Going With the Flow

I’ve been really digging this summer. Maybe because winter was so long this year, every warm day feels like such a gift. I love the simplicity of going out with nothing but shorts and a t-shirt, and maybe a light rain jacket in the pack. The ease of access into the mountains is wonderful, you can go wherever your feet will take you.

After last year’s season was spent climbing and researching a bunch of new crags, trying to get on as many routes as possible (and not focusing on sending), I was hoping to go back and try to wrap up some things I got a taste of. As so often happens, though, life had other plans.

In April, I was starting up a finger crack in the desert and a foothold blew, shock loading my right shoulder, leaving me with a strain of the sub-scap and labrum. Could have been worse, but it also wasn’t something that was going to resolve quickly, and “sending” wasn’t in the cards any time soon.

So I decided some good rehab would be developing some new cliffs. I got a new drill (thanks to everyone who has bought a guidebook, putting that money right back into the local climbing!) a bunch of bolts, and have been picking off some low hanging fruit in the area. It still amazes me there are cliffs waiting to be climbed that sit less than 20 minutes from the road.

I miss being in Rifle, and seeing all the friends there, but the new climbing is fun, and closer to home, and these kinds of things work best when you just put your head down and focus and make it happen. Plus we need to have some new areas to add to the next edition when that time comes!

So for now, you won’t see me out at the other spots very often, though my shoulder is doing better. I hope everyone is enjoying summer and all the new climbing. And don’t worry, there is more on the way!