multi-pitching madness

I am taking another quick moment to update this blog. It is just going to be staccato bursts at the moment. Life has gotten so busy again, mainly just with work and organizing this climbing film festival and climbing. Does busy-ness follow me? Or do I create it and tow it along behind me? Whatever the case, it does not really feel like a “holiday” anymore! But I am not complaining, I like to be busy… I think… to a point…

Anyway, the days since I have last written have been filled with organizing film festival logistics, serving customers (for me) and preparing for field trips (Jono), with a few sweet sunsets, swims and climbs thrown in.

Starting with our most recent escapade, Jono and I had a three-day weekend together and, two guesses on what we did with it. OK, so you probably don’t even need to guess… yep, it involved granite cracks and slabs and bolts and cams and wires… We went to Squamish and camped under the Chief, which was really sweet. It was great to camp there and feel a little more like part of the climbing community. We climbed for three days in a row, and on the last day we did a big multi pitch climb. We started at around 7:30am at the base of the Apron. 500 vertical meters of rock and almost 12 hours later we topped out on top of the Chief summit. Pretty amazing. It is the longest multi pitch either of us had done, and the first time I had led pitches on my own gear so high up off the ground! My muscles are feeling it today, but I have that sweet sense of satisfaction.

We both had a bit of a recovery day today. I have already mentioned that the sun has been making appearances. I think it is well and truly here now. Today was a 30 degree day, and sunny days are predicted for the next week. Woooo hoooooooo. Hello summer. While everyone around us is starting to drop from heat exhaustion and complain about heat waves, we are feeling right at home. Actually, while we were walking down from our climb on the Chief, someone was walking up and told us he thought we were brave climbing a big route on such a hot day. We both laughed after he was out of ear shot that “Vancouver heat waves aint nothing on Australian ones,” and remembered climbing at Arapiles on that heat wave 50 degree day after Christmas two years ago. It is all relative.

To celebrate the heat, we met up with Tim (from work) and Ash for a swim at a local river today, which was very sweet. Pretty nice to live about five to ten minutes away from a beautiful clear running turquoise river.

I have also included a few pictures of my working holiday job. As much as I may whinge about working in retail (even though I once said NEVER again!) I LOVE MY JOB. We got paid to go and climb for a day, then play around on a slackline, swim in a lake and have a bbq. I LOVE MY JOB. I am easily sold.

Bed time. G’night. Sweet dreams.

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