So, last week was the annual "Good Times Havin' Trip" to Joshua Tree. There were some good times, some bad times, and some story times... Let me explain:
The weather was gorgeous, even though the wind was torrential at times. Our tent was a 6 man tent for 2-3 of us (aptly nicknamed "the Hotel") The spaciousness was delightful, but it became a giant sail in the wind on the couple nights that the wind was just outrageous!
The skies were bluer and the food tasted better just spending more time outdoors.
I decided to do my first lead climb of the year on day 2. Psychin' myself up to do a whoppin' 5.4, yeah! (a 5.4 is not super hard, that is the whole reason for picking it). I got all my gear on, got my head on straight, and then started up the wall. I got a whole 12-15 feet up and hit a super tricky spot already. (Not normally a problem, but when lead climbing, this means that I am not yet hooked into the wall.) And, unluckily, I couldn't hold on and slipped. So, my Dad was right.... that wound on my leg was from a slipidus downrockidus! OUCH! and SO SCARY! Granite scraped me up pretty good, ripped thru the pants, and jolted my ankle to boot. I was done for the day. And, as a matter of fact, I was done for most of the trip - on DAY 2! Horrible.
The worst part about the whole thing is that it wasn't even a 5.4 - it was a 5.7! Way harder! That made me feel a little better, but then I looked at the name of the climb... wait for it....are you ready for this.... "I'm so embarrassed for you". We laughed sooo hard about that one! (Camille, I wish you had been there!)
So, I spent the rest of the time chatting it up with my good friend Karen, encouraging others' climbing, and getting a tan. It wasn't my most favorite year, but there were still some good times to be had, and a few good pictures to take. Yeah!
4 comments:
You go girl!! Sorry it happened on the 2nd day. No fun. But man, nice battle wound. The pictures are beautiful!
"I'm so embarrassed for you"?!?
Two words: Awe Some.
Sorry you were benched so early in the game. Hope you ankle isn't seriously screwed up. How disheartening. Wish I were there to keep you company. Ad make fun of you when you found out the name of the climb. And weigh down the tent. I could have been totally useful at that.
SO beautiful. Maybe I'll get to come next year. Wouldn't that be great.
Sorry about the slipidus downrockidus. No fun having that happen on day 2. Your pics of the scenery are gorgeous though.
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