Or, ‘Jaiyou!’ in Chinese. Pronounced ‘Jai YO’.

It’s like, “GO ON!”, or “YOU CAN DO IT!”, or “FUCKING KILL IT!”

Jaiyou

Double portrait

Well, we’ve been here just under a week now, and we’ve had 2 nights of normal sleep…except last night…because I might have had too much beer after climbing for the entire day in the sun without nearly enough water and not much for dinner. Also, my ass is raw and sore as hell from bicycling to the latest crags on shitty single speed cruiser style bikes down bumpy back roads and trails whilst carrying my heavy pack. Let me explain.

We just climbed 2 more days, and are resting today. Two days ago we went to a crag called Riverside, and yesterday we went to White Mountain. Riverside, though 30 meters close to the Li River, was only 10 meters to the road, thus ‘Roadside’ might have been a more appropriate name. We rented and rode bicycles to get there, and since the guidebook is conveniently out of print, all that we had was a shitty tourist (not climber) map completely in Chinese, and a place name hand written in Chinese. The instructions where when (not if) we got lost, to show the hand written paper to some one. Right. We were told that it was a 15 minute bike ride away, SO an hour and half and some solid profanity later, we arrived. It is a nice cliff, but just above a pretty well traveled dirt road. This combined with the fact that it is not a frequently visited crag, made for routes that were completely covered in a thick layer of dirt from the road. Also, there were bats in many of the pocket handholds. The setting was pristine; as it overlooked the grand Li River, and we had many happy fascinated locals stop to watch us and cheer us on and hang out with us. So, we managed to make the very most of it, even while slipping off big hand and foot holds due to the dirt on them and simultaneously avoiding visions of rabies and the bat infested pockets. Yin yang balance…

Biking to the crag

View from Riverside crag

Ready to bike home

Yesterday, I got an email at 8:15 am from a local that we had met days earlier. He said a bunch of people were going to White Mountain and meeting at 8:30… regardless of the amount of sun. White Mountain is by far the best crag here, but it faces dead south, and there is no relief from the sun, not a fucking tree or big rock or anything. Yin yang, yin yang, yin yang…fuck it, let’s go. Brave the sun to climb at the best crag here. We were packed, out the door, bikes rented, fruit stand visited, and breakfast dumpling cart visited in time to make the rendezvous. BOOM. (Notice how I didn’t mention anything about buying some water or sunscreen) A 30 minute ride later, we were standing in awe in front of the White Mountain wall. Two words, well, three actually; ‘World class’, and ‘HOT’. It is such a tall, proud wall. We did 2 warm ups that were SO good, and it was warm, but there was a little breeze and it was manageable. Then, we opted to try a little harder, and through our added exertion it suddenly seemed like the temperature went solar. By this point, the fair skinned Emily had sunburn and was utterly exhausted from the heat. I, however, pressed on. One more route later, as well as the remainder of our water, and I was in a sad state. I was sweating from pores that I hadn’t ever sweated out of before. One more route and the remaining skin on my fingers later, I was struggling to catch my breath in the hot, heavy air and seeing stars. I just couldn’t help myself, the climbing was so good. I knew that however deep into the energy reserves I went, I’d be able to bike my sorry (SORE-Y) ass out of there on the thought of cold beer and a rest day. And so it was.

Dumpling breakfast cart

THE White Mountian

View from White Mtn

Biking home

We were back to town, and I was chugging beer before I even washed the chalk off of my hands. SO THIRSTY. Dumpling Dynasty was the spot of choice for dinner, but I was pretty filled up with beer, so I could only put down a few delicious pot stickers before I was thoroughly stuffed. Then, being as it was Friday night, well, more drinking ensued. It was really fun, and we met and hung out with a solid global crew; Chinese, Brits, Aussies, Kiwis, Canadians, Americans, and one dreaded dude from Norway. I didn’t really get drunk, but the combination of staying up late, being super dehydrated, and not eating that much rendered me not able to sleep well and with a headache this morn. Anyways, it was FULLY worth it, AND today’s a rest day. BOOYAH!!!

Sunset in Yangshuo

Friday night in Yangshuo

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Ni hao (nee-Ha-OW) is hello in Chinese.

Yangshuo landscape

Thus far the trip has been balanced; difficulty and ease, frustration and joy, freedom and restriction, fear and calm. In essence, Yin and Yang, the manifestations of seemingly contrary forces that are actually interconnected and interdependent. The concept lies at the origins of many branches of classical Chinese science and philosophy. Yin yang are complementary opposites within a greater whole. Everything has both yin and yang aspects, although yin or yang elements may manifest more strongly in different objects or at different times. Yin yang constantly interacts, never existing in absolute stasis. Each exists with and because and for the other. Thus, creating dynamic balance.

Yin Yang

Disclaimer for below: I’m not complaining, just observing and stating. I welcome and embrace what I mention as part of this experience, and as lessons in acceptance and adaptation. I believe it to only enhance the experience, and in reflection I am grateful for it all as with any other situations and occurrences. Though, in moments, I am guilty of reacting poorly, impatient and temperamental.

Back of the bus on the way home

Apparently, every day that you go out to the crags here, you should be prepared to be approached and asked/threatened for money from local farmers or Chinese mafia. We have been advised to simply opt to pack up and leave the crag, rather than pay, in an effort to not exacerbate the problem. Thankfully this hasn’t happened to us yet, and hopefully it won’t given that the areas that we are interested in climbing at are not known to have these sorts of problems very often. The relations between climbers and the local population are volatile, despite climbers coming here for 20 years. In addition to this issue, transportation is an intimidating and dangerous clusterfuck, whereby reliance on some local vendor is a must, either to rent a bicycle/scooter or to take a car, van, bus somewhere. The infrastructure is set up to sustain and promote as much foot traffic as possible. Thus, renting a car would be unnecessary, impractical, and expensive. English, spoken or written, is rare to come by, which makes these conversations regarding transportation interesting, as well as those required for buying food and other things. It is still a bit hot and humid here now, and thus not optimal for climbing hard. The cuisine is questionable. I’m talking about chicken feet and dog meat. I find myself wondering what it is that I am actually eating when we are out at restaurants. Finally, whenever you walk around outside, you constantly get hassled. People can’t speak any English at all, but they incessantly ramble, “Hell-O… hell-O! Hell-O… hell-O…hell-O!!!” Then, they follow up with a few words regarding what they have to offer, which basically are like, “Eat here”, or “Buy this”, or “Take this ride”, or the like. It is not aggressive, but ceaseless.

BUT, and I do mean a BIG BUT, the rock and the crags are serene and stunning. The landscape is so dramatic and striking and special. We’re staying in nice, comfortable, and safe accommodations. People are pretty friendly for the most part and seem to have a genuine curiousness about them, especially for westerners, and more so climbers. This is a bustling tourist destination, even for the Chinese, so there are a lot of travelers around. Everyone else is a local who’s livelihood is based on the money spent by the travelers, and they seem to act with this knowledge on hand. Everything is REALLY inexpensive. A full meal at a restaurant is just a few dollars, a nice hotel room is around $10-20 a night, and everything else is in accordance.

Yangshuo landscape

Our Street

So, as I said, there is a balance that exists…

We have climbed 2 days; one at the famous hallmark area called Moon Hill, and the other at Lei Pi Shan. Both are fantastic crags with nice quality limestone. Moon Hill is a massive arch spackled with mini stalactites and flanking walls that are more vertical to slightly overhung. There are some steep climbs that are powerful with bigger handholds, but also some more technical routes with smaller holds, and things in between. Lei Pi Shan has slightly to fairly overhanging walls with routes from 20 – 40 meters tall. All of the routes here are technical with smaller holds. Both places have tufa/stalactite type features, and small to large pockets and edges. And…the climbing was, as climbing is… so good.

Con fuerte,

Moon Hill

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6:30 am, Oct 18, Yangshuo, China

I fell asleep at around 8:30 pm and sleep until about 12:15 am. I awoke and was completely conscious and unable to sleep. After some reading and a movie, I fell back to sleep some time around 3:30 am and slept till now, and this is our second morning here.

We departed from Boulder, CO on Oct 15 at 6 am. We flew to Chicago had a layover, flew to Beijing (13.5 hours and directly over the North Pole), had a layover (8 fucking hours), and flew to Guilin.

Denver Airport self portrait

Departure gate from Chicago

In flight over the North Pole

Em and I in flight

Self portrait in flight

Noodles on the plane

We were picked up by a man with a sign in his hand that read, “Black Diamond.” He spoke ZERO English. He escorted us to a parked bus, and loaded our baggage and ushered us in. There was a bit of uncertainty present in my mind. All that we had to go on was a white piece of paper that had this Chinese man’s poor English scribble on it in green fluorescent marker. I said, “Jai Yun Hotel?”, and paused, then again, “JAI YUN HOTEL?”, as if saying it louder was going to help him understand, and still nothing. “J-A-I Y-U-N???”, he just stared at us blanky. “Yangshuo!” He spit it out of his mouth so quickly that I barely caught. Yep, fuckit, let’s go.

We drove for some time, and the driver skillfully maneuvered our bus through the night using every square inch of the road, as Mario Andretti would an F1 racetrack. He would swerve without slowing around other buses, cars, scooters, and of course, out of the way of the frequent potential collisions with oncoming traffic, as he would use their lane as his own. The stupor that I felt from the travel and lack of sleep was offset by the excitement of nearing our destination coupled with the landscape that I could see in the night. I could tell that there was lots of relief, but it was unlike I had ever witnessed. It seemed like there were small mountains everywhere. They were not too tall, and very steep, and they all rounded out near the top. After maybe an hour, we arrived in the town of Yangshuo.

Yangshuo, China map

He initially took us to the wrong hotel where, again, no one spoke a word of English. And, we could tell that they weren’t interested in having guests at this time of the night. Through our concern that the driver was going to leave us here, where we didn’t belong and with people that weren’t expecting us/didn’t want us, we managed to communicate some how that this was severely incorrect. After a discussion with the innkeepers in what I imagine they convinced him that we absolutely didn’t belong there, our driver promptly phoned an English-speaking person, and handed the phone off to Emily to speak to and find out where we were supposed to go. Shortly there after we were deposited at that which would be our home for the next 2 weeks, The Jia Yun Hotel, sometime around 2 am. The day was Oct 17. We promptly went to sleep, and awoke a 2:15 pm the next day…Needed that. Basically, it was a lot of travel, and a big time change, 14 hours to be exact. Thus it is 4:30 pm, Oct 17 in Boulder at this moment. We awoke to sights, sounds, and smells of a new world, so foreign and different and fascinating.

Stay tuned,

A couple months ago, Emily (Harrington) and I were invited to attend a very exclusive and secretive live art performance in Detroit by the American artist Matthew Barney. Though we certainly respect and appreciate art, and find many parallels between art and sport/climbing, we are not art fanatics, nor are we very knowledgeable about the art world. I’d like to think that he invited us as friends and colleagues, based on the work that we did with him in Basel, Switzerland in June. Whatever the case, getting to know him and his crew has been enlightening and is a distinguished blessing. They exist in a realm of pure and raw passion and creativity, and they work tirelessly as well. I value all of these things, and so when this opportunity arose, Emily and I decided that we HAD to go. Thus, we booked our tickets for Sept 30 – Oct 5. The only information we were provided is that there would be a dinner reception on the evening of the Oct 1^st, and the performance would be all day long on the 2^nd. Since my family lives in Detroit, and some dear friends, we allotted a couple days before and after the deal to chill with everyone. A few weeks after booking these initial tickets, Emily and I were asked to attend the Rocktoberfest on behalf of The North Face, Oct 8 – 10 in the Red River Gorge, KY. We eagerly agreed and changed our tickets accordingly (Sept 28 – Oct 13) to allow the time in Michigan, and also extra time in Kentucky to climb, with the plan being to borrow a car from my folks and drive the 6 hours from Detroit to the Red. Thus, on the whole, making for a wildly varied little trip…and so it was.

In the days before the Barney performance, Em and I chilled with my family and close friends. We climbed a day in my home gym, Planet Rock in Pontiac…where it all began for me. I have the deepest respect and admiration for this place, and it’s people, past and present. As well, the Detroit Rock Climbing Company (DRCC) is held with my utmost regard.

We went to the Barney performance opening dinner on the night of Oct 1^st at the Guardian building in downtown Detroit, which was a totally badass venue. The following morning we were to be at the Detroit Institute of Arts by 11 am. From this place and time, what we did was complicated to depths of which I am uncertain. Rather than trying to communicate everything I saw, or trying to describe any of the numerous back-stories, or try to incorporate “meaning”, via how I or anyone else may have interpreted the events; Let me just say that we were among only about 200 hand selected esteemed people from the global art community for what some said was one of the most elaborate and important live art performances in history. See HERE for the details. Needless to say it was fucking badass, and Matthew is an absolute genius. He asked me after the performance was over, “We did Detroit proud, right?” I say, “God damn right dude, and so much more.”

The very next morning, Sun the 3^rd, we packed the car, and departed to Kentucky. We arrived at the Lexington, KY airport in perfect timing to retrieve our good friend Andrew (Bisharat). After some grocery shopping and a stop at the lick-lick, lick-lick, Liquor Barn, we proceeded to Miguel’s in the town of Slade for dinner. It is the climbers’ haven, serving as a pizza restaurant, a climbing retail shop, and a campground all in one. This place is very special to me. I lived and worked here for the season in 2005, and it is where I had my first experiences of the climbing ‘lifestyle’. Eating, sleeping, breathing, working, resting…all for climbing. There is really nothing else to do down there. I was a lost college graduate not making use of my degrees, not willing to go back to school, had tried and rejected the 5 day/40+ hour a week job, and was merely wanting to unravel the ball of yarn that I felt my life had become. Sure, I climbed and I moved there to climb, but I wasn’t a climber. I was just someone that needed a place to simplify and slow down. The seasoned veterans and long time residents of the area showed me real and pure and proper devotion. They inspired me to live a deliberate and committed life, and helped me to make sense of my path. I try to carry these lessons with me now. But, I often loose sight of them; so returning to this place always helps me to remember.

All in all we had awesome weather, and climbed 6 days. I saw so many of my friends/mentors from near and far. One of my best friends, Beck (Kloss), came in from Minneapolis, MN to stay and climb with us. He lived and worked down here in 2004, and again in 2005 when I first came around. Em and I had a few formal obligations. We did 2 different slide shows and poster signings; one at Phillip Gall’s, a retailer in Lexington on Thursday, and one at the Rocktoberfest main event venue on Saturday night. On Sunday, we taught a clinic about climbing technique and footwork.

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It was all damn good fun, but as with all things both good and fun, they never seem to last quite long enough. On Tues Oct 12, we packed up and went to Lexington for lunch and to drop Beck and Andrew at the airport. Em and I then drove back to Michigan, and flew back to Colorado the next day, which was yesterday. It is now Thursday, Oct 14, and we have only today to spend here, unpacking and repacking, because tomorrow we leave for China. Hot damn, here we go again.

Western Slope rainbow - Joe Kinder photo

The big trip to Turkey and Europe made me realize the balance and value of having a ‘home’, and of being stationary. Upon my return, I intended to stay put in Colorado for a bit, to enter into some sort of routine, and to do small trips here and there within the US. I was excited to see close friends that I had been without, and to rely for a time on familiar surroundings and objects. I was excited to climb in Rifle, trying routes that I haven’t done, repeating my favorite routes, and potentially putting up some new routes of my own.

Promptly after returning, my Subaru of many years and many miles died. Apparently the timing belt broke and trashed the engine. The last journey was from Boulder to Glenwood Springs. It almost made it to the destination of Carbondale, only 15 miles away, where I was travelling to see, stay, and climb in Rifle with one of my closest friends Andrew Bisharat. See a funny recount here. I sold it to a Midas grease monkey for $50, Andrew came and we emptied it out, he put a hammer through one of the taillights, and I said my last goodbye. Fuck it.

I began scouring the Internet and classifieds for a new rig. I found many, but since my credit is fucked because I defaulted on an insanely large condo mortgage, no one was going to offer me financing or an auto loan. I paid an overinflated amount at the highest point in the market before the decline, I should’ve listened to my pop on this one…It ultimately resulted in a short sale…for 55% of what I paid for the 400 square foot piece of shit…Oh yeah, and the dude got the $8000 ‘first time home buyer’ tax credit to help ‘boost home sales’ and ‘stimulate the economy.’ Lucky him…like I said, I just got fucked. Anyways, even the wicked (me) get lucky…

Craigslist brought my dream vehicle; The one that I have wanted since before I could drive, an all wheel drive Astro van. I saw the post about it, called the dude up, rallied the roomies, drove to where it was, test drove it, went to an ATM, paid the $1500, got the title, and drove it home all in about and hour. BOOM, DONE! I win. Ha haaaaaaa……

THE Van

This became ‘home 2’, and I have lived in it all summer long in Rifle canyon with my special lady and climbing partner, Emily Harrington. We’d spend anywhere from a few days to a couple weeks out there in it. After purchasing the van, I outfitted it with a custom futon style bed, table to cook on with drawers for storage, a cooler and food, and all my climbing stuff. In between trips, we would return to Boulder to rest, sleep in a real room and bed, cook in a real kitchen, basically, justify the rent that I pay to have a room (aka ‘home 1’) in that town. This became an enjoyable rhythm that floated us through the remainder of June, and July through September.

Emily talking to Lynn Hill in the van - Joe Kinder photo

Em and I - Joe Kinder photo

As I explained earlier, there were some small side trips that I did to mix things up. June 21-24, I went to Salt Lake City, Utah for Black Diamond’s summer sales meeting. July 7-10, I went to New Orleans, Louisiana to see my family…and might have gotten loose on Bourbon St with my lil bro. August 1-5, I was back in Salt Lake City for Black Diamond’s summer research and design meeting, as well as the Outdoor Retailer summer trade show. Then, August 10-14, I went down to Zihuatanejo/Ixtapa, Mexico to stay with 2 close friends, Chris Grover and Boone Speed, at their home in Truncones.

Truncones, Mexico

We did only a few things; Slept, surfed, ate and drank, and chilled/meditated. Oh yeah, and I got some heinous Mexican food or water poisoning to round out the experience…It was worth it. August 30–September 1, Emily and I went to Chicago on behalf of The North Face for an America’s Great Outdoors listening session. I made a quick stop at The Code of Conduct tattoo shop as well. September 21-22, Emily and I attended The Telluride Photo Festival on behalf of The North Face to work with Tim Kemple in his workshop, ‘The Commecial Shoot’.

Telluride Photo Festival - Tim Kemple image

When I wasn’t in Boulder or on one of the side trips listed above, I was in Rifle. Ooooohhhhhh yes, Rifle. My Rifle canyon; where the crisp, cool, and clean air fills my lungs and makes me feel lighter and stronger, where the canyon walls envelope and comfort me like my favorite blanket, where the wind whispers and makes me believe in magic, possibilities unseen, potential unreached. The canyon was kind to me this season, allowing me success on a number of levels. I was fortunate to complete some of the most difficult routes in the canyon, to establish a few new routes of my own, and to make repeats of other hard new routes. The list is under the photos below with some notes.

Sending 'Living the Dream' - Joe Kinder photo

Lowering off of 'Living the Dream' - Joe Kinder photo

Send congratulations - Joe Kinder photo

Bolting 'Rorschach Test' - Joe Kinder photo

Joe hard at work in the office - Colette McInerney photo

The Crew 5.14c
-The hardest route in the canyon. I came painstakingly close last season, one hanging many times and from very low. I was shut down due to cold; on my last day, it was in the 20’s in the shade, and after climbing through the bottom crux to the first rest, my arms went numb to the elbow. I returned in June/July this year with a vendetta that required 5 am tactics for the best conditions, which weren’t really that good…This one was a difficult physical and mental battle for me.

Tomfoolery 14b
-The most mystical route in the canyon. It embodies everything that is Rifle climbing; hard, cryptic, awkward, and intimidating. I have tried it a couple times a year for 4 years, and it always seemed desperately impossible. This year, on one of my attempts, I had an epiphany in which I discovered a method that worked for me.

Waka Flocka 14b, 2^nd ascent
-An abandoned, partially bolted line on the Project Wall that Joe Kinder retro bolted, cleaned, and brought into magnificent existence by sending. A supreme new area test piece.

Rorschach Test 14b, equipped, 1^st ascent
-A line that I spied in the Nappy Dugout, and wondered about. I sank the bolts, cleaned it all up dropping a few mini-fridge sized blocks in the process, and began attempting. There was a moment I thought some of the moves might not be possible for me.  Speculative grade.

Planet X 14a, 2^nd ascent
-A product of Steve Hong’s tireless extended cleaning effort in the Wicked Cave. It is a great new addition. I had a very memorable experience on this one, a true ‘floating in the moment’ event that I won’t forget, and will always try to recreate.

Caddywhompus 14a, 2^nd ascent
-Another abandoned, partially bolted line on the Project Wall that Joe Kinder made real through his belief and vision and effort. It is a new gem for the canyon.

Living the Dream 14a, equipped, 2^nd ascent
-An open and abandoned bolting permit led me to this; my first route in Rifle. A right finish/extension to the notorious ‘Living in Fear’, which has always been a very special route to me. It was a bit of an emotional roller coaster up through its completion, but well worth it all.

Class Act 14a, 1^st ascent
-It is a mega pitch some 45-50 meters long that was only made possible by Chris Weidner’s effort in the creation of the ‘Simply Read’ extension, and openness to me climbing it via a different route. It climbs ‘Present Tense’ to the last bolt and then moves right and climbs to the very top of the Project wall.

Let it Burn 13d, equipped, 1^st ascent
-It is a logical and obvious and very quality alternate finish to ‘Sometimes Always’ that climbs into ‘Living the Dream’.

Oh, and…we made this too in Rifle this summer…

The Amazing Issue Hits the Crags; Hilarity Ensues from Rock & Ice on Vimeo.

And now, my season has come to a close, and these successes are locked in the past. They are cherished tests and creations, but ultimately just pieces of rock that are not so special or unlike any other. What is more important for me to realize and remember is the heart of my experience; who I was in those moments, how I had to conform and adapt to each unique situation, and the parts of myself that I normally don’t get to see.

I have bid adieu to my beloved canyon for a time. It was in a beautiful state on my last day. A hefty frost and subfreezing temps greeted us upon awakening from our slumber, but the sun warmed things up quickly. The trees were in their fall prime, bright golden yellow. The wind had a cold bite to it, and carried random leaves through the air and scattered them on the ground. The day was noticeably shorter, and the sun more orange than hot white, as in the middle of summer. As shade overcame the canyon, we departed. Onward to different places…

TURBO,

Immediately after the slow, steady, and stationary month of climbing in Turkey, I spent 6 fast paced weeks touring around central Europe, starting in the beginning of May. It was a completely different style of travel and life. We were constantly moving and we saw and did so much.

On March 30, Emily (Harrington) and I flew from Antalya, Turkey to Istanbul to spend a couple days. It is a large, old, and important city; half in Asia, and half in Europe. It is where the eastern world collides with the western world. We spent our days walking through the city, getting properly lost, stopping often to take chai (tea) in the mornings and Arak (anise liquer) in the afternoons. After a couple days of touring and sight seeing, on Apr 3, we flew from Istanbul to Zurich, Switzerland, rented a car, and drove it to Innsbruck, Austria. James (Pearson), who had accompanied us in Turkey, had invited us to visit. He is a kind and strong Brit, and had recently moved to there. Also, Boone (Speed) and his special lady friend, Jill (Daniel), rendezvoused with us here. We stayed a few days, and James showed us around. Innsbruck is a really cool, active, outdoorsy mountain town. The weather was poor; mostly cold, lots of rain, with only small breaks of no precipitation. It had been this way throughout Europe for a few weeks, and much to our disappointment, it would remain like this for our entire stay. Because of the weather, we climbed inside at the famous gym called Tivoli, but a couple breaks allowed us to visit the granite in the Zillertal and limestone at Schleierwasserfall. Both are amazing crags in beautiful settings.

From Innsbruck we drove to Val di Mello, Italy for a very large bouldering festival called Melloblocco. It takes place at the very end of a narrow, winding, pristine valley of granite where there are blocs littered everywhere beneath big sheer walls. We were invited to attend and participate on behalf of The North Face, with TNF European team members James (Pearson), Iker and Eneko Pou. We hung out and bouldered (Video) for a couple days with them and some of the TNF Europe employees, and then went back to Innsbruck with James for a couple more days. We then drove to Asolo/Montebelluna, Italy for about 5 days. We visited the TNF European office and the Scarpa global headquarters. We climbed outside 2 days at the limestone crags of Erto and Lumignano. Both are pretty historical Italian areas. Erto was “futuristic” in its time due to its steep overhanging walls, and Lumignano is classic vertical to slightly overhanging sheer walls with big pulls between small pockets. We hiked (soloed the via feratta) up Mt. Grappa another day, and spent 1 rainy day losing our way in the labyrinth that is Venice.

From there, we went to Osp, Slovenia to climb outside for a day at Misja Pec. It is an impressive zone, and a worthy modern area. We will undoubtedly return to for an extended stay to climb on the abundant featured overhanging limestone. We then drove to visit the capital of Ljubljana. It’s a hip, young, slightly grungy city with a warm feel. We then drove north to visit Vienna, Austria, and then onward to Prague, Czech Republic for a couple days. Both are beautiful classical European cities, with their own unique feels and flavors, sights and smells.

We then went to Decin, Czech Rep and climbed outside for 2 days with Adam Ondra in one of his home areas. He is an impressive individual; young, quiet, humble, strong and passionate. We bouldered and went tower climbing on very high quality sandstone. The route climbing is old school. 20 to 40 ft run outs between huge rusted out ring bolts. The ethics of the area are strict due to the softer nature of sandstone. They use knotted cord and rope to place in cracks for protection, and they only barely allowed the use of chalk a couple years ago. Adam was actually banned from the area for a couple years, because he was in a photo that showed him using chalk on a hard route in the area. Everyone else was using chalk at that time, but he was acted against as an example to the community, because of his status and media publicity. It is all just fine now that they have revoked the ban on chalk.

After, we went back to Innsbruck for a few days, and from there we went to Basel, Switzerland for 2 weeks. We visited the BD European offices and met the all the great people that work there. They showed us around the city, and took us out climbing, and had many great days with them. While in Turkey, Emily was cast for a role in a short film that would take place serendipitously in Basel. It was for an American artist by the name of Matthew Barney for an ongoing project of his called Drawing Restraint. He needed a blond, fair skinned, female to free solo the 90 ft inside wall of a museum in Basel called the Schaulager. So, she pretty much filled the requirements immediately, and in addition to hanging out and climbing with the people of BD Europe, we were hanging out with very significant figures in the modern art world. It was a crazy, yet special, way to spend the last couple weeks of our trip. There are many parallels between art and climbing, most importantly passion, creativity, and effort. There was a bond that I felt happen there between us, as climbers, and the art people, a mutual respect that grew into admiration. I thought I could read their minds, “You mean you really just climb? That’s it? You care so much about climbing? It’s so abstract, different, pointless in a way.” Likewise, in our minds, we were like, “You really just make or buy or sell art? That’s all? Even this super weird stuff? For what? Why?” It wasn’t that we were able to answer these questions about each other, but that our places in the world seemed the same. Art and climbing are about the internal individual experience, the feeling of being totally immersed in something from that is motivated from within. There are no answers, only more questions. There are only the feelings, the drive, to move and create and explore. It was a deep and thoughtful and inspiring way to end this grand trip, and when were finally finished and departed, I was filled with a renewed purpose, surer of my path and place.

See the whole trip on a map: HERE.

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Ljubljana, Slovenia to Vienna, Austria to Prague, Czech Republic

PHOTOS

PHOTOS

FREE RANGE TURKEY_dispatch #8 from camp4 collective on Vimeo.