Visiting Obscurities Near Moab
_The Devil's Golfball (5.9 C1+) - Arches National Park, UT
Elephant Butte (5.3) - Arches National Park, UT
The Tunnel (4th Class) - Courthouse Wash, Arches National Park, UT
Ring Arch (V0) - Courthouse Wash, Arches National Park, UT
The Happy Turk aka Devil's Golfball (C0) - Kane Creek, UT
Homer and Marge (5.5 C1 PG-13)
November 19-21, 2011
I had wanted to climb the Devil's Golfball in Arches National Park for a few years. Due to the scary and impossible (for me) free grade of 5.12c I had never made a serious trip, but after spending time standing in my aiders I suddenly felt compelled to give the tower a go. At 5.9 C1+ the rating seemed achievable, and although the 5.9 start would be a push for me, I soon found myself sitting in the car with Jen driving to Moab. The drive was pleasant and I looked forward to November in Arches due to the dramatically smaller tourist population. We pulled into the visitor's center and as we walked over to fill our water bottles, we were surprised to run into Jamie (shanahan96) and Mike (Chicagotransplant) from 14ers.com. They were heading out to attempt Dark Angel, and after a brief chat we decided to meet back up after our climb of the Golfball and spend the next few days hiking and climbing together. Pulling into the Garden of Eden was like a breath of fresh air. The normally packed lot was completely empty and it was nice to have the place to ourselves. Although the air was windy and cold, I was optimistic about the climb. The opening moves required some balancy and sandy free climbing to reach the crack that split the face, and the first pro was higher than I wanted. As I clipped the second piece, I breathed a sigh of relief to not be looking at a 20 foot ground fall anymore and happily began aiding up the crack. My aid skills are still a bit rough, so I moved slowly up the slightly overhanging corner. After what seemed like forever, I was clipping the pins up the final face to the summit. The summit came quickly and I waved at a few folks who had stopped in the parking lot to take photos of me. It felt great to final be up top, and I took advantage of the great photo opportunities as Jen jugged to the top and took the spectacular free-hanging rappel back down. We then met up with Jamie and Mike for dinner and set up camp close to them in Kane Creek. The next day we made short work of Elephant Butte and then drove to Courthouse Wash to explore some off-trail sites. We made our way to the seldom-visited "Tunnel" and had fun exploring the interesting feature. I couldn't help but climb up onto the weird formation that sits at the entrance and had a great time in an area of Arches that none of us had ever been. We then walked over to Ring Arch and had fun exploring that area as well. Back at the car we parted ways with Mike and made plans for the next day. The final morning we drove into Kane Creek and I talked Jamie through the basics of aid climbing at the base of the Happy Turk. After some awkward moments trying to reach the far off second bolt (let's face it, aid climbing is tough!), he opted to come back down and watch. I quickly led up, and soon we were all on the summit waving at the ATVers riding the road. Finally we headed up toward the pass and stopped to climb the grungy but unique tower, Homer and Marge. Being rated 5.5 C1 I thought the tower would be a breeze and was very unhappy to discover how sketchy the rock was. A nasty and awkward aid move led onto a shelf and then a series of poor bolts (the first is hangerless) led up the mud curtain. I cursed at having to sit on loose bolts (above a ledge) and tighten the ones above before committing to them. Fortunately, the pitch was short and I soon made the final moves onto the summit. After the climb, we drove into town and said our farewells before heading back home. Can't wait to get back to the desert!
Elephant Butte (5.3) - Arches National Park, UT
The Tunnel (4th Class) - Courthouse Wash, Arches National Park, UT
Ring Arch (V0) - Courthouse Wash, Arches National Park, UT
The Happy Turk aka Devil's Golfball (C0) - Kane Creek, UT
Homer and Marge (5.5 C1 PG-13)
November 19-21, 2011
I had wanted to climb the Devil's Golfball in Arches National Park for a few years. Due to the scary and impossible (for me) free grade of 5.12c I had never made a serious trip, but after spending time standing in my aiders I suddenly felt compelled to give the tower a go. At 5.9 C1+ the rating seemed achievable, and although the 5.9 start would be a push for me, I soon found myself sitting in the car with Jen driving to Moab. The drive was pleasant and I looked forward to November in Arches due to the dramatically smaller tourist population. We pulled into the visitor's center and as we walked over to fill our water bottles, we were surprised to run into Jamie (shanahan96) and Mike (Chicagotransplant) from 14ers.com. They were heading out to attempt Dark Angel, and after a brief chat we decided to meet back up after our climb of the Golfball and spend the next few days hiking and climbing together. Pulling into the Garden of Eden was like a breath of fresh air. The normally packed lot was completely empty and it was nice to have the place to ourselves. Although the air was windy and cold, I was optimistic about the climb. The opening moves required some balancy and sandy free climbing to reach the crack that split the face, and the first pro was higher than I wanted. As I clipped the second piece, I breathed a sigh of relief to not be looking at a 20 foot ground fall anymore and happily began aiding up the crack. My aid skills are still a bit rough, so I moved slowly up the slightly overhanging corner. After what seemed like forever, I was clipping the pins up the final face to the summit. The summit came quickly and I waved at a few folks who had stopped in the parking lot to take photos of me. It felt great to final be up top, and I took advantage of the great photo opportunities as Jen jugged to the top and took the spectacular free-hanging rappel back down. We then met up with Jamie and Mike for dinner and set up camp close to them in Kane Creek. The next day we made short work of Elephant Butte and then drove to Courthouse Wash to explore some off-trail sites. We made our way to the seldom-visited "Tunnel" and had fun exploring the interesting feature. I couldn't help but climb up onto the weird formation that sits at the entrance and had a great time in an area of Arches that none of us had ever been. We then walked over to Ring Arch and had fun exploring that area as well. Back at the car we parted ways with Mike and made plans for the next day. The final morning we drove into Kane Creek and I talked Jamie through the basics of aid climbing at the base of the Happy Turk. After some awkward moments trying to reach the far off second bolt (let's face it, aid climbing is tough!), he opted to come back down and watch. I quickly led up, and soon we were all on the summit waving at the ATVers riding the road. Finally we headed up toward the pass and stopped to climb the grungy but unique tower, Homer and Marge. Being rated 5.5 C1 I thought the tower would be a breeze and was very unhappy to discover how sketchy the rock was. A nasty and awkward aid move led onto a shelf and then a series of poor bolts (the first is hangerless) led up the mud curtain. I cursed at having to sit on loose bolts (above a ledge) and tighten the ones above before committing to them. Fortunately, the pitch was short and I soon made the final moves onto the summit. After the climb, we drove into town and said our farewells before heading back home. Can't wait to get back to the desert!
