We woke up an found the most perfect crack that any of us had ever attempted called Supercrack. It was a thing of beauty. John went at it first and onsighted it! It was really impressive! At the top of the climb we heard "Owwwwww,....Owwwwwww" and it didn't get my confidence up.

John pulling through the technical crux which the guidebook tells you to do completely wrong.


once through the small roof the crack widens a bit. It was a bit cold and John is climbing for the sun.


This is a perfect crack. The same hand jams until your tire of them. They keep coming and your hands cramp then threaten to stop working.


John took a lot more pictures then I so I thought I would post a picture of his photo setup.


And that was it for Indian Creek. We climbed one more 5.9 called Twin Hands then headed out. Its probably a travesty to run in and climb just Supercrack before moving on but it gives us a taste of what were in for in the future and I can't wait to go back!

Cuong

I did a large stitch of Supercrack so that everyone could get an idea of its enormity. John is taking pictures and Richard is climbing!

While on this trip I get to be featured on smugmug photography corner. So here it is. :)

http://www.photographycorner.com/blo...46-kelsey-gray

Smugmug is the coolest group of peoples ever.

I'm so jealous!!!! I wanted to do Fischer Towers but I had to leave first thing Sunday morning. It looks like so much fun. I can't wait to get back to Moab sometime. Or who know, maybe I'll make a trip up to Alaska and visit you guys in your element.

Originally Posted by Prezwoodz While on this trip I get to be featured on smugmug photography corner. So here it is. :) http://www.photographycorner.com/blo...46-kelsey-gray Smugmug is the coolest group of peoples ever.

Good replies mate, especially on the "crazies" at the end.

Originally Posted by DoctorIt Good replies mate, especially on the "crazies" at the end.

Thanks! I appreciate being able to give my little shpleel.
Horray for Smuggies!

After Supercrack we drove on into the night into Colorado National Monument. This was my first time in Colorado so I hoped that we would be able to do something memorable. I don't feel like we failed!

We hiked an hour into Independence Monument and started up Otto's route which is a 5.8+ and 6 pitches. It was pretty easy going for the first portion with some different then normal sections.

The upper pitch was the best and one of my favorite of the trip. You start out climbing up on a slab and then finish on the hardest move of the whole route right before the anchors. An overhanging jug haul with exposure! Jess did one little take before continuing through.


John followed afterward and didn't have much issue.


John pulls through the belay while that orange dot is Tracy with the belay.


we finished the climb and hiked back out to the car. The Saddlehorn Campground is a really nice campground for anyone looking to stay in the area and we stayed there for another night. In the morning I went on a personal mission to get a picture of the monument. I also found some birds. Quick little buggers


I walked around the area and watched the sunrise light up the landscape. There are moments in life when it is necessary to slow down and allow all the small things to become the largest in life. This moment gave me joy when I felt pressured.


Later that morning we stopped by the Dinosaur Museum in Fruita so Jess could see some Dinosaurs and I watched a nice man pull some small teeth out of what appeared to be sand.


So with our climb done and the museum seen we drove off to Boulder, Colorado to meet with our friends Phil and Jeff.

You guys should totally write a road trippin' article and submit it to Climbing...

Phil, being the nice guy he is, took off of classes to show us around Boulder Canyon and some climbs. I decided I wanted to climb hard and thoroughly tired myself out. Phil decided to try a 5.10a while eating...and did quite well!


Then came the harder pitch and so he downed the bagle and got serious.


This was one of the cruxes Phil handled it in style.


Sometimes you get real stretched and don't know where to go.



And then the holds got really small. He actually used that in the climb.


Phil would go on to finish with no falls! It was his hardest flash (climb with no falls after watching someone else climb it) to date. We climbed some more hard routes then went and had dinner at a really nice friend of Johns. Where to next?

We had been told that Bastille Crack was a great climb so we drove into Eldorado Canyon and got right on it. at 5.7 it is not a difficult climb but because of all the climbing the day before I felt especially weak. Still no catastophies and all success.
Jess and I climbed ahead of John, Richard, and Tracy.


Climbers dotted the walls all around us. We were on the most popular climb in Colorado (as the guide says) and still we had it to ourselves.


They were behind us but not to far behind.


John really enjoyed this climb, I am sure I would have more if I wasn't doing so terrible! Reminded me of home though and overall it was a good climb.


Tomorrow we are off to Garden of the Gods...now that doesn't sound like a bad place to be!

Originally Posted by ian408 You guys should totally write a road trippin' article and submit it to Climbing...

I have thought about it before i just never seem to get the energy to write it up!...which is silly since I write enough just during this thread. Oh well! :)

Originally Posted by Prezwoodz I have thought about it before i just never seem to get the energy to write it up!...which is silly since I write enough just during this thread. Oh well! :)

Keep you on the road a tad bit longer

Did you guys manage to get up to Ned? It would be farther up Boulder Canyon Drive. Cool little town that hosts the occasional ice climbing festival.

Originally Posted by ian408 Keep you on the road a tad bit longer Did you guys manage to get up to Ned? It would be farther up Boulder Canyon Drive. Cool little town that hosts the occasional ice climbing festival.

Nope we never did make it up that far. We drove on the next day to Garden of the Gods.

We headed to Garden of the Gods which I must say is one of the most crowded parts I have been to. The parking is horrendous and the park small but interesting for sure. Rocks jutting out in just this area as the rest is surrounded by mountains and trees. The rocks are all different colors as well. Quite interesting stuff.

heres Jess climbing succesfully her first 5.10 which she managed up a 5.10b.


The climbing here is strange. Standing on pavement and climbing up a baby desert spire is like climbing in a rock gym. There was at one time about 25 people watching John climb this.


the sunset was beautiful with some great colors. A kid climbed this rock on the right and fell off when we were there. The parent watched and didn't really seem to care.


Jess did this climb as her first lead climb ever and didn't make the last move. Here she goes up to see what it was like and would be frustrated at herself for not making the move.


I took this shot on accident and kinda liked it. Since I didn't take many pictures I figured i would post this one too! We only spent a few hours in the park and then headed to Kansas to see Richards parents.

Since we are in Missouri we have not had any climbing. Booo but we had time to stitch some photo's so heres a few photo stitches I have worked on.

Heres one of the Delicate Arch



And Bryce Canyon. I really love how this one came out.


and John and Tracy's kiss on the summit of Ancient Art.

Those are good-looking panos.

Cuong

The Bryce shot is amazing. Were you able to hike down any? The view from bottom to top is very cool.

Thanks Cuong! I really like Photomerge!


Ian I had hurt my foot the day before and couldn't hike at all...it was pretty lame. I really wanted to go down there but next time I suppose.

Originally Posted by Prezwoodz Ian I had hurt my foot the day before and couldn't hike at all...it was pretty lame. I really wanted to go down there but next time I suppose.

I hope to get there this winter...and to snowshoe down a ways.