on hueco

I spent my formative climbing years watching videos, flipping through magazines, and dreaming about visiting Hueco Tanks. The nature of the climbing was by and large unknown to me, but what little I could glean from videos like The Road and Sessions was compelling enough. I was sold. I wanted to go to Hueco.

The reality, however, was that during the early stages of my personal development as a climber I lacked both the resources and the knowledge to make such a visit possible. And so, the thought of climbing in Hueco remained just that- a thought.  Over time that thought slipped my mind entirely, and I spent subsequent years maniacally devoted to growing my skill sets as a sport climber. I had completely forgotten about Hueco.

That is until I returned from The Red River Gorge this past November. While I was busy skitzing out about projects in the Gorge, several friends of mine had been putting a trip to West Texas together. Even though I had spent 2010 exclusively sport climbing I knew better than to let a great opportunity pass me by. It is, after all, much easier to explore a new venue with a motivated crew than it is to go solo. So, as my friend Jaime had advised me to do, I pulled the trigger and booked a flight to El Paso.

On paper, Hueco appears to be a logistical nightmare. Restrictions on park access, strict park hours, and mandatory reservations all seem like too many hoops to jump through just to go rock climbing. An article in the August 2006 issue of Climbing Magazine titled "Seven Reasons Why Joe's Valley is Better Than Hueco" even used these access restrictions in the thrust of its argument. 

But the reality is that the climbing restrictions in Hueco are mild at best, and incredibly easy to comply with. There wasn't a single day during those two weeks where we were denied access. The park allows 10 visitors without reservations to walk in every day, and guided tours are available with a 24 hour notice. This certainly makes having an agenda difficult, but you're guaranteed to find world class climbing in every zone, on every mountain. It's really hard to be disappointed.

Doug Munsch, Try Harder (V9)

Restrictions aside, what I can say for sure is that Hueco houses the best climbing I've encountered West of the Mississippi. (That's right, I still think the best climbing is in the South East. What of it?) The boulders are big, the holds are sculpted, and the concentration is high. I have never climbed on such perfect features before. Good moves. Good height. Good scene.

After spending two weeks in Texas it became clear to me how heavily this sector has influenced what I consider to be modern bouldering. On the whole, the problems that make Hueco a stand out sector are the ones that feature incredibly powerful moves on relatively in-cut holds in remarkably steep terrain. More often than not the climbing is gymnastic, committing, and not for those who lack mental tenacity. This style has been adapted to the indoor climbing arena in a big way, and has become a staple in every route setter's catalog of movement- whether they are aware of it or not (myself included).

In a lot of ways, the style in Hueco is very much what I have been looking for in my climbing experience- difficult, long pulls between in-cut crimps. It's hard to find that in Southern Illinois, and I certainly haven't seen such climbing elsewhere in my tour of the States. The Red River Gorge is the only place that comes to mind, but the sandstone in the Gorge is far more forgiving than the volcanic granite found in Hueco. I've never bruised my finger tips before! Yikes!

 

Our first day in the park was an interesting experience to say the least. Admittedly, I was quite anxious. I wanted to get a good sense of the climbing ASAP and I wanted to come out of the gates HARD. 

What initially put me off were the serious mob scenes that developed at many of the boulders. While I understand and respect every individual's right/privilege to climb in an area like Hueco, I personally don't perform well in front of a crowd (a personal problem I am now in the process of addressing). The bottom line is that I couldn't keep my shit together on my first day out, and while I saw quite a bit of North Mountain I was disappointed that I let my nerves get the best of me. 

Case in point: I managed to punt off the top of Mexican Chicken (V6)- the proper start to 100 Proof Roof (V3) that adds five moves into its crux. 

That's right. 

I botched the top of Hueco's easiest V3. 

Rookie move.

But by mid-day I started getting a handle of my anxiety, and I was able to put Daily Dick Dose (V7) on the board. After a strange first day in the park I managed to level out. From then on out it was on.