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

17 Jan 201828 Jan 2018 / 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.

1st pitch

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.

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!

Day 1 of Mexico

29 Sep 201728 Jan 2018 / bens game / Leave a comment

This is the second crossing into mexico. This time there are lots of concrete bollards and loud buzzers and soldiers, we get waved into a booth to be quickly searched before being let in. Immediately in the next town there are police and soldiers in the street armed with loaded automatic weapons. The plan is to drive a couple hundered kilometers (120miles) past the border to safer areas. Inside Mexico, a lot of friendly faces.

Trying to find somewhere to camp we drove into a village in the hills, drove through slowly with locals standing in the road looking at us, then turned around at the end of the village and drove back out. It was slightly embarassing. In the end we stopped yesterday behind a restaurant where we purchased two sodas and sweet bun for the equivalent of 2 US dollars. We asked the restaurant if we could camp around the back. Louis, a local boy didn’t speak any English indicated we would be fine and guided us to a small patch of scrappy grass. He kept us company in silence for a majority of the night after we offered him a beer. Ignoring health advice not to pet animals in mexico we befriended a dog that I named Hero, on multiple occasions he tried to leap in the car. Hero slept behind the Subaru after we climbed into the roof tent and kept us safe throughout the night by barking away any intruders (or so I presume, he could have just been barking. Because he’s a dog. Maybe there was a squirrel. But I insisted on giving him bread and praising him for unknown tasks).

hero the dog in his sentry position

I bought a cappuccino from the gas station this morning. Not sure yet if the water it was made with will be good or bad, but I’m sure time will decide, I feel lucky. It’s nearly too sweet to drink, so I stole Karli’s drink and used that to wash down my grossly dry sweet bun.

We’re still undecided if we should be tipping the fuel service attendants for filling us up and washing our windshield. This isn’t a service we request but they don’t give us a choice in the matter.

Karli has been practising her Spanish. I have been persisting with sign language. She seems to be nearly conversational in the language, but I couldn’t say for sure. She could just be making up the words for all I know but it seems convincing.

We had one encounter in which the roadside police waved us over for, presumably an inspection. Once we were to the side of the road they waved us to continue on. Not sure if it’s the language barrier that changed their mind, or something else entirely. Mabe they just don’t want to take the time to deal with us Gringos.

Still no sign of any cartel, but that being said-we don’t really know what the ‘cartel’ would look like. Still searching, hope to befriend them soon.

Worse Places to be stuck.

12 Sep 201728 Jan 2018 / bens game / 1 Comment

This week on the road we have:

Tried to climb, tried to surf, waited for a parcel that never actually set off, tried to drive the wrong way up a mountain according to satnav, tried to climb again, stealth camped because we didn’t want to drive, eaten Mcdonalds (success).

So, the climbers mindset is not fully back yet, the level of commitment has been, well, more about burgers and junk food than elevation gained and meters climbed. But, it is important to carb load and I will not turn down junk. I am still 25lb lighter than when I started this trip.

In San Diego we stopped at my friend Axels’ apartment. We did commence training with running in the air-cooled gym and some basic circuit core work. We did discover around here the time to climb is not when the sun is high. It’s an effort even getting to a crag. Every attempt to climb above 5.10 has been thwarted by heat and poor motivation. But it’s there, I know it is coming each time we get back out. Climbing steep for the first time in a couple of years is like relearning. From when rock can be trusted to support a smeared foot to tying bunny-ear anchors (climbers knot to belay from).

We have also tried to surf. I remember when I was learning in oz and back home the pain of falling forwards into a wave, swallowing lots of water, trying to paddle out and nearly breaking my nose, unsuccessful. This was almost the same. But I am now considering getting a cheap board as it is good fun.

The fingers have been sore, I smell like the sea and I am tired from last nights camp. Last night was stealth camping. Basically in fancy areas they don’t like people pitching tents anywhere, they charge extortionate amounts to even park a car. And so we are forced onto side streets and into the back of a vehicle. It was a neat fit, but not the worst, we can both fully lie down in the back, a few inches above head to the surfboard, and a mess of camping chairs, bags and towels all around us.

I looked in mirror while Karli was driving this morning and felt 10 years older, I almost didn’t recognise the guy staring back. Bearded, worn, sunburned, bruised, painful fingers, a nearly repaired cracked rib. I remember looking at all the late 20 to young 40s surf and climbing bums back home when I was 18 and wondering if I would end up like them. I guess I have, because staring back in the side mirror this morning was a tired, battered but content person with no place to be in the world.

Finding out the parcel I had been waiting for hadn’t left the city I live in was devastating. I’ll be honest, it was not what I expected. I thought it was in Costa Mesa nearby, Instead its been waiting for a customs exemption form before it leaves home. I sat down in REI and then lay down. The rest of this week is now waiting, Mexico is evading me in every way possible. There is a nice crag nearby with camping at the bottom. I am thinking a week cut off from civilisation would be nice. It would be epic. Nothing but climbing and noodles.

fun little slab climb

the tight space in back of a full vehicle surfboard above, campchairs around legs

setting a toprope for a bit of crack fun

trying to climb above 100degrees

After The Basin, from Rawlin to Steamboat

20 Jul 201728 Jan 2018 / bens game / Leave a comment

I’ve just felt my face. It felt like it was covered in grit. I’ve looked in the mirror, its covered in salt, white from the effort and sweat. Today I cycled 85mile off road and 30 miles on. I felt unstoppable, until the climb, then i felt like a uncooked beef steak chucked over the handlebars. The end of the gravel cycle had a 1500 ft climb, but the road kept dropping hundreds of feet every few miles adding hundreds more to the ascent. All I could think is the surveyor who planned the road despised cyclists, he probably sits at the front of a log cabin on the way up. Smugly grinning each time he sees a cyclist collapsing over the handlebars with exhaustion, covered in sweat, trying to suck in air that doesn’t seem to exist. After the effort the reward was a smooth paved descent through a lightning storm towards Steamboat Colorado. It was brilliant.

sunrise under tarp

sunset

rattle snake

humming bird

This day started with the sun beaming at my face under the tarp sheet, the wind had been flapping it all night due to my lazy attempt of stringing it up, I envisioned it blowing away in the night but it held on. I packed quickly, I drank a one dollar energy shot and hopped on the bike. Within a few miles a rattlesnake blocked the route, at first I thought it to be like every dead snake, stretched out along the gravel after a driver swerved to get it, but this one was slightly different in that when I drew closer and it snapped up into a coil. I hastily braked. I feel positive of my identifying this as a rattle snake due to the rattling its tail made. Fortunately the road was wide enough for both of us and I carried on with my odyssey.

I met a few CDT hikers, one called J who happened to be in the right place for a kinda cool photo. Later in the day up the pass where I rested for ten minutes I was entertained by many many humming birds. I have noticed the past couple of days the variety of birds along the way. I don’t know what they are called but keep meaning to snap some photos of the colourful ones, but it seems like effort to stop the bike and so I have only the two photos so far. I have made a few frantic grabs for my phone, but by the time the pin is typed in and camera activated, the desired shot is one hundred meters past already. And so, I sigh.

Its nice to have a motel bed tonight.

Ps. I have noticed when cycling and nearing or cresting a summit, Americans do this fist pumping action thing like a sign of victory along with an agreeing nod and big smile, sometime a ‘Yeah!!!!’. If it happens again tomorrow, I will fist pump back!! Goodnight world.

Falling into the dream with Montana

8 Jul 201728 Jan 2018 / bens game / 1 Comment

So, today I cycled 83 miles on dirt road, I would have stopped earlier, but I really despise flies and knew from the 47th mile at the 83rd mile there would be a pint of refreshing ale and a swimming pool as a reward. 4 pints later and I’m still telling myself there is time for the pool. I have pitched my tarp sheet in a nice rv/motel park borrowing a towel as I carry non. Tomorrow will descend on Yellowstone. Hoping to get in early to beat the park entrance fee. I am really settling into this trip now.

The days riding was shear joy, open dirt roads, few climbs and great views (i do enjoy climbs but not at 32c (90f). Playing my repeated playlist again and again I felt like a Don singing out loud with no one to complain. One 4×4 vehicle on the road did pull over to talk, the couple inside had been to my home Lake District and talked of the great beer and a lovely 3 weeks there. I do believe Montana is getting close to brilliant beer, or maybe I am just enjoying drinking more of it. I covered today’s distance in around 6 hours including stops where I attempted to take timed photos with no luck, I spent much time running back and forward and I have lots of ridiculous photos of my back running from the camera, there seems to be an auto motion sensor fighting me; I will sus this sometime soon. I am just over the border in Idaho and don’t think I will be back in Montana again in the near future, quite a sad thought, its been brilliant, the snow, the river crossing, the downed trees, the heat, the views, the cycling, the humbling experience and the friendliest people you could meet in the world who invited me to drink beer with them, introduced me to their families and opened their homes to me. Sky, Sarah, Josh, Gov, Aram, and the many I knew only for a few hours. thank you all.

I will miss you Montana, goodnight.