apAdventures

Yesterday April reminded me…“Whoa, whoa whoa. Wait a second here. Before we set foot in South Africa you said, ‘All I want to do is Nutsa V12, if I get that, then a V13 is just icing on the cake.’” April made this remark yesterday as I was getting frustrated at how difficult the moves on The Vice V13 were; getting paranoid that I might not have time on this trip to send it.

Oh yeah. Whoops. Earlier this year I also said I’d do anything to send my first V12. I said I’d retire from bouldering and take up route climbing again. My friend Karl just laughed at me and said I’d never dust off my rope. He’s probably right because as soon as you break through into a new level in climbing you open the door to a whole new list of amazing climbs. Your tick list grows and grows…really big.

Here in Rocklands you have to put things into perspective. Think of it this way. By purchasing my plane tickets to fly here I basically entered a contest to win a climbing spree. When I was little all I wanted was to win a shopping spree at Toys-R-Us. I imagined pushing a cart through the store, piling in toys. My Rocklands experience isn’t much different. I keep pushing my shopping cart through the boulders and keep collecting more and more boulder problems. It’s crazy. I’ve won the contest after all.

However, there is one dilemma with this bouldering spree. Each time I pick a new boulder problem, the send may or may not come easily. I may not always be able to add it to my tick list immediately. Completing a climb takes a finite amount of time and effort and it’s that time and effort that reveal the stark reality. The reality is: Our trip has reached the half-way point. We have less than one month until departure.

Last week, I took inventory of the list of problems that I’ve collected and those that remain outside of my shopping cart. Uh oh. I’ve got a lifetime of climbing around me and less than a month to send them all!

Where to begin?
Ok, how about I start at the top of my scale, V13. There are certainly plenty to choose from. My first pick was Ray of Light.

Setting up the finger lock Ray of Light

Missing the dead-point into the slot Ray of Light

Trying to figure out the power endurance finish Ray of Light

Unfortunately, after two days of effort I bailed on Ray of Light. The crux move was extremely hard, low probability and was super tweaky on my left middle finger. It involved getting a left hand finger lock in a slot and dead-pointing to another slot with my right hand. If I managed to stick the dead-point, which was extremely low probability, the finger, still locked in the slot would say “HELLO! I’m still stuck in here,” while giving off a nice bit of pain. That move was followed by another low probability toe hook. If I was ever capable of doing all that, I was then faced with a 10 move super power endurance battle to the finish. Awesome climb but not for me, not now. This climb remains on the Toys-R-Us shelf.

Next, The Vice V13 at The Fortress. I’m will decide by the end of the week if I’m going to go for it. I’ve made some good links but there is a low probability move mid-way into the climb that seems to suck a lot of energy out of me. In fact, after each session I need almost 2 days of rest to be able to climb again. This climb takes everything I’ve got, plus more. To be continued.

Freezing and trying to get motivated for The Vice

Armed Response V13. It’s so close to The Vice I just have to try it. But usually I’m so dead tired from working The Vice I always bail.

The Armed Response Boulder

Tea With Elmarie V12. I can definitely do this one. This might be a little soft but with another chance on it, fresh, a send is nearly guaranteed.

Black Velvet V11. Definitely going down, maybe next session. It’s a huge dyno!

First move, big lock off Black Velvet

Second move, match

Set feet

Launch!

LAUNCH!!!

Stretched and Pressed V11. This is an extension to a climb called The Rack V8 (one of April’s big projects). It has a huge lock off/weird mantle section that I haven’t figured out yet but I know as soon as I unlock the mystery it’s going down.

April working The Rack V8. Stretched and Pressed goes up and right.

Stretched and Pressed goes up and right.

Gliding Through Waves Like Dolphins V11. Now with a name like that, I’m definitely going to glide to a send any day now.

Spider on the Roof V10. Crazy finish that I haven’t worked out yet but it will go. Check out how weird one of the holds is…

Spider on the Roof, V10

Tomorrow I Will Be Gone V10. Haven’t tried it yet but next time we go to the Road Crew boulders I’m going to try it (We’ve been planning to go back to Road Crew for 2 weeks…and keep getting sidetracked by The Fortress).

Above, just right of center: It is the arete still in the sun

A straight-on view of the blunt arete: the giant block dead center in the photo.

Cedar Spine Sit V9. Looks perfect, will try soon.

Caroline V9/10…next session, guaranteed. Assuming I don’t go to The Vice first.
Maniac V8. Next session when we go back to Fields of Joy and if I don’t get on Macho King V9, or No Late Tenders V11, first.
John Denver V7. Next session at the Campground Boulders. Mike almost sent at night while the baboons nipped at his toes (he and Raquel went on a mission their last night and almost sent!)

Oh…and Steak House V13. I did the moves accidentally because I thought they were part of Spider on the Roof. I thought, damn these moves are hard!
Oh…and after running into a old acquaintance from Japan he told me about a ton of other climbs I should check out including: Black Shadow V13, Green Mamba V13, and Madiba V14.

Forget this website posting stuff…I’ve got to get climbing…..AHHHHHHH!!!!!!!
So you see my dilemma?

posted by pjv

Intermixed with all the bouldering projects out on the rocks, another major project that Paul and Mike have been sessioning together over the last week is the small bottle of deadly hot sauce that Mike purchased at the Clanwilliam grocery store: Bushman’s Hot Az Hell, HOT12. This innocent-looking little bottle has proven to be one of the boys’ hardest projects of the trip. An 8 day epic. They’d been hitting it hard, working the bottle pour by pour, sip by sip, with no rest days.

After the first day’s session, it was readily apparent that this burly little red-hot fighter wouldn’t go down easily. A homegrown Cape Town recipe, rated a “12” on the 0-10 Hotness Scale, Bushman’s Hot Az Hell is not for the faint at heart (as depicted by the sketch on the label: a half-naked, bicep-bulging bushman with hunting bow drawn, ready to release his chili-pepper-speared arrow into his next beta-spraying victim). As Paul and Mike put in their first burns on the bottle, raving about the stellar taste, Raquel decided to give it a few go’s herself. A southwest native with tastebuds honed for this kind of torture, Raquel was absolutely devastated after her first attempt. She got totally shut down. Sadly, she realized this project was out of her league and had to leave the crankin’ to the boys.

And so it was on. The Boys versus The Bushman’s. Night after night, the boys burled their way through the bottle, sweating and swearing as they slowly inched toward completion. During each night’s session they would discover a new key technique that would get them closer to the send. The first key they figured out was to eat a few bites of the evening’s dinner *before* applying the sauce, to properly warm-up the tastebuds and reduce the risk of flash pump. The next breakthrough they learned was to administer the sauce through the use of “dipping ponds,” thus cutting the portions into smaller, more manageable moves, versus trying to tackle the whole gulp at once. And finally, Paul surprised us all by busting out an amazing link mid-week by means of ending his meal with a giant glass of milk. Mike (also a southwest native and much more of a hot sauce traditionalist than Pittsburgh-born Paul) taunted Paul for this approach, claiming it as “un-pure” style. Paul just brushed this off as mere jealousy of his amazing sporty power. Stupid trad’ies.

Slowly but surely though, the boys pressed on together. Indeed, there were a couple of nights when we’d all finish dinner with a feeling of dread, staring intently at the half finished bottle, desperately worried that Mike and Raquel’s short stay here wouldn’t be enough time to pull off the send. But our worries soon vanished around Day #6. “This bottle is GOIN’ DOWN!” And they were right.

Finally, on Day #8, the send was inevitable. Over a dinner of soup and grilled cheese sandwiches, lit by candlelight and toasted with yummy glasses of Western Cape red wine, the last few drops of the Bushman’s Hot Az Hell went down, smooth as butter. The bottle was at last empty. Woohoo! Way to go boys. Congratulations on your hardest Rocklands send to date.

Now we’ll see if they’ve got the nerve to up the ante: Bushman’s Revenge, HOT14! This product is EXTREMELY HOT!!! Keep out of reach of children. Avoid skin contact. Watch out.

Paul sweatin’ out Bushman’s Hot Az Hell, HOT12

Mike working the final moves of Bushman’s Hot Az Hell, HOT12

The final sequence to Mike’s send of Bushman’s Hot Az Hell, HOT12 :

A backlogged post.
posted by arr

If you’ve ever seen the climbing video Specimen there is one climb that stands out in your mind. The Rhino: a large, horizontally hanging block situated at the back of grassy meadow whose overhanging roof seems to defy the laws of gravity. From a distance it’s profile looks like that of a rhino’s. To any rock climber propelled by aesthetics, this boulder beckons to be climbed.

Upon first arriving in Rocklands, Paul and I were a bit concerned that this classic-looking boulder problem was not in any of the online guides we had with us. How could this amazing feature not be documented? Was The Rhino a top-secret gem that one had to trek dozens of miles through the bush and boulders to find? Our worries soon dissolved however, on our very first day hiking into the Rocklands proper. The Rhino was the first thing we saw.

Last week we endured an extremely cold and windy bouldering day up at The Fortress (the place where Paul and I saw the leopard!). Paul sessioned The Vice, 8b while Mike, Raquel and I put in sending go’s on Colin the Librarian, 7a. After numerous failed attempts at getting our fingers warmed up, Mike and I sucked it up and embraced the numb tips and sent (primarily so we could go put our gloves back on!). Raquel came oh-so-close on her go’s, missing the dyno jug by a mere inch or less. Meanwhile, Paul burled his way through more exciting links on his project.

After the planned ‘few hours’ turned into ‘the majority of the day’ up there, we finally decided enough was enough. We were all chilled to the bone and needed to head into the sun and down to lower ground, hopefully where the wind was less brutal. Time for warm coffee? I asked. Time for sunny bouldering, Mike and Raquel suggested. Time for The Rhino, Paul announced.

After some minor bushwacking and trail finding, we crunched our way through the dry grassy meadow and were soon standing under the belly of The Rhino. Surprisingly, the overhanging feature was a lot narrower than we had all imagined (compared to it’s massive length). The Rhino was quite a skinny beast! His mid-section spanned only about 3-4 feet. Also surprising to us was the cold fact that the wind down here in the meadow was just as strong, if not stronger, and the temps were starting to dip as the sun went down.

Cold or no cold though, if there is one trait readily apparent in my husband as a climber it’s his dang persistence, especially when it comes to amazingly aesthetic lines…even more so when the sun is setting and it’s time to head home, haha. He thrives on squeezing every last morsel of energy out of the day. If he says “it’s time for The Rhino,” he’s straight serious. There is no half-hearted ‘see how it feels’, ‘give it a few tries’, ‘save it for tomorrow.’ Oh no. Not Paul. It’s Rhino time, baby.

So as we all stood around shivering, hungry and cold, too tired and cooled down to give the moves any serious effort, Paul stripped down to his t-shirt, pulled onto the rhino’s skinny little neck, and promptly cranked out the climb with his trademark “woohoo!” Take a seat on Paul’s tick list, Mr. Rhino.

Paul sending The Rhino, 7c

posted by arr

As predicted, Mike and Raquel have settled into the Rocklands groove with ease. The climbing here is very similar to that of Hueco Tanks, of which we are all very much accustomed to. And slowly but surely, the four of us are beginning to crank. Hard.

After a couple warm-up days, we’ve now embarked on Round One of the onslaught. On Sunday, we headed back to the Plateau Boulders here on the de Pakhuys farm. Raquel quickly cleaned up her send of Girl on Our Mind, 6c with ease, ticking it first go of the day. We lovingly refer to this stellar climb as “The South African Nobody’s”, likening it to Hueco’s classic Nobody Here Gets Out Alive. Next up on the day’s tick list was Mike’s exciting last-minute send of the burley and powerful Minki, 7b, another classic, with comparable Hueco-like features.

Mike crushing Minki, 7b

Following the long and exhausting Minki session, we hiked our tired muscles over to the Hidden Boulder at the end of the day for an expected thrashing on the pumpy Human Energy, 7b. No sends to report on this climb yet, however, I surprisingly managed to squeak out a couple of impressive first-time links from the start. Mike and I are now both at the same highpoint on the climb. After some good rest, we’re both hoping for the send.

April working Human Energy, 7b

Despite some tired muscles, we went to The Fortress the following day. Paul has had his sights set on trying the crazy compression classic The Vice, 8b, a would-be grade-breaker for him (wisely, he decided to rest the previous day while we all thrashed). After only about 15 minutes or so of him beginning to suss out the moves, he and I both realized that this climb could potentially be a possibility for him. Psyched, he spent the entire day working it out and by the end was able to do all the moves.

Paul sussing out moves on The Vice, 8b

In the meantime, Mike, Raquel and I worked on the adjacent Colin the Librarian, 7a , a fun little ditty with small crimps, tight body tension and a big throw at the end. On our best go’s, Mike and I missed the final throw by mere centimeters! Grrr. Too tired. Need rest. We’ll be back.

Raquel keeping a tight core on Colin the Librarian, 7a

posted by arr

Thank you, Paul, for pointing out my lame cliche blog title. I tried re-titling it about 10 times now, but can’t come up with a better way to describe our current situation. So just bear with me people. I used up all my creativity reserves on my leopard blog!

Our buds Mike and Raquel are here from El Paso now. They’ll be staying a short but sweet 2 weeks here in Rocklands. Already though, the four of us are struggling with trying to decide which areas to go to and which boulders to climb, not wanting Mike and Raquel to miss out on sampling the best of the best. The problem is, there is just sooooo much rock here (did I just say that was ‘a problem!?’ somebody slap me please). Paul and I made it a point to try to scope out one new area per day when we first arrived. We too didn’t want to go home having missed out on an ultra Rocklands classic. Having been here for about 2 weeks though, we’re still not finished with that task! So needless to say, I think the four of us are going to be very busy over the next couple weeks, trying to get our chalked hands on….*everything*.

Paul and I decided to introduce these two Hueco locals to Rocklands on Thursday via the Road Crew boulders. We spent the entire day climbing anything and everything, some established climbs, some not. Notable ticks include Mike’s send of Roof on Fire 6c+ (classic!) and Paul’s send of Ulan Batar 7b (double classic!).

The following day we took them to “the home crag” (the de Pakhuys boulders that sit on the farm on which we are staying). And like the previous day, we really packed ‘em in…..walking back home from the rocks under moonlight.

What’s next on the agenda? Resting today, then the de Pakhuys boulders tomorrow, and then Roadside for Monday. Wooo!….or should I say, Whew! Stay tuned… We’ll be reporting on lots of strong sends….or lots of sore muscles, one of the two.

Where’s Waldo? A first ascent by Paul.

Mike sending Roof on Fire 6c+

Raquel on Demi Lune 6c

Just another classic

posted by arr

It was a dark and dreary day…..dud, dud, duuuuud….

And the Rocklands proper was deserted of climbers. The overcast clouds had been releasing a steady mist all morning, leaving the typically vibrant orange rocks dark grey and dripping wet. No climbing today. A perfect excuse for a lazy rest day. Or for some, a perfect day to explore.

These two explorers pulled our little Volkswagon go-cart rental into the empty gravel parking lot, zipped up our raincoats and stepped out into the blustery cold wind and dense mist, camera, video camera and bouldering guides in hand. Our mission was to search out a bouldering area called The Fortress, of which we had not yet been. The guidebook and fellow climbers promised a slew of classic lines here.

We set off up the familiar dirt road into the Rocklands proper, which provides access to many of the popular areas: Roadside, Road Crew, Cedar Rouge, and the mysterious Fortress: a giant, bright orange warehouse-sized block that sat atop a prominent boulder-strewn hillside.

At the road-side cairn marking our single-track approach trail, Paul and I gaze up at The Fortress across the meadow, high on the hillside above us. The distant block and surrounding boulders were just barely below cloud-level. The cloud cover was moving right-to-left over the tops of the rocks at an unnaturally fast rate. It seemed as if we were watching a fast-forward video. Every now and then the fiercely strong wind would tear a slice of moisture off the main cloud mass, leaving the rogue wisp whizzing across the front sides of the boulders, hiding the boulders’ soaking grey faces for a brief moment as it zipped by. “Looks cold up there,” Paul says to me. I agree and we tramp on.

After crossing the meadow, we see another large cairn that marks our next turn. We are now faced with a boulder-scrambling maze of cairns up the prominent hillside upon which The Fortress sits. We start up, gaining elevation quickly, our vantage point above the meadow below getting more and more impressive with every step. Our sneakers and pantlegs are getting more and more soaked with every step too! Every weed, grass and wildflower in our path is weighted heavily with wet beads of moisture. We continue up.

Eventually, the hillside appears to plateau out and Paul and I realize that we’ve reached our destination. The giant Fortress looms directly above us, it’s flat summit hidden in the mist. Surrounding us are dark grey gargoyle figurines wrapped in white cloaks….I mean, dark grey boulders wrapped in mist and clouds. Wow, is it spooky up here.

We remedy the eery feeling by pulling the bouldering guide out of our backpack and hunting for climbs. One by one, we find the classics, running around like kids on Christmas day. There is one set of boulders however, that has us stumped. We can’t find the line Stargate. Did we pass it and not see it? We circle around again, confused. We’ve found every line up here except this one. According to the guide, it should be right next to the boulders we’re standing at, but either we’re wrong, the guide is wrong, or the Stargate has disappeared into another dimension. Perhaps the line has been transported through the giant car-sized circular hueco in the rock tower behind us…a.k.a “the Stargate?”

Frustrated, we give up on Stargate. And it’s at this point that we realize the clouds have completely engulfed the top of this hill, and us. We look out into the valley behind The Fortress and see the clouds racing by, at eye-level now. This is really creepy, we both agree, and decide to document the phenomenon with the video camera.

Perched up on a boulder, Paul and I sit silently and motionless with the video camera running, letting the wind whip past our cold faces, listening to it howl at an unsettling volume through the gargoyle-like features in the rocks. It seems to be getting louder. Is it the wind? Or my heightening sense of sound, amplified with each additional minute we sit?

After about 10 long minutes, the eeriness of our perch in this ominous place is too much to bear and Paul breaks the silence with “Let’s head down.” He scrambles off the boulder and begins packing up our camera. I take one last look at the valley and then turn around toward Paul and climb off the boulder, facing forward.

Stepping off the boulder onto the dirt, I raise my gaze from my feet to the giant car-sized circular hueco in the rock tower now directly in front of me. My gaze abruptly hones in on the body of a large, dog-sized, blond cat with black spots, crouched in front of the rock tower not 20 feet away, it’s head turned toward me, it’s eyes staring squarely back at mine. “The elusive leopard,” my brain registers, regurgitating the text of our South Africa Lonely Planet guidebook.

With my unobstructed view, the animal appears to be in mid-departure from us, having stopped briefly to look back and take inventory of the strange 2-legged creatures scrambling off the boulder. Upon eye contact, the cat immediately bolts away from us and it’s at this point that I am finally able to blurt out the forced hushed words “It’s a f’in leopard!! It’s a f’in leopard!” to Paul. My vulgarity at such a beautiful and amazing National Geographic moment startles me almost as much as the cat.

Paul wheels around 180 degrees, but it’s too late. The cat has already bounded up and behind some rocks out of sight. We both stand there dumbly, unsure of what to do next.

Then, from behind the rocks the cat’s large head pops up to take a peek at us. We stare at the cat, and the cat at us. The 2 or 3 seconds that probably truly tick by during this stare-down feel much more like 2 or 3 minutes. I’m amazed at how strikingly friendly the cat’s face appears, so sweet and kind and cute, like a kitten’s. Only…..larger.

The head disappears. We continue to stand, silently frozen. Then, a moment later, the head reappears. The cat is playing peek-a-boo with us. This time though, Paul interrupts the 2-3 second (or 2-3 minute?!) staredown. “Let’s roll.”

We grab our camera (having not taken a single shot of this beautiful animal!) and high-tail it out of there, our enchantment replaced with fear.

Within minutes we’re off the hill and back down in the meadow, scooting quickly and deliberately back to the car. Eventually, as we near the car, our pace slows down and our conversation speeds up. The fear has now been replaced with enchantment again and we re-cap the sighting, second-by-second, kicking ourselves for not having taken a picture.

Back at the farm we confirm our sighting with Thys, the owner of the farm. He is astonished that we, visitors having been here in South Africa a mere week, saw the animal that he has been trying to get a glimpse of his entire life. “No one sees the leopard,” he informs us, “No one. You two are VERY lucky.” Later that evening at a braai (cookout) that Thys and his neighbor threw for the climbers staying on the farm, the news of our leopard story buzzed. Tale after tale was told of the many locals who have tried to see this astonishing animal. Footprints in the sand and dead sheep in their pastures was the closest they had ever come to the elusive leopard.

Walking back to our little cottage late in the evening, while the fire of the braai and the laughter of climbers still roared, Paul and I reflected on our good fortune. The stories from the locals sealed our realization of how incredibly lucky our sighting was, making the entire experience all the more mystic.

posted by arr

Paul sticking the crux move on Nutsa 8a+

First big tick of the trip!! Only one week into it, and Paul crushes the Rocklands classic, Nutsa 8a+. This climb was listed at the top of Paul’s boulder problem wish list. A climb which he and I both thought would take multiple days of effort to complete. I can honestly say though (with a great deal of envy!) that this climb went down very easily for him.

Two days ago Paul tried it for the first time, linking the start all the way up to the crux after only a few attempts. By the end of a short 1 hour session on it, he had it linked into two separate sections.

We rested yesterday and went back to it today after a full day of climbing at the Road Crew Boulders. I could tell Paul was ‘takin’ it easy’ at Road Crew. He was gearing up for some sending go’s on Nutsa.

We’re not usually ones to rant and rave about “conditions” (i.e. weather temps, humidity, wind, etc.) but I’ll admit, on this particular afternoon conditions couldn’t have been more perfect under the A Question of Balance Boulder, home to Nutsa. The cool and crisp cloudy weather was nice, yes, but it was the lonely solitude that we really consider to be “perfect conditions.” It was under these perfect conditions that Paul laced up and promptly ticked Nutsa.

So now, with the #1 climb on his tick list already checked off after only 1 week, what will the next 7 weeks hold?! It’s almost too exciting to think about. Paul’s mind is spinning with the dozens of other classic lines to choose from.

April warming up on Boulder L at the Road Crew Boulders

April warming up on Boulder L at the Road Crew Boulders

Road Crew Boulders

Paul sending Rooi Klavier 7c at the Road Crew Boulders

Walking to the car at sunset

posted by arr

Dragonfly Traverse 7a+ at the Riverside Boulders

Today’s bouldering day was at the Riverside Boulders. Again, amazing boulders in an amazing setting. I’d seen in a video that Riverside holds the ultimate classic, Dragonfly Traverse, 7a+. Beautiful red standstone slopers, next to a little waterfall and pool. I was determined to seek this out as my own little project. I spotted the line first as we hiked up the approach. And even from 100 feet away, I could tell it was an aesthetic classic.

After a few easy warm-ups, we were so excited that we got right to business and laced up for Dragonfly. Immediately upon trying the first move, I knew that this 7a+ wasn’t going to go down easily. Paul ticked his send after a few go’s (with the comment that it felt a hell of a lot harder than 7a+) and then started working and eventually sent the direct line up the wall, Metamorphosis, 7b+. Me, on the other hand, was hardly able to link more than 2 moves in a row, with one move being a total stopper that I wasn’t even close to hitting. Perhaps it’s my lack of sloper strength after all that Hueco climbing, (oh no!). Immediately, I got discouraged, worried that 2 months wasn’t going to be long enough to complete such a perfect line as this. After working it for a bit, I decided to come back in a week (hopefully stronger) to gauge then, whether or not I have a shot at possibly sending.

And in the meantime, I will no doubt find a handful of other dreamily aesthetic lines. 🙂

No Name 4 at the Riverside Boulders

Dragonfly Traverse 7a+ at the Riverside Boulders

Dragonfly Traverse 7a+ at the Riverside Boulders

posted by arr

So far so good with weather. Yesterday we decided to take a rest day and yesterday the clouds decided to dump rain…all day. We were getting nervous this morning because of the heavy cloud cover but everything cleared up perfectly. Conditions were cool and crisp.

Today we checked out the Roadside Boulders, the first bouldering area developed at Rocklands, considered the “main area.” Shortly after stepping out of the car and hiking a bit down the road, what I saw was…[ description goes here ]…..breathtaking? amazing? stunning?….you add the description, because I can’t come up with the words. This place is paradise. Boulders forever.

Rainy rest day at De Pakhuys

The rainy view from the front of our cotttage

Approach to Roadside Boulders

Clouds lifting

More boulders on the approach

Roadside Boulders

Unknown name/rating – Fun crack climb

Unknown name/rating – Another fun crack climb with a slab at the top

April topping out on Gadget 6a with boulders stretching for miles in the backdrop

Cool rock formations

posted by pjv and arr

First day of bouldering!! NOW we’re talkin’.

posted by pjv