Shout AAA.....EEE.....OOO and the cliff shouts back. We unpacked our gear after a 2 hour drive to the quarry. The ridge where we camped was 30 feet wide. To one side was this steep mountain. On the other side was a steep valley. The pond in the valley was green and was barricaded from people. It was a quarry and some things needed to be barricaded from people. I knew I was going to have a great day. I was very excited. It was the first time I went for outdoor climbing. Till now I have been climbing the artificial, soft, color coded and rope laid walls at the gym. I was very nervous too. The cliffs are too high and unlike the gym the walls, they are all dirty, sharp and hard. The more experienced people in the group said they would lead (the act of laying rope and securing it tight at the height till which you want others to climb to). Then people have to top rope (involves removing the safety draws laid in the path the the lead takes). Top roping, is what I thought, I can do. I did too. On the scale of difficulties, a 5.5 is the easiest and 5.11s and 5.12s are the toughest. I can do 5.8s and may be a 5.9 with a lot of effort.
Protein bars, bananas, gatorade, sandwiches, and water. It was like a fitness camp. :)). Only much more exciting. After a long long time I found an outdoor activity that I have started to really really like. I have been running lately and I had been running 4 mile tracks, twice a week. But somehow I still wanted some kind of exercise for the upper body. Climbing is awesome. I have been climbing since 2 months now at the gym. This long weekend, the climbing group decided to go outdoors and I went for outdoor rock climbing for the first time. I am totally enamored with climbing now. I just cant wait till the next time I would go outdoors. Rock climbing rocks!
