Contemplation, Joes Valley & the release of stress

The contemplative life seems to be the constant in my life and delivers me to interact with both reality and the absurd alike. As such taking an active agency in the world that I feel and experience is an important practice.

The last week(+) has had a great deal of stress and interesting situations. My dear friend Rocco and his great and now wife Mary had there wedding. This event came with many sides to it. It was my first wedding in a traditional sense and I was glad to have this first with a couple that actually meant something to me and thus avoided the 'going through the motions' vibe that an experience like this can conjure up.

By spending time in the city of SLC and away from the gypsy lifestyle different and intriguing experiences came about, which incited an interesting dimension to my own understanding of society and my interaction with the other beings that inhabit it. As such a few constants were understood. That being said I believe that the only constant is motion. This being said all we are in charge of is the interaction that we all personally have with our world and the 'other' is of concern but not control.

This is all to say that I have found myself in the sandy throws of central Utah and experience both boulders and myself in constant motion again and this appears to be where I am supposed to be, for now that is.

(+)the day after the wedding my friend and great photographer Craig Copelin and I got a tip on some new quartzite in central UT and we pursued and both established some nice new problems. Here are a few of Craig's iPhone pictures.

Photo Dump: Cont'd

The pups and subsequent van ride to Joe's Valley for Rocco's bachelor party
Workin' a project

Photo Dump: Last Frontier and the Lower 48

The following are pictures of the Alaska Range which houses some of the mos beautiful mountains including the giant, Denali.

Alaska & the Power of Mustaches(oh yeah and PUPPIES)

The very dangerous Ruckus in Joe's Valley
An Amazing new v3 called 'Cattle Guard'
Rocco and Asha reinacting the Lion King
Joes Vizzle!!!
Rocco on his FA of the 'Crackin v5'

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Avoidance is perhaps one of the more perplexing yet interesting actions of the conscious rational human mind. We are intelligent enough to know that we can put off the inevitable but never release ourselves from the reality of our circumstantial lives. That being said in the last month plus I have been back home in Alaska for the first time in 2 whole years. There is more to the story than we need to go into now but the trip was a good one, full of work and the absorption the beauty that Alaska holds for me and the obvious beauty that exists in everybody's eyes.

I am now back in what Alaskans call the 'outside' which means the lower 48 states. I flew into Salt Lake City and have been getting into climbing shape again while spending good time with the SLC crew. The HQ for this little chapter is my good friend Rocco's house. Rocco and other good friend Mary are getting married and I have delayed my sport-climbing trip to the Red River Gorge a couple days in order to help them with pre-wedding goings-ons, plus to take part in the festivities in which climbers from both coasts will be converging for. I am also lucky enough to have the stars align so that my college roommates and bestest of buddies from Sweet Grass Productions premier their new ski film on Friday at Brewvies here in SLC.

As for the climbing I have been very very psyched but it was a little rough in the first day or so as I went Little Cottonwood Canyon(LCC) in the heat and only managed some moderate problems like 'Baldy v6'. I have total respect for the granite technical climbing and really love the movement that it creates.

Then it was off to Joe's Valley, a place I really love visiting but this trip was a quick 26 hours allowing for a couple short sessions. All the problems had to be done in a session and very quickly so we could keep seeing all the great new development, largely contributed by Rocco.

I climbed well but still felt a little shaky on my movements. I was able to ascend 'River Runs Through It v9', 'Blue Lambo v7ish', 'Cloak & the Dagger V6' a first ascent of 'In Vain v6' and a very exhausted 'Bow to the East v9'. It was a whirlwind kind of trip and an absolute blast to be rock-climbing again.

Last but not least the HQ has to new members, Ruckus & Asha, bothe six week old puppies. They have already been boulder hoping in Joe's and although they can/are a handful they're a wonderful addition to the crew.

Here are some pictures and I will post more very soon. All photos by friend Paul Nadler.

AR