Vegas baby! Vegas!

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philo

Trad climber

Is that light the end of the tunnel or a train?

Feb 19, 2013 - 12:05pm PT

Spooky.

Big Mike

Trad climber

Topic Author's Reply - Feb 19, 2013 - 07:27pm PT

Brandon- ya HDR ghosts. My iPhone app takes two pics, one light one dark and then combines them. So sometimes moving objects get ghosted. Hence the climber lowering in the background or two Bruce's on the trail to Birdland.

Just got back from Cat in the Hat choose your own adventure style!! So sick! More in a bit.

Ghost

climber

A long way from where I started

Feb 19, 2013 - 10:42pm PT

Hey Mike, are those ghosts in the skyline in your first shot on this page?

Foreshadowing, dude. I'm going to be there in two weeks, but ectoplasmically speaking, some of me is already there.

Big Mike

Trad climber

Topic Author's Reply - Feb 20, 2013 - 12:37am PT

I got up at 6:30am to find the Yeti Hunter already up and about!! Needless to say, I was stoked! The plan for the day was to run up The Cat In The Hat 5.6.

We got to the Pine Creek parking lot just before nine and there was already another party racking up in the parking lot. I asked them what they were planning on, and they said "Cat". I replied "same" and told Bruce "we have to go now!"

We threw the bags on and ran out if the parking lot. I set a fast pace as per usual and was surprised to see Bruce was right on my tail the whole way. Bruce picked the right approach trail which seems to be my weakness in this desert and we were very happy to find that we were the first party to get to the base.

We racked up quickly and as soon as I jumped on the first pitch, I heard voices coming up the trail. I made quick work of the first pitch but got a little confused when I got to the upper ledge and could not find the station. It turns out that I wasn't supposed to climb the squeeze chimney on the left, so after a bit of wandering around I decided to set up a gear belay in a nice crack just above the chimney.
This was variation #1.

I brought Bruce up and he was a little perturbed that I had flubbed the station and said "where are you??"

I told him I was on a gear anchor to which he replied, "Is it any good??"
It's bomber I said but he didn't even bother to check it out, or grab the gear, or the tag line and just kept on truckin'.

He scrambled up the next short corner and stopped at the tree above the second rap anchor. I piled the tag line and all the gear on my shoulders and had the anchor mostly dismantled by the time he had me on belay.

He took this shot when I got to the tree.
Bruce MacDonald Photo

After another quick start I wanted to go up the nice crack beside the tree but Bruce said "I think that's the second pitch of the grinch?" Go check around the corner. I went right and started climbing the next flake and Bruce said "I don't think it's that one either! Go check around the next corner!" I shoulda just told him to shut up and kept climbing but after my routefinding mistake on the first pitch I guess I was open to suggestions.

I climbed up the ramp to the top of the Cookie Monster 5.7 pitch and the corner above looked pretty mellow so I started to cast off. Just then a guy rocked up behind me and asked if this was Cat in the Hat. I said "I don't know dude... I hope so!" He asked if he could anchor on the ledge beneath me which I had no problem with and I proceeded up the corner.

About 10 feet up I stepped on a horn that I obviously shouldn't have and it snapped under my weight. I had two good hands and a great left foot, so I managed to stay on, but I screamed "Rock!!!" at the top of my lungs. Then Simon screamed it three times, because his girlfriend was directly below me! Luckily she managed to get out of the way.

I continued up the corner but because Bruce was down the ramp and the rope was wrapped around the aret the rope drag was horrendous!! I slung everything long just trying not to make it worse. I got to a small ledge but didn't see anything really good to anchor to (total tunnel vision on my part) so I continued up to a half decent stance to what I found out later was halfway up the fifth pitch. I called down to ask how much rope left and Bruce said "40 feet!".

I was pretty damn sure that I wouldn't be able to finish the pitch on that amount of rope and this was definetly the last half decent stance so I built another bomber gear belay and brought Bruce up. When he arrived I told him I wasn't sure if he really wanted to hang out there, but there was a bolted anchor on top of the pedestal to my right. He chose to climb up the chimney and use the C11 H17NO3 anchor as his belay. After sending over the tag line so he could manage it for me and getting some draws back he took this pic of me.

Variation #2

Bruce MacDonald photo

Unfortunately the manual focus button got hit and he didn't realize it.

The end result of all this was I got to lead the last pitch too!! BONUS!!!!
It was money!!

I cruised the pitch and clipped my first bolt of the day on the little slabby runout at the end. What a great pitch! I got to the top and exclaimed, "hey there IS fixed anchors on this thing!!" ;)

I took a couple snaps of Bruce on the last pitch.

I also got a couple of Simon the nice gentleman who's girlfriend I nearly snuffed....

Bruce chillin at the top

Bruce got these summit shots of me and Simon

It was a bit windy up there....
Bruce MacDonald Photo

Bruce MacDonald Photo

We decide to rappel together since it would be faster. It sure was with four ropes! We rapped to the capstone which I never even saw on the way up and the party that we had passed in the parking lot in the morning was freezing their butt off there. Somehow they had allowed another party to pass them as well!

Everything went extremely smoothly which was nice and I got these shots when I got to the tree rap.

Yet another party

South face of Mescalito

We all got down safe and we beat the forecasted rain!!

I took this shot of Mescalito on the way out.

A celebratory Vanilla Coke in the parking lot post send.
Bruce MacDonald photo

What a day!! I ended up leading nearly the whole thing and had quite the adventure to boot!

I looked up the corner I climbed in the book, but no mention?? Surely someone must have climbed it before me?? It's right above Cookie Monster??? I dubbed it the "Big Mike variation" anyways and it goes at 5.6 too. It was actually quite fun!!!

I'm pretty bagged now, which I am quite pleased about!!! If only it weren't going to rain tomorrow and me and Harry could get on another long route!!!

Vegasclimber

Trad climber

Las Vegas, NV.

Feb 20, 2013 - 02:01am PT

Sounds like a sick day! Sorry we missed it - I was so fried when I got home from work that I forgot to call you guys, my bad - tell Bruce I said have a good flight!

Interesting variation there...I couldn't tell but it looks like you might have missed the traverse off the top of P4...too bad that's a blast. Glad you made it to the right top in the end and had a great time, that's what it's about!

Big Mike

Trad climber

Topic Author's Reply - Feb 20, 2013 - 02:44am PT

Ya we missed that traverse for sure dude. No worries about the call, we were pretty bagged too.

Big Mike

Trad climber

Topic Author's Reply - Feb 20, 2013 - 12:46pm PT

Just put yeti hunter on a plane. Currently stuck at fox car rental again.. Doh!!

climber

Prescott, AZ

Feb 20, 2013 - 02:15pm PT

I'm curious Vegasclimber. Is there still a small metal container at the top of Geronimo? We put up that route in honor of a good friend and left the box attached to a bolt. It had some info about him in it. And as a coincidence his daughter is named Christina. Looks like you're having a good time on it. Bill

edit: have you tried Purblind Pillar? Fun route.

bmacd

Trad climber

100% Canadian

Feb 20, 2013 - 02:30pm PT

Box not there, congratulations on bagging a classic route though.

Vegasclimber

Trad climber

Las Vegas, NV.

Feb 20, 2013 - 02:46pm PT

Hi, Bill! You and Michelle had your route glasses on that day for sure - I would have never spotted the line.

I haven't seen a box up there either time - is it somewhere that would be clearly visible?

Would love to hear more about your friend and the FA if you would care to share.

Hoser

climber

vancouver

Feb 20, 2013 - 02:58pm PT

Wicked finish!

LaurieLighthouse

Sport climber

Belgium

Feb 20, 2013 - 03:30pm PT

Vegas baby!...And so it will in a week, for maid of honour reasons.

As many people have told me about the "If in Vegas go to Red Rocks", I'm outstaying the wedding parties etc, and am completely free to go climbing between 5th and 9th, flight back to Europe on the 10th. Anyone around, willing, and without regular jobs that tie them up on weekdays...? As in please come climb with me!!

And I'm in no way fixated on Red Rocks.

Big Mike

Trad climber

Topic Author's Reply - Feb 20, 2013 - 05:31pm PT

Hahaha!! Lol!! Too funny! Thanks cosmic! I'm staying with Harry tonight and we went to Excalibur for lunch with his family.

I don't fly out till 7 tomorrow night, so I'm still hoping to get a few routes in tomorrow. What's the limestone beta?? Where do I find it?

Edit

Would love to hear more about your friend and the FA if you would care to share.

Ditto!!

climber

Prescott, AZ

Feb 20, 2013 - 06:19pm PT

Vegasclimber, The route is named after a fine gentleman, Maxi Gonzales. He was a friend of my father-in-law and part of a father/daughter Indian Princess Guides club my wife took part in as a young girl. Maxi's Indian name in the group was Geronimo. He was very much like an uncle. Sadly, he got cancer and died way too young and we decided to name a route in his honor. I'd spied the line on an earlier trip, so my wife and I did the route and later invited his son to climb it. It was his first rock climb and he did great! The whole family watched from the nearest parking lot. The memorial box we left was wired to a lone bolt I put on top of the final pitch. It turned out to be a decent line with nice exposure. We rapped down a rope eating chimney to the climber's right I think and not getting your rope caught became a major crux of a Geronimo outing. I heard a rap line is place now. Bill

labrat

Trad climber

Auburn, CA

Feb 20, 2013 - 06:58pm PT

Bill,
Thank you for the background on Maxi Gonzales and Geronimo. I didn't see the memorial box last year. We really enjoyed the route and we went down the "rope eating chimney" successfully. A guided group that were behind us used an alternate rappel and they did have a stuck rope....
Erik

Vegasclimber

Trad climber

Las Vegas, NV.

Feb 20, 2013 - 07:31pm PT

Bill, thanks for sharing that with us. That gives the climb a whole new meaning for me, very appreciated.

I was hoping that maybe you had placed the box in an out of the way place on the summit so that it wouldn't be disturbed, but I guess that wasn't the case. Kind of a shame that it appears to be gone.

There is a rap line down the route now, but stuck ropes are still a high possibility. The top and second rap stations would probably be better if there were chains that extended over the lip, rather then the rats nest of tat on the bolts now. I cut some of the tat off the other day, and will clean up more the next time we get up there.