Colorado

Today is my second and final restday of the trip. The day was consisted of relaxing...We all woke up to hurricane winds tearing to the campsite leaving the tarp that drapes over the table in shambles and Nicks tent tangled at the base of power lines. My stomach was rumbling and I knew I had to start the morning off right...with two bowls of cereal, it was superb. With my budget dwindling slowly from eating out constantly(taco bell 3 nights in a row) I needed to start making use of the abundant groceries have bagged up and this morning was the perfect opportunity. I started off with the delectable Fruity Pebbles. I quickly dumped the remaining "Wholesome rice cereal" into my appetite suppressing(only suppressing to the mere mortal, my stomach known throughout the land can not be stopped) blue bowl dumped milk over top and quickly devoured the bowl, quickly after I dumped the rest of the Kashi GoLean Crunch and like the pebbles it was gone as as soon as the milk hit it. Soon after we gathered our things, rearranged the cargo in the cars and headed to the strip. The first stop was the very cool and relaxed Kind Coffee Shop where I had my only and best blueberry and banana smoothie. While enjoying this drinkable work of art I surfed the internet for beta, RMNP videos, and edited some photos from past days which will be available at the bottom for viewing pleasure. After lounging in the Cafe for 3 hours we got our lazy selves up I headed for the strip with one goal in mind:bracelets. I walked in and out of obscure shops until finally due to Nicks suggestion stumbled upon the Himalayan Bazaar. This little shop was one of the more interesting shops I have ever been in at any tourist trap. The shop was really awesome and the service was perfect. The young woman and her mother who ran it where extremely helpful and friendly. Besides helping me pick out the perfect bracelet for my girlfriend Britney the are also hooking Kyle up with an exact custom-made Himalayan replica of the beanie he lost last year in Colorado. Soon after our adventure in the Himalayas we headed to one of the greasiest and most delicious pizza places in Estes, we devoured individual slices and then left to walk the strip even more before heading back to the campground where we are now sitting in the game room playing pool, charging batteries and soaking in the great times in the gameroom listening to ratatat and Kyle flashing a picture of a cheetah when the growl comes into the beat.

Tomorrow we will beheading back into to the canyon, where we trample and jump over large talus in order to gain ground toward the boulders. The furthest sector in the canyon is Upper Chaos which takes a direct steep direct route up the steep talus field after about an hour scramble you reach a peak and begin to descend toward until you are finally on a perfectly flat grassy meadow where one awe-inspiring boulder sits.

Finally...Another Post

Due to some technical difficulties between the campsites spotty Internet and my laptop I have not been able to post anything, but all is well now and I am here to deliver.

Day1

Driving, driving, eating and more driving can pretty much sum up the trek to Colorado alot better than mindless rift-raft, but what would a blog be without the unneeded sentences taking up the endless space that forms the Internet.

I packed my bags with the in

tent in heading to Kyle's house quickl

y

, but before starting to Kyle's I encountered what would be the first of many obstacles in my way...getting my dad, who was knocked out sleep of the couch. Thirty minutes of pushing shoving and struggling passes and he is finally up. We grab my luggage for the two week trip (a suitcase and messenger bag) and throw it into the truck and depart the driveway. My dad and I arrive at Kyle's greeted by an eager climber throwing things into what will become the vessel of our trip. I toss my bags on the ground and take in the fresh Kentucky air as it will be my last chances for two weeks to really take in the unique bluegrass atmosphere (which I am absurdly missing right now as I sit in this quasi-urban coffee shop on the Estes Park strip gazing at the desert flowers, brown dirt, and rushing river). Eventually Aaron and Greg arrive at the house 20 minutes late and our crew is complete and the drive is ready to be driven. We pack into the car(Greg and Aaron are driving separately) and head out frantically thinking of anything we could have possibly

forgotten.

We drove and drove, only stopping when absolutely necessary (according t

o Kyle aka Mr.Efficient means only when there is a combination of food, gas, and restroom breaks). The method worked and though we suffered through the night tired and hungry we made it to Colorado all in one piece, though the drive through

Kansas can leave one insane. Upon arrival we droped base camp, gathered up a day pack and headed to the park for a quick guide and hike to the bouldering areas to check it out.

After a 30 minute drive we summit at the Bear Lake Trail Head. We compose ourselves and begin the grueling, steep hike to Emerald lake the we have all grown to "love".

The hike consists of 2.5 miles up gently rising and turning trail that is filled with paved concrete, loose rock, and Annoying touri

st. The tourist are by far the worst and are as pestering as the mosquitoes that take more blood then the Red cross in the mountains and haunt your dreams when your in the tent awaiting the next day of climbing. Once you hike an hour you arrive to the emerald lake region where the Kind, Large, and Whispers boulder lay. We quickly surveyed all three boulders picking and creating our tick lists. Once finished surveying the boulders we packed up our things and quickly headed back down the trail toward Lake Hiyaha where Chaos Canyon sits.

This hike though shorter is no

t to under estimated. It takes insanely steep switch backs up the side of the protruding mountain. The trail rough and rugged with jolting roots and jagged rock.

You just look down and walk and hope to arrive soon and we you do arrive you pat your self on the back and continue forward because the hike to the bouldering is not over. Once you hit the lake you continue to jump and drop down the talus surrounding and forming the lake. In order to go from problem to problem you must hop and cross these unforgiving talus fields. We hopped around observing our surrounding and became tired. We quickly hopped back on the trail and headed home, the whole timing dreaming of what lies ahead for tomorrow.

One Hour Left

There is one hour left until I hop in a car with good friends Greg Rueffe and Aaron Kupferer to met up with other good freiend a fellow crusher Kyle Fisher. I have been waiting along time for this moment, counting down the days and weeks,but it will be worth it...once the last peice of luggage is thrown in and the candy coated peanut buttery peeble is eaten everything else will escape me and I will have tunnel vision. One thing will encompass my thought process and that is to get to Colorado. The drive itself will be an adventure; it will be grueling a slow. The 18 hours will feel like 18 years and the flat landscape will trick our minds, confusing us into thinking that, "Indeed we are not moving", but in all actualality we will be driving one a one-way course to alpine paradise and because of our destination I could careless about the gut wrenching side-effects from passing through Kansas and Eastern Colorado.