Sean and Rogan join us in our rush to escape to Vedauwoo for a weekend of re-energizing. Last weekend’s discoveries at the Lower Blair area were inspiring, so this time we decide to continue to Upper Blair. A campsite presents itself right by “The Eight Ball”, a giant round boulder perched atop a block with an old “89” (or eighty-something) somehow engraved in it. Probably done by people I went to high school with!

It’s colder and windier than it has been, which is kind of refreshing at this point. It’s been hot and muggy in town. The moon is new and the sky is abuzz with stars.

Still cool in the morning, we’re slow to start. Then we’re slow to choose a climb. Finally we settle on Baobob Tree 5.8. Pitch one is entertaining face and fat flake climbing with assists from mondo crystals. I consider doing the whole climb at once, but decide to do both pitches to keep rope drag down. Pitch two is simply the best, cleanest hand crack I’ve yet climbed. It’s steep, and tests my confidence, but just the right amount. I top out feeling triumphant. Ann and Sean both find it strenuous but educational. We all fart around on the downclimb, trying to find the easiest, then the most fun way down.

A slow lunch is followed by rain, which soon swallows up the afternoon. None of us are too upset. After dinner we attempt to surprise Sean with a birthday cake, then Ann and I take a hike. Just as we are salivating over some climbs for the morning, Ann slips and rips off half a toenail. She limps back to camp on a foot sticky with blood, giving up on climbing ambitions for the moment. Even a one-climb weekend at Vedauwoo is well worth the effort.