Bouldering Adventures in Pike National Forest

This week, a good friend was passing through the front range on his way to the east coast, and so we had to take him out for some mild spring climbing!  For it's convenience to the city, we brought him to the scenic and easy-to-access Pike National Forest.  The Colorado Trail meanders through this region, with mountain bikers and hikers hitting it's dirt regularly.  Spending time out here it is easy to feel totally at peace and engaged with nature, especially when you only have a day trip to get away.

The fun part about climbing in an undeveloped area, is you get to explore around and find rock that inspires and excites you directly!  The rock in this region is not for our tender-padded friends.  A rose-quartz heavy granite with a pronounced crystal structure..... be careful not to slip!

The next route they eye-balled started by climbing out of this narrow, ~20" wide crevice, and topping out with a sweet view.

Dab not (V3) FA: Connor Boyd

Great job guys!

This little guy wasn't too difficult to top out, but with aesthetics like that, they couldn't resist climbing it.

Ashes to Ashes (V0) FA: Jakob Montoya

You never know what you're going to find in the forest sometimes.....

Next climb: a good old fashioned crack.

The day had been cloudy mostly because of some of the fires that have been going on in the Boulder area.  We didn't mind the cloud cover, but when that sun did pop out, it was brilliant how it just grazed across the treetops and lit everything up!

Fist of Legend (V1+) FA: Jakob Montoya

After a good afternoon of bouldering, it was time to relieve the hands of their torture and enjoy the colorful sunset from our perch in the boulders.  As unfortunate as it is to have forest fires burning nearby, that smoke sure did make for a colorful sky!

Gear used on this excursion:

Canon 5DMIII

Canon 85mm 1.2, Canon 16-35mm 2.8, Canon 180mm Macro

Dynalite Uni 400 and Jackrabbit battery pack

Pocketwizard Transmitters

40 degree honeycomb grid

Dynalite umbrella

BLM land adventures

I haven't gotten out as much this winter into the mountains, but with all this beautiful weather that we've been having in the Front Range lately, I had to seize some time to romp around in the woods a wee bit.

One of my favorite places to go when I want to make peace in the mountains, is BLM land.  As long as you have a decent 4x4 vehicle (for all the dirt roads) and a spirit for disconnected adventures, BLM land is a great place to experience the beauty of Colorado (or whatever state you're in!) without the influence of the outside world.  You often don't have cell service in these areas, and can expect to see only a handful of people or cars over a multi-day period.  I love getting away like this, as I can truly just get lost in the landscape.  Nature inspires my creativity in so many ways.... and I'm not just talking about pretty landscapes.  The textures drive me crazy..... they are SO pretty!  And so diversified.  The cycles that you see evident when you wander around a little micro-environment, it makes you understand how all of life is an ebb and flow, and everything is striving for balance.

One of the natural cycles that I've always been fascinated with is what happens when an area has been affected by forest fires.  This can be a replenishing cycle, but also has a big impact on the landscape, and creates a new beauty that has a very different feel than a lush, healthy hillside.

We couldn't help but hop on a boulder that we came across.  Play time!

And the sunset wasn't bad either.

I'm really glad we got out when we did.... considering everything is frozen and white now.  70's in February, I will miss you!  Until next time, stay warm everybody.