Hope on the Horizon

Which horizon you ask? The 10-day forecast I reply.

Intellicast is calling for great weather in Baraboo next Friday-Sunday (March 6-8). Sun and temps at or above the freezing mark. If this forecast holds it will be officially rock climbing season at Devil's Lake. I am writing this for myself, I need to believe.

The Winter of 2014/15 (so far)

So far it has been a mediocre winter for climbing in southwest Wisconsin, and real life has kept me from traveling too far afield since my trip to Jackson Falls over Halloween weekend. A quick check of my records shows only forty "pitches" in the last three months, more than half of which were laps on the short waterfall at the head of Cox Hollow in Governor Dodge State Park. I have been doing a lot of running, lifting, skiing and training on my campus and finger boards, but that is a weak substitute for the real thing. The ten-day forecast does not inspire any confidence either, and I think I am coming down with a solid case of cabin fever (despite seventeen-odd miles on skis and/or foot and about 400 feet of climbing in the last week).

A Couple Days of Ice Climbing at Governor Dodge State Park

In the last couple of weeks, I have managed to sneak down to Governor Dodge for some ice climbing a couple times since Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving Day:

 Today:
The second one is deliberately cheesy, but it was fun to make.

WAGG Day 7 - Goes 22-24

I have been nursing a sore shoulder for a few weeks now, and I have not been resting it like I should. Today looked like it might be the last good rock climbing day for the year, so I had been planning all week to come up for the day. I had a good session on the hangboard on Thursday night, and planned on resting all day on Friday and Saturday to give the route one more solid effort before the season slipped away. Friday morning my dad called and asked me to help load a load of Christmas Trees at the family Christmas Tree Farm on Saturday...so much for resting. Sunday dawned, I was tired and sore, but I pointed the car north anyway and headed for one of the best routes in Wisconsin, if not the country.

Six Days in New Hampshire

I spent October 9th-14th in New Hampshire. It would be remiss of me to simply call it a climbing trip - it was much more than that. My friends Jay and Kayte not only showed me some of the best climbing New Hampshire has to offer, but also welcomed me into their home and introduced me to their beautiful new daughter, June, and loving pup, Topher.