Challenge Buttress

On a hot and sunny 100 degree day in the Salt Lake Valley we took a trip up Big Cottonwood Canyon to chase some shady climbs.  Just above the first roof on a fairly new route that was bolted in 2007 Nathan rests it out on "CTR"- 5.10a/b

Hatchet Crack 5.7

After a seemingly long stretch between outings, I finally made it back around the mountain to Little Cottonwood Canyon.  This time it was with Rose, who I have discussed climbing with often but not actually tied into very many routes with.  On the last day of May we shimmied, scootched and muscled our way up the deep right facing crack known as Hatchet Crack.  The nature of the crack makes it feel as if the most difficult parts of the route are climbed sideways.  In the photo, having finished the fist pitch, Rose casually steps up the last few feet to the belay ledge.  From here we continued up another but easier pitch to where we would find our descent route slightly to the north. The descent requires two rappels and and scramble down a gully to the bottom of the canyon.

Iron Hayden

Last week Andrew and I climbed and skied a couloir on the west face of Hayden Peak in the Uintas of Northern Utah.  It was a wide, and aesthetic line off the north ridge that Andrew had first seen 6 years ago.  We were both really excited to make the descent (and ascent) under perfect ski conditions.

Ski the Uintas: 5/24/13

Andrew Hennigh strolls through the High Uinta Wilderness above Bald Mountain Pass in Northeaster Utah.  This wilderness area holds snow long into the spring and is home to the highest peaks.  The west face of Hayden Peak, (cast in shadows in the distance) is one of the most prominent in the area.

Skiing in the Wasatch: May 21

Sierra, Andrew, and I hiked up Mt Baldy in Park City with a crew of 4 dogs for a May ski day.

Antalya, Turkey

By the time we hung our hammocks in the bramble like holly trees we it had been traveling for 30 hours without much sleep.  In the heat of the day but the cool of the shade we napped among the limestone cliffs of the Taurus mountains in southern Turkey.  I couldn't quite imagine how I had gotten there to that place, a small climbing camp in a little known part of the world surrounded by some of the best limestone cliffs ever climbed.  It seemed like so far away but at the same time quite easy to reach.  JoSiTo is a small climbers hostel set in the mountains in a quiet farming village.  The locals were unaware of what they had above them until some German and Turks began establishing routes on the cliffs.  The farmers, unfamiliar with the gear, yelled at them to come down or risk falling.  The camp includes a kitchen and commons area within a few minute walk to hundreds of sport routes where climbers mingle and piece together conversations in whatever common language they share.
By the first day we had established a solid routine that included coffee, breakfast and climbing as many routes as we could before dark.  It was an unreal glimpse at an amazing little piece of climbing culture.

Coffin Crack

A hard finger sized splitter crack in Little Cottonwood Canyon made even harder by cold hands and snow flurries.

12 Months Skiing in the Wasatch: April

It is April and the snow is still easy to reach.  Snowbird is one of the last ski mountains open late in the Wasatch after closing day at most of the other mountains.  If current global warming trends continue the the winter snowpack is not expected to exist below 9,000 feet in elevation in the Wasatch (our about halfway between the summit and base of the local ski mountains) in as few as 40 years.  A late season snowpack might more closely reflect the winter snowpack of the future.  This is relevant to anyone who lives in the West because the snows provide the crucial store of water for the dry summer months.  It is also relevant to skiers and a generation of the winter sports enthusiasts who will likely see significant changes in a single lifetime.  Right now it is possible (with a bit of hiking and searching) to ski a line in the Wasatch every month of the year.  Will our dependence on carbon burning fuels and slowness to move away from their excessive use make us the last generation who will be able to ski 12 months in the Wasatch?

More information concerning climate change and winter snowpack:
Protect Our Winters  http://protectourwinters.org/

Save Our Snow http://www.saveoursnow.com/

 

The journey in the approach

Most of the time, a day spent climbing consists of far less actual climbing than you would expect.  After meeting up with your partners, carpooling to the climbing area, hiking to the start of the climb and racking gear it is likely that you have already put in more time than you will spend actually on the route.  You could choose longer routes but then there wouldn't be as much time to hike back down, drive into town for tacos where you can then sit with your partners and talk about climbing.  In the photo we hike up one of the easier approaches among the Stansbury cliffs to climb a few routes before we decide to head back down for food.