New Line on the Great Wall

I made a trip out to the Great Wall near Stone City last week with Eben Farnworth and Alex Honnold. We had great, cool weather but the adventure was cut short by shortened daylight – this is a better spring crag. Alex got on lead on a new line up a crack system that proved too chossy and loose. We bailed after placing only one additional bolt and headed over to the arete at the top of the approach pitch to the main ledge.

Eben got to lead the pitch up to the Heather Terrace and we agreed that it is probably the best line on the wall so far. Alex liked the face just to the east of the arete and he rigged a line and rapped down and tried to find moves on top rope. He marked the bolt placements and I cleaned and bolted the line afterward but we ran out of daylight and did not finish it. There is still some loose rock that needs to be taken care of, including a death block near the top, and the route needs the white lichen to be brushed off before I attempt to send it.

The route is a full 40 meters long and will end on the Terrace so we can use existing rap anchors to descend. Alex thinks the line will go at 12+. This will be the hardest FA I’ve attempted and it is at the top of my list once I fill in my next pyramid. Pulling this off would make an excellent Christmas present to myself.

Trip Preparation

Still in Shanghai but ready to travel to Yangshuo for an extended fall trip starting next week. I've been in touch with climbers and there is nothing new to report on the access front other than to confirm that most of the hangers have been removed from the bottom of all White Mountain routes. Probably best to show up at the crag ready to stick-clip the higher bolts just to be safe. I'll go to the hardware store this morning to pick up some small hand clamps and maybe even a telescoping metal stick if I can find one.

I've arranged to meet with at least one village head to discuss continued access to White Mt. but I understand that we will have to meet with a second village to get them on board as well. This is important in preparation of the upcoming climbing festival mid-November. We want to avoid any hassles between locals and climbers during the festival as word will get out about how 'friendly' the area is and this might influence other climbers' decisions about coming here. I'm still not sure why Rock 'n' Ice published the Sharma article which dealt more with the body climbers found in in Odin's Den and less with the actual climbing or what it was like to hand out in the laid-back ambiance that is Yangshuo.

As for me, I think I am about as prepared as I can be for the fall climbing window. I'm fit, except for a bit of elbow tendonitis that I always seem to aggravate with too much gym climbing, and I have a long list of climbs I want to get on to build my pyramid geared toward sending some 7's this season. I've actually started focusing on my sport grade numbers and working routes so we'll see if this pays off in performance. I'm still most psyched about hopping on a few new crack lines on Birdman; I'll try to get the first ascent on trad gear. I feel the anxiety along with the excitement just thinking about it.

Overdue Update

I finally got serious about getting around the blocking of my blog by the govt here. I'll try to post a few blogs a day to catch up on what has happened here recently and what is in the pipeline for the rest of the year. Items include: the second annual Yangshuo Climbing Festival on Nov.13-15; the establishment of the Yangshuo Access Initiative and recent and planned projects; new lines including Chris Sharma's unsent 5.15; alpine climbing in Sichuan -have to throw in my recent trip; climbing in Qingdao and Beijing's Baihe area and the translation of the guidebook into Chinese.

I spent a few weeks in YS in the spring before going on a trip to the US where I only had time to climb at the Enchanted Tower with my brother for a few days. The tower is an awesome place and the climbing on pocketed welded tufts was overhung but juggy - biggest jugs you'll ever fall off of. I got back to China early August and after taking care of visa issues I have been traveling and climbing for the past 4 weeks. I joined a mock competition with a group of international climbers in ShanXi Province and many of us went to Beijing and climbed at Baihe for a few days. Then it was off to YS for a meeting of the committe for the upcoming Climbing Festival. I just got back from Sichuan where we attempted to climb The Dragon's Tooth, a beautiful unclimbed peak in Bipeng Valley. We set ourselves up in a good camp near the base, but we could not wait out the rain and had to walk out without touching the wall.

On the Yangshuo front, bolt hangers have been stolen from the bottom of all White Mountain routes, probably by the second near-by village, so the Yangshuo Access Initiative will have to get active there immediately. I plan to return for the reminder of the year after the October 1st national holidays. Climbing in June and last week in early September was still very hot and humid, but temps and humidity can be expected to start coming down soon. I've got a big list of climbs to redpoint this season and hope to see many of you pulling down at one of Asia's best sport areas.