Photos
SOME RANDOM PHOTOS FROM CRAGGING AT LIME KILN CANYON
Dates: April 1&2&4&5, 2025 (Tue&Wed&Fri&Sat)
We drove from Zion on a rest day after climbing
Moonlight Buttress in Zion.
The first day of climbing we had a relaxing morning and hiked up in the afternoon. Because the cliff is shady it was still pretty chilly up there and I was glad we had not started earlier. I climbed while Nate belayed. I climbed three routes: Merely a Flesh Wound (5.10c, led and then toproped), The Last Supper (5.11b, 70', toproped twice), and Naysayers (5.11c for first half and 5.12b for second half, led first half clean). I was impressed with the quality of the climbing. It felt very Rifle-esque to me. A highlight of the day was when my Ikea bag (my rope bag) was swept away by the wind, caught an updraft, and disappeared over the top of the cliff. If I had not been mid-route at the time staring helplessly at my adventurous rope-bag, I would have gotten a video.
The second day of climbing was chilly and cold so we got another late start. We only managed to freeze our way up two 5.11 "warm-up" routes before it began to snow and rain on us. The first of these routes--Khaleesi (5.11c , 115', led and toproped by me, toproped by Nate), a highly-starred trade route on the wall--was on the left side of the wall and climbed the darker limestone. This darker limestone had a completely different character than the lighter limestone on the right side of the wall. The climbing was techy and the rock was sharp; with the cold conditions it was a bit unpleasant and injurious to bare skin and down puffies. For our second route--Homeostasis (5.11b, 95', led by both of us, toproped again by me), another highly-starred trade route on the wall--we moved to the lighter rock. The climbing was fun and juggy. We both led the route, despite the spitting rain. Cold and wet, we hiked out.
The next day was a forced rest day, since it snowed a bit overnight and Nate needed to do some work. Incapable of sitting around, I drove into Mesquite and got rid of our trash, picked up a few groceries and birthday cookies for Nate, stopped at the library to check out the free books, read for a couple of hours in the sun at a nearby park, went and played slots (allotted $20 to the potential price of entertainment, but ended up with $30), and went and spent my winnings on an entirely new outfit at the thrift store (I had left for the trip anticipating it to be 3 days, but it was already nearly 2 weeks, so some fresh lounging around clothes would be nice).
The third day of climbing we climbed three routes: Homeostasis (5.11b, 95', led by Nate, toproped twice by me), The Serf (5.11d, 115', led by both of us and toproped a few times each), and Village Idiot (5.12a, 90', led by Nate, toproped by me). With seven total pitches each, it was a good mileage day on 5.11-5.12 terrain. I was pscyhed to redpoint my first 11d of the trip (The Serf) and tronsight a 12a immediately afterward (Village Idiot).
The fourth and last day of climbing at The Grail, we climbed four routes, with a total of seven pitches of climbing for me and four for Nate: The Inquistion (5.10d, 95', led then toproped by both of us), I'm Not Dead Yet (5.10b, 100', led and toproped by me), Mesquiter (5.12a, 115', led by Nate, toproped by me), and Total Depravity (5.11b, 100', led then toproped by me). Nate onsighted a difficult 12a (Mesquiter), I tronsighted it becoming even more impressed by Nate's lead, and then I finished the day with leading an 11b, onsighting the crux, which was thrilling for me. Another great day of cragging at The Grail!
