Sailing Tarka: Leaving Las Vegas

To say that we were spoiled in Las Vegas is a gross understatement. Things about Las Vegas that we could get use to: world class climbing, unbelievably nice weather, unprecedented entertainment, and family. It is really the latter that kept us around for two months though. Juliet's aunt, uncle, and cousins made us feel at home. So much so that leaving was nearly painful. So we tried to pick a date, keep the goodbyes short, and leave quickly. We had spent Thanksgiving and Christmas with them. We had climbed and slacklined with them. Juliet and her younger cousin got into Bikram Yoga (literally yoga in a sauna (perhaps my literal definition of hell, but she loves it)). We fixed our truck with the help of her uncle and learned how to make homemade summer sausage. Her aunt showed us around the strip and humored me by coming along to watch Wild hockey games at whatever random bar I could persuade to play the game. It was fortuitous that my brother was coming to visit us on January 10^th and needed to be picked up in Palm Springs or we may have never left. But as circumstances rendered, we left at the last minute on January 9^th (our leave date had been pushed back about a dozen times). It was a wonder that we got any climbing in at all.

But we did, and it was awesome. Red Rocks challenged us beyond our wildest dreams and pushed us to be better climbers individually, and most importantly, to climb as a better team. Not having climbed any multipitch together before Red Rocks, we gradually became more comfortable and efficient. It has been almost a month since we climbed our last climb in Red Rocks and it is still all I dream about.

We finished with the climb Triassic Sands. It is an absolutely beautiful climb that sung to Juliet and I. The first crux was perfect for me. Bouldery and reachy moves following up a lie back finger crack. The second crux was hands and fist splitter crack that reminded us of Indian Creek. It was perfect for Juliet. Linking the cruxes was a few hundred feet of moderate hand crack that challenged you to place your gold and blue cams wisely or face running out of them by the end. After six pitches of perfect climbing we were on top of Whiskey Peak (for the third time), Epinephrine looming high above in the background to remind us of how far we had really come in our climbing abilities.

But the most amazing thing about Red Rocks, and many of the premier climbing areas, are their histories. It reminds me of who the real heroes of rock climbing are- those who established these crags.

What stands out about Red Rocks is the commitment of the individuals that developed the thousands of meandering routes that are now cataloged. Jorge and Joanne Urioste, two of the early pioneers climbing in the 70's, faced uncertainty, loose blocks, and even killer insects. While developing Epinephrine, Jorge was stung by a bee and had an allergic reaction. After hastily (as was possible) descending the fixed lines they had been using to put up the route, they ran out to the access road, hopped in their car, and sped into town some 20 miles away. A shot of Epinephrine saved Jorge's life at the last minute- hence the name.

All climbers are forever in debt to these pioneers who made the guidebooks possible- those that went first and told us what to expect: what gear to bring, how long it might take, and what the hardest part might be. They worked with land management agencies and personnel to protect the climbing privileges in these areas. They bolted anchors to make these climbs more accessible to everyone and so we didn't have to down climb an entire route to get down like they often did. Every year, thousands of climbers find a part of themselves within these these rocks.

To steal an old adage from Isaac Newton, we are walking on the shoulders of giants.