Climbing

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On the ARk from Jimmy Webb on Vimeo.

The night before just POURED and there was some serious doubt about climbing prospects. We got a relatively early start though and the morning sky was just great. There was a slight breeze and tons of blue sky. So we decided to "chance it"....(What else were we going to do? Go bass fishing?)Go Cat GoWe headed to the Lower Meadow - which I have historically called the "Old" Meadow as it was mostly concurrently established with the other major areas in the region. We were SUPER stoked to find that the rock was dry - though running in far and few inbetween places. I guess the dry ground really soaked up the rain and the wind managed to dry the rock surface.For me, I spent most of the day shooting images as I had previously climbed most of the sport routes in the 12b and under range (at least the ones worth doing.) I was super psyched to watch Adam onsight and flash both Gato 5.12a and Go Cat Go 5.12b!! Go Cat GoThe meadow typically is steeper than the New River Proper - not necessarily more "roofy", though it does have its fair share, but rather more consistently steep. The Cat wall definitely owns up to this typicality. Both routes feature a gently overhanging face with decent to good hold separated by long moves.I think its fun, that though concurrently developed, these routes tend to be a lot more do-able (though not necessarily easier) than the routes at Endless Wall. Comparing "Go Cat Go!" and "Sacriledge" is almost a joke. Likewise compared "Gato" with "Freekie Stylee" etc. None the less, the climbing is spectacular, varied and unique."Go Cat Go" doesn't really have a "crux" per-say but rather climbs 40 feet of consistent 5.11+ to 5.12- where as "Gato" is maybe 11- climbing with one pretty serious V4 boulder problem in it!Go Cat GoMy big route for the day was "Puppy Chow" 5.12c. I had previously drewled over the line a few years ago when I was climbing with my buddy Pat who was working "The Greatest Show on Earth" though I had never tried it. Local hometown hero Steve Hedgecock had just recently re-equipped all the sketchy mank on Puppy Chow so I was stoked to try it.So here's the deal with "Puppy Chow. " It has a 25+ foot horizontal roof in it!! yeah crazy right! Most roof climbs in the region start with a chossy slab, but the 5.11- 30 foot slab under Puppy Chow is as clean as well...no - not as clean as endless wall, but cleaner than a lot of the face climbs at the new!!I had previously heard that the roof isn't the business, but on my first go, I chuffered off at the lip of the roof. I think the initial roof is probably 12- though on my second attempt, I really smoothed out all the rough edges.After pulling the roof on my second go, which included several foot cuts, a rope-unrapping (I ended up doing a 360 in the roof and had it around), and some furious heel hooks I found myself at a good pedistal with a hand jam....where I rested. Go Cat GoThe headwall on "Puppy Chow" is a 40? foot 20 ish degree overhanging clean face with punctuated resting horizontals separated by some serious boulder problems. Keep in mind that you just did a 30? foot horizontal roof with HUGE moves and several campuses...now you have a V4 boulder problem right off the first rest!!!! Then you get another rest, do maybe a V3 boulder problem to another rest. Do some easy climbing to...guess what? Another rest. Then the FINAL crux is ONE MORE FREAKING HARD MOVE!!! You grab this dicey gaston and have to jump to what is obviously a handle bar jug...and you rest there because you still got one more bolt of maybe mid 5.11 climbing!!I really think that this route is one of the most incredible lines in the region and maybe in the US.I was super stoked to 2nd go the route - essentially onsighting the upper head wall. If mid 5.12 is your grade and you haven't done this one, I highly suggest it!!Go Cat Go

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Nice report over at DPM from the 10th New River Rendezvous: What once started as a grassroots gathering of core climbers has grown over the past decade into one of the most well-executed climber fundraising events in the country. The money raised from the event goes directly back into the Park in the form of new fixed hardware and infrastructure such as trails, improved parking, and access. This year, over 20,000 dollars was raised thanks to attendees and sponsors. One of these years I will actually make it out there to climb at that place!

Island.io: "Part One of the Island Trilogy. 4 years in the making, totally worth it! Available for download from our very own Films button! [island.io/films] on May 20th 2013. Featuring Dave Graham, Jon Cardwell, Daniel Woods, Isaac Caldiero Joe Kinder, Colette Mcinierney and Enzo Oddo. Shot on location by the crew in Ceuse and Nice in France and in Verbier and Zurich in Switzerland.

Video of Daniel's boulder in Elkland, CO. https://vimeo.com/66617219

Hello Steph I really liked your book a lot! (its the first time i even considered writing to an author about his book) Your story really grabbed my attention and one can tell that you put a lot of heart in it! I also liked the way you discribed switzerland and the swiss (as im swiss ) Hopefully I will travel to Moab one day! It would be amazing to see you and Mario! All the best wishes from Switzerland!! Matt Thanks Matt, I really appreciate your writing, and I’m really glad you liked Learning to Fly. You are so lucky to live in Switzerland! Steph

For several years I’ve been most excited about the creativity of combining climbing with base jumping. It started for me in 2008 when I free soloed the North Face of Castleton and made a base jump descent. With my husband Mario, I started to look for other towers that could be interesting combinations of climbing and jumping, and in 2010 we made the Perfect Circle film with our good friends 3 Strings Productions. Last year, I mixed it up a little with a base jump descent into Mineral Canyon, to climb a beautiful Hong route there. Mario and I have done more, some even wilder, tower base climbs since then around Moab, and we just keep finding more, so the desert base climbs are really an endless adventure. But I’ve been wanting to add wingsuit base into the mix, which presents a bit of a logistical challenge. The cliffs around Moab are on BLM land, which means that all users are treated equally, and recreation is valued and respected. These cliffs are low, generally about 400 feet tall. To base jump with a wingsuit, you need cliffs that are at least 2000 feet tall (to really be worth it). Annoyingly, in the States the most accessible, appropriate tall cliffs are locked inside National Park boundaries where base jumping, a non-impactful, non-motorized activity, is discriminated against. The NPS persecutes base jumpers by manipulating a law against aerial delivery into national parks–base jumpers are “aerially delivering themselves”(don’t play Scrabble with these guys, you will lose). Where it gets even more weird is the fact that hang gliding is allowed in Yosemite, and airplanes are allowed to land at Lake Powell… anyway, a lot of court time and money has been spent trying to keep people from parachuting off cliffs in National Parks, and I could think of a lot better ways to use those resources. The NPS has gone so far as to taser people for making a base jump, and actually incarcerated jumpers into the federal prison system as recently as last year. People have made climbs in National Parks followed by base jumps, but it hasn’t been possible to share these adventures for fear of self-incrimination. Obviously it would be amazing to climb Moonlight Buttress and fly off of Angels Landing, or follow a free climb of the NW Route of Half Dome with a wingsuit jump. The materials left on the climbs (chalk, slings, bolts, pitons) stay there permanently, but that is accepted. The elements left in the air by a base jump (wind currents) are invisible and impermanent, but that is illegal. We can only hope that someday the NPS will pull its head out of its a$$ and join us in the 21st century. But as they say, there are no problems, only puzzles to be solved. I’d been on the lookout for a way to make a wingsuit base climb for some time when I went to Notch Peak, a remote giant dolomitic limestone massif in the Utah west desert, in 2009. Notch Peak is the second tallest vertical drop in the States, just after El Cap, and no one knows about it. And it’s on BLM land, which means that you are allowed to climb, camp, base jump and walk around with your dog. There are a few, very adventurous limestone routes up it, and it is a very three-dimensional, serious wingsuit jump site. This jump is not like Lauterbrunnen or El Cap. It’s a place you need to be on your game, very experienced, and ready for anything. The climbing is no walk in the park either, characterized by looseness, runouts and a LOT of hiking. Notch is in the middle of nowhere. Cell phones don’t work, there’s no water, and there aren’t even many flat places to camp. 4WD is mandatory. It’s a big, intimidating place, which switches from boiling hot to freezing cold sometimes in minutes. The first time I went there to check out the wingsuit jump, I looked at the mountain and the terrain and decided I would not go back until I was a much more experienced jumper and wingsui

Yoga teacher, waterman and prAna Ambassador Michael Fukumura shares his insights and a quick movement flow for preparing the mind & body for water sports. [yt] Learn more about Michael at http://www.prana.com/life/ambassadors/