September Bouldering Videos

It's been a great week of climbing, starting with a good trip to The Acre on Sunday.  I didn't get much climbing in myself since I was still coming off a rest week, but had fun watching Ben and Vince work on a hard crimpy line in the lowest pit, with a huge press off a two finger crimp to a high sidepull and razor crimp on a questionable flake.  Vince managed the first and only send of the line, pulling hard enough on the flake to detach it another 4-5 inches, making it unsafe for further climbing.  The flake later came off with minimal pressure, and although the line still seems doable, it'll be even harder than before.  Meanwhile, Emily and my mom chose to forgo the overhang in favor of more delicate climbing on the slab nearby.

Yesterday my mom and I went back out to The Acre, thinking it would probably be too wet to climb, but planning at least to get some decent photos of the boulders to start putting together a mini-guide.  With over 70 problems there now, put up by at least 17 different people, things are getting confusing!

Arriving to find most of the rock pleasantly dry, we grabbed the photos we needed and headed to the corridor area to get a couple climbs in.  My mom made a couple attempts at Woozle, then got frustrated and climbed the arete to the left of it, which was slightly easier but way scarier!  I also got on Jon's Intro to Bellydancing to see if I could find a prettier way to work through the slopey topout that had earned the problem its name.  No luck making it look any better, but still a fun problem.

Content with our daily highball fix, we walked over to Bushwhack so I could try Stink, Stank, Stunk!, another of my intended winter projects.  After working on it for a while, and watching a stink bug (appropriately enough) mocking me by effortlessly walking up and down the left arete, I figured out two key bits of beta and was able to send shortly after.  From there, we walked back to the car by way of the After School Special boulders where the trail crosses the ridgeline.  I climbed the beautiful slab problem Bitterness & Shadows, and my mom also tried it and thought it would be a good winter project for her.  Since we were already there, I also decided to try the overhanging arete on the left side of the slab, which I had been curious about for a while.  After figuring out a good starting position, I sent it on the first actual try, calling it Atonement.  I'd still like to get back and try adding another move or two to the start, just to make the fun last longer, but for now here's a video of the day's climbs...

A couple weeks ago I also had the pleasure of climbing with the Adventures in Pebble Wrestling crew at both Coopers and The Acre, where they've recently been busy repeating problems and putting up some great new ones of their own.  Here's a video I put together featuring some of their work...

And one from Tenni...

And another from Max with problems from The Acre, Coopers, and Grayson Highlands...

Finally, I was happy to see that there's also been some recent traffic at the Murray Hill boulders, with Brian putting out this video of a new line there...

Gonna be an exciting Fall!

***Just a reminder that you can check out the Maryland Bouldering Videos Page for links to over 80 videos from Maryland, and a few more from locals on the road.

Murray Hill mini-guide on mdguides

Looking for a quick bouldering fix around Columbia?  Check out the new Murray Hill mini-guide on mdguides.  Most of the boulders aren't too tall, but they're all cleaned up and nice for a quiet session by the river.  Just be warned that the approach can be heavily vegetated (and heavy on the ticks), so I tend to avoid the area until the colder months.  But with fall starting just a little more than a week away, things should start clearing up any time now, right?

Murray Hill bouldering on a steamy solstice

With the solstice marking it as the longest day of the year, the weather made it hard to forget that yesterday was also the first day of summer.  As temperatures climbed to the mid 90s with humidity of somewhere around 50%, I recognized the irony in the fact that the two months I have off from work are also my least favorite time for climbing in Maryland.  Still, hot climbing is better than none at all, so I joined Dan for a few hours at the Murray Hill boulders, grateful for the italian ice he handed me as I stepped out of my car.

Located along the river at the southern edge of Columbia, most of the boulders on the south bank are short enough that I haven't given them much thought in the past, preferring to go directly to the boulder under the power lines on the north side of the river.  So far the main attraction on the south bank has been a single boulder rising tall above a sharp bend in the river with a memorably narrow landing area, with fallen trees creating a natural pad wall to keep highball bouldering from turning into shallow water soloing.

Yesterday, however, we focused our energy on cleaning and climbing some of the smaller boulders just downriver from there.  While there are plenty of better bouldering areas around, we did eventually find enough holds under the moss for a few decent problems, and I think some of them will be especially fun in the winter once friction is better and the approach becomes less of a jungle.  

We warmed up with a few low angle lines and a traverse, enjoying the relative coolness of the shade.  

The best of these problems, Amnesia, ascended a slab on thin crystals that instantly stripped chalk from fingertips.

After doing a few problems in the corridor, we did a couple fun variations of Swiping Slopers, laying back the slippery arete to the top.  From there we did one short problem on the boulder just upstream, with a single long reach moving into a crux topout.  We then moved just uphill to a slightly overhung boulder with potential for a few fun lines, but didn't stay there long as the direct sun and our limited water supply made a poor combination.  I'll admit I was glad to be back inside after that!

Keep an eye out for the upcoming Murray Hill mini-guide on mdguides, which will cover these boulders as well as a few others in the area.  For now, here's a short video I put together with some of the stuff we did yesterday.  Stay cool out there!

Columbia bouldering- Murray Hill Boulders

Not many people know that there is bouldering in Columbia other than Earth Treks, but it is in fact home to a couple small spots.  Nothing worth going out of your way for by any means, but fun to stop by if you live in the area.  Probably the best place for Columbia bouldering in my opinion is along the Middle Patuxent River, in the area of Murray Hill Road.

From Route 32, take Broken Land Parkway south to where it intersects Guilford Road, and make a left.  Turn right onto Murray Hill Road and park along the side of the road when you come to the river.  For the boulder discussed below, stay on the north side of the river and walk west.  If you want a more scenic walk, stay along the river and walk past several small outcroppings until you come to the power lines, and you'll see the boulder on your right.  For a faster approach, walk north on the road until you see the bike path heading west.  Follow the bike path until you reach the power lines, then turn south toward the river and you'll find the boulder at the base of the hill.  There's more rock just around the corner as well, but it was pretty crumbly when I climbed it and I wouldn't really recommend it.  I would still suggest going around the corner anyway, just to see the wrecked car that someone seems to have driven or pushed off the rocks.  Ouch.

In the picture below, the parking area is indicated by the red star, and the boulder by the red square north of the river.  The blue square south of the river indicates another much taller boulder that will be discussed in more detail at a later date.

Once you reach the power lines, the boulder is hard to miss.  The rock is surprisingly good, and the scenery nice if you don't mind the power lines.  The west face of it has several possible lines, of which a few are marked below.  Probably nothing harder than a V2 or so, and none longer than a few moves.  The most fun lines are the natural ones using the diagonal cracks, but enough holds exist on the faces to allow a few straight up lines as well.

Murray Hill North boulder (explanation of number symbols here)