It must be the fall climbing season, because seven people showed up at Casa Java at 7 am to go to Alabama Hills! Me, Ann, Ted, Roy Boswell, Bud Gates, Clare Hupp, and Charlie Raff headed north to clip some bolts. Ann & I started off on a 150-foot 5.8 on The Loaf called Ranger…

Double Cross made me sweat for every inch. It’s a sweet hand crack with an overhanging bulge in the middle. With the added effort of protecting it, I had my hands full. It’s another “easy” redpoint that I feel proud of. Everybody else enjoyed it too, and I was proud of Ann for working the…

In the morning we took Dana to The Eye (1), thinking it would be a great beginner’s route. It turned out to be a sandbag, I thought, and she didn’t make it up. We promised to take her to a climb she can do someday. In the afternoon we went out with Matt and Sophie,…

For me, returning to Joshua Tree on the labor day weekend brought back echoes of my trip with Ted a year ago. That trip felt like my coming-of-age as a climber, with my first onsight 5.10 slab lead, and schooling on some of JT’s classic cracks. This year I came feeling stronger but less ambitious,…

Ann, Ted, and I met near the Big Loaf for some bouldering last night. There are lots of high problems around there. I did some of the easier ones, including a couple I hadn’t tried before. It felt good. Ted played on a couple of the evil little overhanging crimp problems that he likes, and…

We had a relaxing weekend, meeting Ann’s parents in Bishop on Friday night, camping at the Pinons, and climbing at Iris Slab on Saturday. I started there by leading Welcome to Iris Slab (5.7), a nice finger crack with a few moves that demand attention. Then we indulged in a few topropes. Get Up, Stand…

Some people turned up at Wagonwheel last night! Greg, Mike, Barry, Ted, Ann, & I all decided to climb the same boulder at once. Greg won.

Bouldering is not always about succeeding on hard problems. Sometimes it’s just about being where you want to be.

Ann, Ted, Roy, and I met at the gorge for my first session there since the one that put me out for three weeks with an ankle injury. It was bound to be trying. My ankle started hurting again on the hike in, or was I just imagining it? I decided to try Crowd Pleaser…