February Rock in Alaska
So I am going a bit crazy here without doing some climbing. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy some good ice but its just not the same for me! So a few friends and I decided to take on the rock. We drove an hour and a half to Wiener Lake (actual name) and checked out the rock. Not leaving town until 3:45pm meant we got there when it was getting dark but we were still determined. We drove another mile down the road seeing Purinton Creek and decided it looked great enough for a climb! So we pulled into the snow and promptly sank the big truck until it was sitting on the snow ....with the frame.
We spent the next 30 or 40 minutes digging it out and then parked in a pulloff that had actually been plowed. It was now dark but we were in the mood of "Who cares! Lets climb this thing!" So we geared up at about 7pm (quite dark here at this point) and headed to the cliff. I aided a 5.12a and Kyle led a great 5.10a in the dark and with style. The kind of style where you go off route and finish on another separate route. It was still a great night though and much warmer then expected. I climbed without gloves or even a coat and still managed a sweat. As I did a solo lead on my aid Kyle knocked a rock off and it fell where he didn't want it to...on my rope. it didn't seem to bad since the rope was in snow so I continued on. About 3/4 of the way up the climb I pulled a beautifully core shot portion through my gri-gri. He had done some serious damage!
I am assuming this is the "I'm sorry" face!
the damage
I hooked into a bolt and some gear and we did some rope trickery to where I was able to finish the climb not on the core shot. Ouch. At about 9:45pm we headed back down and hung out by the fire for a while. The night was pretty cold at some point, I would guess around -5.
The morning was a slow start but by 10:30am we were back at the cliff and enjoying the sun that now found its way out. The rock warmed up quickly and I was loving every minute. I hadn't been on rock in too long since I hurt my wrist and loved every minute of it.
Kyle climbed the 5.12a and had a good time of it. Here he is clipping to the crux.
A little snow isn't going to slow us down!
This is a very blank section and the crux.
At just that angle you can lean in and get a rest but moving is just not easy!
Then its off to easier ground
and incredible views
And if your lucky a little rest.
Lang was the next to follow and then we called it a day after a few routes so we could make it back to Anchortown before 5pm (we made it to the Mooses Tooth 5 minutes before Lang had to work).
Oh did I mention incredible views? Oh...I did...? Dang.
And a parting shot from halfway up the route.
We spent the next 30 or 40 minutes digging it out and then parked in a pulloff that had actually been plowed. It was now dark but we were in the mood of "Who cares! Lets climb this thing!" So we geared up at about 7pm (quite dark here at this point) and headed to the cliff. I aided a 5.12a and Kyle led a great 5.10a in the dark and with style. The kind of style where you go off route and finish on another separate route. It was still a great night though and much warmer then expected. I climbed without gloves or even a coat and still managed a sweat. As I did a solo lead on my aid Kyle knocked a rock off and it fell where he didn't want it to...on my rope. it didn't seem to bad since the rope was in snow so I continued on. About 3/4 of the way up the climb I pulled a beautifully core shot portion through my gri-gri. He had done some serious damage!
I am assuming this is the "I'm sorry" face!
the damage
I hooked into a bolt and some gear and we did some rope trickery to where I was able to finish the climb not on the core shot. Ouch. At about 9:45pm we headed back down and hung out by the fire for a while. The night was pretty cold at some point, I would guess around -5.
The morning was a slow start but by 10:30am we were back at the cliff and enjoying the sun that now found its way out. The rock warmed up quickly and I was loving every minute. I hadn't been on rock in too long since I hurt my wrist and loved every minute of it.
Kyle climbed the 5.12a and had a good time of it. Here he is clipping to the crux.
A little snow isn't going to slow us down!
This is a very blank section and the crux.
At just that angle you can lean in and get a rest but moving is just not easy!
Then its off to easier ground
and incredible views
And if your lucky a little rest.
Lang was the next to follow and then we called it a day after a few routes so we could make it back to Anchortown before 5pm (we made it to the Mooses Tooth 5 minutes before Lang had to work).
Oh did I mention incredible views? Oh...I did...? Dang.
And a parting shot from halfway up the route.
My Pictures can be seen at http://prezwoodz.smugmug.com
I Live at http://www.alaskamountainforum.com
I Live at http://www.alaskamountainforum.com
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Comments
I am doing a color check and on my other computer these images look really flat on color. How do they look to you? On my monitor here they look super colorful. How do they look to everyone?
I Live at http://www.alaskamountainforum.com
I Live at http://www.alaskamountainforum.com
Awesome!
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