The Land of Cracks and Slab - Squamish

The land of cracks and slab... more commonly known as Squamish, BC... is a beautiful place of mountains, rivers, waterfalls, ocean views and the most glorious granite rock you can find. It is a rock climbers heaven, complete with thousands upon thousands of routes for the beginner and advanced climber.

Thanks to the best boyfriend ever, I was privy to three amazing days of climbing in Squamish, this past weekend. As climbing always is for me, it was a weekend of extreme highs and lows... all of which stretch me to the limit. It is a combination of breaking-down confidence just to build it back up. It is to lean on unknown strength within to overcome fears and panic that my own inner thoughts create - all while fighting to find deliverance in the little focus and skill I actually have. What a ride!

And therefore, it was a great weekend of successes, and (dare I say it?) failures. I sent my first 5.9, my first 5.10b (although it was only one move of 5.10b!), and even led a super chill 5.4 on trad! ... I also cried on a 5.8 (hate that!), fell a ton of times on a couple 5.10s, wouldn't do a 5.8 because it looked to scary, and was told by a climber guide that I have boyfriend syndrome (aka, I use Jesse as a climbing crutch) Ah. Basically the guide told me that I should lead everything from now on. Yeah right! No way! I have a new appreciation for leading. Baby steps, I guess.

Regardless, it was a fantastic weekend, leaving me with more bruises, scrapes and determination to continue this road of becoming a better climber. And I'm looking forward to every new hand jam, finger lock, heel hook, and layback along the way.

Its been a while

Yes, I know its been a long while since I last posted on this thing. Life has taken a hold of me and hasn't let go... but in a good way, you know? After traveling for work for about a month, settling back into the swing of things has taken more effort than expected. But its been ok, too. Here's a couple updates for you:

Jesse gets home from Hong Kong TODAY!! I'm so excited! He's been gone for basically two months... which is two months toooooo long! Needless to say, this week is going to be SO great with him being home. I seriously cannot wait until later tonight when I get to hug him again. Counting the hours down... :)

Work has been hard lately. The world wide web is a little too big and revealing to say much more... so I'll leave it at that. Trusting and hoping things get better soon.

I love climbing. They say that once you try climbing it becomes an addiction. I never thought it was real, but now I understand. It is one of my most favorite things in the world! And I'm getting better every week. I can't wait until I can do more of the hard stuff, but I'm getting there. My goal for this summer is to climb a 5.10A OUTSIDE... which for me will be a BIG deal. My other goal is to try a bit of lead climbing and see how I like it. Ah! Its all just SO exciting! Yay!

SUMMER. I cannot wait for summer. It is going to be oh so good. But right now its raining slash pouring. But its coming... just a couple months away. Celebrate with me. Summer is coming soon.

What could be better than this?

Great weekend. A couple birthday celebrations sandwiched in between an amazing trip to climb some rocks at Vantage. Just imagine... 45 degrees of sunshine blazing down as you hang from the side of some rock pillars. What could be better than that? Honestly? I'm not too sure. It was a great trip. A much needed trip for my sanity... to get outside and do stuff just feels good. Hopefully this type of activity will keep my cabin fever at bay for a little while longer as my knee continues to decide whether or not it feels like healing today, or maybe tomorrow. It's pretty indecisive... much like my occasional self. Ironic. Don't you think? [Alanis Morissette: Yeah, I really do think.] Thankfully, I've been given the gift of rock climbing during this time of patience and acceptance. Booya. Life is good.

Slack Builds Character?

I climbed my very first 5.10 yesterday... booya! It's pretty exciting and definitely encourages me to keep focusing on becoming a better climber. You know, there are some things that I definitely consider to be my climbing strengths. Like I'm not afraid to use features on the wall and trust my feet to keep me from falling. I also really enjoy trying routes that I don't think I can do (and usually can't but you got to try!). And of course, I always have tons of fun :)

But, there are also definitely things I need to work on... for instance, overhanging routes are my nemesis and I need to become more comfortable on them. I also need to work on shifting my body weight to enhance balance, not being afraid to fall, not getting frustrated and losing focus, not giving up so easily. But the thing I maybe need to work on most is...

Being ok with more slack on the rope. Oh man. I hate slack on the rope. It makes you feel SO vulnerable to falling and failing. But, my boyfriend said it best yesterday... slack builds character. And the reality is that I need to be ok with it. Yes, that means if I fall, I'll fall further. Yes, that means it feels like there's no safety net between injury and success. And yes, that means it requires more trust in myself to do the moves required. Blah. It sucks! Haha. Well, it actually doesn't really suck on routes that I know I can do. It only sucks on routes that I get scared on and don't think I can do.

I guess it really boils down to risk... or at least the feeling of increased risk. And that can be scary. It really requires unconditional trust in yourself and in your safety net to succeed... even when you don't really believe in either. Sounds crazy! And it is. But I suppose its kind of like regular life too. Sometimes we have to trust when we don't believe. And when we do, we succeed or at least come out unscathed at the end.

And so I'll try to be ok with more slack. (But Jesse that does not mean you can give me lots of slack on purpose to try and "help" me with this!! :) Remember, building trust requires baby steps... or in my case baby slack...

In any case, 5.10's get ready to be conquered by yours truly. I'm climbing my way up... and yes, pun definitely intended :)

Oh, my life...

Oh man. What a crazy week its been... Baker done, moving done... now to catch up on everything else... updates and all...

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Baker was amazing... the hardest thing I've ever done. Simply beautiful and life changing: Repelling into never ending crevasses, walking over snow bridges that make you wonder if they'll hold, climbing on the steepest slopes that make you worry about slipping and falling down the mountain. All in all, amazing. There are no words to describe how I really feel. No way to convey the true meaning of the experience... I'm simply left standing in awe of so many things... still processing and wondering... And of course already getting ready and excited for more mountains next summer. St. Helens and Baker have been a beginning to something big and meaningful in my life. Its still undefinable, but its in the process of manifesting itself. Its a pretty cool thing.

I moved this weekend too. Still living in Greenlake... just now in a house instead of the townhouse. The adjustment has begun. Chaotic, dishevelment describes the scene in our house as belongings are unorganized and thrown randomly throughout the house. In time everything will be in order. I like my room. It's green, inviting, relaxing, pretty... :) Makes me happy. Spiders are going to be an issue... i'm a wuss when it comes to spiders... but maybe it'll help me become even more tough... or something... i'll keep you posted. So far the count is up to 6 killed... and we've only been living there for three days. Oh man.

This weekend was fun. I am happy. Things are well.

Oh life, how I love thee.