Month: January 2018

A Clip Too Far!

/ bens game / Leave a comment

‘When you have time to think about how far your falling, its a big fall.’

After setting off on the  chance we might be able to get the next room ferry, then finding that we wouldn’t be able to catch the next roro ferry, we decided to head back to La Mojarra which was an hour away for some more sport climbing. This time we pushed a little harder, climbing 5.10s and the odd 5.11. It was brilliant fun. I also took a rather large fall, the first in a while. In the picture below I fell from where I was in the pic, to just past the dark pocket at the bottom of the picture. I fumbled at the clip, attempting to clip from a tiny crimp, putting up rope, dropping it, pulling more rope, then realising my hand barely had the crimp and I would be off before my hand was back at the gate. I decided to fall. While falling, it crossed my mind I had been falling quite some time (normally a fall is over before you realise its begun. Eventually the rope went tight and I let out a big ‘Wooooooh!’. A few minutes later I re-climbed the route, realising instead of holding the crimp an arms reach away there was a very easy to hold jug right next to the bolt. O well.

 

Karli also challenged herself leading every 5.9 of la Mojarra in a single day, and adding a couple of 10’s for good measure. It was great to be back with Chris and Nicole, pushing each other to climb other routes and taking plenty of falls along the way. La Mojarra is bolted in a perfect bolt before the crux manor sport climbers love, making falls safe and comfortable.

 

Each evening we have had the menu in the restaurant down to a fine art, picking the best value beer and hot food for the lowest price. Halving the bill compared to last time. Above are a few pics of the La Mojarra setting.

 

We are now a day out of Cartagena, getting ready to ship the vehicle back that will set in motion a series of events leading to us cycling South America.

Delicious donuts, a change of plan (again), 3 Hexes, 2 wires and a Prusik Loop

/ bens game / Leave a comment

I was going to write a blog about the importance of knowing how to prusik but after writing it and reading  over i decided it was dull and instead, to write about donuts. (The prussic thing is at the bottom)

DELICIOUS SUGAR COATED DONUTS. They have been missing from my life. Through Mexico and Central America they have been weighed, measured and found wanting. Some shops sell dry ones that have sat for days. Some look like donuts, but are poor sponge cake imposters; dryer than the previous and coated with a bland coconut covering.

I was feeling peckish one Suesca day and decided to see myself to the bakery. While buying bread for the day, I noticed out the corner of my eye a real treat. A tray full on ring donuts with a good sugar coat. I was psyched. I purchased a couple.  On returning to the hostel I made coffee, sat down and began to chow down.  The extra delight hit when i realised despite the missing hole they had still filled them with a delicous caramel apple sauce. Enough on donuts.

Now, the past couple of weeks we had planned on selling Karli’s car and continuing on bicycle down through the south. This plan was going great until the buyer backed out a couple of days before he arranged to buy it.  Which is fair enough, and we have quickly and cayoticaly re-planned. The car will now be shipped back to mexico, where we will meet it on the 8th of february after flying via Miami, then drive it back to Colorado, weaving to destinations as we go. From denver, we will work on selling the car, getting a resupply of extra equipment, go ice climbing till the end of winter (and maybe ski) and then fly back to colombia to cycle the continent.  Hopefully climbing peaks along the way. BOOM!!

The thing I decided not to write

Climbing a rock is one thing, knowing how to climb safely  is a completely different thing.  At the start of this trip with Karli, the very first days climbing, I started teaching her basic climbing knots and some more advanced knots. The majority of which you would or wouldn’t need in a standard days climbing, but some would eventually become useful when you lack or lose gear on routes.

Among these were knots such as bunny ears, munter hitch, clove hitch and the humble prusik knot, or rather three variations of it. At the time Karli questioned what the use of most of these were and why we practiced using them. Until a couple of days ago.

We had a few days of sport climbing, then we went back out doing a repeat climb of L.P. , one of the routes in Suesca. The last time we climbed it we had a blast and it was smooth.

IMG_20180112_123055

1st pitch

IMG_20180112_132341

2nd pitch

This time every single piece of protection placed straight away and tugged into position nicely. For me this was great and i had a blast climbing smooth, for Karli it turned into a nightmare of hanging on a rope thumping at wires, every single placement stuck fast. So it continued at a belay made up of hexes,me having super easy placements, and Karli probably wishing I was dead . After two pitches I decided to place runners more sparsely to lessen the pain. I led the next pitch, and on pulling the rope for karli to come up behind me it snagged. With no line of sight and the sound of rapids below we couldn’t hear each other. Between me on belay and Karli was around 40 meters of tight rope and 10 meters of slack at Karli’s end. After waiting for about 20 minutes I was contemplating tying off the rope and rappelling down to see if karli was OK when the rope came loose again.

Very resourcefully karli realised I was on belay and the rope was pinched in a crack just out of sight.  She tied on a prusik loop to the rope and began taking in the slack as she moved towards the edge of the springboard under the roof (overhanging rock), eventually tying a new figure 8 mid way on the rope just below the prussic and coiling the spare rope. As she climbed to the edge of the roof the rope came slack and things resumed as normal. A potentially dangerous situation turned into a non-issue with the use of a prussic.  Time spent practicing was well spent. This is the first time in 14 years I have been on a rope that managed to get caught in such a manor.

 

 

IMG_20171128_170101

Karli practicing her prussics a couple of months ago.

To close, a pic of what happens to Karli when she lies in a hammock and there is 60meters of rope hanging about. Enjoy!

IMG_20180113_171929

 

A Place Full Of Unnoticeable Masters

/ bens game / 1 Comment

“Behind the rock in the Dark probably hides a tiger, and the coiling giant root resembles a crouching dragon”. – An old Chinese Idiom, referring to a place full of unnoticeable masters. I feel this is fitting to Suesca as I climb up through the Spanish Moss cresting a roof.

The route still on my mind is L.P. The guy that put the route up said its a 5.7 but needs the head of a 5.9 leader. After asking locals later it’s part 5.7, parts 5.8 and a bit of 5.9. Our first attempt ended at the first loose band of rock below the roof and questioning if indeed we were on the right route. It started with a dihedral, then overcome a bulge to a crack and up onto a ledge, about 30meters. The severity of this supposed 5.6 pitch made me question what was to come. It resulted in a rap down and going to get some more Beta. The modest route had an easy weakness through if you knew where to look. After asking a friend we went back the next day.

IMG_20180103_124715.jpg

The second attempt, after confirming we were supposed to go through the frail loose band went better.  From the ledge you weave through the poor rock to pull a large roof, climb a second corner that becomes slightly overhanging with the odd hand jam, to another belay under a roof, about 30 meters. The cover picture is from the second belay looking at the second roof. 2nd pitch- A belly crawl along a canon and then a fine balance flip over with good exposure to climb the roof . From there it’s two long pitches of easier ground 5.6-7, dropping to 5.4 the higher you go. Good protection with  great views, the belay on top is a series of chicken heads (little forms of sandstone you can tighten slings around) strung together in a that should do it kind of manor. All in around 130meters. The thing is, most the 5.9 sport routes in the area are easier than this was. It humbles you. The stone lords keeping you in your place. But is brilliant fun, one of the best routes here.

Many talented climbers come here saying they will climb a certain grade, and certainly they climb a grade or two beyond my own ability. But come back at the end of a day with a tail between legs and shell shock from the run out protection and bolts, combined with words to the effect of ‘Im sure that 11a is actually a 12’. But out of dejection rises a strength and enjoyment in the coming days, and a respect for the guys that first climbed here.

We are back in Suesca after a week over christmas around La Mojarra, a sport climbing venue. La Mojarra was an opposite to Suesca but a welcome break. Good, safe bolts that are maintained, and mainly very overhanging. Which was cool and safe to fall on. And what’s more, after running out of 8s and 9s, all the 5.10 grade climbs attainable and feeling like the grade stated. And made me feel like pushing more to 11s.

pics- La Mojarra. friends Chris and Nicole having a play.

We have also been back to our secret valley for some bouldering. Boulders seem to have sprouted from the ground since the first visit and every corner turned is another problem. The friction on this rarely climbed rock is bril and with a cool breeze chalk barely needed. To top it off we have probably averaged seeing one other person up there over 4 days.

Life has been nice and slow of recent, getting up, waiting for clouds to dissipate around 9-10 then climbing.  Every other day resting. I decided with the amount of beer drank last year I could have been ten times the climber had I not. So this year so far the tally stands at 1. I’m keeping to that until at least this eve.

Yesterday we climbed with a Austrian friend who after an easier route, chucked up a 5.11d top rope for me to flail on, after getting back down stating he thinks its more 12. I tried, and fell, and tried , and fell, then quit. Ill be back for it.

Another more interesting post coming tomorrow. Maybe.