Recent Posts

71

Masters of Mud -- Pinnacles / Re: Quest for Mud (Special Edition)

« Last post by burnsbabe on April 24, 2025, 06:12:54 AM »

Saw your comment on MP about Little Javelina, insane you let Brad belay you, I hear he still uses an ATC AND will drop people 100+ ft on El Cap.
How is South Chalone, never made it out there, is there routes?

The hike was gorgeous, though I recommend not starting on the West Side if that's your plan for the day. There are definitely routes on the way there, so you could stop every so often and climb some, and then keep going. There was only one route on the formation Brad was interested in.

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Masters of Mud -- Pinnacles / Re: Quest for Mud (Special Edition)

« Last post by Marco on April 23, 2025, 02:31:55 PM »

Spike's Peak is a great formation.

Saw your comment on MP about Little Javelina, insane you let Brad belay you, I hear he still uses an ATC AND will drop people 100+ ft on El Cap.

I don't think I'll be doing 14 miles to Chalone Peak again anytime soon

How is South Chalone, never made it out there, is there routes?

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Masters of Mud -- Pinnacles / Re: Quest for Mud (Special Edition)

« Last post by burnsbabe on April 23, 2025, 08:25:56 AM »

I had a great time out with Brad and company (thanks to Bruce for the rebolting guidance, even if things didn't go as expected) over the last three days. I don't think I'll be doing 14 miles to Chalone Peak again anytime soon, but on the positive side, almost any approach in the park seems like, well, a walk in the park now.

Spike's Peak is a great formation. There are a ton of fun, moderate things in the area to have a good day with, and it'll be easier to orient, I'm sure, when all the routes are gathered in one place. Thanks to Gavin for that FA work.

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Masters of Mud -- Pinnacles / Re: Climbing Advisories and Closures 2025 (Protection of Nesting Birds of Prey)

« Last post by Chris Henry on April 19, 2025, 08:52:53 PM »

I’m glad someone spoke with them. They were so glaringly obvious from across the canyon.

Willful ignorance or worse!

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Masters of Mud -- Pinnacles / Re: Climbing Advisories and Closures 2025 (Protection of Nesting Birds of Prey)

« Last post by Brad Young on April 19, 2025, 07:25:04 PM »

They likely won't get the itch to climb Lava anytime soon again.

Alright, that was pretty damn good, Waldo.

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Masters of Mud -- Pinnacles / Re: Climbing Advisories and Closures 2025 (Protection of Nesting Birds of Prey)

« Last post by waldo on April 19, 2025, 07:21:37 PM »

They likely won't get the itch to climb Lava anytime soon again.

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Masters of Mud -- Pinnacles / Re: Climbing Advisories and Closures 2025 (Protection of Nesting Birds of Prey)

« Last post by Brad Young on April 19, 2025, 06:48:08 PM »

Pretty disappointing to see two European women who climbed Lava Falls today. They claimed that the "closures aren't on Mountain Project," which I don't think is true in the first place. And what about the signs. Willful ignorance, it seemed.

But justice was served in the long run. Plains justice perhaps? Jennifer saw them later in their tank tops, sitting on the side of the trail trying to get into some shade.

Both of them tucked well up into fresh, gleaming poison oak branches.

78

Everywhere Else / Re: LA Spire Direct TR

« Last post by Marco on April 15, 2025, 05:41:07 PM »

And I napped too:

Great minds....

Also great pictures.

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Masters of Mud -- Pinnacles / Re: Condor Condiment Rebolting

« Last post by waldo on April 15, 2025, 04:44:12 PM »

 One of climbing's most satisfying facets, to me, is the puzzle presented by creating a safety system out of gear. Pinnacles climbs are often devoid of this facet — not Condor Condiment. What you can find and make work is crucial, at least to your peace of mind. Holmgren was a genius at finding gear placements. I can still hear his joyful cry of "bomber!" in my dreams when he found a good one, though "bomber" is a decision rendered by Pinnacles rock gods. I recall cursing him roundly on a subsequent ascent without him when I failed to find his red Lowe nut placement on the 2nd pitch. I'm responsible for the runout on pitch one. I placed a couple of bolts and then ran it to the belay niche. It was a lot further than I thought it would be. Also, I recall placing only one bolt on pitch 4. Again, large cams can mitigate the traverse. The day was getting on and we needed to hit the top. Thanks again!

P.S. We spent at least six days working on it. I joined the project after bolt # 3, as I recall.

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Everywhere Else / Re: LA Spire Direct TR

« Last post by Brad Young on April 15, 2025, 11:14:07 AM »

You've only ever known me as a person in his 60s. And one of the beauties of climbing is that it brings together very disparate people into friend groups. I'd say that I am part of your (and Cole's) friend group. But this version of me (from 1987) could be in your peer group (fewer than two years age difference between this photo and your age):




This guy, Carl, was my first hard-core climbing partner. We did the route in May, when the falls were raging. The big surprise for us was how cold it was as the wind blew through the falls and acted like a huge swamp cooler:




The rock there has changed least of all:




Here, I turned my version 90 degrees and it almost perfectly matches one of your shots (right down to the cracks):




And I napped too:




No stove for us though and the food was? Well hard to get down comes to mind: