Return To Our Playground
Is it possible to “wear out” one’s favorite climbing area? I think this to myself as we speed towards Hueco Tanks Friday evening after work. I was excited, but not “Hueco” excited. Paul and I have spent a blissful summer bouldering in Flagstaff, where there’s no such thing as rules, regulations, and reservations. When the temps at Hueco drop from the 100’s to the 90’s, Paul and I usually ditch Flag and get sucked back into those beckoning Hueco huecos. So here we are, 1st reservations of the season arranged, rippin’ down Interstate 10 to the mecca. Have the restrictions finally started to get to me? Am I really not that psyched?! The world must obviously be coming to an end, I think. Obviously.
The next morning, however, we roll into the park – the mood picking up steadily with every foot closer to the park headquarters. We park, head inside, fill out the daily paperwork, catch up real quick w/ the Hueco staff, and head to the boulders. As with every ‘first return’ to Hueco, Paul and I are seasoned enough to know that hopping on last spring’s projects on the first day is just asking for a painful spanking. So we start this first day off with a little circuiting – hitting up all the easier classics, moving quickly and purposefully from one area to the next. Before we know it, the day is gone and we’ve covered most of North Mountain and have actually topped out on most everything we touched. Good start.
Sunday we decide to head out on a tour – only this time, as participants, not guides. We’re a little skeptical as to whether anyone else will be on this tour with us, let alone a guide that’ll be willing to take us out! You can imagine then how excited we were when 4 El Paso climber locals and 2 roadtrippin’ surfers from Calgary showed up, rearin’ to get to the rocks – a classic, full blown psyched-as-all-heck tour….in the heat of SEPTEMBER! This is GREAT! Needless to say, the day was absolutely stellar, full of good sends and good company.
So here we are on The Drive Home #146. Same drive, same excited chatter over the climbs of the weekend and the wish list for the many weekends to come. Have we “worn out” Hueco? Heck no! I must have just had a lack of sleep and been cranky last Friday night, haha. Silly me.
posted by arr
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on Monday, September 17th, 2007 at 12:40 am and is filed under Bouldering, Hueco Tanks-Texas.
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