Return of the Sunburn...and all is good in the world

I don't have much to say today, except that Sunday at QQ turned into a pretty enjoyable day. I met up with "KITT", "Gecko", and the formerly known as "Asshole", who I have to come up with a new nickname for now that I know his kids look at the pictures. Oops! For the time being, I shall name him "Plymouth".

Quincy is a hit or miss place for me. I get bored there easily, mainly because I've done so much there that I'd just rather go someplace else. But each time I go I find a new way to challenge myself, even on the popular routes on the smooth, granite J-wall and K-wall (the prow). Yesterday was no different, as I tried a few new variations on the popular 5.9 and 5.10 routes. Of course, the new spray paint doesn't hurt the challenging part. The same old routes get changed every year with new blotches of paint, making last year's foot holds seem like this year's impossible nubs. We ticked off Ladder Line (5.11a on rockclimbing.com - odd because I swear the book says 5.10), Layback (5.6 - "Gecko" and "KITT"), Bombay (5.10a - we probably did a 5.8 version), Power of Positive Thinking (5.10a), Pins (5.10a), Tensile Strength (5.9), and Outside Corner (5.8). I also did a face climb to the right of Outside Corner that I don't remember the grade of. Depending on how one does it, it could be in the hard 5.10 range.

I was both amazed at the number of people I knew there who I didn't know were going to be there, and the lack of climbers there on such a nice day. I know, as I noted in my previous post on comps, a lot of folks headed down to the 'Gunks, but you would have thought there would have been a few more than a dozen cars parked in the lot and along the side of the road. I guess luck was on our side, though, as there were enough ropes to go around to create the usual gym-like atmosphere and yet it wasn't as busy as I expected it to be.

On the plus side, "Gecko" got his first outdoor climbs under his belt (except for bouldering, but we all know that doesn't count), "KITT" appears to be getting much stronger, and "Plymouth" was tooling around with gear just so he could learn how it feels. The top of my head is a little pink (not helped by standing in the sun today while watching the Boston Marathon), but I really got a good workout, something that doesn't happen all that often at QQ for me.

There's reason to look forward to next weekend, too. The weather looks like it could be nice, and I should be heading down to the 'Gunks with "KITT" and maybe "Gecko" for some good old trad practice.

Enjoy the pics, especially the ones at the end of the slide show.

First Day of 2008

Today was the first day outside of the 2008 season, and I'm quite pleased with how it all turned out. The weather was a bit cool this morning - a stunning 35F, but Quincy Quarry (QQ) is known for being warmer than anywhere else because of the amount of sun that it gets and its protection from the wind. I went there with four people who I don't think I've ever mentioned in the blog before, but get used to these nicknames because I'm sure you'll hear plenty about them as the season progresses: "Ratherbe", "KITT", and "Asshole" (ordinarily, I don't let people choose their own nicknames, but when he suggested it, I jumped on that bandwagon gleefully).

We arrived at QQ sometime before 11am, and it was still pretty chilly. Our initial plan was to hit the Prow, the main section that one sees when entering the quarry, but the ground was kind of muddy, the wind was noticeable, the sun not quite as warm because of the wind, and there were these odd orange flags all over the place around the base of the cliff. We didn't think anything of the flags, though "Asshole" told us that they were up last Wednesday. Ordinarily when one sees these types of things, one kind of assumes there is something going on and to stay away. That wasn't the real reason we walked away, but we were all scratching our heads when we did. The other conditions didn't inspire us, and I was somewhat nervous about not being able to warm up well. My fingers and toes can both be cold in 50-degree weather, and today started in the thirties. I hoped that C-wall would provide a better experience.

So we headed over to said "C" wall, otherwise known as the "Reflector Oven". Can you imagine why it is known as such? It's because it is damn warm in that section of the quarry, and we needed the warmth on a day like today (well, I did). The sun was on the wall the entire day, and when we did walk into the shade, there was a noticeable 10-degree difference, even within a few feet of the sun-shade line.

It was nice that all four of us had ropes and top-rope gear, too. We were also the first people in this section of the quarry, and so we had our choice of climbs to set up. As the day wore on, more and more people showed up, and, thus, more TRs were set up. All in all, it felt like a gym day, except outside. I think I climbed about six ropes today, and about 10 routes all together. Since the climbs in this area are pretty easy (mostly in the 5.4 to 5.9 range), we ended up taking on the challenge of doing variations where we called the juggy sections off. That raised the grades into the 5.10 range, so we did get some quality climbing in and weren't bored at all.

All of the climbs that we did were very crimpy, slick, and balancy. You can see from the pictures that the graffiti doesn't help either. A lot of the grades at QQ seemed sandbagged because of the slickness of the rock. From what I've been told, the grades were honest about 30 years ago. Because they've been climbed, weathered, and painted over the years, they're slick and hard to read. My toes and fingers are feeling the effects of that style of climbing (crimps, smears, balancy high-steps), but it was great to get outside after a long, cold winter.

So the routes we conquered were, in no particular order:

Pink Center (5.6) - A-wall: We actually did a 5.8 variation where we said the large, horizontal cracks were off limits. The A-wall is almost in the far left-hand corner of the section of the Quarry that still has water. If one walks along the water's edge all the way to the other side, it is about 15 feet from the furthest one can walk without going for a swim. This is a low-angle slab.

Blood Streaks (5.9+) - C-wall: The C-wall is otherwise known at the Reflector Oven (because it is so damn warm here), and it is the short, slabby-looking wall that is straight across the water if standing on the grass looking in. Blood Streaks is the climb that follows the red paint (and arrows) to the top. It is almost all the way over to the scramble used to get to the upper path. Don't cheat with the large foot holds on the left. The start is the crux, and if you choose to avoid it, then you've lowered the grade considerably.

Double Overhang (5.6) - C-wall: With this start, there's no way it is a 5.6 anymore. The crux is working up to the first overhang, and then it is smooth sailing the rest of the way. This route, as one would expect, has two overhangs, albeit small ones. There is a nice, juggy undercling just to the left-of-center on the first roof. This route is to the right of Blood Streaks. The bottom seems balancy and tricky, but if one highsteps left and goes left up to the undercling directly then the grade is about 5.8. If one goes right and stays right up to the roof, and then traverses across to the undercling, then this section probably goes at about 5.9. It is solid 5.7 climbing the rest of the way.

Sour Grapes (5.10) - C-wall: This is the blank-looking face to the right of Double Overhang. Try to stay on the face itself without using the
obvious flakes to the right or the flake that runs up the right side of Double Overhang. Look for the highstep on the left and trust the crimps to make this a 5.10b (the book doesn't differentiate between letter grades and says it is a 5.9 - it's not that easy).

Flake Direct (5.6) - C-wall: This is the obvious, triangular block in the middle of C-wall. Routes run to the right, center and left of this block before they all converge at the top of the triangle and go straight up. We did yet another variation and took this grade up to probably 5.9. We did this by staying completely inside the two sides of the triangle, and disallowed all jugs until one got to the top of the block.

Palm (5.8) - C-wall: To the right of Flake Direct is another block that can be climbed from either side. Palm goes up the right-hand side and stays left on the face above. This was a good warmup.

Brown Sugar (5.9) - C-wall: Yet another of our variations
climbed today. Brown Sugar goes up the face of the block, just to the right of Palm. Like other variations, we disallowed using the jugs on the face, sticking simply to the crimps and sidepulls. Once on top of the block, stay directly in the center of the "n"-shaped feature (stemming the two sides of the "n" is difficult). The crux is moving through this section. Trust the crimps, jibs, and smears and you'll get through it OK.

Well, that's about it. We were supposed to go to the 'Gunks this weekend, but poor weather and my crankiness kept that from happening. Then we were supposed to go to Farley, in Western Mass, but there's still a lot of snow on the ground out there, so we chose QQ instead. In the end, not a bad choice. "Ratherbe" brought huge cookies, "Asshole" provided an awesome salsa and chips, and "KITT" and I provided the entertainment.

I'm hoping this is the first of a weekly update. Check back often for new stories (either mine or "Jello"'s), but please remember that it takes time to write these things. So if I'm a little late, please forgive me.

Click here to go to our photos from this day

Gorgeous Day - And Some Good Climbing To Boot

I can't say we haven't been lucky this year, because the sun has shone brilliantly several times the past few weeks to give us what I think has been the best climbing spring in three or four years. Every other year we've found nice weather during the week or on weekend days the day after it rains (e.g - it pours on Friday making a beautiful Saturday irrelevant). Not this year. This year we've already hit Rumney twice and QQ twice. I predict a Gunks and NoCo trip in the coming weeks as well. I'd even like to get to Quebec City at some point later in the summer.

But that's all beside the point - it was supposed to stay in the low sixties yesterday and it probably did stay there, but QQ, where we saddled up to give "Ashmont" a final, outdoor wave-off before he heads out west for good (he was so bad-ass yesterday. I wish we had a camera. With those tattoos, the 1970s porn star / motorcycle cop sunglasses, the thick beard and the bright orange helmet - I swear, it was as if I was watching some cult leader scare away all the nice kids just by showing up. It was totally cool), is well protected from the wind because the quarry settles into a bowl with cliffs all around. It can get really warm there during the summer, so cool days in the spring and fall (even the occasional warm, winter day) are quite enjoyable.

We also had a good day climbing; knocking off routes that had previously haunted us and kept us from believing we are as strong outside as we are inside. "Chuck" managed her first two 5.10s outside and it is probably only a matter of time before she gets them cleanly. It'll take some work and diligence, but she'll get them. "Gammie" jumped on everything I climbed and felt stronger on some routes than others. Still, he also jumped on a tough 5.10 that I was hoping to work throughout this summer (and I nailed it first go-around. I couldn't believe it. I seriously thought I was going to get it sometime in August or September, and I only got on it yesterday to "work it". But I climbed it clean and it felt so easy. I guess it's time to find another project - I think I did too, to the right there is a 5.11 with a massive blank section. I'm going to need to tape my fingertips to get through the slight, sharp pockets that are there, but it's going this summer, if I can help it), and he also tried a couple of other variations on other routes just to add flavor to the day.

We got off to a good start too. "GGF" taught us all how to swear on her first route. It turns out that repetition is the key - saying the words over and over again, even if you use them in different combinations, helps tremendously. Though the other climbers may now get confused - apparently "GGF" felt the need to both re-grade and re-name the routes. I'm not convinced the QQ guidebook will take into account the new beta. Despite her sailor imitations, however, she's getting stronger, as it was noticeable that she was able to get up the 5.8 and 5.9 routes that I think were tough for her last time. It's all a matter of climbing; just getting out there and practicing different moves for different ocassions. Once the arsenal gets built up, climbing harder grades becomes easier. I think both "GGF" and "Chuck" are discovering this. "Gammie" still relies on raw power, but he's strong enough to climb hard grades without much technique, so it works for him in the end.

Just to make everyone feel a little better, the QQ grades probably weren't sandbagged when they were graded thirty years ago, but because the rock has become slick and polished over time, they are sandbagged now. I'd say 5.9 at QQ is really 5.10. Maybe 5.10- or a hard 5.9+, but definitely not 5.9 anymore.

We didn't escape without some adventures, however. QQ had its share of loonies. There was new graffiti at the bottom of a fantastic 5.8 I was hoping to do another variation on, so that kept us off that route out of fear of getting paint on the ropes. A kid showed up with one of those gas-motor scooters (not the kind you sit on like a moped, but the kind that you stand on instead). He was loud and obnoxious, but he left soon after he sprayed the place with dirt from doing doughnuts. "Gammie" was on the hard 5.10 I spoke about earlier when someone dropped a rope on him, twice. They yelled "rope" once, but didn't actually look to see where they were throwing it. He wasn't particularly happy about it, and I don't blame him. And then there was the poet who was at the quarry when we arrived. He entertained "Chuck" and "GGF" while "Gammie" and I set up the topropes above.

In all, I can't complain about the weather or the quality of climbing we've been getting in. It's been great thus far. I can't wait to get out and do more. On a sad note, good-bye "Ashmont". We'll see you Wednesday, but you can't get out of saying good-bye by not having a going-away party (unless of course you are having one and you're not inviting me (then you're just and asshole). I encourage anyone to post either a good story or a good-bye to one of our most popular members in the comments section of this story. Maybe we'll get some good embarrassnig moments that will never be taken down!

Quincy Quarry

Working a Slab