Climbing Trips

For those who don’t know – about a month ago my girlfriend and I moved from Virginia to Seattle to be closer to the mountains and the other outdoor activities we love.

Our good friend PT has lived out here for a few months now, and quickly suggested we make a trip out to the desert to climb at Vantage. He showed us the guide book and some pictures, which got us really excited about climbing something completely new to us.

The drive to Vantage from Seattle is pretty straight forward – 90 West all the way there. Cross the Columbia River and take a left onto Vantage Rd. We decided to spend our day at The Feathers, an area consisting of mostly easier climbs ranging from 5.0 to 5.10c.

Vantage - The Feathers

We got to Vantage a little later than we’d hoped, so it was already a little crowded. Not wanting to wait around to get on an easier route, I went ahead and set up a 5.10a for the three of us to climb (it was either Windwalker or Nightbird, I can’t remember). After that, we hopped around and got on a variety of routes from 5.8 to 5.10.

I was excited about getting on a route called “Hardening of the Arteries”, a 5.10c that was the hardest route at The Feathers. Here’s the beta, from summitpost.org:

A strenuous and fun climb, the hardest route at the feathers. Start on the left climbing up the right side of a broken crack that seperates this pillar from the next. Then traverse right to the first and second clips (overhanging at this point ~95 degrees). You’re now climbing up the right side of pillar, reach left for the third clip then begin traversing back towards the middle. Clip the 4th bolt and pull on your dead arms to the finish.

The route was a lot of fun. The first bolt scared a lot of people away because it was 16 ft. or so from the ground, which seemed uncommon for this area (based on other’s reactions), but having climbed so often at the New River Gorge, this was nothing new for me. The route was pumpy, but I sent it without any takes or falls, which I was excited about because I hadn’t climbed in about 2 months.

(photos courtesy of Michelle – I didn’t take any… oops!)

After a good’s night sleep from the previous day’s caving trip, my cousin Chris and his wife Holly, my brother Jonathan, and myself enjoyed a leisurely morning before starting the 3 hour trip to Sandrock.

We arrived at the crag at about 2 in the afternoon. After setting up camp, we geared up for a couple hours of climbing before dark. Other than a couple of people bouldering by the parking lot, we were the only climbers there that evening.

We climbed at a pretty leisurely pace, typically cycling through all four of us one route at a time. With this being the first time either Jonathan or I had done sport climbing outdoors, we got on a relatively straight-forward 5.9 to warm-up and get the feel for climbing on sandstone (which, I might add, is GREAT for climbing). We didn’t have any gear to set, as Chris climbed the route first and set the quickdraws, which we just left in the anchors until Holly climbed and cleaned the route last.

We got on two other routes that evening, the first being a higher (55 ft.) 5.9 right next to the route where the climbing scene from “Failure To Launch” was filmed. The other route was called Knob Wall, an exposed 5.6 with an incredible view of the valley and towns below.

We made our way back to the truck (in the dark), and back to camp for some dinner. Holly had made paella that morning, so all we had to do was heat it up. The evening was going well until Chris (not having heard Holly tell him where his bowl of paella was) sat down in his chair… and his paella. We all had a good laugh. After dinner we hiked back up to the crag and sat under the stars, watching the headlights from cars meander along the small country roads below.

We made our way back to the campsite with the thought of yummy smores in our heads, only to find out some animal had made off with all our chocolate. The trail of wrappers led straight into the woods. We followed the trail, and half expected to find a stiff raccoon with a chocolate covered snout. Having no sugar-filled treats for dessert, and feeling awfully tired from the many bowls of paella, we decided against bouldering by lantern and headed for bed.

We woke up the next morning and enjoyed some oatmeal and hot tea before heading to the crag for a full day of climbing. We didn’t break down camp, so we were back on the rock around 10:30.

One of the first routes we got on was a 5.8 or 5.9 (I forget) that Chris wanted to trad climb. The route itself had some great exposure at the beginning of the route as you worked around to the south-side of the face, and topped-out back around the north-side. We all took the opportunity to top-out and enjoy the view again.

Two of the best routes we got on at Sandrock were a couple of 5.10s that were both technical and a little pumpy. The first had a great move towards to the top that, while a gorilla may have been able to do it statically, we had the pleasure of doing dynamically (I have video of this, just need to get it into a web format). The second route was a 60 ft. 5.10 that I somehow managed to get through without any assist. This was probably my favorite route we climbed (of course, there are no photos of me climbing it, as I was the only person really taking photos!). This is Chris at the start of the first 5.10 we climbed:

While we were there, Holly’s parents met us at the crag with Brayden, Chris and Holly’s son whom her parents were baby sitting while we were out galavanting around the south east US. Brayden is 4 years old and already taking after his parents. He has been climbing for a year or so now, and had climbed at Sandrock once before. This time, completed a 35 ft. climb (with a little help from his Mother and a lot of encouragement from the rest of us), which I believe was the highest he had climbed to date. Even after slipping and hitting his face against the rock on his first attempt, he got back on and finished it up.

We finished up the day working a couple of bouldering problems up by the entrance. We did a couple of V0s (which felt a lot more difficult to me), before working a V3 that Chris was pretty excited about. It probably took me 10 tries before I figured out the trick to topping out that V3, and I could swear that would have been closer to a V5 at the gym. Funny how that works.

Sandrock in a great place to spend a few hours, or a few days, climbing. And since it offers bouldering, top-roping, lead climbing and trad, with difficulties from 5.4 to 5.13, there is something for everyone. I definitely want to go back sometime, and make a point to get on more routes. We only climbed a handful, and I believe there are over 100 routes mapped and bolted, ready for climbers to enjoy.

For more pictures, visit the Sandrock Climbing Crag album over at Mindless Conception Photography.

(Side note: I apologize for not remembering any names of the routes we climbed while at Sandrock. I should not have waited two weeks before writing my trip report. As a result, I can’t remember much, and I have gone on two other climbing trips since then which have only helped to muddy up the details!)

It has been confirmed by all parties involved, Aug. 28th – Sep. 5th will mark the big climbing trip of the year, “Atlanta 2009: The Beta”.

A2:TB will consist of multiple excursions to climbing areas across the southeast U.S., but the highlight of the trip is going to be Looking Glass Rock in North Carolina. We will be climbing the Nose Area, which is a 500 ft., four-pitch climb ranging from 5.7 to 5.9. My cousin Chris will be leading the expedition as he has made the ascent twice to date.

I believe we will also be making a trip to a crag in Alabama called Sand Rock, which is supposed to be a great place for lead, trad and bouldering for all skill levels.

I will post up more information as I get it. Look for a HUGE photo album when I return from the trip as well. I plan on having my camera on me at all times.