Gunks 07

Ok, finally back from a long awaited trip to the Gunks in New Paltz, NY. This was my third trip to the craigs, and I'd have to say it was the best yet. Rob, Trace, NoJ Simpson and Jersey Todd and I drove down Saturday, climbed till Thrusday night and left Friday morning. The weather was great save for one evening and morning where we got thundershowered, otherwise we only had to contend with the heat and humidity.
The following lines were climbed by teams I was a part of. *'s are arbitrary:
Rhododendron (5.3)
Betty (5.4)
Horseman (5.5)
Jackie (5.6), Shockley's Roof p1,2&3 (5.6)**, High Exposure p1&2 (5.6)**, Frog's Head p1&2 (5.6-)
Classic p1&2 (5.7)*, Ken's Crack (5.7)***, City Lights p1&2 (5.7)*, Laurel (5.7)*
Son of Easy O p1 (5.8)**,
Directissima p1 (5.9)*, Ant's Line (5.9)***
Retaliation (5.10+)**
Everyone had a great time, and no injurys were incurred. Retaliation was an amazing climb which I want to repeat, and Directissima will certainly see the completion of the top two pitches in my next visit.
Special thanks to Peter and Jason, a couple of locals who showed us all the cool spots and made us feel right at home. Also thanks to the R&S chica for the morale boost and the sweet deal on my nomics. See you all in the fall.

Midnight Rescue!

Ok, before I post my Gunks trip, I had a little outing tonight I thought I should share.
So my brother calls me from a scout camp that he's attending about 30 minutes away and he tells me that he and some fellow scouts decided to rig this crazy incendiary device on a string that would slide down from a tree and ignite the campfire to start this crazy ceremony they were having. In the process, one of the older scouts (20 or so) decides to put on a harness and shimmy up a tree to string up the line. He gets about 20 feet up and freezes, unable to move up or down. He fortunately slings himself to the tree (poorly) and tells my bro the problem. They keep it on the down low until everyone leaves and then he calls me up.
So I have to drive out there in the middle of the night because no-one has anything they can rescue him with. Most un-resourceful scout troop ever. I end up soloing up the tree in my ice gear to rescue the kid, and all ended well. I also got to try out my new axes (hooooooot) and now can't wait for ice season.
Cheers,
Matthew.

Before the Fall

Out last weekend to Welsford before the closeure with Rob, Trace, Mal, Todd and some friends of theirs. I got down to Exfoliated wall where I seldom climb and hit up some of the tough sport routes on the left side. Todd and Trace quickly dispatched Mental Hygene and Fern Gully to warm up, and I was able to follow their good example by putting down The Juggler and Sleeping Beauty. Don, doing an excellent job at photo duty, took some great shots of the climbs, as can be seen at his site http://donricker.smugmug.com/gallery/2947631#P-1-15
Above is me having a crack at The Juggler 5.10a. Also, I'd like to put in a plug for the DMM Revolver, expensive, but awesome.
Gunks next weekend!

Rained out of the White Mountains, NH.

Got CHEWED in New Hampshire last weekend. Lots of cool hiking, but very little climbing. It Rained from start to finish. Team CLIMB FAT lived up to their name with a truely slothful weekend of Shopping and snacking. The only flirting with fitness that occurred was the assault on Tuckerman's Ravine at Mt Washington by Shawn, Denise, Dottie and I. Sub three hours, car to car, topping out just below the bowl. Truely an inspiring spot, I'll have to get back in there in the winter to make the traverse/climb some ice.
Kamouraska tomorrow, Hopefully DK and I will make up for our lackluster weekend in the Whites.
Also, Big shout out to Stef over there in the Gobi, We miss you lots, big guy.

Sweet start to the Season!

The top ten weekends in Welsford list just made some room for a new addition this weekend. DK came up from Hali to rejoin CLIMB FAT team members Rob, Trace and I for a killer weekend.
Saturday saw some sweet climbs up on Mikey, with Dash, 5.8 for style, Salt & Pepper, Warm and Sultry, and Curried Reccolection being led, and Inhuman eraser and Bird of Fire being Topped. Bomber day on warm rock. Got buzzed by the lady Peregrine who was just checking us out. She's beautiful.
Saturday night was cool, but was warmed by good company as a good crew arrived at the base to camp. It's amazing how our little community has changed in the past couple of years, Im not going to be the pup for much longer.
Sunday dawned bright and cool, and after some morning schenaegans Dottie and I hit up the Upper Tier for some sweet leads. Monseur Torpedo, Most Unprecidented and Bombing run (?) got hit first for a stellar morning, with a tribute to trad on Adventure Pedestre after lunch, proving that DK still has what it takes to throw pro. The afternoon culminated in the discovery of the Attic, which I have never been to before, but will soon return to. That wall is amazing, with sustained hard climbing on bomber bolts. Good times were had by all.
New Hampshire next weekend!

M@ Takes Halifax By Storm; Halifax Not Impressed.

So May 4th weekend marked the culmination of many things. Flat Fifth was playing in Halifax, The weather was crap, climbing was sketch here, and Dottie had the weekend off. Sure as shooting I was going.
Blasting down after work and eliminating my small margin of error by missing the Truro turnoff, I arrived at Stayners Warf with only minutes to spare. Fortunately I scored a choice seat, which I defended from all comers. The band played through most of their repitoire, launching with the seminal instrumental "Alfalfa Honey". Aside from this band's general toe-tapping-piano-kick-assitude, the subtle yet highly engageing base and fiddle stole the show, finessed by the gnarled hands of George "I thought she had it" Barkhouse and the confident stylings of Eilidh Campbell respectively.
I must admit that Eilidh is perhaps the thing that pushes this band over the top for me. Skilled, worldly musician aside, She has to be one of the most beautiful artists I've ever seen. Oh, and she's Scottish. That's me down for the count.
Other tunes of note were the resplendent Beatles cover, and Jeff Coates' "Zig Zaggin", which was as always a crowd pleaser. Look forward to good things from this band, and if you get the chance, go check em out.
The rest of the weekend was not to be left out. After the Hali Market (amazing), Attempts were made to find Sorrow's End, which ended in crushing defeat, as the guidebook was useless. Yoga was substituted, which ended only in crushing. (Im a little hooked though).
The day was capped by sushi, hilarious Anti-hero philandering and a horrible movie.
Sunday saw some sweet Steve-o-Reno's for Egg-o-Renos (a Halifax must). And a successful day into The Eagle's nest for climbing. NS is a hole for climbing by the way.
Hugs ended the day, and I was off home to plot my climbing for the next weekend. Other worthy mentions include Courtney Smith, who added even more comic relief, and is truely just one of those people who light up your day. An eyebrow is worth 10,000 words.

Hot Toddy/Ryan LeBlanc @ Charlotte St.

Hey All! So in a spat of good luck, I won a pair of tickets to see local band Hot Toddy from CBC yesterday, incidentally just about the first time I've ever won anything by chance. After dragging an accomplace into the last minute event (beggars can't be choosers) I was suprised by an intro curtesy of Ryan LeBlanc, who gave a solid proformance on his Butt box/guitar/banjo/harp SIMULTANIOUS method. Having never heard of this guy before, I have to say I was pretty blown away.
Hot Toddy came on second, and covered a lot of their classics in a long set. All the common fare for this band was discussed, and the usual shenanegans abounded. The secret to playing the harp apparently, is to "suck through the two hole". This advice had been shamelessly dispensed to elementary childeren earlier in the day, most of whom apparently "got it". Thom almost had to leave the stage in embarrassment.
Anyway, Class Act all the way. This was a thuroughly enjoyable evening, with highlights being their Shiack number (name anyone?) and the oncore acoustic "Woodpile". Fantastic group folks, check em out: http://www.hottoddytrio.com

PS, sorry about the picture quality, Still getting the hang of the camera