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Southwest happytimez!

Posted: Sun Dec 29, 2013 5:50 pm
by huevón
Keeping the fire burning here with some desert stoke!
Samy and I went to the desert for the holidays.
Joshua Tree was wonderful and we got to play on a bunch of lovely new rocks.

Day 1, new for me were Bird on a Wire and Anacram
BOAW!
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We also got to run up the vacant North Overhang at sunset.
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After another sunny pullout breakfast, Samy alpine-styled the 5.9 next to Blackjack.
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Coarse and Buggy was occupied so we went over to Rock Hudson. Hot Rocks looked a little tricky to protect down low, so we went up the cool chimney on the left (Looney Tunes) and set up a top-rope (never saw another soul out there...)
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Then we snagged a tent spot in Hidden Valley, and some more alpine style up The Flake earned us another great sunset.

A warmup on some BS .10 "**" roadside route in Miramontes turned into peeling patina off of a face climb.
Then we got to be first on Coarse and Buggy. Dreamy and beautiful!
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Bye for now, Tree
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Then we went to Tucson to see my mom for Christmas.
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Then off to Sedona for a half-day and some climbing on naturally pre-chalked red petrified humming mud formations!
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Everybody was getting their desert stoke on! :!:
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Lacking any of the larger cams recommended for most of the classic routes there, we sniffed out Vortex in a Can. It was pretty good! But not very long.
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There was a cool-looking set of dihedral cracks next to it ("Freedom") that we probably should have climbed in the fading light.
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We spent our last day hiking down into the Grand Canyon, which was cool and good and frozen.
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stokey stoke stoke

Re: Southwest happytimez!

Posted: Mon Dec 30, 2013 10:12 pm
by skykilo
Sedona seems like a good place for ample funky wideness and softish sandstone.

I need to hike the Grand Canyon.

Happy New Year!

Re: Southwest happytimez!

Posted: Mon Dec 30, 2013 11:10 pm
by huevón
Happy New Year!

It is a beautiful hike! That trail was magnificently engineered once upon a time, and the lower canyon is pretty special. We were also lucky enough to avoid encountering any mule trains this time, and most of the dusty trail was nicely frozen under old snow.

I just realized you did The Mace once, and after reading that I feel wise for not going for it on #3's (though I had almost convinced myself that would be okay, since they didn't have big cams in 1957...)

Would be nice to come back with more time and maybe a van. Still fishing for jobs in Colorado, LANL and Merced... could be a good enough excuse.

Re: Southwest happytimez!

Posted: Mon Dec 30, 2013 11:31 pm
by skykilo
We should chat again about NM. You're welcome to visit any time. I edited your link; hope you don't mind.