Obviously there are many, many climbing venues to choose from over here. Tuesday we made it to "The" Gorge (some Californians call it that - even though there are fantastic climbing gorges in, among other states, Kentucky and West Virginia too).
The Gorge has mostly steep, featured sport climbs. It's a great place to do just pure movement for a few to several days a year. Conditions were cool for May.
To show The Gorge to those who've never been, here's a shot looking down on Gorgeous Towers from north parking (the route Gorgeous is a steep, hold-filled, five-star 5.10a):
Out goal for the day, Gotham City is in The Upper Gorge:
Our "warm-up" included a newly established climb that was across the river, in the sun (we climbed it because it was in the sun). The route starts at the narrow pinch-point where the river and the cliff are three feet apart:
See the trail passing through the pinch-point? The first ascentionist, the "elder" Barbella (not the one that occasionally posts here) called the route: "Excuse Me I'm Belaying Here." Love it. He also called it "5.10a/b." Although I admit that the crux is relatively short, my finger popped off a thin, slick and critical hold and I nearly came off. Let's go with solid 10b on this one guys.
We spent the rest of the day getting crazy pumped on multi-starred 5.10s across at Gotham City (no photos, they'd all be butt shots). By the time I led Dr. Evil (120 feet, 5.10a *****) I was well and truly spent. The dogs loved the river.
Yesterday we changed the pace. One route for the day. When I started climbing here on the east side (early 1990s) Pine Creek Canyon had just two walls worth of climbs (including though one of the most famous offwidths in California, Pratt's Crack). Now there are nearly 200 routes, most multi-pitch, most south-facing, and most a ways up.
Our goal for the day, Chip Off the Ol' Block, is behind Jim in this approach photo:
After 45 minutes we reached the base. Here's the view looking east, out of Pine Creek Canyon all the way to the White Mountains (and White Mountain itself, one of California's 15 "fourteeners"):
Chip Off the Ol' Block is six pitches, all 5.8 to 5.10a. Five of the pitches are old-school flarey, physical cracks (four pitches contained significant amounts of a technique called "thrutching," a technique unique to climbing flaring wide cracks). Seven raps (and one stuck f#$king rope) put an end to a long and fun day.
Which brings us to this morning. Today we head out to Jim's "backyard" to do routes he's established over the last two years. Here's a photo taken through their back window of The Wheeler Crest:"
We'll park at the "little" trees and meadow seen in the lower right side of the photo (the word little is in quotes because this wall, The Wheeler Crest, rises from the 4,000 foot-elevation Owens Valley to a peak at 13,000 feet; the section in this photo is about 6,000 feet high). A 45 minute approach will then lead to Dike Canyon and a short (100 to 150 feet) crag with a bunch of McConachie routes that I get to lead and evaluate. I'm told they're 5.6 to 5.10d. Oh boy. I'm sore already