ivan Posted December 11, 2013 Posted December 11, 2013 Trip: New World Amphitheater - Blaaaackjack! Date: 12/9/2013 Trip Report: the dark dregs of late fall, my soul in deep doldrums - a Big Cold come over the gorge for many days, but always something to keep me away - work, birthdays, lack of tools, lack of talent, lack of general ambition in this fading life - sigh... the weekend was worst - raging sun n' arctic temps but a Full Press of Pater Familias Responsibilities upon me - ably dispatched, i swore off gainful employment monday and threw in my lot w/ beatard-ben n' his new friend, eric - no pavid parcel of simple fools, we made off from troutdale as the sun ambled up into the gunmetal sky, the fun forecast of days gone by on the wane i was stoked to get the backseat to meself on the ride in, them white-boys hobnobbing 'bout christ-knows what up-front while i nipped coffee to quell my quotidian whiskey-sick n' contemplate my lot in this lackluster life - i guess i didn't exactly put my full shoulder into my photographic obligations? black jack at light speed blasting down 84 - it's like...uh...the middle one! ben had epiced way-back in the day he said in trying to access the blackjack flow - the olson guide description certainly involves some hairy hi-jinx n' didn't look to make much sense to me in hindsight neither, but hey, whatever it takes to isolate 3 tiers of solid adventure ice w/o too steep a crux from the thrutching masses cluster-fucking the crown jewel! so apparently the lowest flow rarely connects to the ground? it sure was still a long way off after all this freeze, and rather than repeat his rewardless stumble-fuck of years ago, ben roped me in a few weeks ago to round out an aid-alternative he's been at now and again - horrid rock n' wicked steep, why not? i did my bit n' retired to read n' puff butts n' hide from rockfall as he pushed it higher sunday ben n' eric completed the line and got it to the top of the first tier - all that was left monday then was to jug up the lines they'd left fixed eric just a few moments before realizing it suuuuure is easier to jug w/ yer pack dangling... a long bout of hauling shiny gear n' whatnot up the cliff n' soon enough we were all up there, ready to get at the reward of all this labor ben getting rigged up for his romp up the first real ice pitch sure are some saturnine vistas over there in far-off warshington? nice pitch - not too hard w/ plenty of good feet - far from solid frozen to be sure though i have an 8000 meter parka n' you don't ben at the top i stomped n' snorted n' smoked n' generally bided my time till it was my turn - eric heading on up the bowl below the 2nd tier was brush n' bracken n' bullshit but some clippers made it better - ben was a good, good boy, so got to climb this next (short) pitch plenty thin ice here - taking out one of the anchor screws here resulted in a geyser of liquid water raging on odd - musta explained the bit of cut brush ben had shoved down the bore? the third n' final tier was wicked wet and scraggly, and the sun was damn near well-set - by the time we were all up there the mere prospect of getting back down in one piece was menacing enough, so we set ourselves to figuring that out - no small task - no trees, no cracks in the rock, no quality ice to get a v-thread, n' no drill to put in an anchor bolt - in the glowering dusk we talked ben into trusting our lives on a dainty li'l sapling he was sitting by another fun rap off a half-rotten log frozen into the muck and we were down to an all-together trustworthy station - the base in the frosty dark, breath heavy around us -packing n' smoking n' chuckling - we wandered down the steep crick, ben needing a rudolf to guide him as his headlamp was like a sun gone dead shame this here gorge don't freeze more frequent - might then have to get me some tools that don't leave me looking like a bare-knuckle prize fighter who went 12 rounds n' lost big? Quote
powderhound Posted December 11, 2013 Posted December 11, 2013 (edited) F*ck Yeah boys! Looks like a real quality climb, we need to get that thing cleaned up so it is a first rate mixed intro pitch!! Edited December 11, 2013 by powderhound Quote
beaconben Posted December 11, 2013 Posted December 11, 2013 Great idea 'Hound, let's go take a look around up there, many possibilities. Ivan and Eric, thanks for letting me wrangle you guys into these shenanigans. Good times! We'll have to climb that last tier next time. Quote
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