Well, Katie did join us in Joshua Tree for Spring break. We got back late last night (to snow here) after seven great days of climbing with her and her friend Andres, and with a bunch of other friends as well.
It seems like this is as good a thread as any to post a few of our photos.
Mornings were social and slow (in the first photo the woman on the left is our friend Whitney Reynier):
We had one windy day and otherwise brilliant weather (conducive to evening climbs, like Hands Off right above our camp in Hidden Valley Campground):
Katie's friend Andres turned out to be a very nice young man. He's a theoretical physics junior at U.C. San Diego (and he really, really has a passion for the science!). He was friendly to all, a real gentleman. He treated Tricia like a little sister, tried and loved climbing, and fit in with the group quite well. None of us could tell if they were a "couple," but that's their business, not ours. We were actually quite pleased to have our daughter associating with a person of this caliber:
Meanwhile Tricia got to wander all of the rocks of Hidden Valley Campground:
She also climbed like a fiend, including a follow on this crack that was hand and fist to most of us (and fist and offwidth to her):
With the crew in the foreground:
As always we "pre-cleaned" the dishes to save water:
And, due to a significant rain three weeks ago, the flowers were out in the desert:
The best parts of the trip were family, friends, and the weather. My personal highlight was getting nearly 40 new routes done in one week, including redpointing two routes that I'd previously fallen on (one very tricky 5.10b or - given Joshua Tree ratings - 5.10c, and one that was originally rated 5.10d, but which everyone seems to think is harder now).
Home now and enjoying a rest day.
