Pinnacles Climbing: 30 Years and Counting

[mynameismud]

Congratulations!

[Brad Young]

I didn't know Gavin was a Pro-pho. The calendar is beautiful.

Seriously? He's very good; you should check out his web site.

Others here might want to contact him if they are interested in a 2015 calendar with many beautiful shots from Pinns.

[Brad Young]

Congratulations!

Thanks man. It doesn't seem fair - I get a long-term goal done and you get a disease 

BTW, Gavin still doesn't have a mug - I know you talked with him about that at the trail weekend, but we really should get one to him!

[clink]

He has an astounding mug.

[mynameismud]

Yep, I will get one to him.  The last run I think it took 6 to 9 Months to get one to you and Belizzi.  I will try and beat that mark.

[NOAL]

Awesome day! I had a great time hanging out and climbing with you guys.  Thanks again Clink and Brad for the bolting lesson. 

[JC w KC redux]

JC rolls Snake Eyes





Gavin drills a very awkward bolt





Noal drills his first Pinns bolt









Clink said I did 10a moves to avoid the 5.9
Technically this was a coveted 2nd ascent - Reticulated redux

[Brad Young]

I gotta remember to email K.C. the full size version of her on Reticulated. She can use it to show the people she works with that yes, she really is crazy  

[Aaron McDonald]

Looks like a great day! Thank you for fixing the X rating. Although I am disappointed that I could not participate in the fun, I would not want anyone to lead under the original conditions.

[Brad Young]

Great photo of you on Reticulated J.C.

Aaron, your original "X" rated lead of that route reminds me of my friend Jim up here. Jim's done a lot of FAs on the Sonora Pass Highway. Several of these he's done free solo (on granite mind you). It's quite a concept: on site, free solo first ascents, some up to 5.10a. But Jim seems to get into this "zone" in which he is absolutely immune to thoughts of danger. I've seen him in this zone too, on occasion, when he is leading. It's unreal.

Your original lead of Reticulated wasn't free solo, but it seems to me that you were in that same zone. Balls to the wall as they say. Glad you pulled it off, but I'll bet you wouldn't want to repeat it!

[Aaron McDonald]

I do not really want to be associated with is free solos or anything close. The only thing I can say is I was not willing to commit to that Gavin stance on the second bolt and thought I saw another stance up higher. One stance led to another and I am suddenly in XXX territory on Pinnacles rock.  So I ask you, what do you do? I do the only thing I can think of in my tiny world, find a stance and drill! The problem was that I obliviously did not drill deep enough to avoid a spinner.

Zones are hard to delineate when you are on the the lunatic fringe.

I did not want anyone to have to repeat the route in its current format. This is why I am very appreciative for everyone's help on correcting my mistake. Thank you! I hope others will climb the route and enjoy without the physiological terror of the FA.

[Gavin]

Yeah, it was a good day (a week ago now!), and Reticulated was fun... Definitely worth the bolting effort.

Here it is a week later, and it was another great day with Brad, clink, JC, and KC, with two new lines - Pit Viper (5.10d) and Sidewinder (5.6) - completed with style. I'll wait to say more until KC and JC post some photos.

Happy Holidays, everyone!

[mungeclimber]

Happy Holidays Gavin!

I finally made the trek up there today. Thx to JC and the other JC for a great day.

Warmed up on the 5.6 and then got talked into leading Hood of the Cobra.

The 5.6 was good and will shape up nicely with more ascents.

Hood of the Cobra is worth a bunch of stars with very little cleaning of the looseness. It was a little flushed with stuff from recent rains, but that will clean out.

By then the temps were up so we ate and drank and headed for shade on some new stuff, to make sure Brad has reasons to keep coming back to Pinnacles.

JC, no the other JC, dropped in two more bolts on a project that is forming up nicely.

[Brad Young]

Here's Gavin on the first lead of the first crux of Pit Viper (Kathy Cook took the shot; it's cropped and the contrast is lightened). Truly a fantastic effort:




And me downclimbing to rest from one of the strangest stances I've drilled from in a while:

[clink]

By then the temps were up so we ate and drank and headed for shade on some new stuff, to make sure Brad has reasons to keep coming back to Pinnacles.

Plenty of exploring to be done. Is it winter?

Munge, that chute you were eyeing looks like a good one. Nice day guys.

[mynameismud]

wow, nice line.

[Brad Young]

wow, nice line.

Yeah. It's 70 feet of really, really good climbing, although in every photo we've taken of it, it's dramatically foreshortened and looks shorter.

And you'd love climbing it. In my written description I use the phrase "intense stemming." I think you'd call it three out of three stars.

And then you'd call it 5.9+   

[clink]

And then you'd call it 5.9+   Tongue

Strombagging, like sandbagging but worse.

[Gavin]

Yeah, intense stemming pretty much covered Pit Viper. The moves right at the top are pretty in your face on lead, too. As I was belaying clink up through the final moves, he muttered "fudgecicles and brownies!" and I don't think he was focused on a sweet tooth!

[JC w KC redux]

Thought I should repost this since it may have been overlooked.
For some reason the thumbnail isn't showing - just a box with an X. click on that X and the video should play.

Rob on Hood of the Cobra