15 September 2012
Our last day in the Valley started much the same as most others. It was fairly cool, but the sun would change that in a few hours. Breakfast went down fast and I was anxious to see what new adventure this route Bishop's Terrace would have in store for us.
Stories, thoughts and reflections from my life.
- Hi, my name is Andy.
- I'm a climber, skier, hiker, and biker...among other things. I believe that communing with the outdoors can give us incredible insight into our lives, build friendships that last a lifetime, and open our eyes to the larger world around us. This is my blog. Welcome.
Showing posts with label rock climbing Yosemite. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rock climbing Yosemite. Show all posts
25 November 2012
Yosemite Day 7 - After 7 & Church Bowl (and mini bears)
14 September 2012
Mini bears. That's what we called them when I first ventured out west and encountered ground squirrels. They can be infinitely more of a problem than bears. Bears will tear into your stuff in search of a piece of gum. There are horror stories of them ripping off car doors and smashing windows simply because they saw or smelled a soda can or a candy wrapper. This is why you don't leave any food in your car. Everything edible goes in the large metal bear boxes that the park service provides at campsites and at several of the popular climbing areas. Mini bears are another story...
Mini bears. That's what we called them when I first ventured out west and encountered ground squirrels. They can be infinitely more of a problem than bears. Bears will tear into your stuff in search of a piece of gum. There are horror stories of them ripping off car doors and smashing windows simply because they saw or smelled a soda can or a candy wrapper. This is why you don't leave any food in your car. Everything edible goes in the large metal bear boxes that the park service provides at campsites and at several of the popular climbing areas. Mini bears are another story...
18 October 2012
Yosemite Day 6 - After 6 on Manure Pile Buttress
Day 6 - 13 September 2012
Whew! Finally some more time to work on this darn thing. I need to hurry up and finish this before I can't recall things that actually happened. One climbing adventure seems to blur into the next half the time.
Anyway, back to my Yosemite adventures...
"...Manure Pile Buttress is anything but a heap of shit." So says the SuperTopo guide for the Valley. They're damn right. It's called Manure Pile Buttress because back in the days of horses bringing folks up to the Valley they needed a nearby place to put all that manure. This is where it ended up!
We got out of camp fairly early, knowing that MPB might be busy, even mid-week. As we drove past Camp 4 I spotted Arthur out in the parking lot and swung in there real quick for a chat. We found out about Seth and Simone and knew they were now in the park and were around. Everyone had gotten a spot just fine in Camp 4. Cool.
We drove on and found the lot for MPB, pretty close to El Capitan. Expecting to find the place crawling with people we were once again pleasantly surprised to find we had it to ourselves.
Whew! Finally some more time to work on this darn thing. I need to hurry up and finish this before I can't recall things that actually happened. One climbing adventure seems to blur into the next half the time.
Anyway, back to my Yosemite adventures...
"...Manure Pile Buttress is anything but a heap of shit." So says the SuperTopo guide for the Valley. They're damn right. It's called Manure Pile Buttress because back in the days of horses bringing folks up to the Valley they needed a nearby place to put all that manure. This is where it ended up!
We got out of camp fairly early, knowing that MPB might be busy, even mid-week. As we drove past Camp 4 I spotted Arthur out in the parking lot and swung in there real quick for a chat. We found out about Seth and Simone and knew they were now in the park and were around. Everyone had gotten a spot just fine in Camp 4. Cool.
We drove on and found the lot for MPB, pretty close to El Capitan. Expecting to find the place crawling with people we were once again pleasantly surprised to find we had it to ourselves.
29 September 2012
Yosemite Day 5 - The Valley
Day 5 - 12 September 2012
"The money goes. The money goes. The money goes. The money goes...up her nose..."
So says the Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band, preachin' and bellowing his message about the evils of doing drugs (on that particular song) in his backwoods rockin' blues style. Mitch had brought their latest album with us and we found ourselves rockin' out to the grooves numerous times on this trip. Funny how music can define so many things. For me, I'll hear certain tunes and it brings back memories of trips. I liked this band so much I bought the album when I got back. Check 'em out: www.bigdamnband.com
Anyway, we quickly packed up on Tuesday morning and headed out. I checked with the Rangers one last time to see if my Tuolumne SuperTopo book had been turned in...no dice. Oh well. The story on that is that I left it by the window next to the sink in the bathroom. I forgot about it while brushing my teeth and walked out without it. I came back like 5 min later and it was gone. Later that day I checked at the Ranger Station for the campground. They said some guy had come by with it and asked about it. My name wasn't in it but they said that it indeed had red tabs on the pages so we knew it was mine. But at the time the guy was asking about it, he said he would take it for the day, use it, and then bring it back later...which he obviously never did. I hope the guy didn't get into trouble out there or something, but I have to scratch my head at the whole thing. I mean, seriously? It's obviously not yours but you're going to take it anyway and bring it back when it's convenient for you? Oh well...whatever. Mitch had a guidebook too so it wasn't a huge deal. Besides, we were leaving Tuolumne for the Valley.
"The money goes. The money goes. The money goes. The money goes...up her nose..."
So says the Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band, preachin' and bellowing his message about the evils of doing drugs (on that particular song) in his backwoods rockin' blues style. Mitch had brought their latest album with us and we found ourselves rockin' out to the grooves numerous times on this trip. Funny how music can define so many things. For me, I'll hear certain tunes and it brings back memories of trips. I liked this band so much I bought the album when I got back. Check 'em out: www.bigdamnband.com
Anyway, we quickly packed up on Tuesday morning and headed out. I checked with the Rangers one last time to see if my Tuolumne SuperTopo book had been turned in...no dice. Oh well. The story on that is that I left it by the window next to the sink in the bathroom. I forgot about it while brushing my teeth and walked out without it. I came back like 5 min later and it was gone. Later that day I checked at the Ranger Station for the campground. They said some guy had come by with it and asked about it. My name wasn't in it but they said that it indeed had red tabs on the pages so we knew it was mine. But at the time the guy was asking about it, he said he would take it for the day, use it, and then bring it back later...which he obviously never did. I hope the guy didn't get into trouble out there or something, but I have to scratch my head at the whole thing. I mean, seriously? It's obviously not yours but you're going to take it anyway and bring it back when it's convenient for you? Oh well...whatever. Mitch had a guidebook too so it wasn't a huge deal. Besides, we were leaving Tuolumne for the Valley.
27 September 2012
Yosemite Day 4 - Cathedral Peak
Day 4 - 11 September 2012
The previous evening Mitch and I were hanging out at camp pondering just which dehydrated meal either of us wanted to brave. Being gluten-free (aka a glutard) limits some of my options, but I had found some decent stuff at REI in Reno. Mitch was quite decidedly 'glutening' it up.
As we were sitting there and to my pleasant surprise, a small white car came rolling up with none other than Arthur (aka ACK) and Matthew. They explained they had made it a true road-trip from San Fran to Tuolumne by getting sidetracked with a few 'detours'. It's just not a road-trip without at least one detour. We still wondered what happened to Seth and Simone but figured we'd catch up with them at some point in the next day or two.
ACK and Matthew set up camp and broke out some beers. We discussed plans for the next day and poured over the Tuolumne guidebooks. Sleep came early as I was dead tired and knew we had a long day ahead of us.
The previous evening Mitch and I were hanging out at camp pondering just which dehydrated meal either of us wanted to brave. Being gluten-free (aka a glutard) limits some of my options, but I had found some decent stuff at REI in Reno. Mitch was quite decidedly 'glutening' it up.
As we were sitting there and to my pleasant surprise, a small white car came rolling up with none other than Arthur (aka ACK) and Matthew. They explained they had made it a true road-trip from San Fran to Tuolumne by getting sidetracked with a few 'detours'. It's just not a road-trip without at least one detour. We still wondered what happened to Seth and Simone but figured we'd catch up with them at some point in the next day or two.
ACK and Matthew set up camp and broke out some beers. We discussed plans for the next day and poured over the Tuolumne guidebooks. Sleep came early as I was dead tired and knew we had a long day ahead of us.
Yosemite Day 3 - West Crack on DAFF Dome
Day 3 - 10 September 2012
DAFF Dome. Mitch and I had talked about doing this route for a long time. West Crack. Not a huge, difficult route at all, but you have to be careful being on an exposed dome like DAFF with regards to the weather. Clouds forming up in the early AM can be a bad sign. Thankfully, it was nearly cloudless. Once again, it was rather cold in the AM. We got a move-on quicker though because we knew that West Crack is a popular route. The last thing you want is to hike up there and see 3 parties waiting in line while a 4th starts up it.
DAFF Dome. Mitch and I had talked about doing this route for a long time. West Crack. Not a huge, difficult route at all, but you have to be careful being on an exposed dome like DAFF with regards to the weather. Clouds forming up in the early AM can be a bad sign. Thankfully, it was nearly cloudless. Once again, it was rather cold in the AM. We got a move-on quicker though because we knew that West Crack is a popular route. The last thing you want is to hike up there and see 3 parties waiting in line while a 4th starts up it.
19 September 2012
Yosemite Part 2 - Guide Cracks on DAFF Dome
Day 1 - 09 September 2012 - Woke up. It was cold. Really cold compared to where I came from back East. It was probably in the upper 30s or so. I was glad I brought cold-weather gear. However, the temp came up nicely after an hour or so in which Mitch and I ate breakfast and figured out where we would climb. We were off by 0730 to explore.
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