Miller Fork - Red River Gorge

Sometimes people think I’m crazy for day trips to the gorge. Six hours of driving for maybe seven hours of climbing might not be worth it to some, but when your vacation days are gone and the weather happens to be clear, you do what you gotta do! This October Saturday we ended up at Miller Fork Recreational Area and climbed at Secret Garden. There’s a pretty great array of routes ranging from 5.8 to 5.11.

We had such a great encouraging group this day. Thanks to their faith in me and patience, I met my 2018 goal of sending 11a!! I clipped anchors on Sloppy Seconds after my third burn. Needless to say, it was worth the six hours in the car to chase that feeling of accomplishment. On to next year’s goals!

Summer Update

The thing about a blog is that it's a nice digital logbook. Little snippets of places, experiences, and thoughts that I felt were worth sharing. I haven't been keeping up with posting here lately and that's due to a number of things: lack of inspiration, ideas, and time. I've been climbing a lot and I have visited the Red three times in a span of a month. But on each of these, I didn't even bring my camera. Besides not wanting to lug around 5-7 extra pounds of equipment that is easily broken, I just haven't felt the desire to be the "documenter" of these trips. I want to be along for the ride and just enjoy it without  feeling........somewhat disconnected from everyone else. When I take a lot of photos on trips, it sometimes feels like I'm on the job instead of being on vacation.

At the same time, I do regret not having some quality photo memories of these little weekend escapes. Maybe next time I'll bring my gear and just take a few snaps to look back on, but for now. Here are a few iPhone grabs to show you where I've been in the past few months.

Failing is Good for You

A few quick thoughts on failure after a weekend of climbing in Tennessee and not necessary succeeding. These are mostly applicable to my situation of being shut down over and over while leading a 5.9 named L.A.G., but maybe these thoughts can work in general life as well.

1. Failing puts your ego in check. You aren’t as amazing as you think you are. Get your brain back down on the same plane as everyone else. Have confidence in your abilities, but don’t think you’re the most talented person in the room.

2. It means you tried! Most likely, it also means you tried something difficult and or scary. Even if you didn’t nail it, you pushed yourself outside your comfort zone.

3. You’ll do better next time. Even if you don’t finish, you’re progressing forward with each piece you put together.

4. You probably learned something. Maybe how to do better and also have a better attitude next time.

5. Anyone who has never made a mistake, has never tried anything new - Albert Einstein

"It’s a tough route but it's all there!"

“If the weather’s good, I’d love to go outside this weekend”. Usually that sentence gets thrown around at the gym and it’s a lot of “I wish I could, but”....and then the idea fades. Somehow this weekend the stars aligned and a solid group of seven all committed to Kings Bluff.

It was almost too cold when we left in Saturday morning, but by the time we arrived at the bluff, the sun was shining perfectly on the rocks, and we were all shedding layers after we tied our figure eights.

It had been almost a year to the day since I’d been sport climbing outdoors. It’s amazing how much harder a 5.9 is outside than in the gym. It was a lovely and humbling reminder at how much strength is needed when you’re outside doing the real thing. Gym grades are sometimes inflated or exaggerated, but none of that really matters. The main thing is to have a good time, enjoy the climb, make some memories, and come home in one piece.

I think my favorite thing about a group getting together to climb, is the description of the routes/the beta we give. If only I had written down the ridiculous things we'd say to one another. One I do remember is this little tidbit of advice given when my friend had taken a pretty good fall and was trying to figure out what she’d missed before a second attempt. “Well, it’s a pretty tough route but it's all there!”. Noted.

Anyway, I'm already itching for the next trip and a few more quotes.

P.S. Shootout to Clinton for snagging shots while I climbed!