I start all my trips, as I started this past excursion, with a tick list: the ‘must-do’s’ in line with my immediate goals keeping in consideration that the conditions are right: weather, mental and physical preparedness, partner’s agenda, etc.
Since my climbing partner, Karsten, and I are both in ‘training’ mode for AMGA courses and exams and with guiding at the forefront of our minds, our goals and focus reflect these intentions and drive. We both set out to do as many long routes as our bodies could handle on the trip. This means all-day routes involving tricky route finding and well over one hour skirts to and from the route: walk-offs, 4th and 5th class approaches, and looking at these from a guiding perspective: risk management and client care.
We found ourselves wearing down the Oak Creek, Pine Creek, and Black Velvet Canyon paths regularly with classic lines such as Nightcrawler to Hourglass Diversion, Community Pillar, Triassic Sands, Hot Fudge Thursday, and being blown off the descent of Black Orpheus with 60 to 70mph winds. This trip proved to be one of the windiest and coldest Red Rock trips I’ve ever been on: one day Karsten and I (as well as the party above us) were literally blown off Levitation 29. I will say this: it was probably excellent training for me to have to deal with frozen hands and feet: overcoming uncomfortable (to a certain extent), can only strengthen oneself.
What I really love about longer climbing trips (over 1 week) is the learning process one goes through: and it’s different on each trip because the set-up varies. Whether in a new area, on new routes, with a different climbing partner, how physically and mentally fit you are, adverse weather conditions… all these factors add in to the equation of what you accomplish and learn in that time. And the more trips you take, the different areas you see and climb at, and covering vast terrains, you hone your route finding skills, better adapt to changes, better prepare your day’s schedule, strengthen your climbing on-sighting ability, and improve your knowledge and efficiency in a difficult, demanding setting (which I think is imperative with regards to guiding).
The return from the trip is always the hardest part; especially when your climbing partner gets to stay! Alas, all good things must come to end … right? Or do they really need to? I say, no. This reasoning is why I’ll be back in Vegas at the end of March to get in four more long days of excellent climbing on the bullet sandstone (and not so bullet, depending on what route you choose) of Red Rocks. Good thing flights to Vegas are cheap! Forget the gambling, it’s time to rope up again.
