Day 2 in The Tanks

Let's start from early this morning....really really early this morning when we were woken up by coyotes howling not too far from our tent. I was laying there groggy eyed trying to count how many were around and where they were based on the howls and yelps. I noticed Larry was awake as well, due to the coyotes, and some how I managed to say in relief, "Good thing they`re all on your side." Not that it mattered which side they were on, which is why we were dying laughing in our nylon coyote proof tent.

There's a common area on the ranch we are staying at...its pretty much a glorified barn... its where the climbers gather to talk about their days accomplishments and failures. Everyone is really laid back. We've hung out and climbed with people from Vancouver to Seattle to Colorado to the Carolinas... From people who are sharing their first climbing trip to the Tanks to 20 year veterans of the area...overall a pretty awesome atmosphere to be in.

This morning we had our eyes set on the classic problem "Nobody Here Gets Out Alive" (V2) It's said to be one of the best problems for its grade. Well truth be told, the real reason we were looking to overcome this route was because Larry wanted to climb a route named after a lyric in the Doors song "Five to One".

 The tricky part was actually finding the specific boulder with the specific route when there are literally thousands of boulders and walls to make our way through. After finding the "trail" that led over the slabs of rock and gullies we found our mark by matching photos from our guide book to the boulder. As is usually the case we are the only ones around for a time, until a group passes through or wishes to share the route with you, which isn't a problem since everyone is nice and throws down extra crash pads under the route. Our pads are set under the route, we've sized up the problem, and from behind me I hear Larry making a commotion. I turn around and I see him pulling spines out of his ass right in front of a good size prickly pear cactus  (See photo). All I could muster up to say was, "You didn't just do that!" Apparently, he bent down to pick up his chalk bag before getting on the route and he sat right into a good size pad of the cactus. So of course I grabbed the camera, since no one would believe this without evidence...as I was laughing because I'm sure if we had placed a bet we would agree I would be the one to do that. So for a good 30 minutes he stood around pulling spines not out of his shorts but out of his ass, through his shorts. After seeing him go through the hassle and pain of removing the spines I don't know if I am more worried about the abundant cactus or the rattlesnake that I've had my eyes peeled for.

The other tricky part of bouldering is trying to find the starting holds when they are not mentioned in the guide book. Thankfully, a local climber gave us the beta we needed to start the route. After spending a good amount of time at the boulder (we decided to take it easy today since our rest day that was supposed to be tomorrow turned out to be climbing with a guide in an area that is off limits to the public) we headed over to a bouldering area called The Gym. But to get there required squeezing through a long chimney (see photos), with the crash pads. We had to pass the pads to each other and toss them ahead just to be able to fit. Once "inside" the gym the wind hit us hard. It was windy all day but it seemed like the tight corridor and area of the gym forced the wind at our climb. After messing around on some easier stuff we called it a day and had to reverse the process of the squeeze. We were glad to reach the car, albeit feeling mentally and physically exhausted- fingers raw, shoulder and back tight, wind burnt, probably slightly dehydrated (Doesn't matter how much you drink while climbing in the desert, it simply just isn't enough).

So, when we came back to our tent that is planted on the ranch, we found out that although it is "coyote proof", it apparently isn't desert sand proof (even with the rain fly). The inside floor of the tent and our sleeping bags were covered with the fine sand that blew through the mesh of the tent, under the rain fly. After a quick shake out we hit what feels like the best shower we ever had and now we are here posting the sample of photos for the day and this write up on the blog.

Now for the tunes:
Velvet Revolver- Libertad
The Doors- Waiting for the Sun

And for the latest addition to the blog: The Quote of the Day: (although the coyotes being on Larry's side of the tent was a good one, we chose the following)

Larry: "What are the little blue ones for?" (Referring to the Asprin I handed him along with the multi-vitamin)
Alex: "If your hard for more than 6 hours seek medical attention."