Is Tommy Caldwell the Jerry Garcia of rock climbing? They are both rock stars and they are both missing a finger. I’ll let you be the judge.
On Saturday I got my “hall pass” as Hilary’s Uncle Steve puts it. After the morning with the family I had a majority of the day devoted to solo adventuring. I drove down to Carderock while listening to the latest Enormocast. My Aunt Bonnie recently gave me her really cool 70’s? high end road bike (shimano 600 components). I had taken it for a test ride the day before, and today would be a even better assessement. From Carderock I rode the C&O to the great falls overlook. Then I locked up the bike and did the billy goat trail. Next I rode back to Carderock and did some “bouldering” just before sunset. I drove to Earth Treks Crystal city where ET was hosting the rock project. It was my first visit to the Crystal City gym. I blindly followed my GPS until I pulled into an underground parking garage. Small Earth Treks signs through a winding, narrow, concrete hallway led me to a nondescript metal door with the same ET sign on it. When I opened that door my mind was blown! From climbing at Carderock all alone while watching the sunset I now entered into a pulsing rave of a climbing gym. Techno music was thumping, illuminated climbing walls appeared through the glass overlook near the entrance, the staff welcomed me, pro climbers walked past me, and I stumbled around trying to take it all in. It was more surreal to me that at age 18 walking into a Las Vegas casino for the first time after pedaling my way there through Death Valley on a bicycle, sincerely. This gym is nuts! I got to boulder some more as Jerry… I mean Tommy, and the other rock stars finished signing posters for all their adoring fans. The reason I had the idea for the DC area adventures was to end up at Crystal City where Tommy Caldwell and other pro climbers would be giving presentations. A major point of the night was conservation and preservation of our climbing areas. It made me happy to be a part of it, and reassured me that the service component of our proposed trip was crucial. What outdoor spaces do you cherish? Every user makes an impact. How can yours be a positive one?
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I read through my application one last time and just clicked submit to finalize my trip proposal. I'm super excited thinking about all the possibilities and adventures that await this summer. I was also really happy to find out that Baxter State Park has a volunteer program that we will be able to work with during our time there. Keep your fingers crossed, I want to win this!
I was able to reach Ben on the phone yesterday. I thought doing technical climbing on Mt. Katahdin in Baxter state park, Maine, would be the coolest objective. Before I could even try to convince Ben of this he started telling me about how that was what he wanted to do too! Baxter is a big park and the climbing will be remote. From what I remember reading in Yankee Rock and Ice by Laura & Guy Waterman there is no guidebook to Katahdin, only a book of notes left from other climbers at the rangers station. Sounds like an adventure! I remember the book describing a base camp near a lake at the base of a mountain cirque. Climbers camp by the lake and climb alpine routes from there. We will see how good my memory is.
Next up - What will be the best way of incorporating Avi's legacy into our trip? Time for some research. What does the community or environment up there need. Leave comment if you have some beta. |
Travis BatemanEarth Treks Employee Since 1997 Archives
October 2017
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