The next weekend we made the five-hour drive (it should’ve taken five, but we hit heinous traffic leaving the bay area) up to the Trinity Arêtes, a pretty limestone cliff tucked away in some really tall redwoods just east of Humboldt County. My goal for the weekend was to finish all the routes on the lower Pisano Buttress where most of the hard climbing is. The first day I sent Mean Streak (first ascended by Lindner in 2005) and Burnt Offering, both on my second try, both about 13d. I also flashed If, 13b, leaving only Deep Throat and Burn Victim, both about 13d also, to do the next day. After a fitful night in the tent, while our friends enjoyed the luxury of their accordion camper-shell, and a working burn on Burn Victim, my tips had had enough of the super sharp crimps, so we called it a weekend and jetted to the river for a quick and refreshing dip. And fortunately took Highway 5 home, instead of the 101, which shaved an hour and a half off the drive, even with the traffic getting back into the city.

So now I’m just chillin’ in the city (pronounced sit-ae), climbing in the gym, trying to stay psyched for the next adventure, the next goal. What that may be, you will learn in time. Let’s just say I got a crazy agenda of hard sport climbing projects this summer, and for now it will stay hidden.