uwinsymposium.org

In late May, I packed my clothes, food and gear into my buddy’s car and busted out of Boulder. Nearly six hours later, we rolled into Lander, Wyoming, and life as a road tripping rock climber became a reality for me. My trip began in Sinks Canyon, most notable for its swooping Killer Cave – a wickedly steep expanse of limestone riddled with amazingly good pockets that serve as handholds and footholds. The cave’s lengthy routes sap climbers’ arm strength like it’s their job. On my previous trip to Sinks, the cave’s sheer intimidation factor kept me from attempting any routes there. A few days into this adventure, however, I decided to give the cave a go.

To my delight, I discovered that the Killer Cave boasts the best climbing at Sinks Canyon, hands down. In fact, it’s the closest thing to climbing in France that I’ve seen in this country. After several thwarted attempts on the area’s classic route, Killer, I decided to move on to some of the cave’s other treasures. Every route I tried was better than the last – undoubtedly, this is a place not to be missed!

Each evening after climbing, my partner and I staggered back to our campsite alongside the river that runs down the canyon, a little more bedraggled and worse for the wear, wanting nothing more than to fill our bodies with sustenance. (Between the two of us, we polished off an entire five-pound container of peanut butter and half of another one in three weeks together.) Campground activities included enjoying libations, crouching near raging campfires, and simply sitting and staring off into the clouds, dreaming about tomorrow’s climbing adventure.

A few times, we gave in to the lure of nearby Wild Iris, about 30 minutes from Sinks. Shorter climbs with smaller, more spread out pockets define the climbing at the Iris. Not my style of climbing, but I was down with it for variation’s sake. And the Iris is absolutely gorgeous, replete with myriad wildflowers in all hues and amazing views, not to mention pristine white rock and a sensation of solitude on weekdays. Of course, I spent most of my time there getting tossed off of route after route, but that’s good for the ego, right?

Nearly two weeks into our trip, we turned our sights north and east, heading for the little-known climbing area of Ten Sleep Canyon. Vast amounts of untapped sport climbing await development in this incredible limestone area – only a few cliffs have yet seen traffic. Sweeping views of a lush canyon and beautiful riverside camping aside, the climbing was fun and different, though it varied in quality from terrific rock to mere choss (crumbly, unpleasant climbing). Rest days weren’t a problem, though – so many cliffs awaited exploration, and the town of Ten Sleep, despite its smallness (population 311), had the necessary Internet access and a fabulous, climber-owned coffee shop.

Despite our desire to hang out in Ten Sleep for a while, our plans were thwarted after a week when a storm hit and snowed us out. Nothing like getting soaked in cold, damp snow in mid-June! We booked it back to Lander with tails between our legs, only to discover perfect conditions, which prompted us to spend the last three days of our trip beating ourselves up like crazy on the rocks. Climbing for three days straight is always a challenge, and the combination of Sinks’ long outings and the Iris’s short and powerful routes proved too much for us. By the last day, we were hurting, but not so much that sharing a pint of Ben ‘n’ Jerry’s didn’t feel like the perfect ending to an awesome adventure.

Comments are closed.