Microadventures

Summer is at an end, for me at least, and as the coveted crispness of fall bouldering weather approaches I settle back into knowing what day it is again, and accept that the freedom to plan long climbing trips must now give way to weekend excursions and quick afterwork jaunts in the woods.  In other words, time to get focused.

With my students starting last Monday, I jumped on the chance to energize myself with two days of weekend fun, starting with the fantastic Microadventure DC event put on by The North Face Georgetown.  Choosing Carderock for its ease of access from the city, TNF brought out 44 aspiring climbers to experience the park's hiking and climbing opportunities, with American Alpine Club volunteers running the belays and Earth Treks generously providing the harnesses, shoes, and helmets for all participants.  As an added crowd pleaser, TNF flew in badass climber, adventurer, flight addict, and Alpine Start cofounder Matt Segal, who I hadn't seen since my equally badass mom was trying to throw him in the pool after my sister's wedding.

                                                                  Photo: Matt Segal

Let me break this down again... over 40 people, many of whom hadn't even climbed in the gym before, getting an all inclusive trip to climb outside with some of the most experienced people in the area and one world class athlete.  For free.  My respect for The North Face went through the roof with this one.

As an extension of their Never Stop Exploring mission, The North Face held Microadventure events around the country, drawing on Alastair Humphreys' vision of adventures that are "short, simple, local, cheap - yet still fun, exciting, challenging, refreshing and rewarding."  In the words of event organizer Sara Brown, they wanted "to show the community that even now as summer comes to an end and the days get shorter- there's still enough time to get up, get out and get after it."  Not content to simply put the challenge out there, they sought to identify and eliminate factors that might limit participation, as well as to show new climbers from their first day that there's a supportive community waiting for them.

                                                                                             Photo: Peter Jensen

For some, the battle was taking that first step off the ground, but even on the notoriously polished slabs of Carderock, I didn't see a single climber not make it to the top of a route that they set out to climb.  Not only did many of them surpass their own expectations under the coaching of the AAC volunteers, but many of them quickly found a comfort that freed them up to try new movements on their own, at times spontaneously trying techniques that some climbers don't learn for years.

                                                                                            Photo: Peter Jensen

                                                  Photo: Peter Jensen

                                                                                            Photo: Peter Jensen

Maybe it was just my inner teacher coming out, but for me the day was just as exciting as one spent climbing.  Watching their successes, their joy of experimentation, and the new friendships that will become branches of our ever growing community, I left Carderock psyched for a chance to do it again.

Not that I left Carderock for long.  The next morning a few of us were back for an early start, with another ninety degree day ahead of us, and little chance of the shade that had made the previous day so comfortable.  Rather than Carderock's well polished main faces, our sights were set on the waterside slabs of Vaso Island.

                                                                                  Photo: Mark 'Indy' Kochte

                                                                                  Photo: Mark 'Indy' Kochte

After successfully dodging poison ivy on the way to the river, and managing to avoid tipping as we adjusted to paddling with each other, we soon rounded the tip of the island and it was all I could do to keep from giggling at all of the beautiful rock ahead of us.

With only a vague knowledge of what we were looking at, and how much of it had been climbed before, we decided the simplest plan was to start at the nearest cliff and climb our way down on whatever looked good.  

                                                                                 Photo: Mark 'Indy' Kochte

While some of the faces were too overgrown to touch this early in the year, we found plenty to keep us busy.  The features of the rock gave us the familiar feeling of climbing at Carderock, but with a friction that we had never experienced there.  In fact, it felt almost as if we had gone back in time, experiencing what our familiar crag must have felt like to its earliest pioneers, before decades of wear smoothed it to its current state.

The final cliff we visited was easily my favorite, with no shoreline between rock and canoe, and fun climbing on knobs through small roofs and a big corner system.  There was an even better looking face just to the right that I can't wait to get back and check out.

                                                  Photo: Mark 'Indy' Kochte

For such a small state, Maryland has no shortage of adventure to be found.  Even after years of walking through the woods looking for new boulders to climb, and visiting places that few people have seen despite their proximity to densely populated areas, I can still hop in a canoe just outside of the city and have a day of climbing like I've never experienced before.  Not a bad place to be.  

Wishing all of you out there safe adventures, micro or otherwise!