2. 2006

Zion and Bryce, UT

Our first real big wall, followed by a hike up the narrows to recover.
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Around the fourth pitch or so, we used up the last of our five liters of water and shared our single sandwich. Progress looked grim, but retreat was always a viable option, so we pressed onwards.
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Around the fourth pitch or so, we used up the last of our five liters of water and shared our single sandwich. Progress looked grim, but retreat was always a viable option, so we pressed onwards.

UtahZionKelsey GrayRock ClimbingJohn Borland2006

  • Mosquito Cove is a free camping location in the area of Zion National Park. The area is simply a patch of land the nobody seems to care about, and travelers from all over the world can be found pitching tents on the sandy banks of the Virgin River.
  • A bit of study online showed <i>Touchstone Wall IV 5.9 A2</i> to be a challenging wall within reasonable limits of possibility, so we located it and started upwards around 9:30am. Our intent was to climb this big wall in a day, which many people do while others choose to sleep a night or two on the wall and climb at a slower pace.
  • Kelsey grins from the belay at the top of the second pitch, as the sun warms the canyon to temperatures around 105 degrees.
  • Around the fourth pitch or so, we used up the last of our five liters of water and shared our single sandwich. Progress looked grim, but retreat was always a viable option, so we pressed onwards.
  • Kelsey takes a rest on a ledge mid-route. The shade was great after a few pitches in the sun.
  • Desperation begins to creep into Kelsey's expression on the fifth pitch. I read the guide wrong and thought this section was where we started free climbing, and wound up struggling through some hard moves before attaching a cam to each hand and french-freeing it. Kelsey, following behind, didn't have the luxury of said pieces of gear though, and was forced to climb the pitch using only what gear I had left for protection to aid his ascent.
  • Looking back on the seventh pitch and Kelsey showing some wear. On big walls like this, climbers often belay with an auto-locking belay device so when the belayer falls asleep, the climber is still protected in case of a fall.
  • We topped out as the sun went down, and promptly became confused as to our descent route. A bit puzzled by our guidebook's vague directions, we searched around some and eventually decided to rappel the route in pitch blackness. Our lack of food and water was made painfully obvious in our weakened movements, and on every rappel it took all that both of us could do to pull our ropes. Every little snag as we pulled sent us sagging in our harnesses with a chorus of groans. Our arms and legs were cramping and Kelsey's hand repeatedly locked into a claw of its own volition. When we finally reached the ground, it was eleven and a half hours since we left it. Temps hit 105 degrees, and for the whole day we consumed five liters of water and a sandwich between us.
  • The morning after our first big wall was a slow and miserable one. We ate breakfast in the shade and decided we definitely did not want to climb anything.
  • What better way to rest and recover than a leisurely walk along a riverbed in incredible scenery? We hiked our way a couple miles up the Narrows, an enormously deep slot canyon with towering walls all around.
  • The Narrows hike was definitely worth it, especially after such a hard climb. Our feet enjoyed hiking in the cool stream, and we just walked around in the slot canyon all day. Then we headed out again.
  • Bryce Canyon was a brief stop for us after leaving Zion. The scenery here is incredible, with eerie sandstone hoodoos springing from the landscape all around. We ate lunch, took a couple pictures, and hit the road again.
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