Sedona Season

Just a bit of Sedona to get you psyched! The season is on!

Alien Baby at The Anvil Boulders



The classic "The Mace"



Oak Creek Spire Jump 1



Oak Creek Spire Jump 2



The Mace Jump (crazy). Anyone who does this should get a gold star!!!



Leap of Faith



Chris finds a big rattlesnake in Sedona



REAL Rock Climbers!!!

Cochise Stronghold Trip Report: Women Build Good Anchors Class

The " Women Build Good Anchors Class" held at the Cochise Stronghold in mid November was a huge success. Myself and four other woman climbers spent 3 amazing days camping, climbing and learning at the beautiful granite domes of the Stronghold.

We arrived on Friday afternoon and set up camp at a super sweet site with an amazing view of the West Stronghold.

After spending some time getting to know a little bit about one another we dove right into learning about ropes, webbing, cord and the like. We talked extensively about the construction, benefits and uses of these soft goods. Then we practiced knots and hitches until the sun set and our fingers were frozen. After enjoying a hot meal and a toasty camp fire we all retired to our tents.

Saturday morning we awoke to low clouds socked in against the rock formations, but soon the sun poked through the clouds and it turned into a lovely day. A perfect day, actually, to learn the basic principles of anchor construction. The camp site we choose was surrounded by small domes and free-standing boulders. This is where we spent part the day learning and practicing anchor building skills. The ladies had a great time wandering around tying off trees, slinging boulders and placing gear.

After a good lunch and a small rain storm that produced a fabulous rainbow, it was time to put those skills into practice and do some climbing. We hiked to a sight just 15 minutes from camp. The formation I had beta on was a small top roping crag with 6 established routes. The ladies choose the 5.7 off-width and the 5.8 crack just to the right as their targets. Due to the nature of many of the domes at the Stronghold we were able to easily scramble to the top of the formation.

Next we broke into teams and began to build TR anchors for the chosen routes. The women used their newly found skills to build some pretty sophisticated anchors. We spent a lot of time making sure each cam placement was bomber and all the master points were perfect. The sun was just beginning to set as we tossed the ropes down. After dealing with some rope management issues ( a rope got stuck on a ledge oops),we realized that there would be no climbing today. So we let the ropes hang for the night and headed back to camp excited to send in the morning. Back at camp, dinner and fire were the first order of business.

That night the clear cold desert sky was beautiful. The stars were so intensely bright, the concentrated band of the Milky Way blazing above and the random shooting stars made the sky seem unreal.

Sunday we woke up to a icy sunshiny day. As we ate breakfast we watched and waited for the sun to hit our climbs. We hiked back to site checked our anchors and spent the morning climbing in the sunshine. The climbs were stout for the ratings but quality none the less. Everyone was super excited to have climbed on, and fallen on, the anchors they had built themselves. We broke everything down and headed to camp and then to the next climbing site.

The next site was Council Rocks we hiked in scouted our routes and headed to the top. Each team did a great job of using their skills and were able to get a good start on their anchors, but unfortunately we were running short on time and didn't get a chance to climb that afternoon.

We covered so much material in such a short amount of time. The class could have lasted for another 3 days easily. But the ladies did an awesome job of facing and overcoming all the challenges the Stronghold threw at them in the time we had. I learned just as much as my students did on this adventure, and I feel proud to have been apart of this class. I can't wait to do it all over.

ABS Bouldering Competition

Vertical Relief Climbing Center will be hosting an ABS (American Bouldering Series) Bouldering Competition Saturday, December 12th. Come participate in the comp or cheer the climbers on!



Registration:
$40 (does not include ABS fee)
75 Competitor Limit (first come first serve) Sign up early!

Format:
3 hour open redpoint bouldering competition.

Schedule:
8:30 am registration opens
9:45 am rules meeting
10 am-1 pm competition

To sign up or get more information contact Vertical Relief at 928-556-9909 or info@flagstaffclimbing.com or visit http://usaclimbing.net/home.cfm.

Red Dragon

Red Dragon, an open project of the last few years, has finally been sent. This problem is located up at The Peaks bouldering area. I found a great video of local climber Zak Lerner climbing it by Sam Davis on deadpointmag.com. Check it out here.

My First Trip Up The Captain

My first trip up The Capitan
By John Doskicz

On September 20th Pete Walka and I topped on the south west face of El Cap after climbing the Salathe Wall, 48 years to the day Robbins, Frost and Pratt topped out their historic ascent. This first ascent marked a turning point in tactics for climbing the Capitan. The first ascent party shunned the siege practices that were used on the Nose, fixing lines over 2000 feet up the route. The trio left their fixed lines after pitch 11 and set off alpine style, taking 6 more days to climb 25 more pitches and finish the route. I cannot imagine the effort it must have took for those guys to do this 1961. Pete and I cooked in unseasonably warm temperatures, Pete worried he’d blown a kidney after taking an upside down 30 foot whipper, we spent an unplanned extra night bivied just 4 pitches from the top and I swore that if I made it down alive I’d devote myself to sport climbing.

We left Flag at 4am on Monday September 15 and arrive in Yosemite National Park to camp in Tuolumne Meadows campground that afternoon. We were excited to start packing for the wall and spent the evening packing the haul bag under a clear and cool sierra night. We took a smaller than full size haul bag with us. After a couple hours, several Budweisers and substituting our sleeping bags with my kids sleeping bags we were satisfied that everything fit. Water was the biggest part of the load. We had 10 two liter bottles of water, some short sleeping pads from Pete’s Flagstaff Field Institute W.F.R. supplies, jackets, ¾ sleeping bags, bivi sacks, a bunch of energy bars, 4 beers, two canned espresso drinks, some ibuprofen, climbing tape, tp, and duct tape. We woke up early the next morning and went to climb Cathedral Peak just down the road from camp. I have always marveled at this peak when in Tuolumne and was thrilled to finally climb it. The climb’s approach took about an hour and the climbing consisted of about a 1,000 ft of easy 5th class climbing, on perfect sierra granite to a spectacular tiny summit. We were back in camp before check out, broke camp and were done setting up our new camp in north pines campground in the valley by 1pm. We were heading to the meadow to scope the route when we discovered problems with the truck. Fortunately the shop in the valley was great and since the valley fleet was all GMC they had the starter I needed to get the rig running again. The two hour delay allowed us to get some gifts for the kids and check out the exhibits at the visitor center. We spent the late afternoon spying the route. There were two parties right on top of each other just below el cap spire. We did not see anyone else on the route. That night we racked for the Free Blast, the first third of the route.

I started up the first pitch of Free Blast around 6am. Fortunate for us we were not a few minutes later because as I was hanging at the first belay, belaying Pete, 3 more parties arrived at the base of the route. We were in ‘wall’ mode and did not fuss much with deciphering the 5.11 cruxes, easily willing to yard on gear to keep the pace fast. We had a light rack, swapping leads, linking pitches and we were not hauling. The climbing was fun and each pitch went by without much fuss. The half dollar was super tricky and once you finish the traverse and get up into the corner we were reminded of how physical steep/wide Yosemite 5.8s can feel. We made it to Mammoth Terraces at noon, our climbing done for the day. Another climber was at Mammoth and informed us that the fixed lines up to Heart Ledges were in perfect shape. That was good to hear. We had brought two ropes up with us in case we felt the need to leave one as a replacement as we rapped the fixed lines back to the ground. “Perfect” may not have been the best choice of words. The lines from mammoth to heart did not have any core shots but the sheath was pretty dry and small pieces of nylon stubble flew in our faces as we did two rappels down to heart. All of the next 5 fixed lines had some issues. At least all the big core shots were tied off on bights in the rope. Still we did not elect to replace any of the ropes. The two parties we saw earlier were working their way through the headwall near the top of the route. There was a party that was on the hollow flake when we started down from heart. We made it back to camp in the early afternoon and packed the bag for the 2 day push to finish the route.

We were making the 15 minute approach at dark thirty the next day. A party of two had gotten up even earlier and the second was jugging the second line when we got to the base. Pete took off first, jugging each fixed line ahead of me and doing the hauling at each belay. The Party above us was a couple from Vegas, Brian and Sandra. They were working on the Free Rider and only planned to climb three pitches off of heart ledges. Working the 5.12 traverse into the hollow flake before it came into the sun. I started the block for the day and led/hauled the next 5 pitches. I asked for the morning shift because I get wimpy at the end of the day and Pete is mentally tougher than I am. The climbing was great I really enjoyed the long 5.10 corner pitch above the 5.7 chimney. Take knee pads for that 5.7 chimney, I have the scars on my knees to show what happens if you don’t. This pitch sucked, big flared, featureless grovel that was no fun at all. Pete fired up the next 5.10 pitch and then took us up and through the ear. Pete says the ear was “not that scary”. Robbins says it was the scariest 5.7 he had ever climbed. Just one of the wide moderate scare fest pitches on the route. While cleaning the traversing squeeze chimney one of my climbing shoes ripped off my harness and disappeared. Fortunately Pete also climbs in Moccasysms and although they are a size smaller than mine, I would be wearing them the next morning. Pete took the first aid pitch of the route just below the alcove. Pete was climbing strong and back cleaning bravely when an alien hybrid pulled after stepping up on it. This resulted in an upside down 30 foot fall and a wonderful hip check into the granite wall. After shaking it off, he pulled back up to his last piece and finished the pitch. He used the same piece again as “it was the best piece to use and looked good”. Pete later told me he had to stop at the belay and monitor vitals, thinking that he was feeling real bad and that the fall may have cause some injury. After a few minutes he deemed himself just fine. We were worked arriving at El Cap Spire just as the sun was hitting the ridge line. It had been a long, hard and hot day on the wall. We had some energy bars for dinner and a beer, watched the traffic role through the valley, marveled at the stars and the looming 1,000 feet of granite still above us.

I started out the day immediately in my aiders working up the 5.11 thin hand crack off the spire. I was not excused entirely from free climbing as the pitch ended with more 5.9 squeeze. I climbed slow, feeling tired and a bit depleted. There was a good breeze and some high thin clouds that made it seem not as hot as the previous day. I ended my block a pitch earlier than planned just before a tricky aid pitch with possible weird route finding. I suggested Pete take over since he was a better aid climber. And after jugging for 5 hours he was ready to get on the sharp end. Pete worked his magic and two pitches later we were under the head wall roof. Pete aided the roof quickly making use of the fixed gear that marked the way. Cleaning the roof was when the exposure and fatigue started me thinking crazy thoughts. Like, maybe this climb could mark the conclusion of my climbing career. Started in 1990 stopped in 2009. Or, maybe I should sell my gear except my draws and just sport climb. Or not climb at all any more; focus on trail running, yoga and the businesses. The long hanging belays and the steep jugging on the headwall kept these thoughts running through my head. Pete had no problem leading the head wall and combined the last short pitch with the previous one to get the ropes to Long Ledge. I arrived at Long with about 30 minutes till sunset. We had wanted to top out that day. We had told our families we’d probably be off Saturday night and that was not going to happen. We had a few bars left, 3 liters of water and decided it best to spend another night and finish in the morning with only 400 feet to go. Long ledge was pretty wild. The ledge is only about 3 feet wide and over 20 feet long. You can barely keep your shoulder on the rock when lying down. We were done, cooked and ready to be done with this wall. And at the same time we could not dismiss our amazement of just where we were. 2,600 feet up the south west face of el cap on a tiny ledge that offered a view that looked straight down to the ground so far below.

Sunday morning we were up at the first sign of a dark sky beginning to lighten. The next pitch again called for some tricky aid off the right side of the ledger. So, Pete went after it. After shaking off the morning fog, and placing some bomber cams at knee level he pulled up on a small micro nut that promptly blew from the crack. Thankfully he had found the good gear below or he was looking at a 20 foot pendulum fall across the ledge. The aiding got easier and moved to 5.5 face climbing and another 5.9 squeeze took us up to a big ledge to the last pitch, a short 5.6. We topped out about 9:30am. More than 3 days of hard work. Days of stress about what was next? Were we going to make it? Can’t drop anything! The relief to be on top was amazing. It was my first time up The Captain, Pete’s 4th. 2 hours later we were back at the rig. Tossed the gear in and got caught up on football scores as we drove to the village store where we bought Gatorades and sandwiches. We sent a couple of customers walking in the other direction due to the wonderful aroma that surrounded us. Back at camp we got cleaned up and soon enough we were looking at the topos for other routes on the Capitan. Amazing how wonderful a short term memory problem can be. How we could go from “this is nuts” to “what’s next and when”. Surely this was class C fun. That is fun when it’s done. We strategized about how we could move faster, be braver, get more comfortable and dial in our systems. That night we gorged ourselves on pizza, French fries and beer while watching Sunday night football at Curry. We were feeling very worked the next morning after finally getting a chance to sleep in on this trip. Sore muscles, lots of scars, scabs, bruises, aches and pains. We figured we were done climbing with the time we had left on the trip. That day we drove up and over Tioga pass and camped at Twin Lakes in Mammoth. Left Mammoth early the last day and arrived home to flag in time for dinner.

I have new respect for all climbers that make it up that giant piece of stone. I’ve always thought that one day I need to climb El Cap if I want to call myself a climber and I am stoked I finally did. And yes, I do plan on climbing it again, maybe the Nose next time. I am glad we took as much water as we did; I had thought maybe a little less was necessary. It was hot and we would have loved more if we had it. We did not free as much as we thought we would. We realized that we were taking off on each lead with just about the entire rack, which was huge. This really handicapped our free climbing ability. We should have done a better job of racking up specifically for each pitch. I had just got some Metolius Master Cams and they worked great on the route. Chris let us borrow his Hybrid Aliens which were key in several spots. All in all the Supertopo rack suggestion is right on. The pictures in the magazines make big wall climbing look pretty glamorous. It will certainly take more time up there for me to feel glamorous. It’s just a lot of sweat, blood, work and great memories.

Bill Williams Mountain gets new routes

A new crag has been developed on Bill Williams Mountain, Williams, AZ recently that is worth a visit. Quality routes ranging from 45-80 feet tall with trad and sport. Grades vary from 5.10 to 5.12. Get up there before winter hits.

Go here for a driving directions and route information.

Adopt-A-Crag Day at the Pit Huge a Success!

Thank you so much to our 20 volunteers, Matt, Alex, and Jenny from Coconino Fire, and to Justin Loxley and his Forest Service Trail Crew guys. In about 4 hours of work we were able to shut down several unnecessary social trails, build about ten rock steps on the trail up to the Swiss Tower, and brush the main trail that leads down into the canyon. A huge thanks to all of our sponsors, but to especially the Forest Service, the Access Fund, Vertical Relief Climbing Gym, the NACC and Voodoo Holds. With out their help our workday would not have been possible.

Thanks again to all of our hard working volunteers. Chris and I hope to see you guys and gals out at our next work day, November 14 (more information coming soon).

-Will Cobb

Tucson Rock climbers agree: This Porta-John needed to go

Call it Operation Porta-Potty Rescue.

Three Tucson rock climbers — using ropes, pulleys and other technical climbing gear — recently "rescued" a portable toilet from a crevice high on a cliff at Windy Point northeast of the city.

Vandals apparently had pushed the lightweight loo from the cliff top several years ago while road work was under way at Windy Point.

Read the rest of the article here.

Interested in helping with the Trail Work Day at The Pit, September 26?

Here are some details…

The work day at The Pit will begin at 8am and run until 1pm or longer if necessary on September 26. The focus of the day will be on the trail system leading to the base of the cliffs. Areas of concern are the main trail trending left towards the Swiss Tower and the erosion gully left and below the Sun Tower. These areas are getting hammered from climbers and hikers and the main goal will be to limit the erosion and block off unnecessary ’social’ trails that have been created from short cuts. We need to work together to keep our land managers happy with climbers and keep our climbing areas open. The Northern Arizona Climbers Coalition and the Access Fund will be sponsoring the event. The U.S. Forest Service is supporting this event, they love it when users give back to the forest. Come show your local support and come with a pair of gloves and some tools like shovels, rakes, pick axes, etc. Plan for a day of hard work and fun by dressing appropriately for the weather and bringing plenty of food and water. Keep an eye out for more information about the clean up. Will Cobb (Access Fund Regional Coordinator for Northern AZ) and I have a meeting with some Forest Service officials this week at The Pit to find out exactly what they will let us do. We will keep you posted on what the plan is. This climbing community is one of the best around, I know this will be a success and can’t wait to see everyone out there!

Chris Tatum

Reel Rock Weekend

Reel Rock Weekend is hosted by Vertical Relief Climbing Center

Vertical Relief organized this event to give back to the climbing community and one of the most used and abused crags in Northern Arizona, The Pit. With the help of the Northern Arizona Climbers coalition (sponsor of The Pit trail work event), Carrie Cooper (New Zealand Bouldering Slideshow event at Vertical Relief) and Reel Rock Film Tour (climbing films at The Orpheum Theatre) we hope to give you one last great weekend of climber fun before summer is over. Show your support of local climbing by volunteering your time working on the trails at The Pit and enjoy the fun at the other events!

Vertical Relief wants to thank you for being the best climbing community anywhere! This is also VR's 14th birthday. Thank you for making us a success! Have fun at the events!


Thursday, September 24th
Reel Rock Tour at The Orpheum
When: 7:30 pm
Cost: $10 (tickets available at Vertical Relief and The Orpheum Theatre)
Info: The fourth annual Reel Rock Film Tour showcases the best new climbing films from around the world. This year, the films Progression and First Ascent: The Series will be presented.



Saturday, September 26th
Trail Work Day at The Pit
When: 8-1pm
Info: Come volunteer your time with the forest service to improve the trail systems at The Pit.
Sponsored by the Northern Arizona Climbers Coalition. For more information, contact VR at info@flagstaffclimbing.com or 928-556-9909.


End of Summer Party w/Potluck, BBQ and BYOB at Vertical Relief
When: 6 pm
Cost: Free
Info: Bring food for the Potluck/BBQ and eating equipment. BYOB.


New Zealand Bouldering Slideshow w/Carrie Cooper at Vertical Relief
When: 8 pm
Cost: Free/Buy a raffle ticket, support the show!
Raffle: An entire Prana Outfit, mad rock shoes, voodoo gear $5 per raffle ticket
Info: Carrie Cooper is one of Flagstaff's hard climbing mama's. She and her husband, photographer Kyle George, along with their 2 year old daughter Ava, traveled through New Zealand for 5 months living out of their 27 year old campervan, exploring, surfing, and climbing. Come and enjoy the images and hear stories of secret crags, remote surf breaks, high ball bouldering, and raising a child in the outdoors.

Bad Movie Night at Vertical Relief

On Saturday, September 12, Vertical Relief will be hosting "Bad Movie Night," featuring the movie Cliffhanger.

BBQ @ 6:30 pm
Movie @ 8 pm

Cliffhanger is undoubtedly the most realistic climbing film ever produced in the modern world. Filmed on location in Rocky Mountain National Park. This stellar cast headed by Stallone, Lithgow and Turner show us what it is really like on the sharp end.

NEED I SAY MORE?

...so come hang out, bring some food for the BBQ and your favorite beverage. Socialize and watch the best climbing film ever.

ALL OF THIS FOR FREE!!!

See the trailer below.

Reel Rock Tour is Back! Hosted by Vertical Relief

Vertical Relief will be hosting the “not to be missed” Reel Rock Tour, at The Orpheum Theatre, Thursday, 9/24, at 7:30 pm.

Cost:$10 (tickets available at Vertical Relief and The Orpheum Theatre).

Check out the trailer for this years amazing films below.



There is a film making competition on the Reel Rock Tour website that is also worth checking out. View the films here.

See ya at The Orpheum!

New Stealth® Paint Patch Kit

Five Ten has a new patch kit on the market, Stealth® Paint.

Stealth® Paint is a rubber compound developed from recycled Stealth® Rubber. It is designed for use on climbing shoes to increase durability and perform spot repairs while still offering the friction Stealth® Rubber is known for.

The kit includes a small tin of powered recycled Stealth® Rubber, a tube of Barge Cement, a plastic spoon, and a stirring rod. As well as instructions that are more like ideas on how one might use the kit.

I was able to test out this kit and discovered that if you follow the directions exactly you are most likely to end up with a rubber booger sculpture on your shoe. So, I would like to offer my own suggestions on use for success.

-First off you must do this outside no amount of ventilation inside can vent those fumes effectively.
-Stuff your shoe with newspaper .
-Make sure to clean off area of your climbing shoe to be painted; I suggest roughing up the surface with some sandpaper.
-Next use masking tape to tape off area where you DON’T want paint. It has to be masking tape.
-Then apply the Barges cement to area to be painted. Allow this to dry completely.
-Use something besides the lid of the tin for this next part. (Something small and disposable works -- yogurt container or the like)
-Mix at most one spoon full of the rubber with a half spoon full of the cement; I say this because you have less than 30 seconds once it is mixed together to get the paint on the shoe.
(If you let it sit for 30 sec first it is much harder to apply smoothly)
So doing several smaller batches works much better.
-Use the mixing rod to apply the paint to area where cement is on your shoe. Rolling the rod over the paint makes it pretty smooth.
-Allow to dry, over night is best.
-Once its dry peel off tape carefully. Use the sand paper to lightly sand down edge of paint I think this helps to keep it from delaminating.
-Try not to touch the wet paint once it is applied. If you do, it just kind of balls up and won’t stick as well.

I used the paint to fix some small areas on my La Sportiva Solutions the toe patch was starting to delaminate (after a year of climbing). The Stealth® Paint worked really well for this it seems to be holding up well even to toe hooking and the like. It is even sticking really well to the upper which it synthetic on these shoes. Over all, I think it’s worth the money. I don’t think this paint will make your shoes seem like band new again but it should give them an extended life.

Good luck and if you have any tips or ideas for better success feel free to add them.

Thanks.
Sam

Vertical Relief has the Stealth® Paint Do it Yourself Kits for sale. The kit retails for $16.99.

Bouldering on the Peaks

Just found some nice photos of some excellent back country bouldering on the San Francisco Peaks on blimpbouldering.blogspot.com, a nice photo blog by Sam Davis. Check out the photos here.

More Zach Lerner

Check out these cool videos of Zach climbing some of the hardest lines in Flagstaff.

Local Boy Does Good

At the 2009 Mammut Bouldering Championships in Salt Lake City local climber, Zach Lerner, placed a very respectable 5th against the worlds best! Congratulations Zach!!

Check out the 2009 Mammut Bouldering Championships Men's Highlights below.



For more information about the 2009 Mammut Bouldering Championships go here.

FREE Outdoor Climbing!!!

FREE Outdoor Climbing!!!

August 14, 8am- 4pm

Are you new to climbing? Or maybe not new to it but haven't been outside climbing yet or maybe just a few times? Are you looking for an opportunity to get outside and get some professional instruction? Well, we are extending an offer to you to come climb as a volunteer for FREE as part of an American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA) Single Pitch Instructor Certification Exam. Part of this exam is watching candidates guide and teach real clients outside on real rock. So, all you have to do is show up and have a fun day getting guided for FREE! If you are interested, please contact Chris Tatum at christatum@flagstaffclimbing.com. We will be taking sign-ups (sign-ups are limited). By volunteering your time, you are contributing to the standardization and professionalism of the profession of guiding rock climbing in the U.S.

We appreciate your help. SIGN UP! It's FREE!!!

--
Chris Tatum

Condor Strangled by Discarded Climbing Rope

Very sad. This is certainly an issue we Arizona climbers should think about being so close to an area where Condors live (Grand Canyon, Vermilion Cliffs, etc.). Condors have been known to travel great distances in a day and it is entirely possible for them to pass through Sedona or even here.

Check out the details here http://www.venturacountystar.com/news/2009/jul/16/condor-strangles-on-discarded-rope-near-fillmore/.

Search for Bryce Gillies

We regret to announce that the search for Bryce Gillies ended in tragedy. Our hearts go out to friends and family.

Thank you to all who helped with the rescue effort.

Missing Person in the Grand Canyon: NPS needs your help!

MISSING PERSON
Grand Canyon National Park requests your assistance in locating this person (Bryce Gillies). He may have friends in the Flagstaff climbing community so please get the word around about him missing!!! You or someone you know may have the information NPS needs to find him.

Subject: BRYCE GILLIES

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION
Age: 20
Height: 5’ 3”
Weight: 130
Hair: Brown
Eyes: Blue

Grand Canyon National Park Rangers are actively searching for Bryce Gillies, who reportedly started a three day hike in the Thunder River/Deer Creek area on Saturday July 18, 2009 and has not been seen or heard from since. Gillies was expected to return to Flagstaff where he is a student at NAU on Monday July 20, 2009.

If you have any information regarding this individual
Please Contact NPS Dispatch (928) 638-7805

Trip Report: Sport Climbing At El Rito, New Mexico

Last week, Susan and I went to Northern New Mexico for a climbing trip to El Rito. The drive is about 6 1/2 hours from Flagstaff. Learn about the El Rito sport climbing area here.

The climbing is very unique. The rock is conglomerate, made up of of metamorphosed sand and mud, with smooth, rounded cobbles of all sizes sticking out with most of the holds being pockets in the rock that the cobbles left behind when some of them fell out. Many of the walls are overhanging, but with an over abundance of jugs, many routes as easy as 5.9 and 5.10. There are also some excellent, steep 5.11's and 5.12's.

Susan on a great 5.9 that was our first route of the trip. The rock may look like river bed choss but it climbs o-so-good!

I enjoyed the 5.11's and 5.12's the most. Many of the best are long and very continuous with really fun climbing. Pumpy too, no hard moves, you just have to hold on for the ride.

Biggest highlight of the climbing trip for me was climbing on the Rad Wall. Awesome 5.11's and 5.12's! We climbed some sweet routes on that wall.

For those interested in going there, check out the online El Rito sport climbing guidebook here.

We had some other excitement at El Rito besides the climbing. The weather was a bit crazy the first day we climbed and we got caught in one of the more exciting thundershowers I've been in. Around 2:30 pm we saw some really close lighting and decided to hike back down to camp and escape the ridge line that all the climbing was on. About half way down the trail we got pounded on hard by rain. It probably would have been pretty funny to watch us sprinting for camp in the mud, completely soaked, with lightning flashing everywhere around us. Exciting!

I sacrificed all by putting all of the metal (draws and such) in my pack and carrying the stick clip on the hike down in the storm so that Susan wouldn't get hit by lightning (I owed her because I convinced her to stay and climb right up until the really close lightning strikes-she had the better sense and was voting for leaving before it got bad).

Camping:

The camping is pretty sweet! FREE camping by a trickling creek really close to the cliffs on forest service road 44A. There is even a cool little canyon, with a couple small waterfalls in it, that you can walk to and cool off in on hot summer days (located at the end of forest service road 44a). Really nice.

Hot Springs:

On our way back home we just had to soak in the San Antonio Hot Springs, located in the Jemez Mountains, to sooth our aching muscles. I think that if you are a hot spring lover then you can't miss these! They are at the top of my list, as good as most of the hot springs on the east side of the Sierra's. Directions and more information here.

Trip Report: Durango Family Weekend

The Doskicz family just had a fun long weekend in Durango. Only 5 ½ hours away, nestled at the southern end of the San Juan mountains at an elevation of 6500 ft, Durango offers all kinds of fun outdoor activities, things for the kids to enjoy and a fun downtown scene. Mountain biking, climbing, trail running, river running, BMX track and more. This was our third family trip to Durango and we always find new fun things to do. Here are some highlights to help you plan your trip.

The Camping:

We camp at Junction Creek Campground. This is a managed campground that charges a fee, has lots of sites, nice toilets (key for family), 6 miles from downtown and a walk out of camp onto great trails that go on forever! Climbing is close by too! Check out the B loop of the campground. This loop has many sites close enough to the creek to hear it running. You can also camp ‘at large’ 8 more miles up Junction Creek road.

The Trails:

The Colorado trail starts at the Junction creek trail head just below the campground. It is 2.5 miles up to Gudy’s Rest, a nice rocky vista, offering views back down the canyon towards town. A few more miles up the trail you’ll pass the first of two intersections that lead into the canyon to the west. You can make a 15 mile lollipop loop out of this section from camp. The Colorado trail just keeps going and going… 250 miles to Denver. I’ve always have had a great time running on the section of trails out of Junction Creek. The scenery in the upper reaches of Junction Creek as you work up towards Kennebec Pass is breath taking. The surrounding peaks almost reach 13,000ft, rocky spires jutting up from the canyon floor, and on my Father’s day 25 mile run the skies were mostly blue and 100% beautiful. One day I hope to get shuttled to Molas Pass, just south of Silverton, and run/walk/crawl the 70miles of Colorado Trail back to camp.

Pick up a trail map at one of the outdoor shops in town. There are networks of trails all around town. We spent several hours biking the Animas River trail through town. Very fun, family friendly ride. We parked at the city rec center and rode south from there. The trail runs next to the Animas, crosses a few times on bridges and tunnels to keep you out of traffic. South of town the trail passes a city BMX track. None of us have ever been on one before and we spent an hour cruising on the course. I’m not sure who had more fun, me or the kids?


The Climbing:

This was the first time I climbed in Durango. I had a couple of hours to myself on Saturday afternoon and drove the 3 miles from camp to the Turtle Lake boulders. Incredible sandstone boulders scattered throughout a hill side of scrub oak. The trails feel like corridors through the trees unveiling amazing rock at every turn. There are some big boulders here. I climbed a couple on the Big West boulder that offered hard moves in the first ten feet and then easy 5 class climbing for another 25! It felt great to run around for an hour, getting scared and down climbing and traversing the boulders too big for my comfort. To get there go west on 25th street towards Junction Creek. When the road splits, go right towards turtle lake. You will see a boulder on your left, just feet from the road and a long pull out on the right. Park in the pull out.

There are some boulders just pass the campground off of Junction Creek road with some chalk on them. Looks like an area that does not see much traffic but looks like good climbing. East Animas is the most popular local crag. And for a taste of home check out the Golf Wall, overhanging limestone sport climbing. In the late 80’s Vertical Relief Founder Tomas Robison was doing the dirt bag climber thing in Durango and was one of the route developers at the Golf Wall. Plus, all the alpine climbing in the San Juan Mts. is a short drive north.

TerraCycle Video

I hope you are bringing all those used energy bar wrappers to Vertical Relief so that we can send them to TerraCycle. They are a company we all should try and support with our waste. They will recycle it into some rad stuff!!! Way better than sending our wrappers to landfills.

Check our their promotional video below.

Summertime BBQ and movie night at Vertical Relief

Summertime BBQ and movie night Saturday, July 11th at Vertical Relief. We will have the BBQ ready to go around 6:30 pm. Bring your own meal and beverage, cook it up and watch the new film Herakleia at about 8 pm.

Check out the trailer for the movie below.

Terra Cycle

Hey all, I want to invite you to participate in a new program called Terra Cycle. This company is gathering all used energy bar wrappers to be used in their recycling process where they chop the wrappers down to make climbing ropes out of....or just cool fun toys like hand bags and containers, no ropes...sorry. So bring any wrappers you may have at home to the gym so we can send all this trash to them so they can put it to good use.

For every wrapper we submit, Terra Cycle will be donating 2 cents to the Access Fund so start saving all of your wrappers (I mean all of them, they sent us these huge prepaid bags to send them back in so the more the merrier) at home and bring them all down to the gym so you can be a part of this process today. I know 2 cents doesn't sound like much but it adds up quickly!!

Check them out at www.terracycle.net

Zak

Thank You!!!

Thanks to everyone who has responded to the request on this blog for volunteers as part of an American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA) Single Pitch Instructor Certification Exam.

Because of the great response, they are not asking for anymore volunteers at this time.

Free Outdoor Climbing!!!

Free Outdoor Climbing!!!Are you new to climbing? Or maybe not new to it but haven't been outside climbing yet or maybe just a few times? Are you looking for an opportunity to get outside and get some professional instruction? Well, we are extending an offer to you to come climb as a volunteer for FREE as part of an American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA) Single Pitch Instructor Certification Exam. Part of this exam is watching candidates guide and teach real clients outside on real rock. So, all you have to do is show up and have a fun day getting guided for FREE! If you are interested, please contact Chris Tatum at christatum@flagstaffclimbing.com. We will be taking sign-ups (sign-ups are limited). By volunteering your time, you are contributing to the standardization and professionalism of the profession of guiding rock climbing in the U.S. We appreciate your help. SIGN UP! It's FREE!!!


- Chris Tatum

Tech Tip: Spotting for Bouldering

I found a great article online today that points out some excellent tips for spotting when bouldering.

I think it would be a great read for all those "Flagstaff spotters" (you know who you are!) that never spot their friends and just sit around being lazy butts or just toss pads in a big pile and call it good.

It is also a good read for any of you budding boulderers who haven't had much guidance on the fine art of keeping your friends alive while they are grappling with a hard boulder problem.

Check out the article on climbing.com here.

Good luck out there on the boulders!

Carrie Cooper in online bouldering video

Check out Flagstaff local strong boulderer, Carrie Cooper, in a bouldering video on momentum video magazine (an online climbing video magazine). The video is shot at the famous Castle Hill in New Zealand.

See it at http://www.momentumvm.com/cms/.

Looks like you are having fun in New Zealand! We are jealous!!!

Holds breaking at Kelly Canyon

On a recent trip to a local bouldering area on a hot sunny day my friend and I were surprised to find many of the problems had changed a bit since our last visit here.

Several holds had been broken off one problem in particular. The hold for the first move, a fist size side-pull was just gone (well we found it covered in chalk a few feet away), what remained was a shallow 2 finger slot. Looking closer at the route we realized that there were at least five other newly broken holds. Needless to say this problem is going to be a lot different to climb.

After a good 10 minutes of bad mouthing the punks that did this we realized that the problem was still wet more than a week after the last rain.So we moved on to the sunny side of the canyon where the rock was warm and dry.

This experience has prompted me to spread the word a little bit, the “word” being DON’T CLIMB ON WET SANDSTONE!!!!!!

When it rains rock gets wet. If it is a porous rock like sandstone it actually adsorbs the water like a sponge. Every time you pull or stand on a hold you could break it off. When sandstone is wet, it loses much of its strength. If this were just a safety issue, you could climb after a storm and maybe you would blow a piece or two. You probably wouldn't die. Wet rock, however, is an environmental and aesthetic issue. Climbing on wet rock eats up cracks and key holds blow off. You will degrade the route. So how long should you wait after a storm? When the days after a rain consist of 80 degree heat, and the rock started out hot and dry, you can climb after a day or two.Wait at least a week in winter and early spring and when there is high humidity, cold temperature and already moist conditions. If you walk up to a wall and it feels wet, then it is, even if it has not rained in a while.

The reason why most sandstone is so dangerous to climb on is that the hydraulic conductivity of the rock is very high and when saturated, it loses approximately 80% of its cohesion.What that means is that if something seems sketchy on a hot sunny day it will be 80% more sketchy if it is wet. You are 80% more likely to break a hold and take a fall. Forget about the fact that you are 80% more likely to change a route or problem forever, think about the fact that you are 80% more likely to get hurt!!!!! Surely this knowledge would stop most in their tracks, and have them taking another rest day or heading to the climbing gym. But I guess that is not the case.

We as climbers should be aware of the impact we have on the outdoor areas we visit. We should take responsibility and do our level best to make good choices, choices that are good for everyone including the rock.

Having said all this I know holds break, erosion happens, things change I get all that. My point is just think before you climb, what type of rock am I heading to, what is the weather like. Do a little research before you head to a new area ask the locals what’s what. There are some climbing areas across the country that actually close after rain or snow because they feel that strongly about protecting the rock.

Peace
sam

Paradise Forks favorite crag in Flagstaff?

As it sits right now, Paradise Forks is the favorite crag in Flagstaff (according to our blog poll). There are a lot of excellent crags around Flagstaff but I am not suprised that Paradise Forks is at the top of the list. Maybe the world class splitter cracks (no joke-people travel from all over the world to sample the cracks at Paradise Forks), short approach (perfect for us lazy Flag locals) and the amazing views are the reason.

Haven't been there? Get off your butt and check it out!

Here is a video of the classic route Three Turkeys at the Davidson Wall to get you psyched.



Can you guess who the climber is? Hint: Flagstaff local. Old as dirt.

More info about Three Turkeys here.

Grigri: New Method for Belay!

Think back to when you first learned to lead belay with a grigi... it was probably awkward and took a while to get it dialed so you weren't always short roping your climber... at least it was for me! Now think about the way you do it these days. Probably some variation of that way you first learned and for most, it involves completely removing your break hand from the brake rope in order to release the lever and feed rope! THIS IS NOT CORRECT!!! Petzl states that you should not let go of the brake rope when belaying with the grigri. Remember that the grigri is simply an 'assist' device and should never be used to take the place of responsible and correct belay techniques. We must remind ourselves that we are literally holding someone's life in our hands! In light of all this, Petzl has finally come out with a good way to belay with a grigri without taking your brake hand of the brake rope. It may feel weird at first but as soon as you practice a little, you will find that this way is a much smoother and efficient way to lead belay with a grigri. Try it! If you just can't figure it out, look for me around the gym and I will be glad to give you beta on it!
-Chris Tatum

Cochise Stronghold in Climbing Magazine

In the newest Climbing Magazine, May issue #275, there is a great article about Cochise Stronghold, in southern Arizona and the photos are by Flagstaff's very own, James Martin.

If you haven't read it yet or don't have access to a print version of the magazine, fear not! Climbing has an online version of the article that is even better than the print one.

Highlights of the online article are: More in depth story, more photos by James Martin, local hardman Clay Usinger in lots of the photos (one great sequence of shots shows Clay taking a great fall on a 5.10 slab) and lots of good history about the climbing there.

Check out the online Cochise article here.

A very well written article by James Martin about his close friend (and friend of many in Flagstaff), titled "Honoring Old and New, Matt Kelly: friend and Cochise mentor," is exclusively on the online version of the article. Matt's life was cut short by a drunk driver while riding his road bike in 2005. He is missed by many. Read the article about Matt here.

To see more photos by James Martin, visit his website jamesQmartin.com.

Owner of Vertical Relief Climbing Center, John Doskicz, wrote an article of his own for one of our past VR newsletters about Cochise. I dug it out of our archives to reprint it here. NOTE: John found an online guide for Cochise that is excellent. He has a link to it in his article below.

Cochise Stronghold By John Doskicz
Over spring break my family took a trip down south to Cochise Stronghold for some outdoor fun in the sun and some sightseeing. It has been too many years since I have visited this magical mountain range about an hour's drive east of Tucson. The Dragoon Mountains have a lot to offer. Lots of granite, offering multi pitch adventures as well as developed sport areas. The forest roads are great for biking. Hiking trails cross the range. The camping is at large, plentiful and peaceful. For a good trail run check out the Slavin Gulch trail located ½ mile north of the Isle of You camping area. The historic mining town of Bisbee is less than 30 miles south. Tombstone is just a few miles away, don't forget your costume. I also recently discovered the Backcountry Climbing Guide to Southern Arizona on the web. It is shown in its entirety here, http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=ztc9vzcab.0.0.eqipxgcab.0&ts=S0388&p=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.climbaz.com%2FBackcountry%2Fbackcountry.html&id=preview. This book has been out of print for a while and I know many of you will want to use this. There is still at least another month of great weather in southern Arizona (Note: this article was written in April). Check it out.

Congratulations to Sam Davis!

Local climber, Sam Davis, has gotten a couple photos published in the "Everyman's Exposed" photo section of Rock and Ice magazine.

Issues his photos are in:
-Issue 178 "Special Training Edition" page 66 (Photo info: Sam's wife and amazing boulderer Ana Burgos on Cosmic Tricycle (V10) at the Priest Draw, Flag)
-CURRENT ISSUE! Issue 179 "Road Trips" page 47 (Photo info: Ana Burgos on Free Willy (V5/6) at the Anvil Boulders, Sedona)

Congrats Sam! Awesome photos!

If your interested in seeing more photos from Sam check out his blog http://blimpbouldering.blogspot.com/

Bored of the same old?

Looking for new climbing in Flagstaff this summer? There are alot of crags out there that are off the beaten path or are brand spankin' new that have excellent climbing. Add them to your circuit! Here are a couple sites that will get you started...

http://www.rockclimbing.com/routes/North_America/United_States/Arizona/Northern/

http://www.mountainproject.com/v/arizona/105708962

...or drop by Vertical Relief Climbing Center and ask around. The VR staff can give you some great beta and even a topo or two!Have a great summer of cragging in the best climbing town in the world!

What does it cost to climb outside?

As we all sit back and watch the economy, we are all trying to answer the question of where we should be spending our money. With all of the things we enjoy doing day to day, how do we decide what to focus on? Understanding the real costs of our activities and purchaces can go a long way in stretching our dollars and giving us the most satisfaction with our choices. How much do we spend on expensive coffee and eating out when we could be outdoors cranking?

Getting outside and climbing can seem like a daunting task at times, especially when the barriers of entry are perceived to be so high. Thinking "I can never learn that or the equipment is too expensive" is a common misconception about the difficulties of getting outdoors to climb.

Lets take a look at the basics of what you need to sport climb. If you are climbing in the gym frequently you probably have your shoes and harness, so all you need at this point is a set of quickdraws and a rope. You can get away with 10 quickdraws but the recommended is 12. Vertical Relief currently offers a sport climbing package with your choice of 10 or more quickdraws and a full length dynamic rope for 15% off the retail price.

Lets look at our best deal on a sport climbing package:

10 Wild Country Blaze Quickdraws $149.50
1 New England 10.2 60 m Rope $145.00
Total $294.50
Discount Price $250.33
You Save Over $45.00

With $250.00 you can invest in equipment that will get you outdoors for 4-5 years. Not many purchases you make day to day can give you the same longevity of enjoyment that climbing equipment can. I see a lot of members salivating over gear they think is beyond their financial reach. I want to see those of you looking at gear inside actually outside using it, especially when the weather is so nice. Speak to myself or any of the other staff to find ways to get you outside and climbing. If you think you've found better prices or we don't have the items you are looking for, let us know as I am confident we can get that item for you and be competitive at the same time.

Thank you for investing in your local community and helping us with another successful season.

See you on the rock!

-Zak Farmer
Retail Manager

Welcome to Vertical Relief's NEW! Blog

Welcome! We are excited to launch our blog about climbing in Flagstaff and at the Vertical Relief Climbing Center. Our goal is to deliver content about trip reports, local climbing news, local crag happenings, VR news and classes, training and gear tips and more! Enjoy!

-Jason Henrie
Vertical Relief Climbing Center