First Days in Zion

This is going to be a poor introduction to one of the more beautiful areas I have ever seen. The sandstone wall go on forever. The Virgin river divides the tower cliffs and provides water for the lush flora and fauna that call Zion home. A real oasis in the middle of a barren land. It is no wonder why people have been calling this place home for thousands of years.

As far as the rock climbing is concerned...it is super RAD!!! Since Cameron is out of commission for a few weeks with some tweaked tendons, we spend the first few days in the park just hiking around. Luckily due to the interwebs, I was able to hook up with Drew, a fellow Texan, and do some climbing. The first day climbing, Drew, Chris (a friend of Drew), and I got to climb The Headache. This thing was awesome. Three pitches of great crack climbing. A good intro to Zion rock.

The next day, Drew and I decided that we are going to hop on Spaceshot. So in preparation for my first bigwall, I climbed the first pitch of Cherry Crack and practiced hauling (read lugging 100+lbs of rocks in bag up the wall). Long story short, it was quite difficult and a giant cluster, but I learned a lot. I think things should go smoother tomorrow when we get on the wall.

The plan is for me to free climb the first 3 pitches and haul, and then we will switch leads and Drew will lead the next two aid pitch. From here we will set up the portaledge and hunker in for the night. The next day we are going to blast to the summit and hopefully be down for victory beers well before dark.

It is going to be epic, but I am super stoked to sleep on the wall. I bringing up the gopro with me as well, so look forward to some videos to come.