Christmas Adventure in Moab: Day 5

Climbing - Arches National Park: The Doil (5.8) & Fledgling (5.4)
We had planned on sleeping in and going out for a nice breakfast, and taking our time exploring Moab, but when the place we had anticipated going for breakfast didn't work out, we made a change of plans.  Since Arches National Park was about five miles up the road, and my dad had done such a fantastic job belaying last time, we decided to do another climb.  So, in a flash, we skipped breakfast and were parked at the crag in Arches.  I led (onsite) "The Doil" (5.8), and it ended up being one of my favorite single pitch climbs.  It had a hand crack, stemming, a chimney, and great views.

  
I was going to do it again, and Dad encouraged me to, but I decided not to.  We got all packed up and ready to go, but there was another climb around the corner, that I wanted to look at in case I ever had the chance to come back and do it again.  Well after much debate, Dad talked me in to doing it while we were standing right there looking at it.  I'm really glad he did.  I led (onsite) Fledgling (5.4).  The climbing was dirty, i.e. I had desert sand all over me when I finished (more on that in a min.), but I was able to stand on top and enjoy the great view of Arches.

I was covered in dirt and sand from that last climb, but we had already checked out of our hotel, so I didn't know what to do.  I knew for sure, I didn't want to start the six hour drive home covered in sand, so Dad suggested we go back to the hotel and "sneak" into the pool.  It was one of the best ideas of the trip!  The cool water was so refreshing, and it rejuvenated us to "clean up."  We walked over to the Denny's for brunch, and we both had hearty meals to start the journey home.  

We took the scenic route through Monument Valley, and even pulled over to enjoy the view of Castleton Tower.  The drive home was great, and we talked the entire way back to Boulder. The next day, I was back to work, and Dad was off to the airport bus for his flight back home. 

Summary

Dad and I were in the car together for 32 hours, and traveled 1,100 miles.  We did six 4x4 trails, sighted in some rifles, and I ticked off three new climbs.  Overall, the trip could not have been any better.  I think my dad enjoyed his Christmas present . . . I know I did!

Christmas Adventure in Moab: Day 4

4x4 Trail - Hell's Revenge
Day four turned out to be even more exciting than the previous days.  Since we did the hard 4x4 trail the day before with no scrapes or close calls, we thought we'd move up to and even harder "difficult:"  Hell's Revenge.  This trail is one of the most famous in Moab, and it crosses the famous Slickrock mountain bike trail several times (which I rode last year (http://ashleviperigo.blogspot.com/2012/11/moab-retreat.html), and it was awesome as well!).  The guidebook describes Hell's Revenge as follows:

"This trail is very intimidating, partially because of being near death and white-knuckled for such a long time, and partially because there are no bypasses for the truly terrifying challenges."   

I mentioned this before, but these pictures are not even worth showing, because they make it look like driving on the highway.  However, my dad and I can assure you that it is terrifying . . . and a blast!

This was a steep section, but wasn't steep enough to be one of the five named sections.

I did not take this picture, but it kind of puts it into perspective.

Also, if you wonder why there aren't a lot of pictures from this trail, it's because my co-pilot was about to have a heart attack.  Therefore, none of the difficult sections were captured.  Do a Google Image search for "Hell's Revenge Moab" and you'll get an idea (most of them will involve vehicles tipping over).

We made all of the "challenges," except the "Elevator," which we decided to bypass, as the high probability of risk, was not worth the reward.  The only minor trouble we ran into on the entire trail was on "Tip-over Challenge" where we were close to doing what the name implies, until a reverse and better driving line was taken.  It was a little scary to see the driver's side wheel about 3' off the ground, when I was expecting the opposite.  After adjusting our line and completing the challenge (without tipping over), we thought it would have helped tremendously to see someone else do it first, because once you take the proper line, it wasn't too challenging, but that is part of the fun.  The only other people we saw on the trail (on a Saturday morning) the entire day were two Jeeps (a guide and client), so, we didn't have any help.

Finally, we exited the slickrock and then had about a mile of "drop ledges" to navigate (still rated difficult), and since Dad was finally getting color back in his face, I thought he should at least get to drive some of the "hard" sections.  I'll be honest, I was definitely the most scared for my life in that last mile.  I thought we were going to tip over more dropping off some "easy" ledges, then on the "Tip-over Challenge."  However, it made a rather mundane section . . . a little more exciting.

Dad navigating one of the easy sections of his portion of the trail.

Here is a short video of some of the 4x4 trails:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QX2NVQnGIC4

We did Hell's Revenge in about three hours, and the guidebook said 3-6 is typical.  Overall, with all the factors, this was my favorite trail of the trip.  Exhausted, we ate a great lunch at the Moab diner, and then decided to go back to the hotel and take a nap.  We woke up, refreshed, and headed to our next part of the adventure.

Shooting
I brought some rifles to sight in, so we headed south of Moab, to some BLM land to zero in my rifles.  We started with my Savage .308 hunting rifle, which had never been fired; however, after some technical difficulties, we postponed this zero attempt, and moved on to my Marlin .22lr.  We made quick work of the scope on the .22, and dad put 15 rounds in a 3" circle.  Finally, we put 100 rounds through my Glock G19, and I couldn't have been happier with it.

Sunset
It had been a fantastic day already, but we decided to skip the typical Saturday "dinner out," and rush to Arches National Park to catch the sunset over the desert instead.  I had a place in mind, near the Windows section, but when we saw a pile of photographers lined up at Balancing Rock (watching the opposite direction of the sunset) we were intrigued and decided to post up there with them.

We counted over twenty cameras on tripods.

Apparently, the alpenglow didn't cooperate, because they were all pretty disappointed in the lighting, but we both thought it was a great sunset.  I took this picture with my phone, and thought it was pretty good (without a filter or whatever those effects are).

Black and White

However, we were happy when they left, as we were able to enjoy the final light of day together.  It doesn't get much better than enjoying a beautiful sunset, surrounded by God's wonderful creation, with your dad.

  

Christmas Adventure in Moab: Day 3

4x4 Trail - Fins & Things
The third day started the same as the previous, with some much needed sleeping in, and the hotel breakfast.  Our Moab 4x4 warm up was officially over.  We decided to step it up to a trail that was rated difficult:  Fins & Things.  This trail was composed of Moab's famous slickrock!  It had a lot of steep approach angles and descents.  Several of the entry/exit points of the rock were so steep that we could look straight out the sunroof and look people in the eyes.

In addition to the "fins," the trail had lots of sandy portions.  It was a blast to drift around corners and float across the deep sand.  Next time, we'll search for a trail that is primarily composed of sand.  There were a few technical rock sections to maneuver through (not our favorite), but we managed, in order to get back to more slickrock and sand.

After we completed the trail in about 3 hours (suggested time was 3-5), we decided to do the first section again, which was made up of fins and sand, and very little technical rock.  The second time was much easier, and Dad was able to get a little video (see future post), because this time he wasn't having a panic attack.

Someone else out enjoying the day

Climbing - Indian Creek: Binou's Crack (5.8+)
Even though it was his Christmas present/trip, Dad was willing to let me go to the world famous Indian Creek climbing area to get some climbing in.  It is about an hour south of Moab, but since the scenery in the area is always wonderful, the driving is part of the fun.

We were sure we were headed in the wrong direction, because the area turned into a flat desert with no large rocks.  "Where is the world-class climbing?" we thought, but we did a steep descent in about two turns and there were the crags.

I gave Dad a quick belay review, and he picked it up again quickly, and did a fantastic job (he would get lots of practice; I even fell once on toprope, and he saved my life).  I led (onsite) Binou's Crack (5.8+).  It was fun, because it had a nice crack, but some face holds, and a chimney as well.  After I led it, instead of moving to a different route, we just decided to "lap" this route, so I did it four more times on toprope.

Finger Jams (they were locked in there so well, I could stop and take a picture in the middle of the climb)

Nice rest spot a little over halfway up the route

We topped the day off by stopping at Pegan Mountaineering and bought a couple rolls of Euro climbing tape, that I had been wanting for quite some time.  Then we relaxed in the hot tub and went to bed early, because we were both exhausted . . . again.

Christmas Adventure in Moab: Day 1 & 2

Since my parents are old and have enough junk around the house, we decided to get them more unique gifts for Christmas this year.  My dad's present was a long weekend adventure to Moab, UT.

What you read and see below is only touching the surface of what we did.  It is impossible to record everything, and some things need to be kept secret, but below is a brief overview.  Also, I know it is cliche to say "the pictures/videos don't do it justice," but unfortunately, it is true.

Day 1

Travel - Boulder to Moab
Dad had the Jeep packed up and ready to go, so we were able to depart immediately after work.  After about 30 min. on the road (as soon as we hit I-70), we noticed signs that read "I-70 Closed at Georgetown due to Weather."  We were confused because it was snowing, but nothing like it does in the winter.  Well, upon further investigation, there was a 10 car accident (due to weather), and they had been working on cleaning up for the past three hours.  We arrived at the closure, and turned the car off and sat in traffic for two hours.  It wasn't the best start to the six hour trip, but actually, it worked out nicely.  We had packed plenty of drinks/snacks, and Dad was able to work on his computer, and I was able to read my Moab Off-road Trail guidebook.

After a short delay, we arrived at the Super 8 in Moab in under nine hours, and settled in for a restful night.

Day 2 

4x4 Trail - Hurrah Pass/Chicken Corners
We slept in, and after enjoying our standard complementary breakfast, we headed out for the trail (we removed the Jeep doors and stored them in the hotel room of course).  We started our Moab 4x4 adventure with a gorgeous, easy/moderate off-road trail:  Hurrah Pass/Chicken Corners.

 We followed the Colorado river for a majority of the 40 mile trail, and cliffs and expansive views were in every direction.  The trail's name (Chicken Corners) comes from the sharp turns that have nothing but two-thousand feet of air between you and the canyon floor below.

At the end of the out-and-back trail, we hiked around a "chicken corner" and ate our packed lunch, before making the trip back.

See Dad on the edge of the first cliff (there are two "steps" before the Colorado below)

Keep in mind he USED to be deathly afraid of heights (those are trees along the river)

View for lunch (across the river is where the movie Thelma and Louise concluded)

Gemini Bridges/Long Canyon

We completed our first journey with great success.  Dad drove about half of the trail, and I drove the other half (much faster than he did).  On our way back to the hotel, we decided to go ahead and do another easy/scenic trail:  Gemini Bridges / Long Canyon.

The drive to Gemini Bridges was easy, with only a few bumpy spots, and Dad drove the entire way.  When we arrived there, it was only a 300' hike to the bridges.  It was well worth the hike, although, the pictures of the bridges aren't worth showing.

You can see the trail at the bottom of the canyon

 For the return trip we took Long Canyon and saw some great views and Native American Petroglyphs.

We ended the day with a bite to eat, and enjoy the hotel hot tub.  We spent about 10 hours driving on the trail, but it couldn't have been a better day . . . until the next day.

Grandparents & Grandparents

My grandparents and Cambryn's grandparents came to stay with us for a few days.  My grandparents were here to visit with us, along with some other family and friends.  It was so nice to spend time with them at our home, and Cambryn liked to show off for them.  Ashley and I were able to take our grandparents our for a nice dinner, at BJ's, while CJ stayed with her grandparents.  It worked out great for everyone.

While my grandparents were off visiting family and friends in Estes Park and Rocky Ford, CJ's grandparents were here to play with her and help out Ash and me with some projects around the house.  We got  a lot accomplished, as we always do with their help.  We were also able to go on a nice bike ride as a family on the Poudre trail, take CJ to a parade on Pearl, and sit outside for dinner at the Rio.

Here is my dad helping me get the soft top on the Jeep (for our upcoming adventure)

Ash and CJ at the fairy parade on Pearl

DB Birthday: Bass Pro & Birdshot

To celebrate Daniel's birthday, Adam, Matt, and I joined him for a fun-filled "outdoor" day.  We went to Bass Pro Shop (BPS) in Denver where Daniel picked up his birthday present, Matt celebrated by making a purchase of his own, and I picked up some ammo I've been searching for for months (which made it feel like my birthday).  After BPS we grabbed a quick bite to eat, where Daniel's brother met us, and then we all carpooled to Colorado Clays for some sport shooting.

Birthday Boy showing us how it's done

It was a perfect day for some sporting clays, and since it was Daniel's birthday, we all decided to let him win.  We wanted to make sure he felt extra good, so we let him double all of our scores.

Adam shooting for the second time in the same week

I had some thorough cleaning to do, after 300 rounds of action

Cob Rock Climbing and Jeep Mechanics

I was finally able to convince Matt to join me for some moderate traditional climbing.  We met up early Saturday morning, and headed to Cob rock to climb "North Face Center" (5.7+).  After crossing the creek and arriving at the base of the route, we were the only individuals in sight.  We made quick work of the two pitch route, on a beautiful morning in Boulder Canyon.  I really enjoyed this route.  It is a hand crack, but has plenty of face holds, and great scenery.

After the early morning climb, we were back at my house around 11:00 a.m., and we decided to go work on Matt's Rubicon.  We installed some skid plates under his Jeep.  It was scheduled to take about two hours, but ended up taking us about twice that, plus the additional drive time we needed to get to the Jeep workshop at Matt's friend Jesse's house.  If we every have to do it again, I think it will go much faster.

Sunny Sunday Climbing

I met Joe at the Boulder library and we carpooled up to The Sport Park crag in Boulder Canyon to get a few routes in on a gorgeous Sunday in March.  The crag is notoriously known for improper bolting because many of the routes can be protected with natural gear because the bolt lines follow natural cracks in the rock.  I took advantage of this and was able to practice my crack climbing, while using bolts for protection.  We started with "A Walk in the Park" (5.6), then did "Chasing Sticks" (5.9), "The Touch" (5.8) twice, and ended on "Dirty Dave's Dumpster Dive" (5.10a).

I got a little sunburned (because I'm so pale), but the weather was perfect.  I really enjoyed some of those routes as there was great, easy protection for crack climbing.  It was over three years ago that Joe and I climbed there for the first time.  We've came a long way.

Howell's Want Snow

Jermie and Christy came out for a long weekend, and we had such a great time.  Visiting from Alabama, they wanted to see snow.  Well, we got 10" the night they arrived, so I think their wish was granted.  We went tubing at Keystone (it was absolutely freezing!), ate dinner in Breck (Motherloaded), played some heated games of Sequence, and visited Estes Park and the Springs (Garden of the Gods).

Grammy Time

Our previous guests left on Saturday, after a week long stay, and on Monday Grammy came out to visit for a week and it was nice, as always.  I had a lot of after work activities to catch up on, so it was such a blessing having family to help me babysit Ash and play with Cambryn :-)  The girls didn't get to do a lot of their pre-trip plans, but I think overall Grammy and CJ got a lot of play time in, and that's the most important thing.