We had originally planned to go to Skaha, a climbing area near Penticton, but at the last minute the weather forecast changed our minds and we decided to go to the Needles in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Apart from the weather it was a long weekend in Canada, so Skaha would likely be busy, but it wasn't a long weekend in the States.
It's about 1100 km which took us about 12 hours. We left early Wed., but didn't go quite all the way the first day, stopping at Hidden Valley campground just past Deadwood. The campground was open, but we never did find any staff. We ended up slipping our fee under the office door. It was a nice spot. We even had some deer wander by our tent.
The tent, however, was not pretty. When I packed I grabbed the three man tent but the two man poles. Needless to say, that doesn't work too well. That's one of the problems with having collected so much gear!
The next morning we drove the rest of the way to Custer, went for breakfast at the Songbird Cafe, picked up some groceries, and then drove up to Sylvan Lake. The other two times we've been to the Needles we've stayed at the Sylvan Lake campground but we found it closed - it didn't open till the next day. So we ended up staying at Fort WeLikIt Campground just outside Custer. It was nothing special but it was fairly empty and therefore quiet. And the bathrooms and showers were clean with lots of hot water.
The first day we sport climbed (bolted routes) in the "outlets" at the end of Sylvan Lake, starting with a few routes on Youbet Jourasses and then moving over to the west end of Inner Outlet and the north face of Lakeview. Nothing too hard, but it was a good warm up. (For me anyway, since I haven't been climbing since our fall trip to Red Rocks. Shelley has been climbing in the gym.)
The next day we decided to do Diagonal Traverse, a classic three pitch trad route on Outer Outlet. It's rated 5.6 but it seems a lot harder. We've done it before - it's a fun climb. It follows a crack/flake that cuts diagonally across a steep, sometimes overhanging wall, making for good exposure! I took the first pitch. It's the longest and you have to be careful with your gear placements or the rope drag can get pretty bad.
I have a bad tendency, especially when leading, to want to jam my body into cracks and chimneys because it feels more secure. But it makes it really hard to move! Several times on this route you have the choice of keeping one leg in the crack, or else keeping both hands on the edge and hanging over. You can guess which I tend towards!
The first belay is bolted, just after a tricky step across a gap, protected by two old pitons. Shelley led the next pitch which is a short traverse under a roof. According to the guidebook this is the crux. It is a little scary under the roof with sparse footholds, but there are good holds for your hands. You have to build your own belay at the end of this pitch but there are good cracks.
I led the last pitch which goes through a break in the roof and up into a chimney. It's another awkward few moves but then the chimney is easy and soon you can break out right and up onto the summit. The bolts are set up for rapping down the other side so it's not the best belay, but it works.
Unfortunately, although it was only noon, the afternoon thunderstorms were rolling in. We didn't fancy being on the top of the needle in lightning so we descended right away. It's a long rappel (you need two ropes), much of it free hanging. The last part is down a narrow chimney - one last piece of awkwardness!
Our standard rack is plenty on this route - a set of wired nuts, Camalots from .4 to 3, and some hexes (Wild Country Rockcentric Hexnuts). You don't see many people using hexes these days but they're a lot cheaper than cams, lighter, and there are lots of times when a passive hex is more secure than a cam.
Saturday we climbed Spire Two in the Cathedrals, another three pitch trad route. It's rated 5.7 but I'd say it's easier than the Diagonal Traverse. It even has a summit register you can sign :-) Again, an early start was a good idea since we got chased off the top by the imminent arrival of thunderclouds.
Our old guide book was Paul Piana's
Touch the Sky from 1983. It covers a lot of ground, but not in much detail. The descriptions tend toward being cryptic. Luckily a new guidebook had just been released:
The Needles by Zach Orenczak and Rachael Lynn. Despite a lot of goofy pictures it has much better descriptions and diagrams. Unfortunately it doesn't cover the Sylvan Lake area.
Our last day we climbed at Moonlight Ridge - a small group of needles with a large number and variety of routes. We ran into a group of climbers from Regina there. We'd known they were coming out but with our last minute change of plans we hadn't had a chance to let them know we'd be there. The group included some beginners so it was fun to see them tackle real rock and even trad routes, after only having experienced the gym.
We had originally planned to go to Skaha, a climbing area near Penticton, but at the last minute the weather forecast changed our minds and we decided to go to the Needles in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Apart from the weather it was a long weekend in Canada, so Skaha would likely be busy, but it wasn't a long weekend in the States.
The tent, however, was not pretty. When I packed I grabbed the three man tent but the two man poles. Needless to say, that doesn't work too well. That's one of the problems with having collected so much gear!
The first day we sport climbed (bolted routes) in the "outlets" at the end of Sylvan Lake, starting with a few routes on Youbet Jourasses and then moving over to the west end of Inner Outlet and the north face of Lakeview. Nothing too hard, but it was a good warm up. (For me anyway, since I haven't been climbing since our fall trip to Red Rocks. Shelley has been climbing in the gym.)
The next day we decided to do Diagonal Traverse, a classic three pitch trad route on Outer Outlet. It's rated 5.6 but it seems a lot harder. We've done it before - it's a fun climb. It follows a crack/flake that cuts diagonally across a steep, sometimes overhanging wall, making for good exposure! I took the first pitch. It's the longest and you have to be careful with your gear placements or the rope drag can get pretty bad.
The first belay is bolted, just after a tricky step across a gap, protected by two old pitons. Shelley led the next pitch which is a short traverse under a roof. According to the guidebook this is the crux. It is a little scary under the roof with sparse footholds, but there are good holds for your hands. You have to build your own belay at the end of this pitch but there are good cracks.
Unfortunately, although it was only noon, the afternoon thunderstorms were rolling in. We didn't fancy being on the top of the needle in lightning so we descended right away. It's a long rappel (you need two ropes), much of it free hanging. The last part is down a narrow chimney - one last piece of awkwardness!
Saturday we climbed Spire Two in the Cathedrals, another three pitch trad route. It's rated 5.7 but I'd say it's easier than the Diagonal Traverse. It even has a summit register you can sign :-) Again, an early start was a good idea since we got chased off the top by the imminent arrival of thunderclouds.
Our last day we climbed at Moonlight Ridge - a small group of needles with a large number and variety of routes. We ran into a group of climbers from Regina there. We'd known they were coming out but with our last minute change of plans we hadn't had a chance to let them know we'd be there. The group included some beginners so it was fun to see them tackle real rock and even trad routes, after only having experienced the gym.
And the pelicans are busy fishing.
I heard something rustling in the dry leaves and saw these garter snakes alongside the train tracks just behind where I work. There were at least two snakes in the mix, maybe more. I tried not to disturb them but they seemed to be preoccupied anyway. Normally garter snakes would slither away as soon as you got anywhere near. I suspect they were mating, although I never got a good enough look to be sure. Garter snakes give birth to live young rather than laying eggs. (As I found out first hand one childhood summer when a largish one that I had caught turned out to be a pregnant mother and produced many baby garter snakes.)
BTW I used a trial version of the new Adobe Lightroom to handle these photos. (On my Mac, but it's also available for Windows) I think I may buy it - it's pretty slick.
A week and a half later we went to Las Vegas for a week. We thought it would be cool to stay on the strip and climb at Red Rocks, especially since I hadn't seen Vegas for 20 years. It turned out to be a poor idea. The strip is just not our cup of tea. Too many people, too much of everything I don't like about humanity. But we did enjoy a couple of Cirque de Soleil shows and some good dinners out. The other downside is driving in and out of Vegas to go climbing each day. It's not far but it takes a while through the traffic. I'd be more inclined to camp but the campground is pretty bleak. The climbing was great, although both times we did longer multi-pitch climbs we got stuck behind slow beginners which was a bit frustrating, especially since overall it wasn't that busy. But we were picking moderate routes which I guess explains the traffic.
A week and a half later we went to the Florida Keys for 10 days. We flew in and out of Miami but didn't spend any time there. My first impression was that the Keys were just one giant strip mall. But once you get off the highway it's great. We took a boat to the Dry Tortugas and camped overnight there, explored the fort and snorkeled off the beach. Luckily we avoided contact with the Portugese Man o' War which were abundant. They can give a nasty sting. Conditions weren't ideal (too windy) but I did get out for a couple of dives one day at 
John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. I tried out my new waterproof housing for my camera. The only problem was that I accidentally switched it into movie mode so every time I clicked the shutter it would start/stop recording, which of course filled up the memory card. So I didn't get as many good shots as I would have liked. Shelley came along and snorkeled a bit on her own around the boat. Pretty good considering she's nervous about it in the first place and it was quite rough.
And then we spent Christmas with my sisters in Tofino on the west coast of Vancouver Island. Considering the time of year we were pretty lucky with the weather. One big storm (which is one of the attractions) but also a few nice and amazingly dry (no rain) days. We got out sea kayaking for a few hours which was great. I'd love to do more sea kayaking on the west coast. But the really brave people were the ones out surfing in the sub-zero weather (snow on the beach!)
Sadly, all these trips were shadowed by my mother, Pauline McKinlay, dying in the fall. She was 80 years old and had a good full life, and she went peacefully in her sleep the way she wanted. But that didn't make it any easier. We had been good friends. In many ways she was my inspiration for leading an adventurous life. Not that she was a climber or adventurer in the conventional sense, but she nonetheless had many adventures - leaving England to go to East Africa with my father for ten years on a "whim" and then leaving there to settle in Saskatchewan - a place they knew nothing about and that was about as opposite from colonial East Africa as you could get, both climate wise and culturally. And she had the right attitude for an adventurer, no matter how tough things got, right up to the end, she always managed a smile. I miss her dearly.
