End of last year, we did two short stints to Joshua Tree. One was just a quick one day trip out, and then early December, we had a weekend trip out to do some sport climbing with Bill.
No photos from the day trip out, except this classic photo view point I have.. Ryan leading, and the two kids following.. chasing.. mozying after him, while I pick up the rear to make sure no kid is left behind.
For the weekend trip, we had made somewhat last minute plans to meet up with Bill. Since it was last-minute, there were no reservations open for campsites. Luckily Bill managed to snag a first-come-first-serve campground at Ryan Campgrounds, with the iconic Headstone Rock. And this is where we climbed.
This photo was taken just as the sun was setting and the moon was rising over Headstone Rock. On the right arete of the rock, there is a small shadow of a climber going up the classic Southwest corner route.
Ryan scouted the scramble up to Headstone, and deemed it doable to bring the kids (though somewhat sketchy). Kids made it up to the base of Headstone with careful guidance and occasionally kid lifting-and-passing.
Base of Headstone where kiddos can safely hang out.
Panoramic view from Headstone Rock, overlooking Ryan Campground down below.
The first warm-up climb started off with the classic route,
Southwest Corner, 5.6, which Ryan lead. It is a relatively easy climb, and a JT classic with a great summit and high exposure with hundred feet of air below you.
See the openness below where Ryan is climbing. The photos do not do justice the feeling of being surrounded by complete exposure.
(Additional Photos from Mountain Project )
Ryan set up a top rope, and then Bill followed next.
Then me.
With the top rope set up, it gave easy access for an adjacent route, the
South Face Center, 5.9. Emilia hopped on for a try.
The climbing at JT is slabby, a lot of relying on footwork and trusting your feet. Ryan on South Face Center.
The last climb at Headstone was on the other side of the rock,
Cryptic, 5.8. It's slightly steeper and more strenuous.. more my style. This was later in the day and lot of taking turns rotating with other groups and climbs, so not much photos of Cryptic. However, Emilia was getting more comfortable with climbing outdoors and she kept coming back for more.
She made several attempts on Cryptic, figuring out moves and going higher up with each try.
Liam was content with using his trusty shovel for creative play with dirt, rocks, and sticks. He had no interest to climb. Instead he was making friends with the other climbing groups that were there.. a group of engineers from SpaceX.
End of the day and walking around.
Family photo below Headstone. This *was* going to be our Xmas card photo, but um.. yeh.. didn't get around to doing that.
The moon shining brightly back at Bill's campsite. If you look really closely, Liam is in the shadows at the bottom, right corner.
It was a short trip, but just enough to regain some sanity. We need more of these!
Posts
