I joined the SoCal Climbing Meetup for their outing to New Jack City, a sport climbing area near Barstow, CA. The weather was gorgeous and a large group came out to climb. I started off on the Sunnyside wall. Not exactly sure of the route name, but it may have been Cheap Lipstick. Walk in the Park was next, then I tried Goldfinger, but got shutdown about 2/3 of the way up. I didn’t want to waste too much energy, because there were so many other climbs to try. Headed over to the Raven wall and got on a 5.10a, Welcome to New Jack City, which I absolutely loved. Feet are a little sparse and polished at the bottom, which has a fun, bouldery move, and then it just keeps getting better. I was especially happy that I was able to undo a bad move and get back on track, as typically once I get into the 5.10 range, a misread means I am coming off the wall. After lunch, I warmed up with Taylor Made (5.8) and cleaned the route. This was the first time I cleaned anything since I got a second rappel device to backup the first and naturally, I dropped my ATC! I was especially glad I had a backup, because the rap rings looked like a lot of people had been lowering off of them. I ended the day with Same Same but Different, a 5.10c that I didn’t do cleanly, but I think I could now that I have figured out the line for the top section.
Sunshine Wall
Once the sun went away, it was campfire time, first, to cook dinner, then to hang around and socialize. The conversation was good, the people nice and the fire massive. The fire was hot enough to melt glass and kept everyone more than toasty. I had a great time hanging out with L and her dog H. It was a big night for H, as he got his first meaty bone from the massive steak someone cooked over the fire. He was one happy dog!
A short video of the awesome fire
It rained for about an hour overnight, but the rock was dry by the time everyone got moving. I climbed with L, B and J. We started at Boy Scout Wall, which has carpets at the base of some routes. (This is a first for me.) B led Jack Be Nimble, a long and well-protected 5.9 with a bit of a spicy finish, particularly for the shorter climber. J and I topped it, then L led it. Next, I attempted to lead what we thought was a 5.7, but it turns out maybe it wasn’t. The line through the first few bolts wasn’t obvious, and I struggled with where to go. B offered to lead it so I could try it on top rope first and I accepted. He got to the anchors, but it wasn’t the cruise-fest he expected for a 5.7. I topped it cleanly, figuring out the move between the first and second bolt that had me perplexed on lead, but higher up was a move that seemed rather stiff for 5.7; perhaps something had broken off, because either a big left hand or a decent foot would have made a world of difference. J and L worked a different route then we all moved over to Sunnyside wall to grab a few routes in the sun. We hit Fun in the Sun first, which had a little bit of everything, technique, power and thinking. I had hoped to get it clean, but I had one misread that I couldn’t undo, so it was one fall, then to the top. I tried Goldfinger again, but couldn’t get past the same point again, and as it was getting late, I hopped off so the rest of the group could give it a shot. L worked it out and B did it cleanly. Afterward, J introduced me to In-and-Out Burger, where we had a tasty dinner before he headed home. I grabbed a sundae and coffee at McD’s and used their free wifi to catch up on my email and whatnot, since I had been off the grid all weekend. Seems like I mainly missed people updating Facebook about the Superbowl or that they pointedly weren’t watching the Superbowl.
The skies were clear on Sunday night and the stars were amazing! Unfortunately, I didn’t bring a tripod with me, so, no pictures, but it’s great to be able to see more than a handful of stars in the night sky. Perhaps I should learn to identify something besides the Big Dipper and Orion, given than I can actually see other things on this trip.
The Climbs
Saturday
Cheap Lipstick 5.8 (I think)
Walk in the Park 5.8
Goldfinger 5.10b/c, attempt
Welcome to New Jack City 5.10a - sweet
Taylor Made 5.8
Same Same but Different 5.10c not cleanly
Sunday
Jack Be Nimble 5.9
Unknown, but something that seemed harder than a 5.7
Fun in the Sun 5.9
Goldfinger 5.10b/c, another attempt
