Hot water bottles burn your skin: Joshua Tree Tweetup 2010

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This is going to sound gross, but tonight, three days after I got home, I put BACK ON the base layer I wore for THREE DAYS in a row at JTree and went running.

I found the leftover campfire smell soothing. Don't judge me.


Last Wednesday I hopped a plane and flew to California. To clarify, there was a lot more thought and planning involved. Twenty-five climbers, linked by twitter, met in the desert for a long weekend of climbing and bonding. I now call "Face Collecting" my official hobby. In the past year and a half I've met more amazing people than in the previous five combined. My "know in real life" list is long and out of date and I love it. My life is richer, and I am braver than I was before. This week in Joshua Tree was epic, and I wouldn't have experienced it without these amazing people.

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Me at the top of The Swift

The Tick List:

11/11/10 - Thin Wall in Real Hidden Valley:
- Ain't Nothin But a J Tree Thing 5.6
- Almost Vertical 5.7
- Butterfingers make me horny 5.8
- Child's Play 5.10c
Cyclopse Rock
- The Eye 5.4
11/12/10 - Atlantis Wall in Lost Horse
- Men with Cow's Heads 5.5
- Solar Technology 5.7
- Ceremony 5.10c
- Vorpal Sword 5.8
- Fantasy of Light 5.10a
- Minotaur 5.7
Gun Smoke in Echo Cove
11/13/10 - Lost Horse
- The Swift 3 pitch 5.7, 10a finish
Echo Cove
- Bacon Flake5.8 + lava and tarantulas
Headstone in Ryan Campground 5.9

The Eye

My big moment was leading Men with Cows heads on Atlantis Wall. After letting the mind bending perspective of Cyclopes get the best of me, a victory felt good. I was racking up, getting ready to end my day with a lead on The Eye, when some random guy said he was going to "scamper" past me. He soloed it. That pretty much ended it for me. He broke my confidence and concentration, doing without a rope what I was afraid to do at all.

Men with Cows Heads was the first thing I got on the next day. After a good 15 min spent figuring out the crux, then getting up the guts to commit, I sent it like a champ.

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Saturday, Patrick and I went to find our multi-pitch route. The Swift is a beautiful, classic, easy 5.7. I was looking forward to easy and scenic. Patrick got off route and finished on a 10a variation of the 3rd pitch. Not easy. Much to my dismay I had to follow. Mark another milestone: I aided my first route. Cracks aren't my thing yet, finger cracks on a roof even less. Dunno how Patrick pulled that off, but he did. And I didn't kill him when I reached the top. Score one for self control!

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Katie Beth and Peter

Eileen (@RockGrrl) did a great job of herding us around, suggesting climbs and being the "camp mom." The evening we spent at Gun Smoke was a blast. I've always looked down a bit on bouldering, but I gained a new appreciation for it that night. Bouldering may not require much gear and technical knowledge, but it's a great facilitator of friendship, conversation, and encouragement.

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Eileen on Vorpal Sword

Lasers!

By far my favorite thing this trip was Saturday dinner around the campfire. 25 friends, 8 different conversations, beer, a telescope, and the glow of the fire. I gave myself a moment to back up and just watch. So many smiles. I want that scene burned into my brain. I learned lots about climbing this trip (yay cracks! Thanks Laurel!), but the biggest lesson was that people really are the most important thing in life.  Sitting around the campfire I saw that - old friends (Peter, Dave, Rick) and new (EVERYONE ELSE!), friends from opposite sides of the country, from all different backgrounds, enjoying eachother's company. The climbing may have been great, but the people were even greater. If we strive and achieve, but we forget to love and value each other, our success is worth nothing. It takes effort to take care of our friends and our community, but it's worth the work.

It's worth every moment, smile, penny, phone call, email and tweet.

Giraffe.

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Yay twinsies! Twice! Or something...

Joshua Tree Tweetup 2010 from Aleya Littleton on Vimeo.