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Ouray Ice Festival 2012

Who: Vinny E., Andrew M., and Myself meeting up with RAMBO

Where: Ouray Colorado

When: Jan 6th-8th, 2012

Last minute Vinny rounded me up and we headed down to Ouray to ice-climb and stay at Rambo’s house who has been living there for the past year doing AmeriCorps for the Uncompahgre Watershed Partnership. We left Denver after work and had a nice night drive all the way to Rambo’s awesome house.

The next morning we geared-up, checked out the Ice Festival and then headed to the New Funtier area. The Ice Festival was way cooler then we were expecting as they have a bunch of free gear demos and clinics; I demo’d a new harness since mine is getting old. Andrew leading the first route of the day:

Andrew Mayer Ouray New Funtier

Lots of people were out that day and with the Ice in the river not being very solid we saw a lot of people punch through. At one point Rambo had to pull some foreigner out of the river (nipples deep) and convince him that he needed to go back down the valley. Vinny leading another one:

Vinny Climbing New Funtier in Ouray

The snow picked up quite a bit towards the end of the day. Here is just one of the many climbers in the area that day:

Ouray Snowing during Ice Climbing

That night we cooked dinner, hit up the hot springs and were hanging out when a huge snowstorm blew through town dumping 6-8 inches in less then two hours. So naturally we decided to tie a rope to a car and pull each other through the side-roads of Ouray at midnight. Rambo’s shit-eating grin just gives an idea of how awesome this was:

Sledding in the Streets of Ouray

Next morning was glorious!

We  climbed right at the main competition area the next day right below the main (upper) bridge. Lots of people from all over the place.

Ouray Festival 2012 Competition Area

 

Mt Sherman on the drive out:

Mt Sherman Colorado at Sunset

Always a good time in Ouray!

 

Quick Moments of Fall

Just like that we went from blazing hot to the cool temps of fall. I experienced this during a little landscape project that started in late August and went up to mid-Sept (essentially going from dripping sweat to just normal sweat). That little landscape project turned into a much bigger project somehow miraculously finishing moments before the start of the Backyard Bouldering Competition.

The cool temps lead to an active fall of many short-outings experiencing the intense fall colors. Below is just a photographic taste from the short adventures that took place during the extended fall season

Kenosha Pass (and all surrounding areas) were absolutely breath-taking on Oct 1st-2nd, 2011:

Once finished with the climbing comp I was able to get out again (had no real adventures since Independence Pass in early August). Here we are at Mt Sanitas in Boulder doing some bouldering, September 17th, 2011:

Mt. Sanitas Bouldering

Andrew relaxing on the top-out:

Mount Sanitas Lower Fin Boulder

Aspen’s just starting to get really colorful on Squaw Pass Road near Evergreen on September 25th, 2011:

Aspens on Squaw Pass Colorado

A trip to Crested Butte with RAMBO happened on Oct 1st-2nd. Potentially the most colorful weekend in my life. More will be posted on this adventure, however here is a teaser:

Skyland Boulders Crested Butte

My sister flew in from Austin, TX and we checked out Rocky Mountain National Park on a snowy day in the park. October 9th, 2011:

RMNP Cub Lake Trailhead

Many Curves Overlook after Snowstorm

There were also a lot of elk out that day and we had fun watching them in their rut:

RMNP Fall 2011 Elk Rut on Cub Lake Trail

Friday afterwork session in Castlewood Canyon with Caitlin at the 9 Lives Boulder, October 14th, 2011:

Castlewood Canyon Fall Colors

Day trip to Sheep’s Nose for some boulder exploring with Caitlin and some sightseeing, October 23rd, 2011 (Pike’s Peak in the background):

Pike's Peak from Sheep's Nose

Oct 28th Halloween party!!!

Fall more or less wrapped-up in Colorado for me on a beautiful, brisk day in Castlewood Canyon doing some bouldering with Jake and Ben. November 11th, 2012:

Creekside Boulders at Castlewood Canyon

 

Full Post here: http://andylibrande.com/news/2012/02/quick-moments-of-fall/

 

Independence Pass Bouldering and Camping

When: August 5th-7th, 2011

Where: Independence Pass, Colorado

Caitlin and I took off after work on a Friday to head-up to Independence Pass between Aspen and Leadville. The idea was to check out the bouldering that is all over the area, enjoy the sights, and escape the heat of Denver. We rolled in after dark and after taking Caitlin’s volvo for a little 4-wheelin’ action :-) , somehow found free camping up Lincoln Creek road.

After sleeping like logs in the crisp night air (the denver heat was not making sleep easy), we awoke to a beautiful day. Amazingly our friend Terra happened to drive by our campsite as we were getting ready to leave for the day…small world.

Saturday we hit up the James Brown Boulders which we had a little difficulty locating as we were one pull-off too soon. Once we found these great boulders in the shade it was a nice day of trying a number of problems and enjoying the crisp air.

Caitlin working one of the tricky easier problems near the James Brown Boulder (notice the grassy top-out):

Me on the James Brown Boulder (awesome block):

We headed-up to the pass for some sunset viewage. Here is Caitlin showing-off:

Cailtin Shay during sunset over Independence Pass Colorado

Beautiful last chunks of light:

Small pond right next to the road right as the sun disappeared:

The craziest thing happened when we were back at camp and done cooking dinner. We were just sitting there pondering the night sky when a huge tree came crashing down in the forest behind us…scared the living crap out of us and it was pitch black and impossible to investigate. No idea why or how it fell but it was a crazy event that was a little unnerving.

Sunday morning cooking some breakfast:

Playing in the Grottoes:

Cool waterfall formation:

It was 100 degrees when we rolled back in Denver…nice to enjoy some cool weather and experience an awesome place!

Link to blog posting:   http://andylibrande.com/news/2011/09/independence-pass-bouldering-and-camping/

Castlewood Canyon Spring Climbing

Location: Castlewood Canyon State Park Colorado

Dates: 3/26, 4/8, 4/9, 4/15

In between powder sessions in the mountains, hail storms in Denver, and intense wind along the front range we have been taking advantage of the beautiful climbing opportunities at Castlewood.

We have had several sessions (love the afterwork sessions) at the Fontainebleau area of Castlewood with Caitlin coming pretty close to sending Rocket Ship. Here she is on the first day out with the new Organic Pad March 26th:

Castlewood Canyon Bouldering on Rocket Ship

Jake leading with style at the C-Section wall at Castlewood on April 9th:

Castlewood Canyon Sport Climbing at the C-Section Wall

The elusive Rambo made an appearance and we worked on the Plate Rock South Face Arete in an after-work session on April 15th:

Castlewood Canyon State Park Bouldering on Plate Rock

Rambo up high on the Plate Problem with all of the committing moves at the top:

Highball bouldering at Castlewood Canyon Colorado

Eying out the most intense crack climb at Castlewood. The South Sentry is a perfect crack formation with a undesirable landing on a small boulder that is nearly impossible to protect with only one spotter/photographer…Rambo got up in it but the next moves were a little dangerous for our situation (4/15/11):

Crack climbing at Castlewood Canyon State Park Colorado

The largest herd of deer I have ever seen at Castlewood and surprisingly they weren’t too spooked (3/26/11):

Mule Deer at Castlewood Canyon State Park Colorado

Full post here: http://andylibrande.com/news/2011/05/castlewood-canyon-spring-climbing/

Ice-Ice-Baby…

What: Ice Climbing in Ouray Colorado

When: Feb 11th-13th, 2011

Who: Andrew G, Hoof-Cakes, Caitlin, Brain G, Myself,  meeting up with Vinny, Sarah, Andrew M, and some other dude’s whose names I haphazardly forgotten…yeah we had a crew.

Reasons why Ice-Climbing in Ouray is the  shizzle:

  • Gear: Nothing like playing with sharp-pointy Ice Axes all day
  • Technique: The better at hitting/kicking you are the more fun you will have
  • Location: Comparing Ouray to the rest of Colorado is like comparing a Salema Hayek to Rosie O’Donnell
  • Ice Park: Huge area, easy access, plenty of climbs and beautiful things to look at. I am always impressed when I visit here. Plus you walk from the Motel to the ice-park.
  • Ice: Unreal formations everywhere.
  • Food: Classic Mexican at Buen Tiempo and a new favorite at Mouse’s Chocolates
  • Hot Tub at the Victorian Inn: Best views from any hot-tub I have ever gotten drunk in (here is an idea picture)
  • Not Driving on I-70: Well technically you can get here via I-70 but why would anyone want to drive on that road. Instead we enjoyed ~5.5 hours of scenic roadways and saw a incredible sunset over Monarch Pass

Yes. I was pleasantly surprised with how awesome our trip to Ouray turned-out.  First off Ouray seems like a little bump in the road on the way to bigger and better things (ie Silverton, Durango, etc); however you only appreciate this town when you have spent some time here.

This is my third Ice adventure to this town with the previous two being on commercially guided trips with the DU Alpine Club back in college. Those were a lot of fun but this time was able to piggy-back on some friends with a bunch of Ice-climbing equipment and were able to explore on our own.

First day was spent at the New Funtier Area. Good area that has a number of concentrated climbs in a narrow canyon.

Vinny leading up some thin ice:

Vinny Ice-climbing in Ouray

Whitney posing for the camera:

Andrew G. showing us how it is done on a sketchy pillar at the end of the day:

Andrew in New Funtier at Ouray Colorado

The second day we headed to the excellent South Park area which is much further in the canyon, however the actually area is in a wide-section of the river and makes for a nice place to hang-out and watch climbs.

Amazingly a Bighorn Sheep crossed under the canyon when we were setting-up the climbs. They hung out above us all day too:

Caitlin after cruising through the tough part:

Brian making his mom proud:

Andrew M. doing some leading on beautiful ice:

Ouray Colorado Ice Climb Lead in South Park

Andy L. (myself) up on the right with Vinny quickly catching-up:

Solid Trip!

For the original post please visit: http://andylibrande.com/news/2011/03/ice-ice-baby/

Some Favorites from 2010

Below is a slideshow showing some of my favorite photos from 2010. 2010 was a pretty good year with a number of really cool trips to new locations and old favorites. Hope you enjoy:

If you are following from a feed please follow this link for the full post: http://andylibrande.com/news/2011/01/some-favorites-from-2010/

New England Trip and Bouldering

What: A Visit to Boston, MA and the surrounding climbing

When: Sept 25th – Oct 2nd, 2010 (Sat thru Sat)

Took a week off from work to meet up with Chris who has been living in Boston for just over  a year. The goal was to visit a number of different bouldering areas while spending some time checking out Boston. It was the first time I have been to the East Coast and was looking forward to something completely new.

Immediately we had to check out the local spot. The day after I landed we headed to the Hammond Pond area in Newton which was less then 15 mins from Chris’s house. We went to a spot that Chris had not previously checked out, as the parking for the area is questionable, called the Temple Overhangs. Awesome hunk of rock hidden in the forest made out of a weird rock called puddingstone (resembling a slick castlewood rock).

Myself stretching the muscles after the flight:

Temple Crags at Hammond Pond

Chris sending the Classic Reefer Madness:

Reefer Madness at Temple Crags

Chris on the Traverse Problem:

Temple Crags Boston, MA

Sweet shot Chris took of me getting spanked on the Reefer Madness start:

Temple Crags

Shortly after this decent session a rainstorm moved in and spent Sunday Evening through Tuesday Evening slowly drizzling. The weather changed the plans which resulted in us spending a lot of quality time in exploring the sites and sounds of Boston.  Ate a ridiculous amount of great Italian food, ran into a number of good characters, climbed indoors at Metro Rock (really fun gym), and saw a bunch of cool sites which was an unexpected plus.

Tuesday night was looking gloomy and we could only hope that the weather the next day might be good. Much to our surprise (and contradicting of the weather reports) we woke to sunny skies, the clouds quickly burned off, and the sun was nice and warm drying the rain quickly.

The drive to the legendary Pawtuckaway State Park Bouldering area was a nice drive. The closer we got the nicer the weather was getting and we were getting very excited for our visit. We finally pulled into the area a little after 11am (we had to save a turtle from the road on the way in) we hiked into the Round Pond area due to the guidebook recommending it for lots of sun.

Round Pond Boulder Area Sign

The boulders were perfect. Nicely clustered on the top of a small hill overlooking a good-sized pond (would probably qualify for lake status in Colorado), we checked out any climb that was dry.

Myself not liking the starting crimps on this dyno problem:

Round Pond Bouldering

There was this unique block that is tetering on-top of another much smaller boulder. Chris crushed the problem Atlas v5/6 repeatedly for photo ops and for fun. Really awesome to watch:

Atlas at Round Pond Pawtuckaway

Spending enough time at Round Pond we decided to head over to the main event, the area called Boulder Natural. A insane cluster of granite blocks in every shape and size nestled deep in the forest along a small stream.

I spent a lot of time trying to spend the classic Hobbit Hole but the feet eluded me:

Hobbit Hole at Pawtuckaway

However this dyno right next door was way too much fun:

Boulder Natural Pawtuckaway

We ended the day with Chris trying to send one of the harder classic problems in the area, Terrorist. Chris was climbing extremely well this trip considering that he took a hiatus when he moved to Boston over a year ago…very impressive to watch:

Terrorist Boulder Problem at Pawtuckaway

Pawtuckaway was a really cool area and I wish we had more time/energy/supplies to continue to check out this awesome location and glad that we had such a full great day out there.

More rain moved in and we were beat after our intense 6.5 hrs of climbing at Pawtuckaway.  However before the trip was up we spotted one last day to go climbing and raced a storm on a Friday morning down to Lincoln Woods in Rhode Island. After an hour drive we pulled into the park right at 10am and threw-down on as many problems as we could handle at the “Warm-up Wall” which has a number of quality problems.

Myself getting some of the more interesting moves on Cave Overhang:

Cave Overhand Lincoln Woods Rhode Island

Chris flashing Iron Cross (with the Sasquatch the spotter not being very attentive):

Iron Cross Lincoln Woods Rhode Island

Flashing Iron Cross at Lincoln Woods

Chris trying this Dyno, right before a massive monsoon downpour hit us and we scrambled to pick up the various pieces of climbing equipment and expensive photo gear. 2.5 hrs after we got there we were rained out; turned out to be just enough time for a great last session.

Andy perfecting his Pizza pick-up skills:

Street Art by Bansky:

Windy in the City:

Damn good trip.

If you are following from a feed here is the original link: http://andylibrande.com/news/2010/11/new-england-trip-and-bouldering/

Bachelor Party in Camp Dick

When: July 30th – July 31st, 2010

Where: Near the Camp Dick campground close to Lyons

Who: Ben, Andrew, Scott, Yours Truly, and Stranahan’s

Why: Well Ben decided to randomly get married on extreme short-notice so we had to throw a bachelor party on extreme short-notice.

Let’s get the elephant in the room a little explanation. Yes, we did have a bachelor party in a place called Camp Dick. Yes, it was just a bunch of dudes camping out together, drinking together, and reminiscing about the good ol’ days. And yes, it was a lot of, uhhh… fun….

We left Denver Friday night all jammed into Andrew’s SUV with several crash pads, gear, food, adult beverages, and four of us with the mission to give Ben a damn good evening/weekend. Luckily for us the drive to Camp Dick is just enough time to enjoy some beverages in the backseat and ramble on about how cool we all once were.

We get to Camp Dick and Andrew has to navigate the 4×4 road in his Ford SUV which was a little tight but we managed. We quickly found a awesome camping spot near the river and had a awesome boulder that we could sit on in the middle of the St Vrian river were we could cook and chill. Luckily I have been there a couple of times (documented here), so everything was pretty easy to figure out.

Morning was a little rough but here Scott and Ben discuss the merits of sleeping in a tent directly under a fallen tree:

Car Camping at Camp Dick near Indian Peaks Wilderness

We hit up the Bolt Boulder to try out our climbing skills the next day. Awesome high-ball boulder with easy access and a few really fun problems. Andrew getting high into the crux of the main easier problem there (crux is at the top):

Bolt Boulder Camp Dick

Ben showing off his good looks:

Bouldering at Camp Dick on the Bolt Boulder

There is a easier slab climb to the top which is much more sketchy when your hands are wet from the condensation on your beer and you have to use your teeth to hold the can:

We tried to convince Ben to eat this colorful friend:

Anyways congrats to Ben and Beth!!!

Backyard Bouldering Competition – Sept 4th 2010

Introducing the Backyard Bouldering Competition:

Party – BBQ – Climbing Competition

Saturday September 4th, 2010

Starting at 5:00pm

By Andy Librande Productions

A simple open competition taking place on the backyard wall at Andy Librande’s house. A keg of beer and a dinner buffet will be provided. Everyone and all ability types are welcomed and encouraged to attend. Please indicate that you are attending by leaving a comment below with your email address.

Close-up of the Climbing Wall Featuring Optimus Prime

Close-up of the Climbing Wall Featuring Optimus Prime

Format:

  • At least 10 climbing problems will be featured on the climbing wall and will range in difficulty from Easy to Hard
  • Each problem will be given a set of Stars to rate its point value (and potential difficulty)
  • Each competitor has at least two hours to attempt as many problems as they can with no limit on the number of tries
  • Each competitor will share the wall with everyone else and take turns as necessary, time will go until everyone has climbed every problem or as attempted as many tries as seen fit by the overall judge
  • Each competitor will keep track of their own scores throughout the competition

Cost:

  • Entry Fee: $5 to cover beer, food and prizes

Scoring:

  • Each problem will be given a set of Stars to rate its point value ranging from One Star to Four Stars
  • Star rankings may hint at difficulty but are warranted more on quality of the climb. Therefore an easier but aesthetic problem may be worth more points than a harder contrived problem.
  • Each attempt on a problem is worth a certain amount of points. Flash (sending problem 1st try) is worth the most. There will be no points awarded for problems that are not completed. However on select few climbs there may be “Bonus” awards that a competitor may earn if they reach a certain hold but do not complete the problem.
  • A completion of the problem is considered when a competitor has complete control on the final hold. Grabbing a final hold and swinging out and not holding on will not count as a completed problem. Bonus holds count when the competitor at least has minimal grip on the hold with their hand; there are no bonus foot holds.
  • Completion of a problem means that the competitor has climbed the problem clean. This means only using the appropriate hand and foot holds as dictated by the competition scorecard. Dragging your feet on the pads, accidently placing hands/feet on off-route problems/features, or hitting other competitors with any part of your body will be considered a “dab” and competitor will need to restart the climb.

Score Details:

Star Ranking Grid and Scoring Points
Flash 2-3 Attempts 4+ Attempts Bonus Hold*
1 Star 25 pts 15 pts 10 pts 10 pts
2 Star 35 pts 25 pts 20 pts 10 pts
3 Star 45 pts 35 pts 30 pts 10 pts
4 Star 60 pts 50 pts 40 pts 10 pts
*Bonus Hold only Counts when the problem is not sent by competitor

Awards and Prizes:

  • Awards will be given to the top climbers with the highest scores.
  • In an event of a tie the winner will be determined by a game of CLIMB (aka Horse in basketball). Where each climber will alternate in climbing a problem and then the other climber has to climb that problem or earn a letter.
  • Awards will be for:
    • 1st-3rd place for Men
    • 1st-3rd place for Women
  • Prizes will be abundant and attended to be light-hearted and will be decided by the Comp organizer (Andy Librande) or by popular vote:
    • Best Costume: Competitor with the best outfit/costume/etc and earns at least 50 points. Popular Vote decision.
    • Best Determination: Competitor that puts forth the best effort throughout the competition (does not mean climbs hardest). Comp Organizer decision.
    • Most Bonus Holds: Competitor that attempts the most problems and gets the most bonus holds but does not fully complete the problem. Comp Organizer decision.
    • Keg Stand Meister: Competitor that does at least a 15 second keg-stand and then flashes a Three or Four star problem.
    • Midgets Unite: Competitor under 5’5” with the highest score.
  • Awards and Prizes will range from Plaques to Gear to Cash Money

Preparation:

  • The climbing wall is open 24 hours a day 7 days a week in my backyard. Let me know if you are coming by to climb at anytime. Pads are in the house and if you need them and I am not there I can let you know the keycode.
  • Climbing wall will close several days before the comp to reset all of the problems for the competition.

The Wall:

Thank you and Please let me know if you have any questions!!!

- Andy

Teva Mountain Games 2010

Teva Mountain Games

Spent a weekend hanging out at the Teva Mountain Games up in Vail June 5-6th with Caitlin and ran into a bunch of friends that were up there as well so it was a lot of fun (Andrew, Whitney, Ben, Beth, Terra). This is the second time I have been to the games (first time documented here), so it was good to be back to check out some of the fun events with highlights being the in-town Kayak events and the Bouldering competition; compared to the last time I went there the events were good but the timing of certain events overlapped while at other times there was a huge space of time where nothing was really going on. Regardless it is still an awesome event which everyone should check out.

The coolest part about the games was the water-levels on the Gore Creek running through town were just insane with the CFS nearing doubling during the day on Saturday (what I heard from 1700 CFS in the morning to nearly 3000 that night!). The water was so high on Sunday that they had to cancel the events mainly due to the huge amount of debris floating down-river. Anyways we were lucky to witness some pros hitting the creek that night at some of its highest flows on Sat night.

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We literally watched full trees come down the river as it hit 20 year highs:

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Here is a picture of how crazy flooded it was that afternoon (seriously up 3ft from the morning):

20100605-dsc_0173

Watched the 3rd Annual World Bouldering Cup held in the US. Always fun to watch top climbers hitting a wall that is nice and tall. Also really cool to see how many people come and watch this event, easily the most watched event at the games.

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Really cool features that they mounted to the climbing wall:

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Bouldering at the Kluttergarden

On Sunday of that weekend hit up the beautiful Kluttergarden up near Red Cliff, CO. I had only been there once before (awesome trip documented here), so I was really excited to get back-up there again to play on these beautiful boulders.

We meet up with Terra and her roommate and the four of us enjoyed several different problems on just one boulder. The place was also insanely busy but everyone we ran into was pretty laid-back and we still had this boulder to ourselves for most of the day.

Here Caitlin sends a fun little variation that she found:

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This climb I am working is on the same boulder and is a cool traverse with a hard lip to try to top-out on.

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Then we headed back to vail for a late lunch and to clean-up all of the give-aways at all of the booths :-)

If you are following from some sort of feed all of my posts can be found here: http://andylibrande.com/news/

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