I'm Alive and Outside in Colorado

Hello Friends!
Yes, I had a bout of illness but I popped back up just like toast. No time to be sick. Estes Park is nicely setup to go carless, so we shuttled up to The Bear Lake Trailhead for an easy day of hiking. We''ll things went just fine so we did a lot of hiking. Dream Lake, Emerald Lake, Hia yayaya Lake (I might have mispelled that) Alberta Falls and Glaiser Basin. All perty, perty, so here is a slide show for you.
I believe tomorrow is climbing day at Lumpy Ridge.

Unclimbed Peaks Still Exist

The people quoted in the post a few days ago said there were no more unclimbed peaks so what was the point of even climbing.

Well, you can go here and find unclimbed peaks. Or go here. Or here. Or, closer to home, the Neacola Mountain Range in Alaska.

Some Taylors Falls Photos

Ron climbing with his pack 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aaron leading "Rosebush"

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lisa Got To Colorado

And is sicker than a dog.

Get well soon.

Mike, Is Your New Climbing Wall Like This?

Heard Mike was building a new climbing wall. Does it look like this?

Does Climbing Matter Anymore?

A provocative title of this NY Times article. Included are these quotes about the recent K-2 accident:

'Dozens of readers commented at the New York Times Web site with sentiments overwhelmingly along these lines: “Utterly pointless. What a waste of time and lives.” Or, “Why is this news? Reckless incompetents commit utterly predictable suicide, endangering rescuers.” Or, simply, “No Sympathy. Sorry.”'

"But climbers argued last week that despite the tragedy, there was value in taking risks against nearly impossible odds, testing the strengths of human nature in extremes, and continuing to explore the world’s frontiers."

So what do you think? When conquering the last unclimbed peaks,

"There was something pure and glorious in what they did as they climbed into worlds where no one else had been."

Since there no more peaks to conquer, is mountain climbing not heroic anymore? Does it matter? And to whom is it supposed to matter?

(Also check out the interactive graphic on the K-2 accident.)

Friday at Taylor's Falls

Set up the top ropes and belay on down! That's how things began at TF on Friday. It wasn't too hot but at least it was muggy as we began our escapades whilst QD's mom looked on from her lawn chair. She is very brave to spectate at the likes of us. Ron did a little climbing with a full pack. Richard used his top rope set up skill...a lot. I fought the battle of the bulge and won...kinda. A1 did a little trad leading with a skittish belayer. They both survived. We left with the same number of dogs that we arrived with AND got a Dairy Queen (haha! that's a DQ for QD et al) A very good day to be alive and outside in Minnesota.
I'm leaving for Colorado in the moring but I have a phone and computer access. You won't even know I'm gone!

Needles on the 21

Hello, Jake and I are planning a trip to needles on the way back from the rockies. If you have any good websites I should look at or guide books I should have please let me know.
Thanks

Longs Peak Done

Last Night Jake, Lyle, Andrew, and I set off on our adventure. We got to the trail head at around Midnight and started our adventure. This was one of the hardest hikes I have ever done. The first 6.75 miles were fine and dandy. We got lost around 4 times, searching for Carren stones in a boulder field larger than you can imagine and we got up to the keyhole around 415. We tried sleeping for a while but I got a 10 minute nap in and said lets go summit lyle! Andrew and Jake continued to sleep for 2 hours in the stone building we had found. There was only 1.25 miles left of our journey but this is where it began. Although we had hiked 6.75 miles the ascent was nearly half over. I traversed across for 400 yards and lyle exclaimed "I can't" in his taiwanese accent and he said he would wait for me there, as I told him to get comfortable. After a .5 mile hike up the well known "trough" I was pooped. A forty five degree incline full of softball size boulders to couch size boulders. I then traversed another 400 yards where I was met by a granite ramp which was the last but hardest thing I would have to do. After pushing my self to a drunken state of altitude I reached the top of the mountain and the end of the targets spray painted on the rocks. I had made it at 6.37 am, the first person to reach that summit on the fifth of august. I was met by my new friend nick who gave me a delicious Cranberry almond cliff bar. I was then met by andrew arriving at 7:30. Jake will tell his story on another blog. Here is some pics from my phone before it stopped working. It was way cooler than the pics by the way.

Report From The First Ascent Of Super Pin

Found this quote in the Piana guide book to climbing in the Needles of South Dakota. This is a report from the first ascent of Super Pin - one of the climbs we did last Saturday.

"My belayer Ron was too nervous to belay after I had gone beyond both the point of no return and my protection against falling to the ground. We certainly felt it would be better for him to be in the best position should I succeed rather than in the best position to witness my failure...  The holds were small & occasionally loose & Ron was observing from the safety of the highway."

Longs Peak Tonight

Tonight Jake and I are hiking longs peak. For those of you not aware of Longs Peak, here you go. Longs peak is a famous 14,teener in colorado 15 miles from Estes Park. Longs Peak is the 15th highest mountain in Colorado. This compares nothing to Mount Harvard the third highest that I did when I was 14 haha. This hike consists of a 5000 vertical distance and 14 miles round trip. Because of weather issues they constrict you from being up at the top after noon. Therefore Jake and I are starting at 11 tonight to see the sunrise at the top. Hope to post pics tomorow. seeyou!

Twin Peaks

(I know, most of you don't even remember that old TV show.)

Ward Onsighting Tricouni Nail

Here's a video of Ward onsighting Tricouni Nail last Saturday. (The sun was shining in the camera and made it hard to film.) If the player below doesn't work, here's the link.

ward Tricouni mpg from rgsletten on Vimeo.

"Beta Lickers"

Is what the Black Hills Climbers called us as we climbed on top ropes set up by them in the Ten Pins area of the Needles.

That's alright with me. Most of these climbs were first done 40 years ago and the pitons and bolts that are left, are of that vintage. And, one of the routes we top roped, "Super Pin," has two bolts on it; one at about 15 feet above the start and the other about 10 feet below the summit. And it's around 75 feet tall. (Just before the lead climber got to the 2nd bolt, he told Ward - who was belaying him - "I'm on my own now. You can't catch me. So don't jump over the edge if I fall." With that in mind, I'll proudly wear the badge of "Beta Licker."

Of course, when we told them we had climbed in Spearfish, they called us "Jug Haulers." I told them we'd rather be referred to as "Bolt Lickers."

Buddy At Camp

Buddy our canine climbing companion went to Camp Mahtomedi where Lisa is the Camp Director. He studied up on Darwin and afterward was rewarded with a refreshing treat.