photolog

Bluestone

In Céüse last summer I was struck by just how blue and finely featured the limestone was. It was incredible. It was amazing. It made for a good excuse for me to slow down on that crazy-ass uphill hike to the crag. What killed me was that regardless of how early we set out for the cliffs, there was always someone already on what we wanted to climb. I'll save the rant for another day.

It's old; it's part of King Lines, but I like it. Chris Sharma on Three Degrees of Separation (9a) in Ceüse.

I'm trying to remember if I ever did a dyno. I'm not a dyno kind of girl; I'm more a deadpoint type. Something about launching myself into the air to latch on to a hold just beyond my reach, and failing that, fallingfallingfalling and emitting a wimpy "Aaaarrrggggghhhhh!" just before the surprisingly elastic dynamic rope catches you 15 feet later, just makes me cringe.

Must. Boulder. More.

A serving of sun

"Except the vine, there is no plant which bears a fruit of as great importance as the olive."

- Pliny

We cured our own olives this winter.

I am so proud of our olives! Two weeks before we left, we picked two bags of fruit from the trees, washed them and spun them in the salad spinner, then layered them with sea salt in two tall jars. Then we drained them of the resulting bitterness, and added more sea salt, and shook them every other day. We started to taste them after the first week, because we had to leave soon. We were so very excited. The day the taste went from bitter to salty, we were ecstatic.

Olives!

Two weeks to transform from horrid, bitter marbles to sublime salty nuggets. Dark olives, cured a la Grecque. From OUR trees. With OUR own hands.

Barndoor

"And the trick is to place your feet and to do a quick, smooth move to a layback.You have to do it really fast and precise 'cause if not you open out so that's it's hard to keep on the rock."

- Adam Pustelnik

szaFa_gra presents Polish climber Adam Pustelnik redpointing Shangri-La (8c+) in the Frankenjura. I recognize this route; it's at the Teufelsrißmassiv at Schlaraffenland, just above Hirschbach. Hirschbach being 5 minutes over the hill from our house in Vorra. We lived in a good location, that's for sure!

On Beauty

Beauty is not caused. It is.

- Emily Dickinson

Miss Dickinson, how eloquent you are.

I've never read any of her novels, but I will, now. I've been looking through her quotes, and I can get a sense of who she was from them. There's a depth of feeling that I can relate to; she must have gone through some great emotional turbulence that forever changed her...

Another new adventure

The Grand Tour continues...

Au revoir. Farewell, auf wiedersehen, adéu, arrivederci, na svidenje, αντιο, hoşça kalı to 2008!

Aquarelle

I do know, and not because my talented husband painted this, that some scenes are as beautiful, just so, painted on paper, as the real, living, breathing, golden-setting-sun, vineyard-in-the-hills, lavender-scented, cigales-chirping-madly-outside-the-window-in-the-evening, olive-laden-orchard, stereotypical French provincial countryside.

I do remember that he painted this under the influence of a good, moderately priced, bib (le bag-in-box, how funny that it's in English).

I do believe that this post contains the longest run-on sentence I've written in a while.

If wonderful were a color

Somewhere over the rainbow

Skies are blue,
And the dreams that you dare to dream

Really do come true.

Lyrics by E. Y. Harburg

This is a detail of the statue of Louis de Crillon, also known as Crillon le Brave. Taken at the village of Crillon-le-Brave, a pretty little town on a hill. Clear sky and sun create gorgeous colors. I love blue sky. It doesn't matter where: at the cliffs, climbing; by the river, sunbathing; here in the countryside in the south of France; there by the ocean in Southern California. I could live anywhere so long as I can look up and see blue, blue sky.

It has been wonderful, our European grand tour.

Play

Light-Paint Piano Player from Ryan Cashman on Vimeo.

This is really cool. It's a photography technique transferred over to video with great results.

Lynn Hill 5.13b onsight Nov 2008 from joe hedge on Vimeo.

The video above reminds me of another Lynn Hill video in which she onsights The Perfect Child (7c+, 13a). She talks about what it takes to onsight a route:

"You wanna shit with the big dogs? Stop pissing with the puppies."

- Terrell Singleterry, The Hard Corps (2006).

Healthy attitude

It's not that I don't have things to say of my own, it's just that I'm still sifting through the 50 gig of pictures we've taken over the past 1 1/2 years, and I can find ABSOLUTELY NOTHING that I want to write about, right now. How is that possible?

This is Big Up Productions' multimedia profile of Chris Sharma.

It's deep winter and we cannot climb. I'm just biding time now. Hoping for a drastic change in weather, in outlook. There is so much to say.

Of the OMG variety

I could be really, truly bored. But then again, not. Throughout this clip I kept saying, "Ohmigod!" and Frank kept saying, "Shut up!" My husband. So eloquent.

This takes me back some three or four years ago, back when I was working, back when I had a full-time job and worked in an office and had co-workers and health insurance. Hello? That sounds like a million years ago.

One day, IT and Creative were playing foosball, which I usually don't play, since I know I suck compared to the others, and having me as a partner guarantees that my poor foosball partner does double duty. In a way it's good, since it allows them (mostly guys) to play macho man, and some of them think it's funny when I squeal and jump up in the air when we—I mean, my partner—score a goal. It's surprising that I'm not better at this game, since it involves a lot of wrist action, something that as a climber I should have have. However, playing foosball involves good reflexes. Hand-eye coordination. While I can pat my head and rub circles on my tummy while jumping on one foot with the other behind my back, under pressure I can't seem to move my right hand fast enough to make my foosmen protect the goal. So the other team scores and I shuffle back to my desk and do some work. My partner picks another person and lo and behold, they're up 5-to-1 in a matter of minutes.

Anyway, it was a foosball kind of mid-afternoon. I was doing something half-heartedly when my co-worker Charlie called me over and showed me a site of the worst prom dresses of all time. "Holy shit," I said, and demanded the link so I could ogle at my desk, because I had the 22" monitor, perfect for viewing party dresses, not, as my art director had intended, spreads of a company styleguide. As we scrolled through the pictures, what came out of my mouth were a series of OMGs and OMFGs that became louder and louder, and that brought people to my monitor to look. And then another series of OMGs, mostly from the women. And hysterical laughter, mostly from the men. It made me think that the silver sequinned slip dress I wore at my prom was conservative compared to some of those beauties. And by god, I'm thankful it was.

I can't find the link to the site, but I did a search and found some of the old pictures. This site has the safer ones, this site has some of the crazy ones.

I dare you not to say one OMG.

Bouldering in India

Liv Sansoz returned to climbing last summer and she's been traveling. We saw her in Siurana--she borrowed our topo and asked for directions to Can Piqui Pugui. This video by Mpora TV (home of so-called Sweetspots) finds her in Hampi, India, for bouldering.

This interview is about her return to the sport. Don't forget page two.

This is her climbing blog.

Since I'm on the subject of women climbers, here's Martina Cufar's news page, lots of insights into the trips she's taken.

In the company of popes

On a rest day, we drove down to Avignon. It was one of those days: cold and clear, a bit breezy, chilly wind gusts. A rest day. The palace beckoned.

Historic buildings are infinitely fascinating. They leave me in awe, filled with wonder. Thinking about the age when they were built, when they were alive, full of people, full of life. Today I marvel at the worn flagstones, the statues crumbling bit by bit. Pigeons fly in to roost in the eaves, in the same way they must have done so many, many years ago. Time marches on.

And so, the Palais des Papes, monument to the Schism, which resulted in two papacies. It leaves me cold; it's impressive, but oppressive. It's solid, and worn in places, and full of soaring halls and tiny rooms. It's a monument to religion. To Power.

By and large, the rooms in the palace are empty, devoid of furnishings. All the tapestries and furniture were taken when the papacy reverted back to Rome. At other times during its use, the palace housed soldiers, so it was a multi-purpose dwelling. The pope's rooms, painted in blue with gold scrollwork, were beautiful but not well-lit. I think this space, a chapel, and the receiving hall, were the best of the rooms.

Halfway through our walk in the palace, a cat walked through one of the rooms. It completely ignored us; it was probably prowling for mice. When the docent came by a few moments later, I told her, "Il y a un chat la bas!" "Mais oui," she replied, as if it was the most natural thing in the world. "C'est le chat de la maison."

Quelle charmant!

The cafés were closed, the chairs and tables secured to lampposts. It's that time of the year, when the cold chases people in. But for those who brave the mistrals, the cold can be just as beautiful.

Blogworthy: Funny. This guy sent a drawing of a spider as payment for his credit card bill. (Just between you and me, this guy may be crackers.)

While in Siurana...

Happy birthday, Hailey Paige!

La Rambla (9a+) by Chris Sharma par Petzl-crew

You have to see the line in person to see how impressive it really is.

When we were there last year, we'd pass by and our eyes would train from the base all the way to the top and we'd say, "Wow." We stayed in the Siurana campsite and in Siuranella from the end of October to the end of November before heading north to Les Bruixes, and for the entire time we were there we'd hear people say they saw Chris Sharma working on this route. It put a bit of a thrill into the campsite, I have to say, and we hoped that one day we'd spot him on it.

So one day (you know what's coming), we warmed up on a trio of 6s, looking around to see where we'd climb that day. Siurana gets fairly crowded during the winter, not just from the international crowd, but from the local climbers too. We always try to find a patch of routes that don't have a clusterfuck at the bottom; we don't like to be around smokers or particularly loud people. So we look around and find 3 climbs next to each other and put our stuff down. The next thing you know, we hear voices. Frank and I look at each other and we roll our eyes. People. They're coming here.

Two people emerge from the brush and I recognized the guy immediately but not the girl. In English he asked, "Hey guys. Do you mind if we climb here with you?"

Suffice it to say that he and his girlfriend were really nice and low-key. We chatted a bit but we left them alone to do their route (a 7b warmup) while we did ours (a 7b project). They looked through the guidebook to find their bearings. They spoke to each other in Spanish ("tranquillo", which I heard many times over the course of our stay in Siurana), so he's getting pretty good at the language. They left shortly after, leaving us to our cozy little spot.

Frank asked, "Was that who I think it was?" I replied, "Yes." To which Frank replied, "He's shorter than I thought." And I said, "God they're strong. And she's tiny!"

And then Frank, noticing something in the dirt, bent down and picked up a box. "Hey, he left his biscuits!" And so we ended up with Chris Sharma's Hobnobs, which we jokingly called "Sharma Biscuits". Frank ended up onsighting an 8a, and I redpointed it second try. It must have been due to those biscuits.

Seeing Red

EuroClimbing.com reports on Adam Ondra's redpoint of Open Air (9a+) in Schleierwasserfall, Austria (translation). It's amazing to note that this was first redpointed by Alex Huber back in 1996; this means that the climbing level was already at that level twelve years ago. More good photos here of Adam on his route, as well as Zillertal.

When PlanetMountain.com interviewed Alex Huber in early November, they asked him about Adam repeating Weisse Rose (9a), and the present state of grades:

"At present Adam Ondra is the climber who belongs not only to the future, but who also manages to contribute to the development of this sport today. Adam isn't only a good climber, he has charisma and manages to see what is important for sport climbing. I'm obviously extremely happy that he found his way to the Schleierwasserfall and that he repeated Weisse Rose.

"Let me give you an example [about difficulties in grading]: Adam confirmed my thoughts about Weisse Rose: it's harder than La Rambla. It's a fact that La Rambla increased in grade from 8c+ to 9a+. Often people believe this is due to the route extension, but in reality the difficulties do not change substantially with this extension. The difficulty in traversing from the Rambla belay rightwards to finish up Reina Mora, compared to the crux on La Rambla, is not relevant. To this you also have to add the fact that La Rambla isn't harder than Action Direct [sic] and therefore cannot be harder than 9a. In 1995 Action Directe was given 8c+, that is why my routes such as Weisse Rose and La Rambla had to be given 8c+. Nowadays Action Direct [sic] is considered to be the benchmark 9a, so both Weisse Rose and La Rambla turned into 9a. And if you take Action Direct as a reference for 9a, then I believe many current top routes are considerably overgraded.

"...If you use modern day parameters and you consider La Rambla as a 9a+, then consequently my Open Air should be given 9a+, too.

"Yes [standards have risen in the meantime], but I believe that a right step towards a hitherto unseen difficulty has only been taken now. Chris Sharma is the driving force behind all of this, his ability has always been phenomenal. I think it's a shame that these incredible performances are cast in a less beautiful light my doubtful performances of others. Sharma or Ondra--those who climb as hard as they do--manage to prove their potential not just on one amazing route, but again and again. We're not talking about a single 9a here or there, we're talking about 9a's [sic] in series! It's a truly impressive result which goes well beyond what climbers were capable of doing in the past.

"Nowadays people presume that Jumbo Love is potentially the hardest route in the world. What I find curious is that still today most magazines, without hesitating, place Jumbo Love together with Akira and Chilam Balam. Had 9b been climbed in 1995, more than a decade ago therefore, then Chris Sharma's performance seems like a kindergarten! Furthermore one has to understand clearly how long Chris Sharma's journey has been to get where he is today. And one also bear in mind what extraordinary talent Sharma possesses, and has had to use, to get where his is today. Unlike others, Sharma has proven his talent hundreds of times in the past and will do so time and time again in the future. Chris has created and earned his credibility. One thing should be clear: we all want to believe other climbers! But without this willingness I cannot believe in their ascents because the history of humanity has taught us that one shouldn't believe blindfold[ed]."

Red River Gorge 2007 - The movie par Petzl-crew

Video: Erwan Lelann, Guillaume Broust
Music: eKoman featuring Paty Thioune
Vocals: Laurence Gullon

Length: 14:40

There are more climbing videos on DailyMotion. This links to the Petzl Crew's video list.

When we return to the U.S. after the Grand Tour, we definitely want to hit the Red River Gorge. Life should be one continuous road trip!

Golden

We like light. Lots of it, anywhere. Light when it hits things. Light and shadow.

I've taken to calling this the Mother Tree. It's not a particularly big tree, nor is it wide or imposing. It's not even the oldest in the forest.

I like it the most out of all the trees in this particular wood because it's bathed in light at all times of the day. In the mornings its leaves form a bright crown. In the evenings the sun is softened into a glow. It's a beacon. It would be the one tree where as a child playing tag one of your rules would be, "You're safe at the Mother Tree." It would be the tree I'd pause at, to stretch before a run. It would be the marker for me to stop too, on the way back from said run.

It's got vines all over it. Vines are such lovely parasites, don't you think?

Some days ago we found upturned soil all around the base of the Mother Tree. We think it's sangliers, wild boars, rooting around for god knows what. Acorns? Are acorns tasty wild boar food? I can't imagine it's truffles, I don't think we're in a truffle kind of wood. We're in a climbing kind of wood.

We spent most of September and all of October working the routes at le Grozeau. In general, French climbers are known for their climbing style, their great footwork. This cliff, Mon Elle du Desir, gave us good practice. Stick your toe into the slightest indentation; don't worry, it'll hold. Or try that mossy nubbin there. Or that bit of crumbly ledge. Yes, it'll hold if you believe in your feet. We did 16 of the 19 routes before the rain and the winds came. And now? It's cold and wet. Oh, for some sun!

Frank. Walking ahead because I'm always stopping to take pictures of the light, or to look at a random mushroom, or to think about the wild boars' upturning the soil on the path. He's unaware of the giant maple leaves I've stuck in the loops of his backpack. He's unaware of my hidden smiles.

The trail to le Grozeau, popular with both hikers and climbers. No wonder. Fifty meters in and you feel like you're the only person in the world. Quiet. Serene. Columns of regal pines and oaks, passing time as idly as us. The light filtered through the leaves and needles in glorious shades of gold. Golden. Just the way we like it.

(An art teacher of mine once said that West Coast light is very stark and bright; East Coast light is softer and has more variations. It's a generalization, but we were referring to my rather awful still lifes. She was very kind, Kate. I may have saved a couple of canvases, but for the most part I've left painting to my talented husband.)

Blogworthy:

1: The Boston Globe's wonderful photo blog, The Big Picture, is one of my latest subscriptions. Today's post is Scenes from Antarctica.

2: A Good graphic explaining the economy. I like this a lot. I think anything can be better explained with an excellent illustration or chart.

3: My Knitting Patterns page. Of course it's blogworthy. If you knit.