Near the end of my stay in Kentucky, my good friend Aaron and I had discussed spending part of our Summer in Maple Canyon, UT. Initially it was just a thought- a plan that had been tabled once we agreed to visit our Canadian friends instead. When we found out that Aaron would be unable to make it up North, we decided to dust off Plan B. Two weeks after I arrived Stateside, Aaron flew into Denver and we made tracks for Utah.
I should start by noting that the first leg of our trip was a logistical nightmare. Running on six hours of sleep, we attempted to gather the equipment we so desperately needed, but failed to pack. A trip to the Denver Goodwill proved to be one of our few initial successes. We were able to procure a cook set, kitchenware, dishes, utensils, and a dry bin for under $15. It was a relief to have gotten everything we needed without breaking the bank. Between the two of us, we only had $350. Our financial situation was looking grim, and fully knowing that we may not have enough money for groceries, petrol, and camping fees for three weeks, we decided to go for it anyway. Why not? It's always the perfect season somewhere, right? We certainly didn't want to miss out. With the car packed, we set off for Maple.
Ordinarily, the 500 mile drive between Denver, CO and Moroni, UT should take 8 hours. However, after discovering that all of the campsites at Maple had been reserved, we were forced to drive an additional 3 hours before we found another available campsite.
In the next town over.
An hour away from the crag.
Unbelievable.
Two consecutive days without sleep made it challenging to muster up the energy to hit the cliff, but we made it a point to climb three days on any way. We knew that we needed to build a base if anything was going to get done during our short stay. Our first two days were rough to say the least. We succeeded in doing the fewest number of pitches I have ever done during a session. After miraculously making it up three entire pitches at the Minimum Wall, we called it quits. Our second session at Box Canyon yielded the same results. Between our poor sleep schedule, our sub-par performance at the cliff, and our bleak financial situation, it seemed like nothing was going right.
Things finally turned around on our third day. After catching up on some much needed sleep, and moving our campsite into Maple Canyon proper, we managed to get to the cliff at a reasonable time. In addition to the normalcy, we were able to log six pitches each, most of which were roughly 90 feet. It was a relief to have finally put one good day on the board. After three days of suffering, it would appear that we finally hit our stride. I have been enjoying the climbing here quite a bit, perhaps because it is relatively similar to the Gorge- steep, fitness-based climbing. Notable ascents so far have been onsights of Big Calm (12b), Orgasmo (12c), Space Lordz (12d), and a redpoint of Cobble in the Sky (12c)- all of which clock in between 90 and 100 ft. So psyched!
Chris Sharma, UBC 2010 Problem #2Photo by Aaron Stover
Tomorrow we're heading to Salt Lake City to check out the OR Trade Show. We're planning to catch the UBC Pro Tour in the evening, and if we're lucky, we might be able to sneak into the trade show to see whats new for 2011. Regardless of how our rest day goes, we're going to hit it hard the following day. The Pipe Dream cave is an impressive crag and has several amazing routes- all of which tear through a 100+ foot cave. Serious! A friend of mine turned me on to a route called The Great Feast (5.13c). I'm definitely excited to see how things go now that we have arrived in a positive head space.
But, as always, all good things must come to an end. As I am writing this, water is slowly making its way into my tent through every available weakness. Who knew that it could rain this much in the desert? If I don't drown tonight I will do my best to update the blog more frequently. Traveling has made it difficult, but I'm sure things will settle out soon. They always do.
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