Places With History

I've been climbing since late 2004, but managed to exist as a recreational climber in those early years. I climbed in the gym regularly, but I didn't really seriously train for climbing. I took crag days around the pacific northwest with a variety of climbing partners often, but I prioritized my well-paying corporate gig and regularly missed climbing days for work commitments, or because of other responsibilities.

I took my first big climbing trip in the winter of 2006. Destination, Joshua Tree, where I climbed with a bunch of my friends. More specifically, I spent the week following whoever would lead me up traditional moderates. I fell while toproping a 5.6 in Real Hidden Valley that felt impossible; I experienced my first gear mishap when my ATC-XP jammed on a free-hanging rappel and I had to figure out how to unstick the device; I got in my first real multipitch climbing (all of it as second) at Moosedog Tower and Hidden Valley. I got my feet wet cleaning a ton of gear, and tried to learn as much as I could about being a good climbing partner. I learned that sometimes, you just have to get up the route -- even if you climb badly, fall, lose skin, bleed, hyperventilate, and it starts to hail. Somebody's got to get the leader's gear back, and sometimes, that somebody is going to be me.

I spent five days climbing during that trip, and didn't lead a single pitch. Even so, I got a taste of what a climbing life could be like. I liked the camping, the camp cooking, the fantastic taste of the hot coffee I brewed in the morning. I liked waking up under a huge rock, and getting in a couple of pitches with one of the guys before breakfast while the rest of the crew slept in. I liked the camaraderie and openness of our time around the campfire. I had never in my life been so ravenously hungry as I was at the end of those days, and nothing in my life tasted as good as the leftover pasta shells offered to me by one of my climbing partners once he'd dished up his dinner.

After just a few short days, I was sold on the life. I just had to learn how to climb. I was pretty convinced after that trip that no matter how hard I trained, I'd never lead a pitch at Joshua Tree, though, since the climbing was so unbelievably hard.

I spent the next year climbing as much as my busy work schedule allowed. I climbed in the gym and took trips around the Northwest, to Smith Rock, Leavenworth, more trips to Smith, more trips to Leavenworth, with a few closer to home trips to North Bend in there for good measure.

At that point, I still lead precious little, but I learned more about climbing and being a climbing partner. My next big trip was on the horizon. The crew was headed to Red Rock Canyon for a week, just after Christmas 2007. By that point, I knew enough to pack for wicked cold (I travel with two sleeping bags during my winter trips), and to make a route wish list prior to departure. I was determined to finally take the sharp end, and spend some time on lead.