Still Not Dead

[clovehitched]

We've finished all the technical canyoneering we're going to be doing on our holiday now. Today is a bit of a rest day, as well as packing up our equipment, doing laundry, etc.. Tomorrow (Wednesday) we have the long drive back to San Jose, and on Thursday we fly back to the UK. This week has been so much fun - we've done four technical canyons, and had a great time in San Fransisco and the Bay Area just before we came out here. Going to miss gentle_gamer and parmonster when we fly out, but we will be back, oh yes!

My big "what I did on my holidays" entry is still waiting for when I get back to the UK, at the moment I'm mentally exhausted (as well as physically exhausted, bruised, scratched, and sunburned). I'll leave you with a couple of photos and a video from the canyon we did yesterday, Pine Creek. It's the one we saved for last, being the most technically (and, it turns out, physically) demanding:

zoeimogen on the "Great Cathedral" rappel/abseil. That water is too deep to stand up in, and cold! You have to abseil off the end of the rope, and then swim away:



Me having fun on the same rap/abseil. I got to the bottom and decided to see if I could reach the ledge at the left:

And finally, Pine Creek's last rap. This used to be a hundred feet, free-hanging all the way. Thanks to a recent rock fall, it's now only 90 feet. The anchor is over the edge - you have to take in as much slack as you can, and then swing into space, trusting that the rope will take you. I was first down, and so had no bottom belayer to catch me if I messed up, so I rigged for an insane amount of friction. This made the descent rather bouncy, as well as hard work (I had to practically feed the rope through into my belay device in order to descend, and each time I did it was an effort holding the rope with my left hand to remain upright - by the time I reached the bottom, I was exhausted). Here's zoeimogen on her way down from the top - you can just see her up there in the photo:

Comments

[jessie-c.livejournal.com]

That looks like it was far too much effort to spend on a vacation, but whatever turns your crank : )
Glad you've been having fun and can't wait for all the juicy details.

[gg-the-undead.livejournal.com]

*gulp*

i'm glad you had a good trip.

*gulp*

i'm nervous just watching...

[auntysarah.livejournal.com]

i'm nervous just watching...

*giggle*

Apparently the locals call that big overhanging rap "The Intimidator". I expected to be terrified, bursting into tears, and needing a massive amount of psyching up to just approach the edge.

In the event, I just clipped into the rope, sat on the side with my feet dangling in the void, took hold of the rope with both hands, put my feet on the rock below me and pushed my body into space.

My next words, while hanging next to Zoe with the height of a ten storey building underneath me were, "I can't believe I just did that!"

[nixwilliams.livejournal.com]

WOW! that looks amazing! :)

[tekalynn.livejournal.com]

Gorgeous photos!

[scorpionflail.livejournal.com]

The more I see of you three and the things you climb/descend, the more I'm convinced that you are all actually some kind of secret agents.

The two pics here from inside great cathederal and pine creek are absolutely woah, I look forward to being boggled by the rest.

[tartful-dodger.livejournal.com]

Hahaha, me too!

[auntysarah.livejournal.com]

:-D

Shaken, not stirred...

wow

[auslanderin01.livejournal.com]

I have just let out an audible, if quiet, WOW in my open plan office. Awesome, awesome.

[cmcmck.livejournal.com]

Fab pics, but I still reckon I'd sooner see the views from terra firma :o)

[auntysarah.livejournal.com]

Oh, it's not so bad really. After a bit the "Oh my god, I'm going to die" voice goes away.

[parmonster.livejournal.com]

Yes, eventually that little scrotum of a voice refuses to ovary up and runs away.

[techiebabe.livejournal.com]

Incredibly impressive. And scary. I could never do that!

[auntysarah.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[hobbitblue.livejournal.com]

Wow, fab pics really get the eep scary factor across to those of us who'd not do that in a million years - yay to both of you for having so much fun and having the skills to do it! :)

[cmcmck.livejournal.com]

I keep bumping into you here :o)

May I add you to my friends' list?

[hobbitblue.livejournal.com]

By all means, nice to meet you :)

[cmcmck.livejournal.com]

Consider it done! :o)

[parmonster.livejournal.com]

Going to miss gentle_gamer and parmonster when we fly out, but we will be back, oh yes!

We're going to miss you too sweetie! I know I already do (and you're still only mid-arctic at this point!) Time to figure out when I'll get back out there, hopefully before November!