I really didn't know anyone! Cory drove up with me. She's from Charleston (originally from CT), and we had 5.5 hrs. to get to know each other on the way up! haha Then, there was Jill, I had climbed with her twice before w/ SheClimbs.
We saw this on the side of the road on the way up into West Virginia:
A cow was loose! hahaha
Out of a little more than 18 folks, I barely knew 2 of them. It was cool though. I really like doing things like this now. I met a lot of new great friends on this trip! I love doing new things and meeting new people.You gotta step outside of the box!
I had never been to The New River Gorge before nor climbed there. It was an awesome weekend. It is a very beautiful place!
The New River:
I especially loved Summersville Lake though! So gorgeous! You can climb and then get in the lake if you wanted. It was a little chilly still for that weekend, but it would be an awesome place to climb in the summer.
The approach to the Lake was not bad, really. It so pretty! There is a gravel road/trail and then you hit several hiking trails and cross a small stream. There was a ladder we had to climb down to get in there, but it was cool. I don't like ladders though. Scary!This is us on the approach, after you get out of the parking area and the gravel road:
Yes, we came down this ladder on the way to the lake approach.
I mean, seriously, I have never been on an approach this gorgeous before!
On the way out:
Yes, the ladder!!!
Bubba City was great too! The hike in and out was long though. But I survived.
This pic was taken on the way out after about 30 minutes+ or so of all uphill scrambling and hiking through the woods...and just when you are out of the woods and relieved, you get into a clearing and then you see this:
Ah, the wonderful powerlines!Yep, I am getting a new backpack!!! :)
I climbed some fun routes and belayed for a lot of folks. Meeting new people...etc. LOVE it! I met some great people to climb with in the future too. Some great belayers. Some great friends.
These dudes got me on some hard routes. They motivated me though to try them out, and I did. I hopped on a 5.9, a 5.9+, a 5.10a and a 5.10b. I did not send them, but I tried really hard.
I hang dogged a lot but I got some of those moves. I was surprised at my strength and confidence, my technique and foot work was a little better. One of the dudes said I was very strong, and he said I had skills to become a good climber. I just need to work more on technique and get stronger in my legs/feet and mentally trust those feet. He said he was impressed with my determination though. I did not give up easily. (I do at my gym though, however) I like the belayers who get me on things I don't think I can do. They get me all motivated. He was very patient. They have faith in me, and it makes me have faith in myself. A good coach. He's a really good climber himself. I really liked his energy. (Faith = belief....if you have faith, it means you really believe that person can do it, and that makes me feel great up there when i'm climbing)
Our late night campfire jokes and talks...talking about our most embarrassing moments, etc. Our sarcasm and goofiness! Man, I miss all these guys! (I think my fav's were Richard, Kevin, Matt & Sutapa and Mike May. I also thought Angela and her husband, Jeff, were pretty cool)
Anyways, I want to tell you all which routes I actually sended and which ones I attempted with a lot of pain. haha
These were all top roped. These climbing areas are all mostly single pitch sport climbs.
At Summersville Lake, I sended:
Hippie's Dream (5.7), That Eight (5.7)
I worked on Souled Out, a 5.9, for like 30 minutes or so and gave up. I just couldn't get that one move over that ledge.
I also worked hard on She's Got the Bosch, I Got Drilled, a 5.10a. I was on this for a long time it seemed? It was hard! But I had a lot of fun though. I didn't come down from it b/c I was scared. I came down after being tired as hell from working on it over and over again. The crux...I just couldn't get those moves. It was really hard, but I'm glad I gave it my all though to try it out.
I also attempted Scoot Your Muffin, a 5.10b. I did really well on the start and got to that first ledge area, but after that, I just couldn't figure it out. It was just out of my league. I mean, I'm normally sending 7s and 8s. You know?
Even though I did not send a bunch that day at Summersville Lake, I was happy though that tried like hell on those harder routes. Quality v. quantity!!!
And it doesn't hurt to try out new things. You'll never know unless you try!
(I remember back in October at Crowder's I came down from my first 5.9. I came down b/c of fear though. I was scared to try. Now, I come down b/c I'm tired and have jelly arms and legs. haha It's funny how so much has changed. I was scared to try back then b/c I was afraid of falling. Now, I'm not as afraid of falling. I just go for a hold. I know my belayer's got my back. And this is all top roping. I'm sure that will all change though when I do my first lead. lol)
At Bubba City on Sunday, on TR, I sended:
Plumber's Crack, a 5.6. This climb was fun. There was a lot of stemming, etc. and footwork technique involved. I really liked it.
I also sended Butterfly Flake, a 5.7 and Shady Lady, a 5.7.
I attempted a 5.6 with an overhanging roof. I did not have a helmet on though, and I got scared. (I have already purchased a helmet since my return from The New.)
I did not like that 5.6 at all. I asked to be lowered.
But two routes over from that was a 5.9+ called Celtic Sun. After watching Richard climb it and Paul climb it, they got me on it. I did well on the start. But I felt insecure again about the helmet situation! So Jeff offered up his helmet. I just felt that I would have more confidence if I had a helmet on. There were a lot of roofs or overhangs. So Richard did a little 5 feet or more climb up to pass me Jeff's helmet. It worked. I instantly felt safer. Yay! So I worked that 5.9+ really hard. I made it to the crux too. But once again got stuck. I've really got to work on my feet!
Richard said he was impressed with my determination though. He said my body moves really well on the rock, I just need to work on my feet.
I talked to a friend in PA on the phone last night who gave me some more advice about the feet. I really need to work on my legs getting stronger and using my toes and feet. It's so hard to train my brain to go with the feet. Pushing myself up to the holds, instead of pulling myself up to them. My legs feel weak. I really need to get to work on this.
I bought my first rope, and I've got all my anchor items as well. I took a free SheClimbs top rope set up clinic on June 4. All we did was go over top rope set up over and over again all day. I wanted my own gear for this clinic. :)
I think I'm ready to start leading now too. Sport, that is. I want to go lead some 5s or some 6s soon. So I'll be buying quick draws soon....maybe!
Eric and I went on an adventure to find boulders in Columbia the other weekend!
Hilarious. Of course, we did not find any! www.rockclimbing.com actually said there were a few places here. We made the attempt to find them but to no avail. They just don't exist! We still had a blast hiking and hanging out though. We went over to Peachtree Rock Preserve.
Then later we walked at the river walk and went for a swim in the river...and just talked for awhile on the rocks. It was a very nice day!
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