming. But there were good foot places at the back of the crack and the crack was wide enough for me to fit up to my calf. However, as I got higher the crack narrowed and I was able to get a few (shallow) hand jams and a 4-finger slot. Near the top and at the end of the crack I was able to get a couple bomber foot jams in as well. It was an amazing weekend!






Bringing up Nicole on Vee Zee.



















Pano from the top of Pinnacle Rock, Connecticut

Wednesday, May 23, 2018

North Pack Monadnock - Hiking



Wapack, Miller state park, hiking, summit, shaka
North Pack Monadnock summit
Summit Shaka!

North Pack Monadnock (2,276ft)
Elevation Gain: 1,350 feet
Trails: Ted's, Cliff and Carolyn's
Distance: 5.6 miles roundrtrip

So much fun rock scrambling in the rain! Gray skies couldn't keep us away from hiking. Got together with 4 others of the Metrowest Retirees (or not yet) Ready For Adventure meetup group for a rainy day hike to the summit of North Pack Monadnock.  Great hiking company, peaceful woods, wildlife surprises and fantastic lookout views near the top more than made up for the challenge of the brutal mosquitoes. We hiked in the clockwise direction taking Ted's trail to the Cliff trail to the summit, then descended via Carolyn's trail. Enjoy some photos of our fun, rainy day hike!





This is my favorite photo of our group as we ascended. Although foggy, I really love the background. A marvelous hike! 














Fun rock scrambling in the rain


Waterfall at mile 1


So many gorgeous views from the lookouts! (3)



Friday, May 18, 2018

Quabbin Reservoir - Hiking





A mellow 5.5 mile hike through peaceful, beautiful woods and sights! Joined the Metrowest Retirees (or not yet) Ready for Adventure meetup group for a hike in the Ware, MA area. The Quabbin Reservoir, Ware River, Wachusetts Reservoir and their contributing watersheds supply drinking water to many communities in the metro Boston area as well as the Chicopee Valley area. The reservation is accessible to the public via more than 50 marked gates from around the perimeter of the reservoir. Our hike took us from the Observation Tower, to the Enfield Lookout, and finally to Hank's Meadow. Enjoy some photos taken of our hike.


Quabbin Observation Tower

Views from the Tower

Along the trail


A fine specimen with hair and bones!
(Coyote scat)

Fiddleheads

Many water crossings

The view from Enfield Look Out
Read here about the underwater ghost town

Pano of Quabbin Reservoir

Reflections

Along the trail



YouTube Channel - Hawaii Girl Adventures

Check out my YouTube channel at:  Hawaii Girl Adventures I will eventually be phasing out blog posts and be posting videos of my climbing, h...