SO KEEP SCROLLING! THERE IS MORE BELOW!
First things. I’ve moved, I’m living in Bangkok, Thailand. Crazy. I did not really expect this change but my girlfriend got a job teaching here and I figured it would be nice to climb year round so here we are. Its been awesome. I also recently came out with another book which I wrote with an amazing friend of mine. All of my books are online at www.climbak.com (yeah, that was shameless self promo action)
Just Us Down Here - Poems
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I’ve been to a lot of places recently so this next section is going to be a mashup. Good luck!
Did I tell you I went to Jordan? It was a place I had always wanted to visit. Something magical about the red sand that goes on for miles and terrain that looks like the surface of another planet. They filmed the Martian there and who can forget the scene in Indiana Jones the Last Crusade where they are in Petra? I knew when we decided to go that I would be attempting to find that scene. Our first day in Jordan we drove to the Dead Sea.
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Our first swim we did in the evening. We thought it was allowed but apparently the place we were staying did not allow it. They told me after we got out, which is fine because I got to lay under the stars floating in the sea already.
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Many don’t know that I can’t float. Treading water, even in the ocean, is a full time job for me. I lay on my back and I sink like a rock. This has been my life since I was a little kid. I was finally able to float! Now I know why people find it so enjoyable. This is Shasta floating. You feel like you’re actually being lifted out of the water.
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Shasta getting some of that healthy Dead Sea mud.
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We hopped in our car the next day and headed south. Unfortunately there wasn’t much time in Jordan so we had to make the most of it. We stopped at a few wadi’s on our way.
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This sign was at the Wadi. Apparently they don’t think of these shoes the same way we do.
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It is sad to see how fast the lake is disappearing, each layer another blip in time like the rings of a tree. Only its like counting backwards but all rings lead to the same finish.
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We drove high in to the mountains to a town that was supposed to be some type of good place for tourists. It had a few places to stay and some hiking trails but it was surprisingly untourist like. We sat on this ledge of houses that had fallen long ago and watched the sun set.
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Amazing construction:
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And then it was time to visit the main historical event. Petra! We were lured in to Little Petra by the signs as many are.
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Its an interesting small canyon but really just a sidetrack from Petra. So we moved on.
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Oh yes that is more like it. I was surprised that after a short hike through an amazing little paved canyon we rounded the corner to the Treasury, the feature made famous to us secluded Alaskans through the Indiana Jones movies. I was admittedly giddy when we rounded the corner and it was in view.
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I told Shasta, I really need a specific photo and I’m willing to wait for it. People would come out perfectly spaced to make sure you never got the shot, that there was always someone until suddenly there was nobody. I snapped the photo as quickly as I could and the moment was gone. Sometimes you just hope you got it. This time I was quite happy.
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There were plenty of people in Petra but apparently it was low season so it wasn’t too crowded. We decided to hike all the way to Monastery. We put in at least 15 miles this day. What an amazing, large, and inspiring place.
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The best life and travel companion I could ever have hoped for.
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Beautiful walks.
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It was a long walk but we were happy to get to the end of the trail. The Monastery.
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One of the most amazing sights was the colors. You wouldn’t really expect it but the rock was so colorful in some areas it looked painted.
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Then we headed out. With one last view of the Treasury.
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Our next stop was Wadi Rum. We drove south through the mountains and into the desert. Every inch of this place is photographic nirvana. It didn’t matter where I turned the camera it felt like I’d struck gold. Immediately my eyes were drawn to the cliffs. Huge sandstone cliffs.
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Zoom in even further and you can see the small colorful climbers. These are big walls!
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Can I stay forever?
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The people rode camels across Mars as though the air was safe to breathe and the storms had passed for the evening.
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A little like being back in Fisher Towers.
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Playing around in slot canyons.
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Loving the ride through the sand.
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Oh come on…this place can’t be real…
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This was our home for the evening and it was cold! The desert has such high extremes for temperatures.
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Ok, now I know you’re thinking “This is a climbing forum dude. Wheres all the climbing?” And you’re right there really isn’t any climbing pictures in this thread yet and here’s the real kicker, I don’t have many. I know, I’ve failed you but hopefully there are enough pictures that are cool to look at in here I can make up for it. Heres a few of climbing that we did manage, even if it wasn’t us.
These walls, Inspiring!
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This is it, the only photo of Shasta I have climbing in Wadi Rum. We didn’t bring any trad gear and that made it tricky, plus we only had a few hours. But we made it happen!
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Other climbers getting after it…if you can find them.
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We did find the guidebook however…
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And then it was time to head off to our next destination…more posts to come.
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More pictures of Jordan (including every page in that super secret guidebook) can be found here. Click Me for Pleasure.