Monday, August 31, 2009

Rocky Mountain National Park (Lumpy Ridge)


So, after 2 great days and nights in Boulder, CO, the super hero duo (Alex and me), made the 1 hour journey to Estes Park, home of Rocky Mountain National Park, and the famous EuroMan, a good friend and seasonal Law Enforcement Ranger.


We were scheduled to get to Estes by 8, pick up the local guide books at the climbing shop, and head to Lumpy Ridge. The mighty EuroMan got there around 8:30, but we didn't roll in to the climbers lot until about 9:30. We got up a little late and had breakfast at a cool coffee shop in Lyons, the Stone Cup.






Anywhooo, we picked out a cool climb on The Book called Pear Buttress (5.8+). The approach took about 1 hour, and then we spent at least 30 minutes trying to figure out the best way to start the climb. Once we got moving, the climb was really great. Nice crack climbing! Alex did a great job on the crux pitch, and I had fun on my 2 pitches. We were getting used to granite crack climbing, and trying to trust our feet to the great friction.





Afterwards, we met EuroMan for great Mexican at Ed's Catina, a famous climber hangout. Unfortunately, the EuroMan was called into work about the time we finished dinner, so we wandered back to the cabin, and pondered our next climbing adventure.