Saturday 9^th

Lately, I have this small joke about all of these damn trip reports that I have written. It alludes to the fact that (despite my efforts) they are all very, very similar. Almost formulaic. Well, this one is the fiftieth and ... really ... I ain’t writing for anyone but me.

Today (like every day) has its own significance. It would be Giovanna’s last one spent on American stone. She is the radiant daughter of a Tuscan sun and she is leaving us. Behind her Gio leaves a multitude of friends, but she will never be friendless. Anyone who knows her, knows this too.

We climbed at Whitestone this day. It is a place just north of Waterbury (CT), a small and unpretentious crag hidden in the Mattatuck forest. The day was very nice, mostly sunny and a little breezy. We would spend it in t-shirts, something we haven’t often had the opportunity to do for many months. Along with Gio and I were James, Lu and Wolfgang.

Something (5.5)
Climb following an obvious diagonal crack under the arch on the left side of the slab. At the headwall move left to where it is broken by large fissures at the end of the arch. Follow the crack, past a ledge, as you run it out to the top. [K. Hoek, unpublished observations to be corrected by D. Fasulo's upcoming guide]

James was first on the rock, he led up a climb called Something (5.5) (see previous Whitestone report) while I belayed. He did just fine (although he said the protection on this line is far less than can be found on Home James on the right side of the slab), managing the run-out at the end with ease. Before James had finished I swapped the belay duties with Wolfgang so I could lead up a line right in the middle of the slab. Lu anchored herself to a tree root so she could belay for me. James had half my rack with him so I took what was left and started up just as he was surmounting the bulge on Something.

Something Else (5.7+ R)
Climb the small cracks up the center of the slab to a right slanting fissure, just right of Something, in the headwall. Beyond this fissure it is difficult to protect the route. Delicately step up over the headwall (crux move) and then friction directly up past the ledge to the top. [K. Hoek, unpublished observations to be corrected by D. Fasulo's upcoming guide]

The first half of the line I took is pretty easy, although thinner than the two lines on either side it’s still ok protection-wise. The crux is getting over the bulge. There is no protection after the base of the bulge, which is only the half-way point, and getting over it requires at least one committing 5.8 move. This was a bit surprising given the mild nature of the neighbouring routes. It took a long time to figure out what to do, but after lots of half-starts and back-downs I managed to get over. The second half of the route is very thin and crimpy, except for one big fat ledge which is a great relief to reach. The run-out is reasonably serious, any fall from above the bulge would be very long … perhaps even a crater if one were to slip from near the top. I suppose it might be possible to find some sort of pro on the big ledge, but I doubt it. I call this climb Something Else (5.7+). This rating is mostly a reflection of the crux 5.8 move balanced against the remaining 5.6/5.7 climbing.

James had finished Something and was belaying for Giovanna as she made her way up after him. I set an anchor above Something Else for Lu to follow me. Both girls made it up their routes, but Lu had a hell of a time getting over the crux. I had given her a little help, but later in the day she would repeat it unassisted. Wolfgang had started climbing Something and had finished it before Lu could complete Something Else. So James ran down around and to the base of the cliff so he could follow up after Lu.

James also peeled off at the crux, something which pissed him off mightily, but he got it on the second try. He reckoned the climb was pretty easy, except the crux which could be rated at about 5.8. Lu thought the crux should be 5.8+. I await David Fasulo’s guide with some interest on this point.

Home James (5.4)
Climb the big crack on the right of the slab up to a double-crack in the headwall. Follow large cracks beyond this to the top. [K. Hoek, unpublished observations to be corrected by D. Fasulo's upcoming guide]

There was another group of climbers working Home James just to our right. I climbed up Something and hung around on Wolfgang’s belay taking photos of one of them (a beginner) answering the challenge. They were a friendly bunch and let us use their top-rope to play on Home James after they were done. While Wolfgang, Lu and Gio were there James and I went and set a top-rope above Going to the John (5.8).

We were discussing the possibility of doing a lead on this route. James had confidently suggested earlier that he would like to give it a shot, but I thought it might be wiser to top-rope it first and then we would make a decision afterwards. By this time it was nearly 1.30pm and Gio had to go. She was meeting a friend at 2pm back in New Haven. We made dinner plans and promises to catch up again before she flew off for Italy and then, suddenly, she was gone.

After a lunch of chicken and orange juice we played around on Going to the John for quite a while. I took pictures when I was free to and everyone had a reasonable time struggling their way to the top. Near the end I decided to try and lead it, James would note my progress and then make his own decision.

Going to the John (5.8)
Climb the easy cracks just right of Bridget and follow a line straight up to steep jamcracks surmounted by a big ledge and an easy block at the top. [K. Hoek, unpublished observations to be corrected by D. Fasulo's upcoming guide]

It was ok at first, although protection was hard to come by (the first piece went in about 20 feet up) and I struggled interminably to get a stupid sling behind a stone. But the last, slightly overhanging, third of the route was real trouble. I had just done it with little difficulty on top-rope, but the lead was very tough. I knew my protection was solid, but it was unnerving to layback the last dihedral and then fight to hang on as I reclipped through both of the top-rope anchors before letting go. I was practically frothing at the mouth. James, on reflection, decided to give it a miss this time.

Instead, he and Wolfgang repeated the climb on top-rope and indulged in some sort of whacked out hi-jinks … sigh … just look at the photos for an explanation. Eventually, they stopped their skylarking enough for me to dismantle the anchors and we could go home. It had been another very pleasant day slapping the stone.

Gio … it has been a wonderful experience to climb with you. You have endured much while rock-climbing with me. From the razor-sharp choss of Elegant Monkey at Cathole Pass, to the 8 straight hours of climbing Slabs Direct on Whitehorse Ledge, and to the sub-zero temperatures we survived ascending the exposed Weissner’s Rib in February. I wish you all the best and hope to climb with you again some day.