Today was a damn fine day of bouldering. Beginning on Monday I kept an eye on the weather in the Columbus and Athens area because I wanted to get in some more bouldering after a disappointing performance at Crank-O-Ween. Athens experienced three days of unusual heat and sun including today. Temps were not perfect, but the sun and heat dried out the usually damp Athens area so that climbing was a reality today. Despite some comical wrong turns on the way to Athens I left the gloom and gray of Columbus for brilliant sunlight and fall scenery.
One of the routes I got on today is an Athens classic called the Bird's Nest. The route starts on a feature called a "colonette"- a geologic term for weird, hollow, rudder-like appendage that hangs of a roof - and tops out on rounded sandstone.
I spent a while in this area struggling to top out on some of the routes that required a great deal of commitment. One of the downsides of bouldering alone is that I have to be very choosy about what I climb. Without a spotter the risk from falling becomes much greater, especially considering that I was working on a relatively tall route. If you look at the picture below, the route I spent the most time on starts below the big flake and tops out on bare sandstone. The finish seems to require a heel hook and some squirreling over the lip. It's scary in general, and being alone I wasn't ready to commit fully to the move.
After weighing the pro's and con's of continually falling about 7 feet onto my pad (and running out of water) I decided to trek back to the car and across the street to get some more water and take a break. The climbing in Athens is easily accessible from the city, so pit stops are simple and quick. The quality of the sandstone was surprisingly good in this area, and if the weather cooperates I will be back again to try and finish off a couple of routes.
With food and water in my I felt ready to seek out some less risky climbs. About half a mile away I found a boulder referred to as the "Classic Boulder" by the locals. The local in question was climbing barefoot without chalk. Although he struggled much more than I did on this boulder the heart he showed more than made up for his lack of footwear. Neither of us were able to send the route on the left face of the boulder, so we played around on some of the easier variations and routes in the area.
Part of the impetus to climb outdoors is to prepare for my upcoming trip to visit Ranger in Tennessee and climb in Little Rock City. Hopefully by then the holes in my hands have filled in with manly calluses.
One of the routes I got on today is an Athens classic called the Bird's Nest. The route starts on a feature called a "colonette"- a geologic term for weird, hollow, rudder-like appendage that hangs of a roof - and tops out on rounded sandstone.
I spent a while in this area struggling to top out on some of the routes that required a great deal of commitment. One of the downsides of bouldering alone is that I have to be very choosy about what I climb. Without a spotter the risk from falling becomes much greater, especially considering that I was working on a relatively tall route. If you look at the picture below, the route I spent the most time on starts below the big flake and tops out on bare sandstone. The finish seems to require a heel hook and some squirreling over the lip. It's scary in general, and being alone I wasn't ready to commit fully to the move.
After weighing the pro's and con's of continually falling about 7 feet onto my pad (and running out of water) I decided to trek back to the car and across the street to get some more water and take a break. The climbing in Athens is easily accessible from the city, so pit stops are simple and quick. The quality of the sandstone was surprisingly good in this area, and if the weather cooperates I will be back again to try and finish off a couple of routes.
With food and water in my I felt ready to seek out some less risky climbs. About half a mile away I found a boulder referred to as the "Classic Boulder" by the locals. The local in question was climbing barefoot without chalk. Although he struggled much more than I did on this boulder the heart he showed more than made up for his lack of footwear. Neither of us were able to send the route on the left face of the boulder, so we played around on some of the easier variations and routes in the area.
Part of the impetus to climb outdoors is to prepare for my upcoming trip to visit Ranger in Tennessee and climb in Little Rock City. Hopefully by then the holes in my hands have filled in with manly calluses.
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