18 Jan 2013

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18 Jan 2013
I have now been working for six days at the Milford Sound lodge. The work is pretty easy but can be kind of boring. I have been stripping beds and remaking them, vacuuming dorm rooms and small cabins as well as cleaning bathrooms. I end up have the same routine everyday, but I only work for four hours so its not too bad. On the positive side I have been climbing just about everyday after work. There are four or five different crags around here with an assortment of grades at each. Most of the routes are graded 23 and higher, some of them as high as 30 and 31. Before coming to Milford Sound I was climbing 19s and 21s with confidence. Since I have been here I have climbed a few 19s and a 20 or two, but I have also gotten on a 23 and even a 26. When I climbed the 23 I was able to climb it except for one part, so I was pretty happy with that. I ended up getting on that same route three times. When I got on the 26, I was only able to get just passed the second bolt while leading it. Most of the climbing here is all overhung and can get my forearms sore pretty quick. Being here for a while and climbing on these hard of routes will help me to become a stronger climber and stronger in general as well. Like I said before, I have been climbing pretty much everyday after work and have been either going with a couple of co-workers or some friends of my co-workers. Yesterday we went to one of the crags called the Chasm. The Chasm has routes graded from 19 up to about 27. I climbed up to this spot of the Chasm wall called the Chill Out Ledge and from there, there is about four or five different routes that you can climb. The Chasm wall and Chill Out Ledge is the best place to be and climb if it is raining at all, because pretty much the entire wall is overhanging and pretty much no water touches the wall. When I got out to the wall yesterday it was a beautiful sunny day but after being up on the Chill Out Ledge for a couple of hours the wind changed direction and some nasty rain clouds moved in above us and just starting dumping for about 30 minutes. You could see the rain come in and head rift for us and then move right on passed us and down the valley. It was pretty cool to be perfectly dry and watch the rain coming down in sheets.

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