climbergirl blog

I drove down to Co Springs to pick up Margaret, and then meet with Tracy for a lovely day at Shelf Road. I got to Margaret’s about 10 minutes late, getting up early was hard-I left the house at 6:30am! So, Margaret wasn’t quite ready, and by the time we got to Tracy’s it was just before 8am. She was not expecting us to be there “on time”, so Margaret & I got to helping her get ready.

Tracy had decided to have spring rolls for noshing at the crag. So, Margaret & I quickly set up a factory production line. Margaret wets the wrapper and puts in the carrots/cucumbers. Then, I would add the tofu/shrimp and cilantro/mint and wrap them. We had a system down, and quickly went through the ingredients. It was fun, knowing we would be eating this yummy stuff for lunch! (more…)

On Sunday, I met Tracy & Margaret down at Castlewood Canyon State Park. It was a half day centered around exploring this local crag. We three were new to the area, but were curious to see what it has to offer. We took pictures with Tracy’s camera, and as soon as I get them, I’ll include them in the post.

It turns out the crag is pretty extensive, and most of the routes are done as TR’s since the cliffline is short. One could easily get by with a 50 meter rope, or even better yet, a few crash pads (the bouldering looks rad)! (more…)

I drove down to Co Springs to pick up Margaret. I got to her dorm around 8am in the morning. We were at the crag around 9:30am. There were only a few cars…

It was such nice weather that all the Boulderites stayed up in their neck of the woods. It was still a little crowded at Shelf, but nothing like what we experienced back in February. The high was definitely around 80 degrees-both Margaret & I had tank tops on. And, both Margaret & I got burned. DOH, we forgot to reapply sunscreen.

I only led one climb, a dubious route called “Mr. Fred” a slightly run out 5.8/9 with a slightly nervy 5.10a finish. Not a great route-but I was proud that I did the scary lieback just off of a hospital ledge, and managed to make the clip, instead of break myself.

The following routes were put up by a most gracious Margaret. I cleaned them, for the most part without hanging. I believe I said “take” a total of 4 times all day.

Slicer 5.10b *** (TR – 1 Hang)
Christmas Tree 5.10c ** (TR)
Mr. Fred 5.10a * (L)
Dihedrus 5.10b **** (TR)
Almost Gothic 5.11/12a **** (TR – 2 hangs)
Axis of Evil 5.10d *** (TR – 1 Hang)

The 5.11d/12a was a great climb, and I’m happy I only had to take twice. I haven’t climbed that hard in many years. Margaret was very encouraging, and gave a most attentive belay.

I drove down to Co Springs to meet Tracy for some Shelf Road climbing fun. We arrived at Shelf around 10:30am…and met up with Tony who climbed with us all day.

We climbed until the sun went down. The weather was fantastic-tank tops in the sun. We left the crag around 7:30pm and had dinner at Chili’s in Canon City. The service there was pretty slow as it is crowded. The salad greens looked a little wilted, so I was happy I had ordered taco’s. (more…)