Joshua Tree National Park!
It was chilly. Think 40 degrees, but with a rather stiff, biting wind. I have no idea why my down jacket is here in Southern California with me, but it was a very good item to have.
Mickle and I met up with Lauren Austin (on the left), our beloved teammate who is now studying geology at UC Davis and cramming her life full of climbing adventures.
Lauren brought Ian, who is our new friend/hero. I've never (in person) seen anyone climb like he does.
All these rocks had me feeling prehistoric. I half- expected to see a dinosaur thundering off in the distance.
Can you spot Ian? He's placing gear in a route called Leave It To Beaver, which he climbed a few hours later.
And here I am, un-gracefully shimmy-ing up this off-width crack while Lauren belays me from behind the pointy desert plant.
Half way up the crack I got stumped and made an angry face for awhile.
But later I redeemed myself by climbing this more challenging route. I enjoyed it immensely because it was in the sun.
I love trees, and rocks.
Mickle loves my headlamp.
It was good to get back in touch with my love for escapades like these. It's easy to get wrapped up in numbers and training and forget that the reason I started kayaking in the first place was because of my passion for outdoor adventure!
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