Cragmama

Nov 14 2009

Just over 4 months ago, I saw two pink lines on a pregnancy test. An hour later, I didn’t believe it so I tested again. Then also the next day, and then even a week later, just to make sure. Now, several months later, I’m feeling my litte jellybean kick even as I type this out, and my ever-expanding belly is leaving no doubt to the entire world that my body is producing something amazing on the inside!

So I am officially 20 weeks pregnant, which marks the halfway point (b/c everyone knows you deliver at EXACTLY 40 weeks, right?) This stage seemed like a good time to take a break and reflect on all the changes that have been going on lately.

Me at 20 weeks and 1 day

Now that I actually have a clearly defined baby “bump,” I have a newfound confidence in my body. Rather than hiding behind flowy, ambigously shaped clothing, fearing that the uninformed observer might assume that I’ve indulged in a little too much Halloween candy, I’ve begun sporting my pre-preggo tops with pride. Of course I’ve had to invest in a few long tank tops to layer underneath my old shirts to keep my belly from hanging out, but am still savoring the last few weeks that they will still fit. Almost all of my pre-preggo pants still fit (although a few need to be held together with a rubberband rather than a button). I’ve purchased one pair of maternity pants which are still way too big to wear, along with a few maternity tops, which I’ve worn enthusiastically a few times, but trying to hold out as long as I can, b/c realistically, I know I’ll get sick of these clothing items long before April rolls around.

I go back and forth between enjoying being treated like a delicate flower, and disgusted at being treated like I am disabled or handicapped in some way. While it feels good to have people constantly inquire about how I’m feeling and offer to carry things for me, it is annoying when people assume that I should be laying around in bed all day doing sudoku. My friend and coworker Heather (who is currently about a week behind me with her second child) warned me to enjoy the coddling while I could, b/c once the baby came, no one would be paying any attention to me anymore. 🙂 So I’m trying to take in all of the unsolicited advice with a grain of salt and a smile on my face, understanding that the majority of the people are commenting b/c they care about me, and are only trying to be helpful – and often times the advice is actually useful!

Trying out my super cool CAMP full-body harness at 19 weeks!

I’m still climbing (toproping only of course) and have managed to complete at least one 5.11 clean per week of pregnancy. It will be interesting to see how much longer I can keep that up. I’m still running, although I now mix in a few walk breaks and I’ve gotten a good deal slower. The funny thing about that is that since I don’t keep track of my pace or mileage or anything like that, the only time I notice that I’m slow is when Steve and I jog together. If I only ran alone, I would be blissfully unaware of my subtly slowing pace! I’m also still biking (only on the greenway, no more mountain biking) and feeling pretty good, although hills take a lot out of me and just this week I have had to humble myself enough to get off my bike and walk a couple of times. But all in all – I’m feeling fantastic! Aside from the many new and weird things going on in my body (most of which are not appropriate to discuss in this blog…) I feel as good as new!

IT'S A BOY!!!!

As far as the jellybean goes (or J.Bean, as Steve and I have nicknamed him), we found out that he is indeed a boy a couple of weeks ago! He was not shy at all, and had no qualms about raising his legs high in the air the entire time the nice lady was trying to measure his abdomen, femur, head, etc. I guess he wanted to make sure we saw it. 🙂 We were amazed at how clear of a picture we were able to see on the ultrasound machine, and how much he was moving around (especially considering that at that point, I hadn’t felt any kicks for sure yet). The funniest part was when the sonographer actually caught a picture of him sticking his tongue out! This is especially cute, since Steve is well-known for sticking his tongue out when he is really focused, either mentally or physically. We call it “the concentrating face.” JBean is evidently concentrating very hard on growing these days, b/c according to one of my many pregnancy books, he is about the size of a cantaloupe!

JBean's concentrating face 🙂

Steve's concentrating face in action!

We’ve made our first round of visits to Babies R Us to get our registry started (an overwhelming process to say the least…), and my mom was kind enough to paint the nursery for us while Steve was in Vegas (just the background – my friend Kim is going to paint rainforest animals all over the walls over Christmas break!)

We have done some name research and come up with a name that we both really like, but we will most likely keep it a secret 🙂 So that leaves us with a to-do list of replacing my car, finishing the registry, moving a bunch of furniture around in the soon-to-be nursery and guest bedroom, taking birthing classes, and about a million other things – not to mention all the things I’m sure will come up last minute! So thats the latest update for now! Time sure is going by fast and I’m sure it will only get faster as the holidays approach. Our little guy will be here before we know it! 🙂

After we said sticking your tongue out is rude.... 🙂

Little feet 🙂

What happens in Vegas…shows up on Facebook.

The Wild West. Pregnancy.

3 Comments.

Oct 31 2009

I’m now in what most consider the “feel good” stage of my pregnancy. At almost 18 weeks, I am no longer exhausted like I was in my first trimester, but I’m not huge and cumbersome yet (just big enough to feel like a small whale at times…) So this seemed like the perfect opportunity to take a vacation! Steve’s company sent him to Vegas all last week for a Microsoft SharePoint conference at the Mandalay Bay. I stayed at home looking at Musicals currently in theaters that I could attend with my friends. The conference ended Thursday afternoon, so I used some frequent flyers to meet him out there Thursday night. We spent the first night on the company tab, which was, ironically, one of the most expensive yet worst night’s sleep I’ve ever had at a hotel. Our next door neighbors were evidently going out all in the Vegas lifestyle, and decided to have a giant party in their room. Their music was so loud it felt like there was a speaker right beside my bed, and the vibrations from the bass was making items in our room shake (this is NOT an exaggeration…). Everyone at the party had to yell very loudly to talk to each other to get over the music volume. We called to complain and according to Steve’s spy tactics at our peephole, theywere told that there were NUMEROUS complaints, and if it happened again, they would have to leave the hotel. I was forced to play sloto casino at www.EasyMobileCasino.com until the party finally died down and I could get some rest.

Starting up Texas Tea (5.10d)

But after a questionable start to our vacation in the land of excess, the next day dawned bright and cloudless, and all that was negative was lost in a sea of red rock in the Mojave Desert. Our first day was spent in the Black Corridor. We were the first ones there, but as the day progressed, the corridor got REALLY crowded – we started to wonder if anyone in Vegas had real jobs, but upon talking to everyone, they were all from out of town too – everywhere from Alberta and Quebec to Colorado and California. Even though there were so many people that at times it felt like gym climbing, there were so many good routes there that we never had to wait in line for anything.

Steve on Black Gold (5.10b)

Day 1 Routes ~
The CEL – 5.9
Bonair – 5.9
Vega Bonds – 5.10a – fantastic route – well deserving of the 5 stars the guidebook gave it!
Crude Boys – 5.10d – Steve’s first 10d onsight, woohoo! Reachy, technical crux down low led to fun, casual climbing up top.
Black Corridor Route 4 Left – 5.11a – Steve wasn’t up for leading this one, so we set up a top rope from the top of the 10d. My goal so far has been to get at least one 5.11 clean every week of my pregnancy, outside or in the gym if I couldn’t get out that week. (As my balance gets worse and I start to get huge, I’ll knock it down to 5.10, then 5.9, etc.) This day was my first at 17 weeks, so it was nice to check the 11 off of my list early on (and as it turns out it was the only 11 I got clean all weekend 🙂 )
Fool’s Gold – 5.10b
Texas Tea (direct start)- 5.10d – Steve was mentally done for the day so we set up a toprope on this and the following route from Fool’s Gold. We both opted for the direct start which was (a painfully crimpy!) 10d until the first bolt, then the rest of it backed off to 10a.?
Black Gold – 5.10b – The start on this one was pretty tricky, and we could both tell it was the end of the day on this one. Fortunately our day ended better than the French climbers beside us, who destroyed their video camera by dropping it from 30 feet up…Steve wryly commented to me under his breath – “thats why we have a neck strap…”

Hiking out from the Black Corridor

Evidently the jellybean is working up an appetite at the crag these days along with me, b/c I downed an entire 1/2 pound cheeseburger, french fries, and made room to split a pizookie with Steve, all without blinking an eye. No leftovers tonight, thank you very much!

Fiesta Rancho!

Our plan on Day 2 was to get up at the crack of dawn and climb on a south-facing wall in the sun, hoping that the early morning and the heat would keep all the crowds away. Our plan worked out perfectly – there were two girls that were leaving right as we were arriving, and another couple that showed up right as we were leaving. The high was only in the 80’s but the sun was unbelievably intense! We brought 3 extra liters of water combined with what we usually bring, and we almost drank it all, even though we finished early. The routes here were all steep and pumpy, so they all felt very sustained for the grade. Fortunately we were able to find a nice shady spot to stow our packs, and hang out in between routes to rest and eat lunch.

Hiking in to The Gallery on Day 2

Day 2 Routes ~
Sport Climbing is Neither – 5.8
Bucks Muscle World – 5.9
Gelatin Pooch – 5.10a – fitting name for me and the jellybean 🙂
Pump First, Pay Later – 5.10b – REALLY sustained and pumpy, I fought really hard to get this route clean
Running Amuck – 5.10c – tricky crux sequence!
Unknown – 5.11a – Steve was done for the day, but I wanted to try this one, so we set up a TR from the 10c. It was a really fun route, but I did have to hang a few times to rest.

Our car is way off in the distance at the Second Pullout.

We hiked out in the early afternoon and grabbed showers at our casino(***sidenote – despite everyone warning us not to stay at a cheap place off strip, the Fiesta Rancho turned out to be a FABULOUS hotel – it was clean, simple, MUCH quieter than the Mandalay, and was cheaper for the whole weekend than one night at the strip hotels). Since we had a couple of hours to kill before dinner, we cruised the strip and gawked at all of the “over the toppedness” that is Vegas, pointing out all the famous places we’d seen on TV and in the movies. We took a picture by the classic “Fabulous Las Vegas” sign, and who did we see getting into his truck talking on his cell phone in the parking lot – Elvis!!! 🙂 On our visit here, we drove all the way through the Strip to the old section of downtown Vegas, where we ate dinner at Uncle Angelo’s in the Jerry Nugget Casino. Uncle Angelo’s was GOOD!!! It appeared that the entire staff were all Italian and related to Uncle Angelo himself somehow. Steve and I each got strombolis, and mine was by far the best stromboli I’ve ever put in my mouth!!! We got back to the Fiesta Rancho in time to play the 7:00 session of Bingo – which seemed to have much higher stakes than the bingo I used to play with my Maw Maw every year at the Carolina Beach Bingo Parlor! We were able to figure out what was going on without making any dumb mistakes, but we evidently weren’t too lucky, b/c we didn’t even come close to winning squat. (Although I will admit that I felt my heart rate sped up a bit when playing the “grande” round – jackpot was $14,400. Something I expect to get at 918kiss every time I play).

Steve working up Running Amuck (5.10c)

Shaking out trying to get rid of the pump on Unknown (5.11a)

Steve checking out a cool cave on the hike back to the car from The Gallery.

Since I was still on east coast time, I woke Steve up before 5 on Day 3, and we arrived in the canyon just as the sun was coming up over the city in the distance. We climbed at the Mass Production Wall in the Calico Tank area. Most of the approach to the cliff was along a popular hiking trail, so throughout the day, we saw lots of hikers (and waved at the ones with cameras taking pictures of the crazy climbers!), but only one couple hiked up through the gully up to near where we were (a really nice older British couple that lived in Vegas). What a difference the shade made! It was several degrees cooler, and the wind had really picked up. We found ourselves going out onto the slabs to soak up the sun in between climbs to warm up, which was quite the contrast from the day before!

Hiking in to the Mass Production Wall just after sunrise on Day 3

Day 3 Routes ~
Parts is Parts – 5.8
Battery Power – 5.9
Trigger Happy – 5.10a – really fun! This route was really intimidating from the ground, but ended up being a lot easier than it looked. Really fun moves kind of “hugging” your way up the black patina through the crux.
Foreman Ferris – 5.11b – It was easy to set up a toprope on this route off the 10a. Steve didn’t want to do this one, but I’m really glad that I gave it a whirl. The first section, although technically not that difficult, was pretty hard to read, and I wasn’t able to make it through without a hang or two. However, I surprised myself at getting through the crux and the rest of the route cleanly. Really sharp, credit card size crimpers and sidepulls, with precarious balancy laybacks up through the patina – then it was a lot less sustained the rest of the way.
Hit and Run – 5.9

Steve preparing for the crux on Trigger Happy (5.10a)

The rest of the routes on the wall had some significant runout sections, and Steve didn’t feel comfortable leading them, so we called it a day and worked our way down the gully back to the hiking trail. Since we had plenty of time and the weather was nice, we stashed our packs behind a cat’s claw bush and continued on the hiking trail away from our car to the Calico Tank, which is a giant natural reservoir (empty this time of year) on top of which you get a spectacular view of the Mojave Desert, with all of downtown Vegas off in the distance – definitely worth the extra mileage to see! It was a beautiful and casual hike back out to our car, but despite all of our squinting, we never did see any of the wild burros that the area is known for.

On our last night we used our 2 for 1 coupon at the Fiesta Rancho Buffet and DEFINITELY got our money’s worth out of it! I told Steve before we went to bed that night that I felt like all we did all weekend was climb, eat, then sleep. 🙂 Who needs the bright lights of Vegas when your needs are that simple I guess…

Precarious laybacks thru the crux of Foreman Ferris (5.11b)

Our (unfortunately separate) flights back were both uneventful, but it has taken several days to feel like we are caught up. All in all, FANTASTIC weekend! Vegas a truly a unique place, somewhere everyone should see at least once. We both decided that it is not our style at all – great place to VISIT, horrible place to LIVE! We also decided that its a shame that there are such fabulous recreational options right outside of the city that most people aren’t aware even exists, let alone try to tap into. Oh well, I guess thats more open space for the rest of us!

Viewpoint of Red Rock Canyon as well as Downtown Vegas from the Calico Tank Trail

Briars and Scrambles and Gullies, oh my!!!

North Carolina. Pregnancy.

5 Comments.

Oct 09 2009

Finally the weatherman got the order right – an absolutely gorgeous weekend followed by a dreary, cold, and rainy Monday morning! This was the first weekend out of several that hasn’t been a washout, and Steve and I were not about to let it go by without taking advantage of it! We invited our friend Huck to go with us – one of the new folks we had climbed with at the Red a few weeks ago. Huck is somewhat of a new climber, and was eager to try out some new crags he’d never been to. Also, he’d never done any multi-pitch climbing, which was our goal for Sunday, so we figured it would be fun to give him the opportunity for that.

Steve lacing up for our first climb of the day.

We left our house bright and early (actually so early it was dark rather than bright) on Saturday morning and headed to Boone, NC, where we climbed at the Warpin Endorphine Wall, sometimes affectionately known as “The Dump”. This is a very small, not very well-known area off of Hwy 221. The cliff is about 2 minutes from the road pull-off, but its not very tall and covered up by the trees, so you could drive past it a hundred times without ever thinking anything was there. Here’s what we did on Day 1…

Steve on Vermin, 5.10b

Slimen Hymen (5.10a) – classy names, I know…
Vermin (5.10b)
Voodoo Child (5.11a)
Homegrown (5.9+)
Chromagnon (5.11a) – this was the first time we’d ever seen this route and the next route dry, and Huck was psyched to lead them, so it was fun to get on something new! As typical with the routes here, the start was kinda bouldery, and got thin and technical up near the top
Boyz n’ Berry Dickcheese (5.10d) – very similar to Chromagnon, but not as reachy. Huck took some decent whippers putting this route up, and I was able to get a couple on video (though unfortunately not the best one…)
Warpin Endorphine (5.11b) – my favorite climb at the crag, we do it every time we go there. I didn’t get it clean, since I had completely forgotten my beta for one particular section, and wasted a lot of energy hanging on bad holds trying to figure out what to do. At first I was slightly disappointed that I had to hang, but all in all I felt really strong on it, and I figured I’d give myself some 14 week pregnancy grace. 🙂 I’d better get used to the fact that as my belly gets bigger and bigger, my balance will get worse and worse!

Huck demostrating why lead falls are not an option for the JellyBean!

Me on Voodoo Child, 5.11a

We finished up just before dark, and drove back in to Blowing Rock to eat at The Mellow Mushroom, a post climbing favorite of ours. The wait was long, but the outside seating was first come, first serve, and there was no one out there. We went back to the car and grabbed some more comfy layers, and set ourselves up on the porch. I noticed a few folks on the inside giving us funny glances, but hey – we were done eating before they got started!

After dinner, we drove just under an hour up the winding, gravel, mountain roads towards the Table Rock parking area, which is the starting point for lots of climbing throughout the gorge. Our favorite campsite seemed ridiculously crowded, so we kept driving til we found another pulloff that Steve and I had camped at once before. We went to bed as soon as we set our tents up, and once again, got up just before dawn the next morning.

Steve, me, and Huck moments before we set off for The Daddy

We were surprised at how windy it was all day. I think we all ended up keeping on more layers than we originally thought we’d need, but the temps were quite pleasant, and the clouds kept the sun from beating on us. Our goal for the day was the classic 5 pitch route called “The Daddy”, located deep in a remote area of the gorge. Steve and I had done it twice before, first with our friend Emil not long after we started climbing, and once by ourselves last summer in preparation for our trip to Squamish, BC. The views are absolutely spectacular, especially at this time of the year, but the main reason we wanted to head into the gorge this weekend is because it would probably be the last time in a really long time we’d have the chance. When climbing in the Linville Gorge, the “crux” of the day is often the approach hike. The first part is fantastic – about 30 minutes or so of casual hiking on the Mountains-to-Sea Trail along the ridgeline with breathtaking views and unusual rock formations on either side.

Steve hiking along the ridge towards the gorge.

Next, you look for the “big white rock” along the side of the trail that marks a narrow, overgrown spur trail that heads down towards the gorge at a fairly steep angle. But the last part is where I had concern – after about 15 minutes on the spur trail, you hit a giant rock (where we stashed some water for the hike back), and from there, start the harrowing descent down a steep, rocky, and often wet gully down into the gorge, towards the river. My friend Christine did this when she was 5 months pregnant, and said she was scared because her center of gravity was off and she felt unstable and insecure. Considering that I’m in my 4th month, and that an approach of this magnitude would not be first on our list of comeback trips w/a baby, we decided that it was now or never.

Steve being sweet to me before a hard part in the gully 🙂

I’ve already noticed that strapping anything on my back makes me out of breath, but I felt fine on the hike. The gully proved to be challenging, but its strenuous enough non-pregnant, so I don’t think I can use that as an excuse! After around 45 minutes of scrambling and sliding our way through the briars and rocks, we finally got to the reward of the day – casual, easy climbing on beautiful rock for about 500 feet!

***Non-climber note – a “pitch” goes from one belay spot to the next, usually about 100 feet or so. A “multi-pitch” route is where the climbers keep going up after the first pitch, putting them more than one rope length off the ground, such as our Day 2 route. “Single-pitch” climbing would be what we did the day before, where we head to the ground after climbing, rather than continuing up.***

Steve starting up Pitch 2.

The Daddy (5.6) –
Pitch 1 – a casual romp past a couple of ledges with trees to a slightly steep finish on a big ledge
Pitch 2 and Pitch 3 – P2 starts up a flake system, then traverses right to a ledge. P3 is very short, and we always link the two together as one. Huck and I both took advantage of a top anchor, and decided to do the steep and completely gearless 5.8 variation to get to the belay ledge, where we all stopped for a lunch break.

Me and the Jellybean following up Pitch 2.

Pitch 4 – trends right across the face past a chimney up to a belay nook that takes some finagling to fit everyone in comfortably.
Pitch 5 – this is by far the money pitch, even though its short! A beautiful crack system to a finish that is very steep for the grade leads to a fantastic view on the summit!

Huck waiting his turn to start Pitch 4.

After taking a few pictures and minutes to rest at the summit, we proceeded bushwhack our way through the overgrown trail along the very exposed rim of the gorge to get back to the rock where we had stashed our water. Then we trucked it back up the spur trail until we were back on the Mountains-to-Sea Trail along the ridge. We took our time hiking back, and ended up running into several backpackers who were hiking from Shortoff Mountain to Little Table Rock over the course of the weekend. Our car to car time was about 7.5 hours, even though the actual climbing only took around 4, which we were pleased with considering we had a party of 3 and one of them was pregnant.

Huck topping out with a surreal view!

After burgers and Frosty’s at Wendy’s we found ourselves back before 9, and in bed shortly after. As a side note, I almost panicked when I changed out of my nasty climbing clothes and caught a glimpse of a 2 inch long, purply-reddish mark on the back of my left hip. My first thought was, “OH $#%^, if I have a stretch mark already, I may as well paint my entire waist in purple stripes by the time April rolls around!” Turns out it was a scratch from a briar that had happened at some point on the hike…just another flesh wound. 🙂

On the summit!

Exposure = risk realized, but not increased

Climbing.

1 Comment.

Sep 20 2009

Exposure is a commonly used term in rock climbing. I found an online dictionary that defined it as “being in a situation in which you are very aware that you are high off the ground.” In other words, standing on a large summit that is capped by lots of soil and very tall, thick trees would not be considered as exposed as a summit consisting of a 3 foot wide pinnacle several hundred feet off the deck. A steep route traversing across a narrow ridge would be more exposed than a route that meanders up a low-angle slab.

Steve demonstrating the exposure that Seneca is famous for...

Exposure typically intensifies a route. I have a few climber friends that are afraid of heights (ironic, huh?) and they usually tend to avoid routes that involve a high amount of exposure. In May of 2009, Steve and I went to Seneca Rocks, West Virginia, an area well-renowned for the levels of exposure, even on the easiest of routes, and I feel like I learned a valuable lesson about perspective.

On the second day of our trip, we did a route called “Gunsight to South Peak Direct.” The route goes at 5.4/5.5, which means that as far as climbing routes go, this one was pretty easy. However, this route has been referred to in some circles as “the scariest 5.4 on the planet.” Now, even to beginner climbers, the terms “scary” and “5.4” should not be used in the same sentence. I think it is safe to say that if you can successfully climb a ladder, you should be more than capable to complete the moves on a 5.4 without any sort of difficulty. This route is also given a “G” rating (as opposed to PG-13, R, X), which means that there are plenty of opportunities for the lead climber to place stoppers and camming units into cracks and other features of the rock along the way to keep everyone safe.

Getting started on Gunsight to South Peak (Direct Variation)

So the moves are not complex, no technique required really, and any experienced climber should have no problem with placing the gear – so what makes this route so scary? EXPOSURE. It climbs up a very narrow arete to a summit ridge that is only a few feet wide in places. On either side of you is about 900 feet of air. Even though nothing about the route is difficult physically, you’ve got to flex some mental muscles to keep yourself focused. While I was on the route, I remember thinking that had the physical piece been as intense as the mental aspect, I would have been scared out of my mind!

For the past couple of weeks I have been reflecting on those experiences with exposure, and contemplating just why high exposure situations can be such sobering experiences. Hopefully every climber knows that their sport is one in which certain mistakes are not allowed. If I fail to clip into my anchor or tie my knot correctly, a fall could very likely result in serious injury or death. When I am hanging out at a nice restful stance, feeling secure on low-angle rock that is shielded from the sun and wind by trees, the consequences are the same as being on top of the tiny pinnacle. I know this, and every safe climber will always bear in mind the seriousness of their actions. However, the giant ledge somehow FEELS safer. Even though I can look into the horizon and can tell that I am up quite high, when I look straight down at my feet, I still see dirt. During my weekend at Seneca, more times than not when I looked down to find my next foothold, I saw nothing but air – the exposure brings everything to a new level of awareness – it’s an in your face, stomach-dropping, can’t get it out of my head kind of awareness.

I think this is how life is sometimes. Its easy to get stuck in a rut, going thru the motions on some low-angle slab – feeling safe and secure in the routines of life. Its much more comfortable living there than being vulnerable on the steep, overhanging, “risky” walls. But, in reality, is the slab really that much safer? Are the exposed, steep parts of our lives really that much riskier? How often have you been living in a ho-hum, “safe” mindset one day only to have your world turned upside down the next – a lost job, the death of a loved one, a life-changing injury, etc. This life is a risky undertaking and there is a lot going on under the surface. I’m not saying that we should live in fear of what lies around the next corner – that’s no sort of life at all! I’m just noting that living in ignorance by thinking you are immune from any type of hardship will actually leave you with a false sense of control. Thinking you are “safe” from the storms of life will actually make you less prepared to deal with what life throws your way.

Steve securely swimming in a sea of slab on Deidre (5.8) in Squamish, British Columbia

At church a couple of weeks ago our pastor was talking about such storms, and how we shouldn’t necessarily avoid them at all costs, because they can be an opportunity to grow. He said that God leads us into storms for a reason. Even though I don’t always understand the reason, I get that I’m obviously not God, and therefore might not be privy to the Master Plan. But the part that struck me odd was the part about God “leading us into storms.”

At first I thought that seemed a little mean – I mean really, shouldn’t a loving God keep us from the storm rather than plunge us headfirst into it? But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that this is actually quite a comforting picture of God’s love for us. If someone is leading, literally or figuratively, it means that they are going first. God is going thru the storm ahead of us, arranging safe passage for us to make it out on the other side. To me, this is a much more personal idea than the common notion that God is watching from a distance, “allowing” storms to happen in our lives for some cosmic reason unbeknownst to me.

The bottom line is that storms will happen in our lives at one time or another. We could avoid the exposure and take the route that “seems” safer – live life in a bubble, only associating with those who look and think like we do, content wearing glasses of ignorance at what is going on in the world around us, and never let anyone see our weaknesses. Or, we could choose to embrace the exposure – get out of our comfort zones, try something different and new, and perhaps show a little bit of vulnerability and humility.

Enjoying the view from the exposed South Peak Summit at Seneca Rocks, West Virginia

As the saying goes, “Its a great big world out there.” Living life on the steep side, being exposed and vulnerable to others, isn’t any more dangerous than hanging out on low-angled rock where it feels like there are no risks. Don’t be afraid of the exposure – live your life with your eyes wide open and embrace the rawness of living. 🙂

Red River Gorge – great climbing, but where’s the river?!?

Red River Gorge.

12 Comments.

Sep 12 2009

In the few years that I’ve been climbing, I’ve had the opportunity to climb in lots of different places, but I’d never made it up to the Red River Gorge until this past weekend. Steve and I had tried to go several times, but due to weather, schedules, injuries, etc., it seems as though the stars were never quite in proper alignment to make it happen. But when several friends invited us to go, and especially after being able to finagle an extra day off of work on Friday, spending Labor Day weekend in Kentucky at the Red seemed to be the only obvious choice.

Our campsite at Lago Linda's

I had mixed feelings leading up to the trip, for a few reasons. First of all, I’m 11 weeks pregnant, so this obviously means some big changes will be taking place. Between my husband and me, I’ve always been the ropegun. Over the past year or so, Steve has improved dramatically and really stepped up his sharp end game, but this was our first trip where leading was out for me, and all the pressure was on Steve. Thankfully, we went with a big group of people, so not ALL the pressure was on Steve, and he didn’t have to lead every single route we wanted to do.

Now, for all you non-climbers out there reading this, before you freak out about the pregnant lady climbing, please take note at the temporary changes I have made to keep things safe for me and my growing baby. After speaking with my doctor and doing my own research about it, it seems that the main thing to avoid at this stage is any sort of abdominal trauma, which is why a few weeks after we found out I was pregnant, I decided to stop leading, and only toprope for the duration of the pregnancy. To understand the differences between the two, and see some comparison pictures, you can check out a previous blog post that touches on those differences. An article I found very helpful in my research can be found here.

I started the weekend off right by heading to my first prenatal massage appointment with Tracey Obeda, ate a quick lunch, and then Steve and I hit the road around 1 or so. We usually like to stop at a rest area in the mountains and have a picnic dinner on the way up, but we soon realized that we would be on tiny country roads for the last half of the trip, miles upon miles from a nice scenic picnic table, so we had to settle for the Wendy’s in Grundy, VA (doesn’t that sound appetizing!)

We arrived at our campsite around 9:00, and promptly set up our tent and went to bed. Interestingly enough, as we got closer to our destination on the map, we had our eyes peeled for the, well, GORGE part of the Red River Gorge. Every other gorge we have been to has very distinctive cliffs, and at the bottom, has an equally distinctive, usually quite large and fast flowing, RIVER. Evidently that is not the case here, which we found rather comical. At one point we went over a bridge that was labeled “Red River”, but it looked more like a small muddy stream. The only river we saw was flowing off the tops of the cliffs after the rains came on Sunday! But regardless of the geographical idiosyncrasies, there was obviously enough cliff to go around!

Luke on Unknown 2, 5.11b, with Steve belaying

Our first day was spent in the Pendergrass Preserve at the Volunteer Wall. The weather was beautiful, the crag was surprisingly not that crowded, and we had a wonderful time! I don’t always like cragging with lots of people sharing ropes, because I usually feel like I end up doing more sitting around than climbing, but considering that these days my endurance is shot and I’m out of breath from the minute the backpack is strapped on, it was probably a sneaky way for God to make sure I didn’t overdo it this weekend (plus I still got in 8 routes, so the day was anything but lazy…)

Christine working her way up while Huck belays

Christine working her way up Family Tradition (5.10b)while Huck belays

DAY 1 ROUTES ~
Swap Meet – 5.6
First Time – 5.8+
Nice to Know You – 5.10b
Helping Hands – 5.10d (Steve’s hardest lead to date!)
Darwin Love You – 5.9+
Unknown 2 – 5.11b (first time all day I wasn’t clean, had an absolute flail at the start, and had to hang several times throughout)
Normalized Bramapithecus – 5.10d (surprised myself by pulling the low roof start with no problems whatsoever, hung a couple times to catch my breath up towards the top)

Day 1 ended with dinner back at camp – chicken and pesto pasta and ranch flavored rice cakes (weird, yes, but at least I kept my newly found pregnant pickle fetish back home in NC!)

Fixing breakfast and packing lunch for the day

Our second day we got up early and headed to Roadside Crag. So on Friday when we left around lunch time, our last weather check had not a cloud in the forecast until the early part of the next week, but lo and behold, the rain started around 11 on Day 2. It was tempting to feel sorry for ourselves and be pissed that we had driven 8 hours only to spend it getting wet, but the ironic thing was that it didn’t seem to affect our climbing at all. The Red is so steep, that there are any number of areas that you can climb at and stay completely dry, so it was hard to complain!

Kathy on Troubled Clef (5.9-), while Huck gets ready to start on Kampsight (5.9+) Scott and I belaying...this is before the rain struck!

DAY 2 ROUTES ~
Ledger Line – 5.7
Trouble Clef – 5.9-
You Can Tune a Piano, but You Can’t Tuna Fish – 5.10b
Altered Scale – 5.9+
Up Yonder – 5.11b (I took two laps on this – on the first one I hung at almost every bolt right before I unclipped, so I could figure out all the moves without taking huge swings that made me have to start over. The second time around I felt much smoother on it, and was clean up until the crux, and then rested 1 or 2 more times on the rope after that)

Me on Up Yonder (5.11b) My favorite climb of the whole weekend!

Day 2 dinner was at the world famous (to climbers anyway) Miguel’s Pizza – thankfully a large group was leaving right as we were walking in, so we were able to snag a nice dry table under the awning! We definitely had a varied assortment of pizzas between the dozen of us – with toppings everywhere from pasta spirals, avocado, goat cheese, bacon, corn, salsa, and of course the classic pepperoni and mushrooms.

Everybody at Miguel's!

Considering the 8 hour drive and my recent ability to not be able to stay awake much past 9, for Day 3, we decided we would only climb until noon, and then hike out and hit the road. The weather forecast was looking pretty ominous, so we decided to climb at the Johnny’s/Tectonic Walls in Muir Valley for the morning. We lucked up and got a golf cart ride for most of the approach from Liz Weber, the very sweet lady that owns Muir Valley, the one makes it all possible for folks to continue climbing there. Sure enough, the walls were dry, and stayed dry even when the skies opened up around 9:30. The only unpleasant part of the day was the 30 minute (uphill) hike back out in the torrential downpour – but thankfully we had full on rain gear, so the drive back was warm and dry 🙂

Steve on Gettin' Lucky in Kentucky (5.10b)

DAY 3 ROUTES ~
Plate Tectonics – 5.9+
Gettin’ Lucky in Kentucky – 5.10b
5^th Bolt Faith – 5.10c
Bethel – 5.10a
All of these routes were similar in style, and really fun – big bouldery moves to giant plates and flakes, steep, pumpy finishes. I was psyched to get everything clean, considering that my forearms definitely felt the day 3 pump from the minute I touched the rock!

All in all, I think good times were had by all. It was quite a different trip for me, compared to what I’m used to, and I think I learned a few things about myself along the way. I realized how much pride I took in being an independent climber before I got pregnant. I took for granted how I could flip through the guidebook, pick out the routes I wanted to warm-up on, have fun on, and then maybe a project or two, and then go out and get them done. This weekend it was hard having to wait for other people to hang ropes up before I could climb. I also realized that pre-pregnancy, I had an underlying attitude that if I wasn’t on the sharp end, that a route didn’t “count,” unless it was something that was so hard it was out of my range to lead. I didn’t proclaim this judgment on other people (or else, as my husband was quick to point out, that would mean that he didn’t actually “start” climbing til a year or so ago) – it was just a standard that I held myself to. But now that I can’t lead until sometime during the spring of 2010, I obviously have to change my standards (and I’m already dreading how timid my head will be when I tie in to the sharp end for the first time again…) But I realized this past weekend that I really like climbing whether I’m leading or not. And I also really like hanging out with other climbers – like I said before, I made several new friends on this trip, and I truly enjoyed their company. No one else cared who was leading, who was onsighting, who was hanging, etc. – everyone was just out there hanging ropes and having fun together – so perhaps before I was caring about that stuff a little more than I should have been. Bottom line is this – I got to spend a whole weekend away from the stresses of everyday life to hang out in a marvelous Creation – all while my body is busy making a marvelous creation of its own!

: The climbing life is rough!

Thanks to everyone who made the weekend great! We were passing cameras around so much that I have no idea who took what pictures, so I’ll just list everyone for photo credits…
Scott Millbern and Christine Neuper (I don’t think Finn took any pics…)
Zach Millbern and Flannery Lynch
Jean Adams
Kathy Logan
Luke and Lauren Howard
Mark “Huck” Huckabee
Steve and Erica Lineberry

“Not all who wander are lost.” —JRR TOLKIEN

Cragmama "Not all who wander are lost…" JRR Tolkien

The Halfway Point

What happens in Vegas…shows up on Facebook.

Briars and Scrambles and Gullies, oh my!!!

Exposure = risk realized, but not increased

Red River Gorge – great climbing, but where’s the river?!?