Crag: Ironside at Ironclads

Lunch: Home-made Apple Pie and yummy Dolmus (sight of which made Sean cringe)

Climbs:
Port Side 5.6 (Wet & Dirty, L)

First Half of Fire Widow 5.8 (I did it twice, L)

Alloy Madness 5.10d (sustained & difficult face climbing & well protected-scary traverse-hung once on TR)

Fire Widow 5.10c (awkward moves, sequency, helpful if you’re tall-hung twice on TR)

Unknown 5.9+ (overhanging fun! No hangs on TR).

Weather: Cold & cloudy in the am (numb fingers!), sunny in the pm (tee-shirt). Wall gets afternoon sun.

Dinner: Mexican restaurant in Lyons, Cilantro Mary’s is good food, but no alcohol!

Check out Dylan’s Post

We had the whole wall to ourself all day, and were blessed with wonderful weather. We even saw beavers swimming in the adjacent beaver ponds!

Dennis prepares for a small hike to the crag

Dylan About to Hide-A-Way

Birthday Girl Grunts Upwards

Dylan Checking Back-Pro on Flake 5.8+

Dylan Riding “Flake”, a stone stallion, to the top of Holy Saturday

Birthday Girl Rapping off Holy Saturday Wall

Around 3pm, we decided to head back to Ft. Collins. It was a Sunday, so we couldn’t be out too late, darn it for work! We went to Rasta Pasta for dinner. It was filling and flavorful. We sat outside and let the warmth embrace us as we ate-I think the guys had beers, but I had ice tea.

I had a wonderful 30th birthday, climbing a classic Vedauwoo crack, twirling around in a huge & steep chimney, and camaraderie of the finest.

Thanks to Dylan for putting up the Chimney, and for back placing pro so we could scale the crack without fear of a huge pendulum swing lest we come off! And, thanks to Dennis for taking such beautiful pictures!

Apparently, there was a big car show in one of the neighboring townships as the parking lot was full of old remodelled cars. In fact, one whole side of the parking lot was cordoned off, so we walked & gawked.

My favorite was the 1930s gangster style get-away car. I imagined riding the running boards in a trench coat, fedora, and wielding a large gun. His favorite was an old jeep with a flatbed in the back. It was just such a unique truck…too bad I left the camera in the room!

For dinner, by Ann’s referral, we went to the Rustic Oven downtown. We had spinach artichoke dip, and had a wonderful meal. I had a Sangria, which made me tipsy. We shared dessert (of course, it was my birthday the next day!) a strawberry rhubarb pastry with creme fresh. After dinner, we walked around a bit and then headed back to the hotel to watch a beautiful sunset.

I dreamt of cracks & chimneys…a happy birthday dream!

On the way, we spotted a pair of dinosaurs…
…oh wait, nevermind, they’re climbers!

We climbed Lawyer on the Toilet 5.8, Get Up That Tree 5.8, Rowdy Joe Bad 11b, Flake-o-saurus 10c, and Slot-a-saurus 5.9+ more or less.

Lawyer on the Toilet (5.8)

Get Up That Tree (5.8)
Mark Leading

Slot-a-saurus (5.9+) I liked Slot-a-saurus, but the last 12 feet look rather sketchy for gear placement, and it’s not exactly a gimme! Dylan said a small nut will fit in somewhere, but I just couldn’t tell!

I had major problems on Flake-o-saurus. I am bewildered about how to climb it, my hands are way too small, and my arms just didn’t seem to fit…that’s the dilemma of offwidth, I guess! Kate took the following beautiful picture…thank you, Kate!

I only managed to get 1/3 the way up, despite pleasant encouragement from Kate & Mark.

I took 3 hangs at the crux of Rowdy Joe Bad 5.11c face climb, but managed to work it out. The rest of the climbs I TR’d without hangs.

After climbing all day in the sun, Ann, Dylan, & I decided it would be fun to hike back to the campsite. It was fun, but only because they are fun. NOT because I LIKE hiking around with 27 pounds in diminishing light, for miles, up & down ridges, and through creeks. Proof that they are fun:

Below, you can see how I was unceramoniously baptised, up to my crotch, by the waters of Vedauwoo!

Ann was there in a jif, thank goodness, to help fetch me out of the fast current. I was very grateful at her attentiveness and watchful eye!!!

Even though I was soaked, cold, hungry, and tired, time went by fast. Just before the last drop of sunlight disappeared, we three were back at camp. Mark greeted us all smiles, as we saved him from having to call Search & Rescue.

Ann, Dylan, and I had an Indian Food party in the camper, and after the Dahl & curried veggies & Naan bread I was HAPPY!

I joined everybody back at the campfire, after changing out of my wet clothes. Dylan treated us all to Roasted Bananas & Chocolate. Wade said it looked like intestines, and maybe it did-but it was devine tasting. Dylan also sang my favorite, “One Eyed Woman”, much to my delight. What a fantastic way to end the day!

On Saturday morning, I woke up with a layer of sleet over my tent. It was probably a typical night at Vedauwoo, but it was a little scary for me. Alone, in the tent, with very gusty wind, and the sound of sleet on the tent walls. A few times, I woke up feeling the tent being pulled upward. I swear, I saw the wicked witch of the west peddle by my pad!

Dylan (aka savior) came around with hot coffee, and I feebly stuck my metal tin out of the door, for him to fill. I could not believe the hospitality, and how nice of Ann to make extra, later! Coffee had a medicinal effect, and suddenly I remembered why I was there…TO CLIMB!

As I got out of the tent, reality smacked me upside the head-in the form of a gust of very frigid air. The skies looked clear, but it was B-R-I-S-K! Over breakfast, we all discussed options.

Mark amazed everybody but his wife, by frying bacon out in the cold. We were equally impressed when he showed up at the door of the camper with a beer at 10am! Hey, I say if you’re cooking out in that kind of weather, you should drink whatever you darn well want! Then, Kate made me a scrambled egg (yum, protein!) the second hospitable act of the day!

We eventually decided not to climb, in favor of a day hike. So, we set out like the seven dwarfs (I was Grumpy!) in search of new crags and a good workout. One noteworthy event was walking right by Spectreman 5.11c testpiece…see below. It looks yummy!

The hike was around 6 miles in total, somebody had GPS, so exact numbers & a map exist in another blog. We encountered the same weather all day, until mid afternoon, when we were treated to some smallish hail like precipitation. It only lasted 10 minutes, thankfully!

When we got back to camp, we decided to strike camp. We passed by this most excellant site on our hike, and it was sheltered from the wind, totally groovy. On the way to our new site, Dylan & I spotted a crack and the following occurred:

Thus, around 5pm in the evening, I was finally roping up. WOOHOO!!! It was just a 1 pitch crack, but it was fun and had a beautiful view. Dylan led it, and I cleaned. The crux was an elbow jam, and actually, I did 2 elbow jams…so we thought it should be named Elbow Crack. It was fun.

Went back to camp, had dinner, hung out around the campfire, and put the fire out. I stayed up till 12 reading “The Seven Pillars of Wisdom”. The first chapter is LONG!

On Friday, I left work at 2pm, eager to get out of town for the weekend. Unfortunately, so was the rest of Denver! Travel was hampered by several Road Construction Projects along Hwy 25 (and the biways of Longmount). It took me nearly 3 hours to reach Ft. Collins, twice the normal time.

I was relieved at the sight of Dylan, all loaded up in the camper and ready to go. I was frazzled from the drive, but the thought of joining Ann & Sean up in Vedauwoo soon made me forget my troubles. Dylan helped me unload my camping & climbing gear into the camper, and we battened the hatches for the drive.

We decided not to drive up 25, and I’m so happy we did! The alternative route was beautiful, and Dylan had many interesting things to relate about the area. From memories of his childhood to scoping out new possible climbing crags, and sharing a few laughs about some wacky music he had playing.

There was a cover song of “Baby Got Back”-done in a folksy flair. It made me crack up, even doubly so when Dylan came to the realization that he hadn’t heard Sir Mix-A-Lot’s version. I silently wondered how many people out there have been “spared” the experience of Sir Mix-A-Lot’s ballad 8^)

Up in Vedauwoo, Ann & Sean were awaiting our arrival. I was soooo happy to see Ann, knowing we’d soon be climbing again together made me excited. Sean had set up his tent, and they both relayed the events of the day. They had made an attempt to climb but were rained/weathered out. Sounds like not such a happy day for them…but we four were soon cozy in the camper and having dinner.

Later that evening who should arrive, but Kate & Mark. They set up their tent, and we visited for a little bit and then it was time for bed. I went outside in freezing temps, with gusty wind, and dark clouds overhead. Not a good sign. My tent shuddered through the night, and at some point, I awoke to the sound of heavy precipitation. It was a bit of sleet, not much, but enough to coat the tent.

I didn’t sleep very well because I was excited about the next day, and hoping/praying/wondering if we were going to be able to climb. I had not been out with such a large group in a long time, so it was also a novel thing being amongst a crowd. Oddly enough, this made me miss Dennis even more than if it were just a couple people.

I planted two hanging containers, 4 M pots, 2 L pots, 1 XL pot, and one 2XL pot (The Big Brown pot above, holds a 25 pound sack of dirt!).

I spent almost two hours at the Denver Nursery, checking out options and weighing alternatives. In the end I decided on planting the following: 3 pepper plants, 3 tomato plants, 1 french lavendar, 4 sage plants, 2 six packs of petunias, 2 six packs of assorted annuals, 6 small containers of ivy, 2 large geraniums, and 4 large annuals (white flowered things).

While working in the front yard, I met my neighbor, Clara. A fellow gardener (although decidedly NOT amatuer!). She was kind enough to give me a lily bush, which was left over from a recent project of hers. I planted it in the front of the picket fence, in a blank spot. How wonderful the front yard is looking, now that spring has sprung! Flowers are popping up everywhere, it’s crazy.

The Goods: When we got there, I was delighted. The organizers had fresh oranges, bananas, watermellon, water & coffee, a funny emcee, good music, and the temps were lovely.

The Crux: Dennis & I milled about trying to find some folks from my office. There was a posse of 12 or so of us there, some runners & some walkers. We very quickly found Don, Mark, and Greg (the fabulous trio-hot off the Boston Marathon). I was to be the token female in our “coed” team, so they were happy to see me.

Results: I ended up getting 8th place overall in Women, 3rd place for my age bracket, and 51st overall. I’d say there were probably 200 or so competitors running. My time was 23:37, although they recorded it at 23:39. I guess it took them a couple seconds to grab my tab, and look at the clock. It was great to be under 24 (my goal!).

Highlights: The best part about the day was starting off with Dennis. That was exciting to be among a crowd of runners, with another person who is not really a “runner”. It felt good to start off the day with a race, on such a beauty of a day!, and to be among such happy competitors. It’s a very friendly group of people, and as a “non-runner”, I could start to see the appeal of the race.

Humble Pie: At mile 1, I got passed by an amazing 12 year old boy with brown curly long hair. He ended up running the race in 21 minutes and change. NOT BAD!!! Also, in the last 200 yards, I got passed by a 25 year old in pigtails, named Elizabeth, who was at an all out sprint, in good form. She ended up being the 2nd place contender in my age group, beating me by 7 seconds!

Awestruck: The 2nd place overall woman passed me at mile 2. She was beautiful runner, like a gazelle. I’m not even sure her feet were touching the ground. The 1st place girl must have been in front the whole time, as I never saw her 8^)

Ann & I went climbing at Gallow’s Edge on Sunday. We met Lisa, who graced us with her presence after we finished our first warm-up. Lisa had escaped from her wee little tyke, and was happy to be out climbing.

I did the following climbs:

Princess Buttercup (5.6**)
The Fire Swamp (5.8****)
Unknown Arete (5.8***)
99 Red Balloons (5.8/9****)
Once Were Warriors(5.8***)

Unfortunately, I had to leave Santa Fe and go back to work on Monday. So, I cut the day short at 2:45pm. I was a little sad that all our fun had to end prematurely. I left Santa Fe at 4pm and ate my dinner (sushi from Trader Joe’s) while driving home. The drive back was beautiful. I had a wonderful sunset, and only moderate winds-no thunderstorms, thankfully.

On Saturday, Ann & I went climbing in White Rock, at the Overlook crag. We had breakfast at a wonderful Mexican Restaurant. I had “Christmas” Chile (green & red) in my Huevos Rancheros. Peter (Ann’s Friend) was great and treated us to breakfast, to get our day off to a jovial start.

We wandered down to the Overlook crag, and there were two groups climbing. A couple, and then a group of students from a local university. They invited us to Top Rope the climbs, as they had set ropes on all of the moderate climbs. Ann & I ended up climbing 5 routes in about 2 hours. We climbed the following:

#38 Unknown 5.6 **(L)
#36 Unknown 5.8 **(TR)
#13 Cholla Crack 5.9 ***(TR)
#26 Captain Smarmbag 5.8 ***(TR)
#28 Box Overhang Left 5.9-**(TR)

Sandra & her partner were really nice, and they were fun to climb with…the students were too. But their instructor got my goat when she looked Ann straight in the face and said, “Do you mind if I throw your rope in the dirt?”.

I thought to myself, “Lady, do you mind if I throw mud in your face?”. I asked her to place Ann’s rope on a rock, but she didn’t want to do that either?!? Strange people, these NM climbers! How Odd! On the other hand, we were both grateful to be given the opportunity to climb on their *dirty* ropes.

Around 3pm, we left and went to explore another area…the Playground, the New Old Place, Gallows Edge, and the Pit. We hiked back to the car, and drove through the neighborhood to the other pullout. Turns out the pullout is right between two people’s domociles. We parked the jeep, took a quick swig of water, and set out for a mini-hike.

About 15 minutes later, we were standing in front of Gallow’s Edge. A myriad of moderate sport routes glistened in front of us, like Dorothy’s Ruby Slippers. Suddenly, we knew where we were going to go climbing the next day! What a fun looking wall!

We tried, in vain to locate an area called the Pit. We walked right by it, as we later found out, but we didn’t know it! Luckily, we did see a furry critter, and also a furry cactus-in full bloom. What a fantastic hike!

Back at the car, we discussed the plan for the evening. We went to Ten Thousand Waves, a wonderful Onsen inspired spa, in Santa Fe. It was fabuluous to sit in the Sauna, and the hot tub after a full day of activity. We had a blissful time there, and worked up our appetite for healthful food.

For dinner, we went to Annapurna World Vegetarian Restaurant. We both got some tasty food, see a picture of my dish. It’s a little dark because the restaurant had a very romantic and comfortable atmosphere. Food was flavorful but not very spicy.