Rock Climbing --- 3/16/2013 - 4/3/2013 --- Red River Gorge
Saturday 3/16
Drive to Kentucky.
Sunday 3/17
Chica bonita. Rain. Cold. Mary Pop-Parazzi (5.5, but feels like 5.8 in the
cold). Raindancer (5.10a). Bunch of other climbs that I didn't record. Started
raining at the end of the day and I managed to break five holds (two the size
of my face) cleaning Darling Dirtbag (5.8). Not fun. We ate Cheesy Grits
for dinner and chocolate fondue for dessert. Quality!
Monday 3/18
Josh stole my guidebook and fairshare lid. Hey Josh, not everything with a
"J" on it belongs to you! :)
Heavy rain and thunderstorms all day. Attempted Dip Wall but couldn't get there with the road crossing all flooded. Ended up at Military for gear placement and anchor cleaning lessons. Burritos for dinner and No-Bake for dessert.
Tuesday 3/19
Muir valley. Bruise brothers. Nice but crowded. We climbed everything you
would expect on the upper tier. Then off to Plate Tectonics.
Totally in shade. I got very cold hands leading Plate Techtonics.
Moroccan couscous (with quinoa instead) for dinner. Cookies for dessert. It
gets down to 14F tonight. Atypically cold for Kentucky this time of year.
Brrrr!!!
Wednesday 3/20
Fortress. Bedtime for Bonzo (5.7) with Steve and Ian. The only climb on the
entire wall in the shade. Doh! Climbed Blue Runner (5.9-) to clean a stuck
nut. We had ropes on Calypso III and Serpent (which I can still climb cleanly!)
and a few other climbs. Set a photo line which was pretty popular.
Tofu Korma for dinner. Magic tricks... sorry... illusions for post-dinner
entertainment, and No-Bake for dessert.
Thursday 3/21
Bruise Brothers again. Snow and cold, but everyone climbed well. We finished
off the upper tier. Miguel's for dinner.
Friday 3/22
Students in charge. Watch out! :)
Off to Solar Collector/Gold Coast. New area for me, I've never wanted to drive the roads to that part of PMRP. Lots of falling ice. Reasonably warm in the sun. Started at the far left in the sun. Some new 5.9 left of the climbs in v3 of the guidebook. Also Super Pinch (5.10d) and Green Horn (5.11a). Then to the far right. 7-11 (5.7) and On the Prowl (5.10a). And two trad climbs: The Perfect Pint and Chester Fried Chicken (both 5.4) right next to Rebar (5.11a) and Broken Chicken Wing (5.9+) which both look really cool! Awesome Chili for dinner and smores for dessert. I think I ate better during this class than on any COE class in history. For real.
Saturday 3/23
My tent pole broke in the middle of the night. Ugh. In the morning I traded
poles with Andrew without his knowledge (kidding! we had the same model CE
tent and he was headed home). Students leave. Josh stays. Guy and Cat drive
down. I get my one hot shower at Lago Linda. The 40 gallon water heater can't
keep up with the demands of the entire campground. She is expanding the
shower rooms. Hopefully adding more water capacity too.
Josh, Guy, Cat and I head to Drive By. Cat and I lead Slick and the 9mm (5.10b) which is pretty fun. I follow Josh's lead of Breakfast Burrito (5.10d) and Fire and Brimstone (5.10d) which is stellar. The crux sequence of FaB is pretty tricky compression moves off odd holds. I really enjoyed working it out. On toprope :) Cat and I finished our day leading Make a Wish (5.10b). We are joined by Amy and Amanda who climb everything at the crag in a few hours. Josh onsights Whip Stocking (5.11a) and gets Spirit Fingers (5.11c) without much trouble. We watch a girl who appears to be nine years old climbing one of the 13s at the right side of the crag. This sport belongs to pre-teens these days. A bunch of them finally figured out that they have the power/weight ratio and tiny fingers needed to crush climbs that most adults find impossible.
In the evening we meet Katie, Adam and Taylor at Miguel's for dinner, then head to Lago Linda where we meet Zupes and eat pie!
Sunday 3/24
Left Flank. Cold and rainy. We climb To Defy the Laws of Tradition (5.10a).
That climb is still really hard, especially with cold hands. I led and
toproped it, neither time cleanly. Guy stick clipped up Too Many Puppies
(5.12b) which was REALLY hard but gave everyone something to do. We finished
the day on Moonlight (5.9+) at Military. Still hard too :)
Guy and Cat head home. Zupes and I go to the cabin with the Maryland crew. So nice. So nice. Pouring rain and lightning all night. Being inside is soooooo nice! We watch Walking Dead.
Monday 3/25
Snow and wind. Rest day. Mike and I go grocery shopping and find almonds for
$1/lb at Kroger. Card games in the evening.
Tuesday 3/26
More snow. Screw climbing. Another rest day. We play lots of card games
and watch Big Bang Theory.
Wednesday 3/27
Tolerable weather. Bruise Brothers... yet again. I lead Get Off The Radio Jeff
(5.9+) mostly because of the name. Also lead Little Viper (5.10b) and Hey
There Fancy Pants (5.10c). Finish the day leading Jungle Trundler (5.11a) and
leading it a second time to get the redpoint. We head to Miguel's for dinner.
They lose one of our pizzas and another customer's pizza. Operations there
are pretty poorly managed.
Thursday 3/28
Global Village. Better weather. We start on Kentucky Pinstripe (5.10a) which
has a scary clip on the second bolt with a potential fall into a tree (I grab
the draw... it is much less scary that way). I climb Vision (5.7) and take
some pictures. I follow Taylor's chilly lead of Father and Son (5.7) then
follow Adam's stellar lead of Out for Justice (5.11b) a really fun climb.
We finish the day at The Zoo where Adam climbs most of Hippocrite (5.12a) and
stick clips the rest. I have a complete flailfest on this climb. It isn't
pretty.
Friday 3/29
Long Wall. Katie and I climb some 5.9 trad line with no anchors which we dub
Wobbles. Adam and Mike climb Boom Boom Out Go The Lights (5.10b). We have to
traverse to their anchor to get down, which is only slightly epic and
unprotected. Boom Boom is a fun climb too. Next we head to Rock Wars which
Adam leads handily. We are all tired and head back to the cabin early in
the afternoon. Guy and Cat arrive in the evening.
Saturday 3/30
Left Flank. I'm le tired and happy to just follow climbs all day today. Which
really makes for a fun day! I climb Brother Stair (5.9) Maypop (5.11a) Fast
Food Christians (5.10a) with a stupid hard start and 5.6 climbing after. Adam,
Katie and Taylor leave for Maryland. Guy, Cat, Zupes and I head to Military
where we climb Sunshine (5.9+) and In the Light (5.10c).
In the evening we hang out at the Red River Reunion at Miguel's. We get to talk to Russ Clune and Whitney Boland for a long time, which is pretty cool. I'm not awkward with the pro climbers this time. Go me!
Sunday 3/31
Rain all day. Guy and Cat leave. Zupes and I play rummy, ticket to ride,
settlers of catan and cribbage. And I take a hot shower. Single token, though
I had some spares if it turned out I needed more than four minutes to get clean.
Monday 4/1
Oh god. April Fool's day and I'm stuck with Zupes. Heaven help me! :) :) :)
Amy joins us for a day of climbing, and I've got my lead game on. Plate Techtonics (5.10a) and Gettin Lucky In Kentucky (5.10b) both get a redpoint. Then I onsight Fifth Bolt Faith (5.10c) which feels really good. I finish the send train with a redpoint of 59" DrillBitch (5.10a). I lead Bethel and Spinner (both 5.10a) and have to hang once on each... starting to get tired. We finish the day with Burning Bush (5.11a) which I actually onsighted back when I was strong. Amy (who has redpointed ten 5.10 climbs already today) can't finish Burning Bush. I climb to the crux but can't even pull on the overhung crimpers. Sticky gets me to the chains so I can clean the route. The final failure doesn't bother me. It is a good day for sure.
Tuesday 4/2
Cold is returning. We climb in the sun at The Gallery. We start with the
classics 27 Years of Climbing (5.8) and A Brief History of Climb (5.10c).
I climb Johnny B. Good (5.11a) twice on toprope to work the sequence for
an eventual redpoint. I've done the climb a few times in years past, but
never remember the sequence, and I'm not strong enough to hang out and work
the moves on lead. We finish the trip with The King Lives On (5.10b).
Zupes and I pack our gear and drive to Columbus where we spend the night
with Guy and Cat.
Wednesday 4/3
Home again, home again, jiggity jig.
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My rack for the trip. Sport climbing! Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/16/2013 |
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Andrew tightening the slackline. (Maddie's photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/20/2013 |
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Laura belayed by Sam... oops... Ian. (Seth's photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/20/2013 |
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Ying-ying (Seth's photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/20/2013 |
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Laura (Seth's photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/20/2013 |
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Laura (Seth's photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/20/2013 |
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Seth (Seth's photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/20/2013 |
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Daniel (Seth's photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/20/2013 |
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Maddie (Seth's photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/20/2013 |
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The whole class at Miguel's. Seth, Wesley, Laura, Josh, Ian, Andrew, Daniel, Shay, Ying-Ying, Maddie, Me, Steve, Fiona (Seth's photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/21/2013 |
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Shay and I need a pair of Phil's belay glasses. (Seth's photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/22/2013 |
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Everyone's hands at the end of class. (Seth's photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/22/2013 |
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Fiona (Ying-Ying's photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/22/2013 |
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Big cam! (Ying-Ying's photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/22/2013 |
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Josh leading Fire and Brimstone. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Josh leading Fire and Brimstone. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Josh at the top of Breakfast Burrito. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Guy leading Breakfast Burrito. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Guy leading Breakfast Burrito. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Guy leading Breakfast Burrito. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Guy leading Breakfast Burrito. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Guy leading Breakfast Burrito. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Amy leading Make a Wish. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Amy leading Make a Wish. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Amy leading Make a Wish. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Amy leading Make a Wish. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Amanda milking the no-hands rest on Make a Wish. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Josh leading Spirit Fingers. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Josh leading Spirit Fingers. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Josh taking a short fall on Spirit Fingers. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Thuze Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Me leading To Defy The Laws Of Tradition. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/24/2013 |
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Me leading To Defy The Laws Of Tradition. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/24/2013 |
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Me leading To Defy The Laws Of Tradition. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/24/2013 |
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Me leading To Defy The Laws Of Tradition. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/24/2013 |
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Me leading To Defy The Laws Of Tradition. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/24/2013 |
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Everyone hanging out in the rain shadow of the big roof. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/24/2013 |
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Me finally reaching the top of To Defy. I removed all the shots of me hanging at every bolt. I get to do that because it is my website. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/24/2013 |
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The one free move I managed to pull on Too Many Puppies. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/24/2013 |
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Zupes and puppy. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/24/2013 |
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Ahhhhhhh!!!!! Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/25/2013 |
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It snowed for about 48 hours continuously. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/25/2013 |
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More than just flurries. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/25/2013 |
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Poor Sticky :( Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/25/2013 |
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Roughing it. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/25/2013 |
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Angua! Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/25/2013 |
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Katie on Little Viper. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/27/2013 |
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Katie on Little Viper. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/27/2013 |
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Katie on Little Viper. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/27/2013 |
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Angua posing for her calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Angua posing for her calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Angua posing for her calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Angua posing for her calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Angua posing for her calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Angua posing for her calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Angua posing for her calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Angua posing for her calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Angua posing for her calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Angua posing for her calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Angua posing for her calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Angua posing for her calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Angua posing for her calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Angua posing for her calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Adam up high on Kentucky Pinstripe. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Angua again. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Angua again. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Katie on Kentucky Pinstripe. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Katie on Kentucky Pinstripe. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Katie on Kentucky Pinstripe. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Katie on Kentucky Pinstripe. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Taylor posing for his calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Taylor posing for his calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Taylor posing for his calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Taylor posing for his calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Taylor posing for his calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Taylor posing for his calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Taylor posing for his calendar cover portrait. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Katie on Brother Stair. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/30/2013 |
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Katie on Brother Stair. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/30/2013 |
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Guy working Wild Yet Tasty. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/30/2013 |
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Guy working Wild Yet Tasty. Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/30/2013 |
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Amy on Gettin Lucky In Kentucky. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/1/2013 |
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Amy on Gettin Lucky In Kentucky. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/1/2013 |
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Amy Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/1/2013 |
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Amy at the top of Burning Bush. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/1/2013 |
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Amy at the top of Burning Bush. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/1/2013 |
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I climbed the start of Burning Bush. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/1/2013 |
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I climbed the start of Burning Bush. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/1/2013 |
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I climbed the start of Burning Bush. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/1/2013 |
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And then gave up... Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/1/2013 |
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...and brought up Sticky (who was held together with duct tape for the entire second half of the trip). Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/1/2013 |
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The only way I can lead this climb right now. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/1/2013 |
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Zupes leading 27 Years of Climbing. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Amy's COE marketing shot. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Zupes leading 27 Years of Climbing. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Zupes leading 27 Years of Climbing. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Amy leading A Brief History of Climb. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Me leading A Brief History of Climb. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Me leading A Brief History of Climb. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Me leading A Brief History of Climb. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Me leading A Brief History of Climb. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Me leading A Brief History of Climb. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Me leading A Brief History of Climb. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Me leading A Brief History of Climb. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Me leading A Brief History of Climb. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Amy on Johnny B Good. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Stop Judging Me! My Johnny B Good micro beta. Gonna redpoint this the next time I get on it! :)
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Amy approaching the crux of Johnny B Good. I wonder if she will use my micro beta? Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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So far so good. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Nice! Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Up to the second rail. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Kudos to Mike for getting these awesome shots! Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Kudos to Mike for getting these awesome shots! Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Not to kill the suspense or anything, but Amy is going to send this climb. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Our beta diverges a bit. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Our beta diverges a bit. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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I find the first horizontal slot near the final bolt to be very small. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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So I skip it. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Clipping the chains. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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This girl was climbing just right of us while I was cleaning Johnny B Good. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Unfortunately, the best angle and lighting was when she was lower, but I didn't have my camera ready. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Amy leading The King Lives On. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Amy leading The King Lives On. Red River Gorge, KY -- 4/2/2013 |
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Cat, Josh, Guy, Me and Zupes at Lago Linda. (Cat's Photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/23/2013 |
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Zupes, Adam, Katie, Guy, Me, Taylor and Cat at Military/Left Flank. (Cat's Photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/24/2013 |
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This fox showed up while we were climbing. (Katie's Photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/27/2013 |
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This fox showed up while we were climbing. (Katie's Photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/27/2013 |
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Me taking pictures above Kentucky Pinstripe. (Katie's Photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Adam at his high point on Hippocrite. (Katie's Photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Sticky helps with stream crossings! (Katie's Photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Go Sticky! (Katie's Photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/28/2013 |
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Me after the traverse to get off Wobbles. (Katie's Photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/29/2013 |
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Adam leading Rock Wars. (Katie's Photo) Red River Gorge, KY -- 3/29/2013 |