Reimer's Ranch - Mid-April 2005

L to R: Jacob, Mikey, Young Hi, Justin. And maybe next time, Aron. We're sorry you couldn't make it Bud!

Ahhh...back to Reimer's for yet another incredible weekend. It started off as it normally does sometimes; rushing out of work Friday,

scrambling to get laundry done, and forgetting to stock the Nalgene's with Gatorade before heading out. By the time I was ready to leave, Aron still had things to do so I went ahead and split. I arrived in Austin within a few hours, and wanted to grab a case of beer for my friend Lauren's dad; a little favor in return for letting me crash there over the weekend. So it's Midnight - and I'm hauling ass (because I'm late getting to their house) through the alcohol section in 'yer good 'ol Mal-Wart...trying to find the right kind. I searched every product and came up with nothing...so...I grabbed a case of A&W root beer, can't go wrong with that, right?! Well, it became very wrong when I realized that there were about 10 people ahead of me in the only open checkout line, so, I set the drinks on a shelf and left. Damn understaffededness. Anyhow, long story short, I arrived at Laurens and crashed on their fold-out couch, which, was surprisingly comfortable. I slept like a baby - a very, very good thing. You kick ass Lauren, thanks a million!!!

The next morning, Reimers! Yeah! After dodging cows on the dirt road in, I arrived at about Noon on Saturday. Mikey and Young Hi were there to meet me in

the parking lot...apparently they had been waiting for me for a while. Sorry about that guys! I grabbed my pack and they grabbed the rest of my stuff, and there we went. Along the trail, Young Hi spotted a snake like 30 feet away from us. She's like "is that a snake??" ....so, we looked at our feet for a sec, and realized that it was farther away. I threw my stuff off, and ran over there to check the critter out. Turns out that it was a very lightly colored water moccasin (venomous)...so light in fact, that it didn't even look like one. The snake immediately went into defense-mode; opening its mouth, rattling its tail, and bloating itself up to look bigger that it really was. I was able to snap a few photos before he slid under a rock. Way cool. If you happen to see this guy, don't step on him...it might hurt the snake...

The first route that we came to was the classic Eight Flake. Jacob was there waiting for us, and after getting suckered into telling him that the

water moccasin bit us (shame on you Young Hi, SHAME!) we proceeded to "rack up" for the climb. Mikey top-roped it, and then it was all Jacob's. Up to that point, it had been several years since Jacob had climbed, and never before outside. But...no problem there, it was an easy onsight! Way to go Jacob, congrats on your first real climb!

After Jacob's ascent, Mikey decided to warm up on Bisector (5.10a), which literally "Bisects" Eight Flake and Clone Call, and shares the

same anchors. Bisector is a fun climb on pockets, not a bad route if you can pull the opening moves across the bulge. Mikey hopped on it on lead, getting the 'point with minimal effort. After that, I warmed up on Bisector then we all moved over to Prototype (5.10c) - an absolutely amazing face climb. By amazing, I mean like it is a really amazing must-do type of thing. On lead, Mikey again went for the 'point...but, the beta is a tad tricky up top, and he got lost and peeled with a nice whip. From there he finished the route without too much problem, making all of the moves. Nice work man. I think I did the exact same thing...'cept on top-rope...and after watching you climb the damn thing...

After working Eight Flake, Bisector, and Prototype, us four went to my all-time favorite Reimer's route: War On Rugs (5.10d). At that point, I had worked this route a few times, but would always pump out and fall after pulling the bulge up top. There is a pretty wicked undercling about 3/4 of the way up there, and the feet kinda suck so it's a bit powerful. After pulling past this, you have the pleasure of staring at a seemingly featureless face for a while. At this point, I pretty much choose the best thing - a pretty bad 3-finger pocket, and high-step with my right foot onto a shitty ledge. Move off of this, and you're there. I was fortunate enough to get the redpoint on this one, it's about time! This is a fantastic climb, with big holds and powerful moves. Oh, did I mention the start was a fantastic overhanging heel-hook?

Next route: Spider Grind - awesome! Mike and I seem to get spanked every time, yet every time, we come back for more. Power endurance is key...I guess cleaning it helps with that...ugh, what a bitch. Very much worth the climb though!

Mikey on Spider Grind - 5.11b Project