Today was quite the climbing experience! We had planned a trip out to Exit 38 which is over around North Bend, and the weather forecasts promised sunshine... until this morning. My friend Lynnea and I checked the weather again and it said this time there was a 30 percent chance of rain, which in Washington is pretty low. So... we decided to chance it. Three of us girls piled into the Subaru (along with all our gear) and drove to the bus station in Kirkland where we picked up our new Australian friend, Kel. On the way to Exit 38 it started to rain but I wasn't too worried. I was confident enough in my skills as a climber that I thought, "A little rain can't stop me!" Upon arrival, we hiked up to the main road where the different walls are situated, and my friends were starting to make comments about the slickness of the rock and how maybe climbing wasn't such a good idea. Well I would hear nothing of the sort. While Lynnea and Kel set up rope, I dragged Shelby with me a ways down the road to a spot I had climbed at before. I was so terribly excited to use my new rope and draws, but seeing as I only had six quick draws, I had to pick a route with fewer bolts. After a long walk we selected one and set about "flaking" my rope (basically making sure it's not tangled or knotted). This took an unfortunate amount of time. Finally I was able to tie in, clip on my draws and begin the climb. I will admit I back clipped a few times but I really am getting better! There is this little phrase Shelby gave me to remember which way. "Just remember Alycia, you're always on top!" Well, seeing as how I am incredibly mature, I can't help but laugh every time I hear that. It does help me remember though. So, in total this route only had three bolts- each bolt was spaced out pretty far from each other though which I thought was fairly sketch, but when you are at a point in your life like I am, you really don't give much care or thought to your safety so I decided to go for it. The first thing I realized as I began to climb was just how slippery the rock was. Footholds were near impossible to find because they had become so slick. I found myself relying heavily on handholds. The first two bolts were not very difficult. There were some nice jugs to use and some hand cracks, and so I felt fairly confident. The third bolt was harder to get to because of the slickness, and so when I finally was able to clip in, I felt quite relieved. For this next stage, I had to get over the crux and tie into the chains at the top so I could set up my top rope. The only problem was that there was no way I could do that with how wet the rock was. There was absolutely nothing left for me to cling to. Every time I managed to lock my fingers around something, they would slip right off- same for my feet. After several agonizing minutes I decided the only thing left to do was traverse across the face and try to climb up over the other side. The only problem with this was that I would be climbing a very long way without clipping so if I slipped it would be a bad fall. I managed to make it up and over the top, but it was then I realized there was no way I could reach the chains from where I was at. They were situated over a ledge that (without being properly clipped in) I was not willing to attempt to reach over. Shelby was very worried at this point and was calling out for me. I scooted as close to the edge as I dared and we conversed back and forth for a while trying to decide what was to be done. I finally decided to untie from the rope and climb back down from another spot that I thought would make an easy descent. I untied the rope and then told Shelby I would climb back up to get my draws once I was down. The only problem after that was I discovered there was no good way down. "Down" led to a steep drop into a ravine that would not have been pleasant, and up led to more cliffs. I tried my hand at both ways, trying to find some way off the cliff edge, but there was absolutely no reasonable way down. Now by this time, I had disappeared into the woods to try to find an escape, and Shelby had no way of knowing where I was. She kept shouting to me, and though I answered back I don't think she could hear me. At one point I stopped moving and just laughed. Here I was barefoot, bleeding, muddy, and soaked, stranded on the top of some cliff with my friend below me, helpless. It dawned on me then that this is what "living" truly feels like. It was glorious. I found a pair of chains and tried to get Shelby to throw me the rope so I could belay myself down. However, I was quite high up and Shelby is an awful aim so that soon became out of the question. I hiked back down to where I had started, and feeling desperate, I told Shelby I thought I could jump. This put her into a frenzy. "DON'T YOU DARE!!"
"But I'll survive!" I shouted back, "I may break some things but I'll be free!" Well she was upset enough at my suggestion that I decided against it, only deciding to draw on the idea again if I was still stranded in the next hour. I inched my way to the edge, sitting dangerously close, and hoping that the rock my foot was on didn't give way. I sat here for a while watching Shelby's vain attempts to toss the rope to me and laughing occasionally from bursts of adrenaline warning me that this was not a safe position to be in. I didn't care though. I finally decided enough was enough, and so I started to climb down what I imagined would be a less fatal route if I did in fact fall. Let me tell you something... in those moments, I was more flexible than I have ever been in my life. My legs stretched in ways I did not know were possible. After an excruciatingly long and treacherous climb I finally made it back down to the ground. Shelby threw her arms around me and apologized for the string of curse words that had left her mouth in the time that I was stuck. However, there was still the problem of the draws. At first my plan was just to solo the route to the point where I had left my third one, but once back down on the ground I realized that would lead to certain injury. I tied back into the rope, and started to climb (barefoot still). I clipped through the first two, retrieved the third, and then climbed back down the route, cleaning it like a boss. When I reached the ground again I was ecstatic. I knew I had just done something dangerous and stupid and yet it thrilled and excited me. I think I am a lot less scared of heights now.
So today I learned that:
1). It is possible to be over confident
2). Climbing in the rain is stupid
3). Adventure and danger go hand in hand and I would never trade them for any guarantee of a long life
I LOVE CLIMBING.
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