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 Adventures on September 17, 2006

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Sunday, September 17, 2006

9:00 AM Since High Exposure (5.6+) was wet, Kevin, Christen and I decided to make Ursula the first climb of the day. Ursula would probably be considered the best 5.5 at the Gunks if Horseman didn't exist.

P1 looked easy from the ground; just follow a corner and crack then traverse right to the belay ledge. It turned out to be pretty intimidating when I got up there though. The crux of entering and open book before the traverse was tough because there weren't any feet and I didn't have the best protection under me. To add to the excitement, the traverse didn't take the best gear either. You pretty much get a rusty pin at the start and that's it.

The traverse on P1 of Ursula Having more fun than I did on the traverse on P1 of Ursula
But P2 is why Ursula is a 3 star climb. Its 100 ft of steep, juggy climbing that keeps getting easier as you get higher. The start of the pitch feels like High E without all the hype. The pitch starts with a small crux roof then some slopers on the face above it. The moves were pretty easy but you'd land right on your belayer if you blow it.

12:00 PM Once we topped out on the GT ledge, we decided to walk over to High Exposure so we could climb it's famous last pitch. Just as we anticipated, the GT ledge was packed with 2 teams of 3 in front of us, a team of 4 behind us, and even more teams waiting on the ground! But we had a good time waiting and chatting before we had our shot at the pitch.

I didn't have any problems the first time I climbed this pitch, so I took it too lightly this time. I got under the famous roof and protected it with a #4 C4 with over 6 feet of slings since it was buried so deep below the roof. My first time up this, I placed 3 pieces of gear here. With one piece between me and my belayer, I went for the famous move.

Instead of really committing, and powering up to it, I tried to be all balancely and elegant about it. I lacked the concentration and momentum needed to stick the move. My left hand came a few inches short of the giant jug and instead landing on a dime size nub. It didn't take look before my left hip started to peel out and the barn door took effect.

"Falling!"

I yelled. I have a very vivid image of my legs spread out beneath me with the rope coming from my harness down through my only piece of gear. Below the gear I saw the tree tops 150 feet below me and the GT ledge that I was certain I was going to crash into. It happened so fast that I didn't have time to fear it.

The next thing I knew, I crashed into my belayer who was taken into the air by my fall. But I didn't it the ledge. I came so close to hitting it that all I had to do was straighten myself out and I was standing on it. Close call. Let's not talk about what would have happened if that piece didn't hold.

"Don't do that again. Maybe you should rest." Kevin told me. Of course, he was right but I responded "Nah, I'm fine, climbing." And up I went. This time I made the move properly and made my way up most of the face until I realized how incredibly pumped I was. I should have taken Kevin's advice and now I was paying for it. By some miracle I was able to find a good stance to rest on the steep face and finish the pitch.

Happy before the fall Stay away from the copperheads
4:00 PM We didn't have enough excitement for the day so I lead up Red Pillar (5.5) to finish the day. I ignored the warning that the protection was horrible and there is serious ground fall potential start P2. I cruised up P1 to the ledge and skipped the optional belay and continued up the face. About 10 feet up with no protection under me, I realized the next move required smearing on a polished sloper and a long reach. I wasn't willing to commit without some protection under me.

After several rounds and down climbing then climbing up again, I failed to find descent protection and decided to bail. My head just wasn't there and we were all ready to call it a day.