Since I moved from Western North Carolina to East Tennessee (1), I have only been rope climbing once until last Saturday. I have no intention of complaining. Afterall, I have been in the middle of a major life transition with multiple mitigating factors. But I do still desire to climb, and it was so good to get out this past weekend. I have taught or assisted in teaching more than 20 people how to climb. In the case of the daughter of some friends, she had already been bouldering and rope climbing indoors and wanted to get outdoors. We had an enjoyable time at what the climbers call The Dump (2). The weather was very accommodating for climbing, and I was amazed at how dry the rock and plants were. I took but few pictures, which you may check out at “First Time Out.”
It is interesting that NC and TN are divided geographically, culturally, historically, and politically. There is East, Middle, and West TN, though you could argue that apart from geography, it is really East and the rest of the state. NC is divided geographically into West, Piedmont, and East (or Coastal) regions, but is also really West and East for all other purposes.
So called because it was frequented by locals dumping their appliances. It has since been cleaned up.
One way I keep my little exercise outings fresh and real is to change them up and mix and match. I recently did that by way of mountain biking along the Tweetsie Trail in Johnson City with my bouldering pad on my back. This arrangement allowed me to try out some small outcroppings that I had seen and thought good for climbing when my son and I were there a week before (See that outing at “A Few Quick Miles“.) but would be beyond walking distance. The Tweetsie Railroad, begun in 1866, “the ET&WNC line… was to operate from Johnson City, Tennessee, to the iron mines just over the state line at Cranberry, North Carolina. (1)
On the way back from riding and climbing I took some pictures which you may see at “Tweetsie Special.”
It was a bit cooler than we anticipated last Saturday for climbing. My climbing partner arrived at the house just after 8 AM and it was still about 30 degrees Fahrenheit. We decided to go to a south facing, low elevation crag. From what we observed and others said later on, it was a good thing. One friend at church said, “I could swear that when I looked up at the mountains it was snowing.” I replied, “I can swear it was snowing.” We had snow showers with sunshine and wind alternating with just sunshine or then dark clouds and wind. Just as we were hiking out a fierce sleet flurry rushed down the draw. It was laying before we could get out of the woods. On our first climb the rock was quite cold resulting in cold fingers, but after that the sun warmed the rock just often enough to make it good climbing. We had lively talk, good climbing, brisk hiking in and out, bracing weather, Spring just breaking in blooms, and Winter trying to hold on for one more hurrah. It was a good day. Check out the pictures at Crag Day.
Wow, time flies whether you are having fun or not. So many challenges and unknowns have come our way in the last 3 months, but God is faithful and His providential care and guidance is unerring even when we can’t see it. We are thankful that our house sold, but we don’t know where we are going next. Houses are hard to get in this rarefied real estate market, and direction for where we should be is even harder at the moment. I am by no means a control freak, but I like a little predictability and consistency in my life, and that is all out the window at the moment. My climbing partner said just today that I seem to handle uncertainty (“the unknowns” as we called it) pretty well. I testified to God’s work in my life to make that so. If I say that I trust God, then I need to prove it by not fretting and by waiting for His guidance.
Having said all of that, I am also thankful for decompression times like hiking hard on an approach to a cliff and climbing hard on climbs that are very challenging for me. That was today. Last week was more chill (or was it?) on a bright sunny day and friends trying hard at the boulder field. Check out a few pictures of that trip at Bouldering with Friends.
Adventure Climbing was until recently an odd term to me. What climbing is not adventuresome?
My last day out changed my mind about that a bit. If you go to a crag where the climbs have a well worn and relatively short approaches, are bolted, well chalked, cataloged, described, and frequented, that is not adventure climbing. Conversely, if you lose the approach trail multiple times because it is fully grown over, the way is steep and sketchy, the climb you intended to do is flowing with water and you select another climb with little description and no familiarity, one pitch’s crux is wet and another requires going around extensive wet rock, the heat is challenging, and you are not sure if you will find placements for protection or your stashed packs at the top, that seems more like adventure climbing.
Well, I am generally up for a challenge and an adventure, so we had a good day. I am thankful to God for affording us good weather, safety, and good challenge.
If you want to see some pictures of the adventure, click on Dirty Corner.
Some of you will probably say so, but we are proceeding with adequate care, and more so as we learn the plausible situations.
Last weekend my youngest son, climbing partner, and I started at the Sitting Bear parking area, hiked to Hawksbill, climbed the two easier pitches of Lost in Space and Star Trekin, hiked to Devil’s Cellar at Table Rock, climbed again on Helmet Buttress, and walked down to the Table Rock parking area. See the pictures at HB and TR.
That was the overview. We are continuing our training for the Linville Crusher. We are most slowed down by transitions: butterfly wrapping rope, organizing protection gear, changing shoes, putting harness on and off. These preparation outings are good to see where the slowdowns are. At Hawksbill we talked to a man who had done the Crusher. I asked him how long it took them. He was reluctant to say but I insisted since I wanted to have an idea what I am getting into. He admitted that it took them over 16 hours. I was shocked. The descriptions on Mountain Project say you should aim for 10 hours and expect 12. Something isn’t adding up here. So, hiking will take the longest time and be the second least efficient part I figure, while transitions have the potential to zap our time. My partner says we have to hope for the best and plan for the worst. If it gets light at 6 AM in late August and dark at 8 PM, that means we will need to start hiking to Sitting Bear before light to prevent climbing in the dark at Shortoff. It would be way cooler if we were driving home at supper time, but “plan for the worst.”
August would not be my chosen time to do this adventure given the heat, but we are balancing two limitations: 1) climbing closures for Falcon nesting until August 15, and 2) length of daylight hours. We even have to wait to do several preparation climbs until after August 15.
The hike from Sitting Bear to Hawksbill is the second shortest and definitely the easiest. We may even jog part of that. The Hawksbill climb is the hardest technically, but we both did it clean, and that was my first try on it. The hike from Hawksbill to Table Rock is not the longest, but it is definitely hardest. Getting around Hawksbill, we missed a turn because the trail is vague at places. Hopefully, we know the route now. There is a steep uphill section going up to the base of cliffs at Table Rock. I will be glad for a rest at the belay station. We will be doing the easiest climb of the trip at TR, North Ridge.
This day we decided to do something else rather than North Ridge. My wife had mentioned that FB friends were reporting encounters with bees in the mountains. I alerted my son who is allergic but I forgot to stock my first-aid kit with Benadryl. I was so thankful that my son went up through Devil’s Cellar to hang out on top while we climbed. Soon after passing North Ridge, on a steep downhill, I walked over a Yellowjacket’s nest. At first I thought it was the buzzing of flies and was about to tell my partner that there must be something dead about because of the flies. Before the words left my mouth, I received the first of five stings. I yelled and started running. My partner ran back to see what my cry of pain meant and received a sting. He turned and ran, too, but was there just long enough to break my fall on the steep terrain. I made a mad rush downhill, swatting and grabbing for tree trunks. We recovered at the base of our chosen climb. After starting it we backed off and decided on an easier climb for carrying packs, Helmet Buttress, which with My Route above, is 5 pitches. We reduced it to 3. Still my son waited two and a half hours for us rather than an hour or less. Oops on several levels. Thankfully we can do North Ridge in one pitch with a 70 m rope.
All of this causes me to reflect on the planning and moxie needed to pull off a major expedition. We are just planning a day trip. I am thankful to God for the safety and health we have experienced during this preparation time. Even the bee sting swelling diminished when I sweated and climbed some more. It seems like a worthy challenge and adventure for this old guy, but I want to continue to increase the safety factor. Also, I decided that if I want to see a bear, I should hike with my son. We saw two this day when I hadn’t seen one on the trail in over a year. Several weeks ago he was in the Gorge with a friend and saw a Bobcat and a mother bear with two cubs in a standoff- a once in a lifetime view, I’d guess.
Still in training for a late summer climbing bonanza, my partner and I headed out on Friday to do a few of the routes on Shortoff in Linville Gorge. The hike up from the parking area is about a mile and a half through recovering forest after forest fires about a dozen or so years ago. There is some shade beginning to form, but most of it today was the partly cloudy haze out of a super-humid July day. When you reach the top there are breathtaking views of Gorge and Foothills region. The difficulty of access to these climbs is the topography, the whole reason we are here of course. You have to drop down a very steep gully about 150′ vertical and then rappel another 100′ to the bottom. Getting to the rappel station was the scariest part of the whole day.
When I lead The Nose at Looking Glass Rock, it was the first 4 pitch, trad route I had ever done. But it felt pretty chill because the belay stations were bolted and the overall climb is in the neighborhood of 75 degrees positive (15 degrees off of vertical if you prefer), so there was no exposure and you couldn’t see the base after 50′ or so. The first climb at Shortoff, Dopey Duck, was different. On the second pitch it has sustained 5.9 climbing with little rest. I thought I was going to flame out until a reached a rest just below a small roof. I told my partner that I was glad he lead because I would not have had enough endurance to place protection and climb. It is, in fact, a little past vertical. I read a quote online afterwards by longtime climber in the area who said, “If it was any more 5.9, it would be 5.11.” That is an intended exaggeration, I’m sure, but the point is that it gets tiring. My partner, having a 70 meter rope, decided we should do the 3 pitches in one. In order to do that we would have to simul-climb for a short distance. Both tied in with numerous pieces of pro between you, you both climb together. He reminded me, “don’t climb into the slack”, just before he left the ground, so a fall would not drop us far. It turned out that we only did this for about 20′ before he reached the top and set up a belay- a day of firsts for me.
Next, I lead an easier route, Maginot Line, 5.7. I am sometimes amazed at the knowledge base of climbers naming some of these climbs. They weren’t just laying out of class to go climbing. You trot up a juggy corner almost the whole way. At one point there were some chock blocks you have to navigate around which got me out on the face and a hanging belay for one pitch. Over all it was 250′ of pretty mellow climbing. If you would like to see a few pictures of the process, click on “Dopey and Maginot“.* Even humid, sticky July days can be glorious with a little breeze and occasional shade and a good challenge. I try to get out climbing 2 or 3 times a month, though it doesn’t always happen. I am so thankful to God for the health and opportunity to try new things and enjoy nature.
*Until I figure out a good alternative, most of my pictures will be loaded onto another site.
Sound like a title straight out of a Prohibition movie? Actually today it was a pair of climbs my partner and I did on Table Rock. I trad lead (1) White Lightning. My partner has a 70 meter rope so I did the first two pitches as one. First you go straight up a crack to an overhang and then traverse right to the anchors of another climb. We rappelled down from there and then did North Ridge to the top in one pitch. On this second climb, we climbed with our packs on so that we could walk off the top.
My partner realized just after we left the parking lot that he had forgotten his climbing shoes. So while he went back, I had a few moments to reflect on the surroundings. Sourwood bark has character and so much “scope for imagination”, as Anne of Green Gables would say. The furrows and ridges could be dragon skin or climbing holds or tire tread. What does it remind you of?
And the surrounding woods were lush but open, and even pleasant on this otherwise sultry, July morning.
The first climb that I led was a challenge for me, but the belay station was a big enough ledge for a comfortable look about. It was indeed hazy this day, calling for afternoon thundershowers. The clouds obscured the sun just sufficiently to preclude sunburn or copious sweating.
The view north was the best, straight upstream on Linville Gorge. You can see the river down below and Hawksbill on the right.
Just beyond the anchors this block sits precariously on the ledge. How did it get there? Why hadn’t it tumbled to the ridge below? Why does it continue perched on this slopped ledge? The shadowed left surface seen in the picture seems to be a mirror image of the small roof above. Is it possible that it could have detached from there, fallen about 3 feet and just sat?
It appears as though there is an arch at the left. I leaned out (2) to see, discovering that it is detached from the wall, and therefore, a spire. I may have to climb that one day. You can see here that the cliff line of the opposite side of the Gorge. The next valley behind that is Paddie’s Creek, its far ridge being another place that I like to climb.
My wildman partner smiles for the camera as he belays me to look around. The end of this climb ends at the anchors for the second climb we did, North Ridge. It is definitely on the turning edge of Table Rock’s north end. From where he stands to where I stand allowed me to see around the corner to the southeast pictured in the last scene.
I’m just a tourist taking in the beauty of God’s green earth.
There are two weird effects in the next photo. The blue band is just that, a blue band, that holds my camera around my neck and gets in the way sometimes. The other is the appearance of my partner trotting up the wall as if hardly touching it. I guess the moves were so easy that he did not have to keep three points on.
On the drive out I saw two picture worthy organisms. The first was butterfly weed.
The second was a Timber Rattlesnake (Crotalus molossus). The other common rattlesnake in these parts is the Diamondback Rattlesnake (Crotalus adamanteus). Both suggest a wide berth.
All in all, it was a good day enjoying God’s creation, challenging ourselves in the process, and having good conversation about everything from an upcoming wedding to unsolved math problems and analema- so much scope for imagination.
Trad (traditional) climbing is using gears like nuts and cams to climb from the ground up. Lead climbing is the first person up the pitch (length of a rope) who places gear and climbs above the protection to set the next piece.
Interacting with a friend on FB with whom I had previously climbed several years ago, we decided to get together and go climbing again. He lives near Crowder Mountain State Park and has been climbing more frequently there of late with a friend. When we arrived the expanded parking lot was already one third full at just after 8 AM: climbers, hikers, and trail runners preparing equipment and signing release forms. The friend knew the various walls and suggested that we head for the back side of David’s Castle to avoid the anticipated muggy radiation on the sunward side. When we arrived and looked over the front side of the wall, I was enamored by the prominent crack front and center. He said it was a 5.7, so I thought it would be a good climb to warm up on and lead before the sun got too hot. My friend had bought a new 60 meter rope that had only been used once. It came with the most convenient rope tarp/carrying sack. You can tell by the rocky ground that this is a heavily visited climbing site.
The crack was both wide enough and deep enough to do some serious chimneying. The sides were fairly slick from climbing use. Even more problematic were the occasional roofs that had to be negotiated. Mountain Project calls this a 5.7+. Frequently that means that some number of people would agree that most, if not all of the moves, taken individually are no more than 5.7, but taken together with fatigue and so forth, perhaps a higher grade is needed.
Here I am about 40 feet up reaching for a quickdraw to attach to the pro I have just placed. It was, as seen here, a bit awkward at times reaching equipment on my harness in the chimney and difficult to chimney my way up with equipment on.
Now about 60 feet up, you can see the several placements of gear as the rope winds up the route. My belay partner who seconded the route said I had good, solid placements on this trad route.
At 80 feet the climb goes into a cave, open at both ends. The belay station was cooled by shade and cool air drawn through the opening with a comfortable stance and a nice view. The view is toward the East and Jackson Knob just south of Gastonia.
I belayed my partner from the top. Here he comes. I holding firmly on the brake hand while I take the picture with my other hand, resulting in only a momentary lapse in rope management, though not compromising safety in any way.
Here I stand comfortably at my belay station, though you can see that even after 15 minutes I am still soaked in now cooled sweat. Just above my left shoulder you can see one side of the 7 mm doubled cordelette that extends around a chock in the crack for an anchor.
My belay partner then belayed our friend as I explored the top of the Castle. There is another way to scramble up to the top, explaining the graffiti in the upper right hand corner. Also, you can see a runner and carabiner attached to a cam as a back-up anchor to his left.
Off to the northeast is what I believe to be Marshall Coal Powered Steam Plant on the western shore of Lake Norman. It is a testament to how still and unstable the air was on this muggy day for the smoke plume to rise so vertically and high. There is a typical amount of haziness for a late Spring day in the Carolinas but not especially polluted since the power plant is over 30 miles away.
The next wall to the north of David’s Castle is Red Wall. It is said to be named after a streak in the rock by that color, but I immediately think of the children’s series that we read to our children about Martin the Warrior defending Redwall Abbey.
The next wall to the south is called Practice Wall. There were quite a few people on top of it since that is where the trail peaks. I can see a slight flash of red of a shirt, can you?
Particularly around major metropolitan areas like Charlotte, every high hill is a placement for towers, radio and cellphone, and microwave drums which are frequently beaming TV, radio and cellphone signals from other towers or stations down below.
You may have noticed that I did not have any pictures of my friend completing the climb. About 20 feet off of the ground you run into the first roof. While trying to finagle around this feature, one foot slipped off and he took a swinging fall. The frequent counterintuitive problem with falling on an easier climb is the larger holds make for more of a cheese grater surface. Nothing was broken and he walked out, but the gouge in his upper left leg was painful and contused so that it swelled quite a bit. Even before this happened he was commenting on how this seemed harder than a 5.7. Since 5.7, 5.8 is about at his limit at the moment, that gives credibility to my saying 5.7+ is a bit sandbagged.* Another interpretation is one that climbers give to crack routes. They are just different and if you aren’t used to crack climbing they seem inordinately hard. There are not many crack climbs in Western North Carolina, so I confess to this being only the third crack climb I’ve done, the others being finger cracks rather than full body chimneys.
Despite the injury, the muggy day, and steep approach, we were happy and whole at the end of the climbing.
*Sandbagged. (adjective) A sandbagged route is one whose grade belies its difficulty; an undergraded route. Derived from the idea that climbing the route would feel as if you were climbing with a bag of sand attached to your harness — i.e., the climb is much harder than it seems. Why Does Sandbagging Occur — Toprock Climbing
The title is actually the name of a climb at another crag, but it applies better to the climbs at Sitting Bear, a rock formation that truly looks like an animal sitting up on its haunches. It seems amazing that this spire stands since it is at least twice as big at the top as at the base. The approach hike is not over 1 1/2 miles, if that, but it is steep for the last 1/4 mile.
Here my climbing partner leads the Original Route (5.9+). I lead it the last time I was here (see “Bear of a Climb“). It is what is called a mixed climb where you need some trad (traditional) protection pieces and have bolts for quickdraws (1), though the other post shows the ridiculously poor nature of some of the bolts and hangers at this crag.
Looking past the “Bear” on the Gorge (West) side, the other rim of the Gorge is not that far away.
At the bolts and rings and the top of the climb from where my partner belayed me as I came up, he is securing my rope in order to take me off of belay. That way I have a little leeway to move around with while still being secure in case I fall. This stance is about eight feet below the true top and the ~300 degree view. Behind him is a view toward Charlotte. I have been up here when you could actually see the buildings in the “Queen City”.
Given the humidity and scattered showers, you really couldn’t see all that far, but the Gorge is impressive anyway. The mountain top cliff on the left is Hawksbill with Table Rock hidden behind it. Beyond that is a darkly shadowed mountain where resides the North Carolina Wall. The mesa shaped, flat top mountain is Shortoff. The right side or West side of the Gorge is Jonas Ridge upon which the gravel Hwy 105 runs. An indication of how dry it has been is the brown moss on bare rock. It must be a harsh environment for moss to survive in.
Though a simple and easy example, my partner is exhibiting the climbing move called mantling. He is tied in. You can’t see his rope.
That must be quite the sturdy Eastern White Pine on the left, able to grow above the rest on this wind swept ridge. I think it might be drizzling at the south end of the Gorge.
My partner commented that he liked the fact that climbing is the only way to see this view. I am glad that I still can.
I attempted to get pictures of the Solomon’s Seal blooming at the base of the spire.
And here is False Solomon’s Seal for comparison. Notice the difference in position and form of the bloom. If they aren’t blooming, notice the the stems are different colors.
Another beautiful day comes to a close.
We attempted 4 climbs on this spire, a 5.9, 5.10, 5.11, and 5.12, respectively. I did the first one clean, that is, without falling. The 5.10 and 5.11 I did all of the moves but fell once each. On the 5.12 I fell several times and had to yard up one section. I think with much practice that I could do it, but I don’t come here often and won’t get to project it. I sure would like to, but I am thankful for being able to at all. I had to come on a quick trip after work as is was. A few hours of enjoyable exertion out in God’s Creation provide me with days of benefit.
The sun was out, the breeze was cool, the sky was clear, then variably and partly cloudy, and the climbing was good. Showing someone climbs on a crag is fun, and I even climbed one I had not climbed. We got in ten pitches in seven hours. It wasn’t a record pace, but we weren’t in a hurry. I never get tired of this view from the top of Black Fork Cliffs. It is in my county and yet it seems worlds apart, so secluded and isolated.
Two fires in the last dozen or so years have robbed the cliff base of its shade, but that in turn is generating a fast renewal. It seems early for Frazier Magnolia to be blooming, but there it was.
Psyched again and doing new pitches he’d never been on. Notice that the rope is already on the wall. How did that happen? It’s called stick clipping. In my case, I used an extendable painter’s pole with a device on the end that holds the quickdraw (shown on the bolt in the picture). This makes the climbing safe from ground up.
We refer to such climbs as next pictured as “one move wonders” because most of the climb is very easy except for the one move he is trying to make over what looks like a “warped wall” from Ninja Warriors.
The stainless steel rings at the top of a sport climb are secure, giving a comfortable stance for looking around. The black lichen looks like pits in the rock, but aren’t. I cannot figure out the dead pine tree. Am I seeing another tree behind it cause the bizarre shape appearance of the trunk, or is it really that odd looking?
Contemplating.
Lunch snack and belayer rest. Maybe that’s what he was contemplating. When is he going to get up? The Komodo’s (a defunct brand similar to Crocks) keep my climbing shoes clean between climbs.
This rock formation looks like a spire or tower, but on the back side it really only sticks up about 10 feet above its attachment to the wall.
It looks cool even if it is an easy climb.
Notice in the next two shots my right hand, brake hand, position, as I rappel. Brake.
Feed rappel.
Broadhead Skink (Eumeces [Plestiodon] laticeps) (1): Such creatures make our attempts and pride about climbing seem rather pointless.
This is the second, and I might say, successful attempt. I couldn’t touch the move over the vertical section just after the second bolt. I saw him do it and still didn’t know what to do.
Another day out in the woods and fresh air, on the rock, thankful for the “One Who made, saved, and sustains” this world, and more specifically, me. May you see His care for you and choose to follow Him, too.
On my bucket list of climbs I’ve wanted to do was The Nose at Looking Glass Rock. Today I led all four pitches. This brave fellow was psyched to do it with me.
The gravel road approach was gated and we didn’t know that there was another way closer, so we walked in three miles from the Education Center.
Along the way was a nice waterfall, but checking it out would have to wait until later.
The parking at the approach trail is about 0.3 mile from the base of the rock, though quite steeply up, especially with a pack of climbing gear.
To my eye this rock face is odd both in overall shape and features called “eyebrows” throughout the rock.
I wanted to lead the climb, which is a 5.8 and well within my wheelhouse. It is a different style of climbing, however, because one must use the ‘eyebrows’ as underclings (1). The weather was pleasant for hiking and climbing, but unexpectedly cloudy, cool, and breezy at times.
It is always good to see that your belayer is alert and paying attention. You can clearly see that this climb is the most popular by the impact of foot traffic at its base. Certain climbs are called “classic”, which I have never quite understood. Does that mean people like it, it has been around a long time, that it is interesting or otherwise aesthetically pleasing, or some vague combination of all of these? After some difficult climbs we could not complete later, mostly because of lack of good protection (2), I commented that perhaps the reason you only ever hear about half a dozen climbs out of several hundred is that most are crazy hard or too run-out (3) for most people to want to climb them.
When you trad (4) climb you place protection devices like stoppers, hexs, tri-cams, slings, or cams like the one pictured here. Then you clip your rope into a carabiner attached to the end that catches your fall. This was a solid or ‘bomber’ placement. There are sections on this wall and this climb where there are handholds but no placement for protection. This results in a run-out situation. By the way, do you see how I mark my equipment?
Following is the view at the first set of belay anchors about 90′ up. Spring has just begun at this level but not much higher. My partner commented on how he likes the contrast of fresh green and gray limbs, because the gray accentuates the bright green of new leaves.
I was the lead climber on this climb. My partner was the follower. He is seen here cleaning the route, that is, collecting the protection that I had set. Notice in some of these pictures the visual illusion that the surface is not very steep, as in the foreground here. None of this climb is truly vertical, but except for a few ledges, it is a 60 to 85 degree wall.
And here we are on one of the ledges transitioning for me to begin leading the next pitch (4).
Being such a popular and old climb, I saw several old and broken pieces of pro along the route. The piton pictured is really old school.
The views were great. Note the occasional evergreen amongst the bare deciduous expanse.
It is always nice to have a comfortable place to sit when you are belaying, though it is not frequent. Notice the parked cars at the Looking Glass Mountain Overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway. I had stopped there many times in the past, had a picnic with the family there once, and several times thought that I’d like to climb this rock. I wonder if any tourists with binoculars were spying our progress this day? I think that the peak behind the peak behind the overlook is Richland Balsam.
I gave my partner a hard time, saying this picture looked like he was a model for outdoor clothing. You can see some older, though quite sturdy, bolts he is tied into. This location is the lunch ledge which is still not level but reasonable to walk around on untethered away from the edge.
The following four images from the top combine to make a 180 degree panorama from south through west to north. We didn’t stay here long because it started sleeting. Yes, it was sleeting in late April. Well, it does happen rarely on the high peaks in mid-summer.
Time to rappel back down. Once again it looks nearly flat in the foreground but isn’t. The blue device through which there are two bites of rope in his left hand is called an ATC (5).
In the following selfie you can see the reflection of not only the phone with which I am taking the picture but also one of the bolts to which I am attach and my partner is rappelling and the tree line at the top of the peak.
On the hike out we saw some wildflowers like this blue flag and May Apple.
I got closer to the waterfall, which had a 20′ overhang to its right.
This day was the first time I have climbed at Looking Glass Rock and the first 4 pitch climb I have completed. It was a pleasant day with lively conversation. I see endless views of God’s beauty in the rocks and trees and sky and flowing water. It gives rest to my mind and challenge to my body to be out in His Creation and sharing it with someone. Perhaps that is part of the reason that I share it with you. I want to you to enjoy it with me, acknowledge the beauty of God’s work with me, and resolve to get out more and enjoy it yourself. Come along with me if you like.
undercling- fingers and palms facing up and pushing up to counteract downward foot pressure for stepping up.
good protection- strong enough to catch you and frequent enough to prevent long falls
run-out- excessive distance between climbing protection that may result in a long and dangerous fall.
pitch- the distance of climb between two belay stations equal to less than the length of the rope
ATC- Air Traffic Controller was named by Black Diamond and now colloquially referred to for all similar devices, sorta like Kleenex is for all facial tissue.
The owner installed the chain to hang the net swing temporarily, then asked me to move the swing. An outdoor aerial silk is supposed to reside here one day.
Check out the plans. The basic concept is there, but the homeowner wanted the addition of a climbing net, a zipline, a beam for the aerial silk, and a good place to mount the net swing. For cost reasons that eliminated the slide and monkey bars. The fold down table became a doorway for the climbing net. The climbing wall got lowered from 9′ to 8′ and 7′ wide to 8′ wide. The zipline resulted in changing from 4 x 4 posts to 6 x 6 posts and adding all of those diagonals.
The zipline, due to height of the playhouse and surrounding topography is steeper than suggested. So we began to look for a way to slow the ending. I added a spring and a friend added a magnetic break. They work on the same principle as dropping a magnet down a copper pipe. Copper does not magnetize but it does conduct electric current well. Therefore, when the magnet is moving down the pipe a current is induced which has a magnet field which just happens to be counter to the magnet’s field. The magnet is slowed by this counter-EMF. So is the magnet surrounding the zipline cable. The black bungee brings the magnet back to the point for the next braking action. So, the zipline is fast but has a controlled stop.
In the last blog entry, “Something New“, I began revealing my designed big playset coming together. Now we begin to get past mere structure and on to how it will be used.
There are three doors into the playhouse level. These are for entrance and exit but also to act as railing should S and her friends want to spend the night aloft.
The climbing net will go here. The gate doubles as a table in the playhouse.
On a rainy, cold day I worked in the block shed you see in the pictures. I drilled holes and mounted T-nuts, installed 2 x 4 supports and mounted hinges on the treated plywood on my saw horses. A few days later I mounted the wall onto the footboard. The railing was a whole day job, too.
T-nuts allow moving the climbing holds around for new climbs and no boredom.
I designed the climbing wall to meet the owner’s requirement that the playhouse “grow with her.” I told her that meant that I needed to build a serious climbing wall. To wit I installed a winch in order to lower for overhanging climbs out to 40 degrees above horizontal.
Since the winch cable is only one mounting point, I installed to latches, one on each side to stabilize and strengthen the wall when slanted.
You can see the zipline is up and staining has begun. There are so many surfaces and angles that the staining took about 2 1/2 days. The A-frame for the rings and swings is in place as well.
The 4 x 6 x 20 treated beam was special order and took one month to arrive. It came straight from the sawmill they said. Notice the smooth bar in the A-frame. It is for spinning around on.
Picking out and ordering the climbing holds proved a challenge for the owner, so those came finally.
Soon I will reveal the finished product and the plans and how they changed throughout the project and why. It was slow with various delays, but it came together nicely.
Our daughter came to cook and freeze food for us so that I could get some reprieve from a combination of outdoor and house work. While and because she worked and because the weather and other responsibilities that didn’t allow too much outdoor work, I spent some time with the grandchildren.
Besides cooking, there was also homeschool, because in homeschool, “school is never out”. Of course, the saying alludes to the fact that all situations are opportunities, like the more traditional one pictured and all others, to learn and grow.
One day we took a walk at the local greenway, except we got off the beaten path to see something different. I guess we will call it a fieldtrip.
We actually walked about 2 miles after an hour or so of playing on the Beanstalk Playfort*.
The next day brought continuous rain, so while the my daughter worked and my wife and grandson napped, my granddaughter (E) and I went to the climbing wall.
With a little suggestion and growing confidence with exposure, she began using her toes more and getting to the top more. She met a girl her age with whom she climbed abit.
This was only E’s second time climbing but she enjoyed it thoroughly.
The old man couldn’t stay off of the wall either, even though he’s been declared a bit “off the wall” at times.
The unexpected part was that E had picked up my phone and was taking pictures.
We asked the employee behind the desk and new climbing friend of mine to take a few pictures. I would like to encourage you to check out Bigfoot Climbing Gym**.
I did a traverse around the children’s wall, which was quite challenging, especially these pink and orange holds. Actually, I couldn’t go up them at all and barely traversed across*** them.
We had a fun time and I read to her several chapters of “Tales of the Resistance”, second in a three book series, over the five days they were here. All were encouraged, but I think my daughter was just tired.
*Our local playground pictured here from the website, third picture down on the left.
**https://bigfootclimbinggym.com Check out the 1st anniversary events. It would be a good, inexpensive way to check out the gym.
***Is “tranversed across” a redundant phrase, or does it communicate, as I am trying to, that as I traversed I went across these to climbs?
I enjoy relating to serious, fun-loving young people. How can they simultaneously be both you may ask? A person can know what is serious, consider and muse on it and discuss it and act on it, and still have a good sense of humor and enjoy fun challenges and take reasonable, considered risks.
The climbing partner with whom I have been out the most in the last six months is just such a person. He is a former science student of mine who loves to climb, is getting married soon, just started his first nursing job right out of college, and most importantly shares the same faith as me. Life still challenges me with work and play and relationships and worship. As a result, there is plenty to talk about.
Because of where we now live, we meet approximately halfway in between at Rocky Face Mountain Recreation Park. The old quarry has numerous and wide ranging difficulty of sport climbs. I usually post pictures of one or both of us actively climbing, but the mood of the weather, the climbing, and the conversation had me pointing my camera elsewhere.
Reorganizing equipment at the top of the first pitch.*Happy, but on edge on the first pitchShutdown, resting, and figuring out where to go.
On the point of climbing, I suggested that we climb two pitches to the top of the second tier since I had never been there. I bit off more than I could chew on the upper tier and had to traverse left to an easier climb and then far back right further up. You can see this in the following picture.
Check out the rope at far left and stretching across the middle to the right, and me sitting on top under the tree.Hanging out on topNo easier approach to a climbing area can be had.**
As I said earlier, this climbing area was an old quarry. One of the biggest needs for infrastructure is gravel and stone. The hole pictured below between my feet is the remnants of a bore hole. It is an added boost to perspective to see both my feet and my belayer on the ground.
For the next climber, climbing is no big deal with the right equipment. I think that it is an Eastern Fence Lizard, though arguably out of its habitat if that be so.
*Yes, we are tied in to rope and/or anchors the who time for safety.
**The temperature changed from mid-thirties when we arrived to lower sixties with high solar gain. I am actually getting ready to rappel down, so I have two shirts that I took off stuffed into the shirt I am wearing, giving the appearance of a beer belly.
What, you may ask, do those two words have to do with one another? Well, I’m the dinosaur who took two newbies out to go climbing. As they described it, they had climbed two or three times each indoors but never outdoor and I was the “pro”*. There was a little fear of heights, a little curiosity, some determination, and a good amount of enthusiasm. Father and I attend the same church. His daughter came in to town specifically for this outing. It was cloudy and uncertain when we met at the rendezvous point, but as we traveled up the mountain we could see the sun shining on the side of the mountain where I knew we would be climbing. It turned out to be both a beautiful and pleasant day with plenty of challenge and a measure of success.
Flaking the rope; grinning for the cameraFather and Daughter; yeah, definitely relatedEnthusiastic StartWorking it.Always good to have an attentive belayer
The next picture is very instructive to those who have not climbed before. At any level of climbing, you reach a challenge point. The pose reveals the intensity. The facial expression shows the focus and goal. Sometimes it is fun to just cruise up a climb, but challenge, getting shut down, and overcoming the by problem solving and focus are major draws to climbing. Add to that training for strength and technique in order to up your game, and you have many of the central components of good climbing.
Seeps Keep GreenChallenge can be fun!
I must give credit to the young lady with the iPhone for the great pictures. Indulge me for a moment in a sequence of shots on one climb that I did.
In this next shot, notice the rope going through the carabiner at my left hip. The carabiners and “dogbone” in combination are called a quickdraw. It is attached to a bolt in the wall that protected my move over this small roof. This style of climbing is called sport climbing. You can see other bolts of an adjacent climb at the right.
The next few moves involve crimpers, small fingertip holds for one to four fingers.
The picture below gives a sense of pause which actually happened. Sequence of which hand or foot and in which order the holds are used is important in climbing.
At least the foothold was huge.
The hardest part of the climb, upon which the climb is rated, is called the crux (from crux ansata, literally “cross with a handle”; very appropriate for a difficult move on a difficult hold). This one relates to the smallness of holds as well as the long reach up left to a crimp. Don’t be impressed since it is only a 5.10b climb, far below world class 5.16.
Got it!Topping outBuilding an anchor
Everyone was all smiles and we enjoyed the day. They even said they would like to go again.
Later
*”You are to us”, the protested when I said I was nowhere near that.
I had small amount of business out town early this week, hardly seeming worth the 3 1/2 hours of driving I would have to do to accomplish it. I decided to make more of a trip out of it.
Firstly, I connected up with my present climbing partner for a quick outing to a hidden crag. You have to hike downhill a full mile to get to the creek side cliff. It is always cool and lush at ground level, but the wall dries fairly quickly. My partner led the 5.8 and an overhung 5.9. I followed by leading a 5.10 and we set up a 5.11 on toprope that I climbed clean on first try. As you may have discerned, the real workout is the 1 mile uphill hike after climbing. It is both cardio- and leg power intense. Our conversation reflected our different stages of life and our mutual love of God, truth, and the outdoors.
Setting up for the warm-up, Jigsaw (5.8)
“Belaying Blues”?
Lowering after cleaning the climb
Beautiful, cool setting for climbing
Secondly, I went to visit my middle son. I ordered Mexican to go and we went up to Wilbur Lake to eat at a picnic table at the boat ramp. People were pulling their canoes and Jon boats in and out and families were wading. The water comes off of the bottom of Watauga Lake above at about 40 degrees, bone aching cold. We waded and ate and talked and reminisced. We had left this area when he was just over 3 years old. I asked him if he remembered being here. He described it in an insightful way: “It was more like a snapshot than a video.” That pretty much pictured it. The area is called the Horseshoe because the Watauga River, now Wilbur Lake, has an extreme horseshoe shaped bend. The next picture shoes the late afternoon Sun shining over the central spine of the Horseshoe. If you walk up this spine, at one point you can look back and see both legs of the horseshoe below you. After supper he drove me up the short hill to the house we had lived in for those 7 years, 1986-1993. It was some of the best and worst times for our family. Best because of the closeness and nature and gardens and church and tangible provision of God. Worst because of the hard work and lack of money and difficulty in finding direction. In retrospect, I think the two correlate. Difficulty precipitates more trust in God and more awareness of His blessings. We went back to his house, watched a few Youtube videos, talked about his new job and went to bed early. He was up early and left earlier than he had said to get to another day of his job training. It was good to see his diligence and drive, not that I have ever seen it lacking.
Bone Chilling Wilbur Lake
Horseshoe Homeplace
Son’s new leased house
Thirdly, I met up with my brother and sister-in-law for two hikes, one to see wildflowers and trees at Warrior’s Path State Park and the other to see the same plus several small waterfalls in a little gorge at Laurel Run Park on the north flank of Bays Mountain in Hawkins County. The first hike was short in distance but long in time because on this limestone slope below the campground down to the lake I saw many varieties of trees that I just don’t see in NC. I was pointing them out and how to identify them to my sister-in-law and my brother as he took interest.
Three disparate barks
Though I use leaves as well, I was trained to recognize deciduous trees by their bark, learning them in the Fall mostly after the leaves had fallen off. The above three trees are from left to right, Black (or Wild) Cherry, Chincapin Oak (not common and the bark very nearly resembles White Oak), and Hickory (Mockernut or Shagbark most likely though it is hard to tell at this early stage). Before we left the park we had identified 36 trees species, only one not native.Â
Butterflies and Mildweeds
One of those, “Which do you see first” pictures: 1) reflection of the tree 2) fish 3) foreground leaves and twigs.
Holston River
Some uncommon orchid late blooming.
The Laurel Run hike was a bit longer and steeper, but the shade and conversation were good. People had eked out living in these draws where they were left alone and used whatever resources were available. It is a pity that the American Chestnut was not one of the trees we saw. They exist here but are minuscule in size compared to the great trees of the past that supplied so much livestock with food. With the trip between parks and this second hike, my sister-in-law and I identified 52 species of trees with only 3 exotics. We are blessed with a bio-diverse area.Â
Cultural Residual
Sis and Bro
typical limestone layering and color; I wondered where the cave entrances are.
It seems most every wildflower is 10 days to two weeks late this year. We speculated that the warm March and very cool April may have been the cause.
Rattlesnake Plantain not quite ready to bloom.Â
First waterfall- about 15 feet
“Waterfall” 2 was about 4 feet but with an inviting pool
Waterfall 3 was about 10 feet. These would be amazing looking after a good rain.
Sandstone overlaying Limestone?
Cultural Art: Tractor oil pan perhaps
Wild Flocks and Stinging Nettle and a Butterfly that moved too fast for my camera.
I find it amazing how you can fill up a 24 hour period with so much that feeds the mind, emotions, and body. These in turn bring a measure of rest to the spirit, best experienced as you thank and praise the Creator for the beauties before you, the health to enjoy them, and the relationships which are more permanent than either.
I received an email today that left me chagrined. I am a 60 year old participant in outdoor activities, particularly climbing at the moment. Access to local national forest climbing areas may be threatened. I wrote a letter whose introductory paragraph read as follows:
“I am a native of East Tennessee and longtime resident of Western North Carolina who has spent many 1000’s of hours in the national forests of the Appalachians and Blue Ridge hiking and climbing and camping. The public lands and my use of them is my single most loved freedom and pursuit that retains me as a resident of these beloved mountains. For 50 years I have roamed these mountains for my mental and physical health, leaving as little trace as I could and taking many pictures and memories. As a family man, I have taught my family to appreciate and care for the mountains and as a teacher I have done the same both in the classroom and outdoors. I plead with you to not shut down the opportunities of young and old alike to enjoy the challenges of climbing by overly restrictive and one-size fits all statutes and procedures concerning climbing areas and their approaches. Educate people and see them rise to the challenge of protecting while utilizing these resources that belong to the American people. Don’t lock it away to be underutilized by preventing access to world class climbing areas in our beautiful forests.”
If you are interested in helping to keep the National Forests open to climbing both here, and ultimately nationwide, please spread the word and write a letter at the following site: Click on https://www.accessfund.org , and go to the bottom of the page for the quick help with the letter. It really only takes 5 minutes and may retain climbing access for years to come.Â
I love to observe the beauties of nature. Some of the following pictures are from before the pandemic and many are part of my coping mechanism since it has started. The first picture shows algae with what I believe to be a brown spore case. If I am wrong, I wish some algae expert would set me straight.
Algae under a microscope
Cameras can be deceptive. The pizza place was actually rather dim with little points of light. We enjoyed the cauliflower crust pizza with organic toppings of veggies and cheese.
Upscale Pizza place with my Valentine
It is convenient that my son has several downed trees in his side yard that I have cut off of a few times. I had never been so low on wood, oh, except for the time many years ago when I had been sick for several months and nearly ran out. At that time a friend felt sorry for me and brought some wood. The present wood is dry and off the ground with very little rot. The day was pleasantly cool for work.
A little more wood needed
I gave one of my 9 year old Sunday School students an adult coloring book. The next Sunday she showed me the following:
Sunday School student’s art
A mobile lab comes to our school each semester to do a DNA Electrophoresis Lab with our Biology students. It is a very effective use of their time.
DNA Electrophoresis Lab
migrating DNA in a gel
A friend of ours from Bible School days came by to visit. She is retiring from many years of missionary work in the Philippians. It has been a privilege to be in contact with her all of these years, following what God has been doing with and through her.
A friend and missionary
All of the previous pictures were pre-pandemic. The following ones are various fresh air excursions since warning to keep apart from others. The trillium are going wild in a little triangle of woods about 1/2 mile from my house where I frequently walk.
Sweet Betsy (Trillium cuneatum)
I like the beauty of my own yard in Spring as well.
Grape hyacinth (Muscari armeniacum)
Just a week before the restrictive stay at home orders came, my daughter and two grandchildren came to visit.
He can look so serious
Only 3/4 of a mile from the house is a small waterfall in a draw (small vale or notch for those of you from a different neck of the woods) surrounded by wooded suburbia.
Neighborhood waterfall
We hiked one day to a much larger waterfall. It is a short but steep walk, which I would have thought nothing of had it not been for the little ones to help along. We have had so much rain lately that the ground keeps giving water.
Upper Creek Falls
Mama enjoys time outside, too
I can’t paint a still life, but I can appreciate one.
Colors, Contrasts, and Tones
When my daughter went home, my granddaughter wanted to stay. We did several fun and relationship building things. When we went to the climbing gym I told her to watch me climb at first, knowing that she takes time to warm up to things. After about 45 minutes of following me around, she asked if she could have some climbing shoes. She was really quite good.
More time together
Only thing lacking was confidence
roughed up a little
Historic times
My wife is a wonderful cook. The only problem is her food doesn’t last long around our house with me there.
Yet another fabulous dish from my favorite chef
On the way back from a doctor across the state line, I decided to stop for a leg stretcher. In warm weather it is one of the best and most crowded swimming holes.
good flow
Elk River Falls
Two more backyard blooms and a small neck of the woods trillium follow:
Backyard Beauty
Pontentilla sp.
There is little for perspective, but this huge, perhaps 12″+ in diameter.
At 5 PM on this very day, they were closing down many outdoor venues, specifically including climbing areas. I went and got in a quick session since both gyms and crags are closed for the foreseeable future. So much time to go and so little availability.
Mushroom Boulder
View from just behind the boulder
Galax
Bloodroot and Wood Sorrel
Wood Sorrel
Bloodroot
Having not been outside much to climb lately, I was mostly shutdown by problems that I could previously do. I enjoy climbing for the mental and physical aspects. I needed some success before I went home and this is a good boulder for it.
Warm-up Boulder
Shelf Fungus
I bought this ground cover only last Spring and it is covering the ground!
Verbana sp.
Red Dogwood
I don’t know why it is named after a snake, but the vividness and pattern of the white lines on the leaves are fascinating:
Rattlesnake Plantain
Fiddleheads
Mayapple
Wisteria
Many trees can be identified to the species by how they are shaped. Even sometimes their reaction to heavy pruning still comes out identifiable. One bright blue day I took pictures of 8 or 10 treeforms. I won’t bore you with the lot of them but the general idea is there.
Spruce treeform
If you know what fractals are, then you will see why I mention them before the white oak tree picture.
Oak treeform
To end this random array of flower arrangements and outdoor excursions and such I give you one more flower that grows by my backyard shed. Enjoy what little joys and beauties you are afforded. They help you deal with the sad and ugly moments of life. They are gifts from a gracious Father who loves beauty and blessing.
CreatorWorship 