Cats Christmas

The dogs have been taught not to tear up anything so they didn't want to open their gifts but the cats didn't hesitate when offered the chance of opening gifts and playing in gift wrap paper.

Celestial Fantasy

It looked like the sky might be clearing to the northwest so I decided to head that direction in search of openings in the clouds. The first break in the clouds that I found was along the Arrowhead Trail whichmeanders through Grand Portage State Forest just out of Hovland, MN. I found this nice shooting location just past Irish Creek on the Arrowhead Trail. The clouds were breaking up just enough to let the aurora shine through, and it was magnificent! Light fog along the ground added an extra bit of mystery to the scene and all around me the spring peeper frogs were singing full blast as the lights danced overhead. I even heard a couple of Barred Owls talking to each other in the distance. Similar to seeing the lights back at my house, they were visible only for a few minutes before the clouds closed in again and blocked the view of the sky.

The Sky is a Happening Place

The thing about the weather on the coast of Northern Ireland, is not that it's good, bad, cold or warm, but that it changes rapidly and constantly. "Four seasons in a day," they say here.




But it's more than about changes in temperature and precipitation. The real action is in the sky. There is drama there - a celestial theater that I could stand and watch for hours. The cloud formations, like temperamental actors rushing about the stage, appear to feed off of each other's emotions. Plots thicken. Characters develop. Tempers fly. Action builds up toward crescendos. The end of an act can be explosive, or anti-climactic. Curtains close, then open again for the next act.




Here one cloud approaches another, pressingly, entreatingly. The object of its attention demurs. Like characters in a Chekhov play, they engage in a moody, fateful struggle. Tragically but also coyly, they dance over the peak of the mountain - back and forth, back and forth, until finally they collide - turning into a different creature entirely and swooping down to swallow the mountain whole. A roar of applause.




In my winter clothes I stand on the beach of Castle Rock on a June afternoon and watch all this, my bike propped against the stone wall. There are only two colours: beige and blue. There are only two entities: sky and earth. And in the moment, this seems like all there is, or ever was, or ever will be. It is more than enough.

Winter Wardrobe: Transport and Sport

I get a lot of requests for a comprehensive winter wardrobe post. Since it snowed again today, this seemed like a good time. I won't call this a "guide" and I don't assume that what works for me will necessarily work for others. But in the midst of Winter 4.0, this is the stuff that keeps me comfortable cycling even on the coldest days in greater Boston. For reference, our temperatures are typically in the 20s-30s F range, although it does occasionally get colder.



A few quick disclaimers: I am dividing this into "transport" and "sport" sections, because for me the two rarely intersect, not because I think others must keep them separate. Also, you will find that some things here are female-biased, because, well I am female. Finally, I linked to some companies and products, because readers tend to ask for specifics. As always, none of the product mentions are endorsements or "monetised" in any way; they are just there for your info.





TRANSPORT

Pictured here is the sort of thing I normally wear when getting around by bike, either for work or errands. I will start from the inside out.



Underwear

Worn closest to the body, underwear plays a crucial role in temperature regulation. So before I worry about bundling up, I make sure to get this part right. In my experience, underwear made of wool, silk, lycra/spandex and some technical polyester-based fabrics, is generally good at regulating body temperature and wicking moisture. Underwear made of cotton or acrylic is not. Out of the fabrics that work I prefer wool and most of my undergarments are from Ibex: I like their modern and stretchy wool/lycra blend. Icebreaker and Smartwool also offer some good options, as does Winter Silksif you're looking for budget-friendly silk.



Everyday Outfits

My everyday clothing ranges from casual to formal, but, especially in winter, it almost always involves skirts and dresses. This is because I find it easier to add warm layers under a skirt (wool leggings or legwarmers over tights), than to deal with layering under trousers or jeans. Also, if it rains or snows, tights with knee-high boots are a highly effective way to keep dry. After several winters of experimenting, most of my cold-weather outfits are now wool. I knit wool skirts myself in variety of styles. And I wear wool sweaters over wool or silk base layers. 100% merino is harder to find now in mainstream stores than it used to be, but J. Crew remains a good source and they have frequent sales (like right now). I also alternate between several wool dresses, mostly handmade. And I still own a few wool skirt-suits from my suit wearing days.If I want to wear an outfit that is made of a non-temperature regulating fabric, I will wear a wool or silk baselayer under it and it'll be fine. But to me, wooly stuff just feels overall warmer and cozier.



Tights

When buying cold-weather tights, I look for wool and nylon/ lycra/ spandex content, and I avoid cotton and acrylic content - because, as with baselayers and underwear, the latter does not wick moisture or regulate temperature well. Smartwoolmakes decent all-around winter tights (and socks). Falke is a European favourite, but expensive. Another option is to wear dense nylon tights (such asthese), with wool leggings or legwarmers over them, which can be later removed indoors.



Footwear

Both on the bike and off, I am a fan of waterproof boots rated for freezing temperatures. For years, I have been wearing La Canadienne boots that are exactly that. I have a pair of their ankle boots and a pair of knee-high boots that look reasonably professional and feminine, while being absolutely winter-proof. The soles have excellent traction on snow and ice, which is also useful for when my bike pedals turn slippery. With the knee-high boots, the additional benefit is that they keep my legs extra warm, and protected from slushy splash-back.



Coats

On the bike, I favour wool 3/4 length coats with an A-line shape, so that the hem does not constrict pedaling. The coat should fit loosely enough to allow layering underneath, and should not in itself be too warm. When I am walking, I will sometimes wear a down-filled coat, but I find it too bulky when cycling. The down-filled coats can also be slippery on the bike saddle, whereas wool coats stay put. My current coat is about 6 years old and I no longer remember where I bought it.



Hats

Usually I wear a wool beret or hat that I knit myself. I take care that the stitching is dense enough to be wind-proof, and that the hat covers my ears.



Gloves

My favourite gloves for cycling are wool and grippy. They are perhaps not the most elegant choice, but their functionality has won me over.



Scarves

After some experimenting, I have taken to wearing a shawl-like wool scarf which I wrap around my neck once and then tuck the rest into the front of my coat for an extra layer of warmth over the chest. This really helps when cycling against an icy headwind. Beware of long, flowing scarves on the bike,for obvious reasons.



Want more winter wardrobe advice from genuine cycling fashionistas? Dottie of Let's Go Ride a Bike has excellent tips from snowy Chicago. Here is her latest post on the topic and a more general guide for winter dressing. Also, this excellent Bikeyface post will not disappoint.





SPORT

With roadcycling, I find getting dressed in the winter easier, simply because there is less creativity required. I can wear the same thing over and over! Here is my formula:



Base Layers

I like thin, long sleeve wool base layers. There are many options to choose from now.Rivendell has come out with a nice US-made one recently. I also wear a wool/lycra sportsbra underneath (see "Underwear" earlier).



Tights

In winter temperatures, I wear fleece-lined full length tights. I have triedbib tights, but ultimately I find them too fussy to get in and out of. I prefer the padded winter waist-high tights from Capo, and wear a model from a few seasons ago. In addition to being super warm, these are also somewhat water resistant. I have made do without rain or snow pants so far, and have not felt the need for them.



Socks

I love the simplicity and longevity ofDeFeet wool socks. Of all the wool and wool-blend socks I've tried; they have been the most durable. When it gets particularly cold, I wear two pairs.



Mid Layers

My midlayer is a winter-weight long sleeve cycling jersey. As long as I wear a wool baselayer, it does not matter to me what the midlayer jersey is made of, as long as it insulates. I own a few now, but my favourites have become the wool/poly blends from Rapha and Shutt Velo Rapide. These are wool on the inside, with some high-tech poly coating on the outside. I do not like how they feel against the skin, but as midlayers I find that they offer the best temperature regulation.



Outer Layers

Winter outer layers are tricky. A windbreaker/shell type jacket is not enough. A jacket that's too warm can be even worse. Last winter I bought a Rapha winter jacket on the recommendation of some of the women I rode with, and it is just right, even for the coldest temps around these parts. This is a painfully expensive jacket, but it does go on sale occasionally and stalking it was worth it.



Gloves

DeFeet Duraglove. I have tried fancier and supposedly more weather-proof gloves, but prefer the DeFeets. Gosh, I hope they never discontinue these.



Neck Warmers

These are called various things, depending on the manufacturer, including neck gaiterandcollar. I have a few and find them very useful. For extremely cold rides, I have tried a balaclava, but it is not my cup of tea; I prefer to wear a neck warmer and pull it over my mouth instead.



Hats, Etc.

I wear a tightly knit wool winter cycling caps with brims and ear flaps. I buy these instead of knitting them myself, because I can't get the weave tight enough by hand; it has to be machine-made. Several companies offer these hats now. I have one from Bicycle Fixation and another from Ibex. I usually wear a helmet on my roadbike, and find that this adds to the cap's warmth, while also helping to keep it firmly in place.



Shoes

I do not own winter cycling shoes at the moment, though I hear there are some wonder-boots from Lake that are pretty good and I might save up for those eventually. I have some overshoes on loan from theRide Studio Cafe, but I have to admit they scare me, so I have yet to try them. Instead I just wear multiple pairs of socks for now. My toes have only frozen a couple of times so far...



Want winter wardrobe advice from more experienced roadies? The Blayleys have an excellent series of posts on this topichere, here and here. As they probably spend more time on the bike in the winter than off, they are the best source I know.



Keep warm and enjoy yourself on the bike this winter, whether in sport or transport!

Lilics

Special care

My sister's miniature rose.



My sister, demonstrating the special care needed for the rose (nothing).

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I can't remember if she didn't know the name, or if I just forgot to ask. Maybe she will email or comment and let me know.

Altitude

One thing that really fascinated me about Hurricane Ridge was the Altitude. The Ridge is said to be 5,242 above sea level. There are all those magnificent mountains around it that may be a bit higher and it makes you feel, as I have said, on top of the world. There are glaciers on those mountains. You are in an area that measures rain and snow in feet instead of inches. There are animals and flowers and trees that would never grow in my home state of New Mexico. But here in New Mexico, in the high desert country, I live at about 6500 feet above sea level. Makes you wonder why some areas have one kind of Eco system at a certain altitude and another type of Eco system at another altitude. Of course there is the difference in latitude and longitude, also.

I Never Asked for a Honeymoon

When it comes to new bike ownership, cyclists will often talk about the so-called honeymoon phase. Symptoms include: lack of interest in looking at other bikes, thinking that everything about the new bike is "perfect," even finding its flaws endearing. It's more than about enjoying the bike. It's like being under its spell. Some describe this as the magic faerie dust effect.



In the past, I don't think that I've gone through honeymoon phases with my bikesexactly. I am by nature analytical and tend to see things from several perspectives at once. Even in the beginning, when I was extremely excited about my first beautiful new bike, I was all the while looking at it critically. Its purchase did not diminish my curiosity about other bikes in its category, but increased it. It was in fact through comparing other bikes to mine and noticing differences, that I became interested in bicycle design. The same can be said for all of my bicycle buying and selling since: There was excitement and enjoyment, but never really a rose coloured glasses type honeymoon period. It was more about experimenting and staying open to other possibilities. Considering my interest in bicycle reviews, design, framebuilding and such, I think this is a useful attitude to have.



So it has thrown me for a loop to realise that maybe, just maybe I am in a prolongued honeymoon phase with my Seven roadbike, which I've been riding since Spring of this year. The symptoms are there: Everything about it feels "perfect." The fact that it's welded and has a carbon fork somehow only accentuates its charm, even as I wax lyrical about lugs. And more disturbingly, I have lost interest in other bikes in its category. This last part is a problem! I would like, in theory to keep trying other roadbikes and comparing them, thereby learning more about the feel of different frame materials and different handling characteristics. But in practice, I don't really want to ride bikes other than my own just yet. If it's a different style of bike for different kinds of riding, I am as enthusiastic about experimenting as ever. But for roadcycling on pavement, I would rather be on my own bike. It's as if I haven't had enough of it yet, even after 2,000 miles. The decals are peeling, but the proverbial luster apparently remains. I hope to get over this soon. Until then, you are unlikely to see much in the way of roadbike test-rides here.



Have you gone through a honeymoon phase with any of your bikes? What has it been like, and what happens afterwards?

Canyon

Looking down the canyon from the road where the tunnels are. You can see the creek in the bottom.

Ponies

Several Different Horses

I tried to get little horses in a verity of different colors, poses, breeds.

Updated Route Condtions for Mount Rainier

I added some thorough updates to our route condition page. Dan Aylward, Chad Kellogg and Tim Matsui climbed Ptarmigan Ridge last week. Meanwhile, climbing rangers Paul Charlton and Tom "house of" Payne climbed Liberty Ridge, Kautz Glacier and Little Tahoma (all in in one week!!) It seems that the upper mountain is holding together nicely for some of the more technical routes.

Photo by Tim Matsui, Dan Aylward leads into some rock bands low on Ptarmigan Ridge.

Pictured Rocks :: Miners Castle

Friday, August 5th - - It was about a 50-mile drive from the campground at Indian Lake to the western end of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. It was a beautiful day. My intent was to take a 2 ½ hour Boat Cruise along the coast of Lake Superior but I turned right at the intersection instead of left and ended up at the only “pictured rock” that is visible from shore – Miner's Castle.





The view from the overlook was magnificent! The water in the cove was so clear you could see the bottom – a sign stated that the average depth was 25 feet and it dropped off rapidly from the shoreline. If you look closely you can see some people lounging on the rocky shoreline and some were floating in the crystal clear water.





A close-up view of Miner's Castle – some of the people are more visible.



These three swimmers were almost directly below – they are there – in the middle of the photo. Can you see the canoe on the shore? It is to the left of the large clump of leaves on the right. I walked down to the lower overlook but was not impressed. There really wasn't much of a view at all from there.





Then I drove a short distance to the parking lot for Miner's Beach. Nary a spot to park and people parking where they really shouldn't have! So, not to be put off completely, I went back to the intersection and turned the other way to the parking lot for a lakeside trail. Several parking spots were available so I grabbed one of them and headed off. The trail lead to the cove shown above. It was another 1.5 miles to Miner's Beach but I stopped off here for a while. And lingered. There were only half a dozen other people there and some of them left after a while. Soon I was the only one there!





Discarding shoes and socks and rolling up the pants legs, I strolled along the water's edge. The wet sand was like walking in quicksand. It grabbed your feet and held them tight. Then the water washed over the sand and released them. Venturing out a little further into the water there was a layer of smooth rocks along the shore and walking was much easier. Never mind that the pants got wet well above the knees! It felt so good in the 80 degree sunshine!



I lingered there for several hours absorbing the sun's rays and enjoying the cooling breeze. Sorry, Carol, but there will be no photos of the Pictured Rocks from a boat - I never made it to the dock!

Bringing the Plants Inside

This post, "Bringing the Plants Inside", was written for my blogspot blog called The Transplantable Rose by Annie in Austin. Last Wednesday I planted bulbs while wearing shorts, because it was 89°F in early afternoon. The temperatures quickly dropped and we woke to 38°F on Thanksgiving morning. The cool weather lasted all weekend bringing an inch-and-a-half of needed rain. When I heard that a frost warning was issued for pre-dawn on Monday I was glad the two 7-foot tall plumerias were already inside the garage. It takes two people and a wheeled dolly to move them, but the smaller plants are easy to grab and move inside the garage. Just in case we dipped below freezing, I also cut one stem of the iris in its improbably late November bloom.
The frost was very light - just the basil, the tips of the impatiens and the sweet potato vines looked injured. The frost did less damage than last week's fight between a cat and a raccoon - that loud, midnight skirmish destroyed a large container of impatiens.
The Meyer's Lemon can shuttle between garage and patio until it gets really cold, but what about the four Christmas-type cactus, the aloe, the small jade plant and the unnamed Haworthia? They summer outside but they're frost-tender and the only window with enough winter sun for plants is in the breakfast room. Some of the plants had grown so much they had to be repotted and some of the pots were too big for the narrow sill. Philo came up with a solution. He built a two-legged table that fits over the sill, doubling the depth so more plants can fit.
Three of the Christmas cactus had set buds and went on the new shelf. The poky fourth one went out to the patio table.... maybe it will still set buds and catch up. The salmon geranium at right has been blooming in the breakfast room window since March of .. but the red cyclamen at left was a recent impulse purchase. One of the jade plants was tucked in, a just budded Mother-of-Thousands came in from the patio to stand on the floor at left and the aloe vera is jammed in back. When it gets colder the Meyer's Lemon can stand on the floor on the right.

So our inside garden will be safe when the real freeze arrives. Perhaps I should have left the iris outside to take its chances but there's something so interesting and surreal in seeing them on the table [with a couple of sprigs of lavender!] on November 27th. Outside, the light frost hadn't affected the Cestrum nocturnum on the south wall. This night-blooming jasmine usually releases its scent only after dark but I could smell its powdery scent today at 10 AM.

The 'Champagne' mini rose continues to bud and flower in the secret garden.
Cilantro plants go to seed when the heat arrives. The leaves are cilantro, but the seeds are coriander. After the seeds dried on last spring's plants I tossed them around and a few seedlings have sprouted to grow in cooler weather.
Most of the pecan and ash leaves are still on the tree - actually they're still green - but there were lots of wet, brown pecan leaves to rake. They don't add much fall color, do they? In the background you can see the second Meyer's Lemon, planted in the ground near the south wall, still shrouded in its frost-cover.
While raking I found a bunch of pecans and picked them all up. You know how you sort of learn to guess the relative weight of an object with experience? When I was in college I worked in a deli, and after some time could know what a half-pound was. This fall we learned to pick up pecans and know instantly which nutshells will be full, which empty, and which only partially developed. The good nuts are the smaller group lined up at the bottom and the larger group at the top are all empties. Pecans and iris at the same time! Who could have guessed this would be our November harvest? This post, "Bringing the Plants Inside", was written for my blogspot blog called The Transplantable Rose by Annie in Austin.

Gunks Routes: Minty (5.3) & Mr. P's Wurst (5.8)

(Photo: Coming up the 5.8 pitch one of Mr. P's Wurst.)



So nice to be back home in the Gunks.



After nearly two months away, I longed for the old familiar climbing surroundings.



The overhangs.



The pitons.



The long reaches.



The horizontals.



I was climbing with Margaret on an October Sunday. She wanted some easy leading and our first target was Three Pines. Unfortunately Three Pines at 9 a.m. already had a party of three on the first pitch and another pair at the base waiting to start. This was hardly a surprise on a Sunday during peak season.



My general policy is not to wait for climbs in the Trapps. In my experience, you always find something else open if you keep looking. Sure enough, we went a little further down the cliff and found Minty (5.3) available so we were in business.



Margaret led pitch one. I think this pitch is a great introductory Gunks lead because it has an early move that seems several grades harder than the rest of the climb. This might not seem like an ideal situation for a new leader to deal with, but it happens all the time on climbs of every grade in the Gunks. You have to confront it eventually, so you might as well start to get used to it when you're leading 5.3!



On Minty, the move can catch you by surprise. You start up this little corner. A big shelf is right there for you to grab, just one step up. But the feet are these tiny, polished little half-pebbles. You have to trust your feet just long enough to step up to grab that ledge.



The move should be no big deal.



But it seems totally possible you could fall here.



So you stand there thinking "This is supposed to be 5.3! How can I be such a failure that I am worried about this little move on a 5.3??"



And you psyche yourself out.



And you try this, and you try that, desperate to avoid this tenuous little step.



Finally you just do the stupid move and feel like an idiot.



Welcome to the Gunks.





(Photo: Past the crux on pitch one of Minty (5.3).)



The other hazard on Minty is that you might go up the wrong corner. The climb keeps moving left, and all the corner systems look alike. The first time I did the route, with Liz, she went up too soon, when she should have continued moving left. But if you make this mistake, you'll likely end up on Tipsy Trees, which is another nice 5.3. So no worries.



To stay on track you should look up for the distinctive Minty tree. It is a pine tree over 100 feet up that sticks out sideways from the cliff. This tree is where pitch one ends. If you keep in mind that you are heading for this tree, you should find the correct route.





(Photo: The 5.2 pitch three of Minty.)



Minty has lots to offer. The steep, juggy climbing you'll find in the second half of pitch one and all of pitch two is especially nice. Pitch three goes at a very casual 5.2 and it isn't terribly long, but it too has good moves out from a corner system and then up jugs to the top.



My personal preference for descending from climbs in the Minty/Snooky's area is to walk a short distance to the bolted rap route at the top of the Madame G buttress. Using the bolted rap route guarantees a safe descent and avoids throwing ropes over nervous leaders on very popular climbs. The problem with this method is that the Madame G rap starts from the GT Ledge and you have to follow your nose and downclimb from the top to find the bolts. If you aren't already familiar with the location it will be hard for you to find it. In the past I have spotted the distinctive tree which grows out at an angle from the cliff right next to the rap bolts, but I must have done this at a time of year in which the trees have no leaves. Last weekend with Margaret I couldn't spot the correct tree from the top and I had some trouble finding the bolts, overshooting the right path and having to work my way back. Still, I prefer these few minutes of hunting to rapping off of the manky anchors which come and go atop the cliff.



Coming down, I could see it wasn't going to be easy to get on another three-star classic. The cliff was looking very crowded. There were parties on Madame G's, on Finger Locks or Cedar Box, on Hyjek's Horror, on almost every climb in sight. Was this a nature preserve? It bore a greater resemblance to Occupy Wall Street.



I suggested to Margaret that we do an empty climb right in front of us: Mr. P's Wurst. The climb, which ascends the right side of the Madame G buttress, is almost always open, even though it sits amidst some of the most popular routes in the Trapps.



I've been wanting to get on Mr. P's for some time, in part because I like the name, which Ivan Rezucha and Rich Perch bestowed on the route in the best Hans Kraus tradition.



Hans put up Madame G's (full name: Madame Grunnebaum's Wulst) in 1943. How many climbers understand the bawdy humor in this classic route's name? I'd wager that very few get the joke. As Susan E.B. Schwartz explains in her biography Into the Unknown: the Remarkable Life of Hans Kraus, the name was not inspired by a real person. Instead, Hans looked up at the buttress and saw two bulges up high that-- to his one-track mind-- resembled a woman's bosom. The route he created begins at a pine tree and weaves between the two breast-like features. Grunnebaum is German for green tree and wulst means bulge. Thus the route's name can be translated in full as "Mrs. Greentree's Boobs."



Once you understand the humor in Madame G's name, the meaning of Mr. P's Wurst becomes obvious. The latter route snakes up right next to Ms. Greentree's bulges, and what could be better nestled in those bulges than Mr. Perch's sausage?



Apart from the name, what interested me about Mr. P's was that no one ever seems to do it. It is always open, despite the fact that Dick Williams decided to anoint it with two stars in his 2004 guidebook. Dick also did his part to make the route more accessible, describing a new start from 50 feet up the gully to the right of the buttress instead of the 5.6 R climbing previously needed to get established on the route.



I think this new start is actually one of the reasons the crowds stay away. The gully looks unappealing and from the ground it is hard to see exactly where you're supposed to jump onto the wall.



It looked to me as though the right spot was about five or ten feet below the rap bolts that are on the other side of the gully. We decided to do pitch one of Northern Pillar (5.1) instead of climbing the gully, with Margaret leading up and cutting left near the top of the pitch to set up a belay either at or near the bolts, from which point I'd decide exactly how to get over the gully and onto the wall for Mr. P's.



Margaret ended up building a belay to the right of the bolts, in order to avoid having parties constantly rapping through as she stood there waiting for me. This worked out fine, although I think it would have been okay to use the bolts so long as she set up on the left side of them. It seems to me that when people rap and pull the ropes from above they usually fall just to the right of the bolts. So if Margaret had anchored into the bolts but stood to the left she would probably have been unaffected by the rapping parties. In the final analysis, it would have been simpler just to go up the gully.





(Photo: Approaching the crux of the 5.8 pitch one of Mr. P's Wurst. From the photo you can get some idea how overhanging the final bits of the pitch are. The other climber in the photo is on Madame G's.)



From our belay at bolt level, I traversed to the gully, downclimbed a few moves, and then made the step across to the other side. These moves are easy, but if you do it this way you need to place pro as you step down, and then again at the other side of the gully, if you want to protect your second. Again, probably it would have been better just to go up the gully.



Now I was finally on Mr. P's. The pitch wasn't difficult to follow. Good holds lead up and around the corner until you find yourself on the right side of the face of the Madame G buttress. The climbing is juggy throughout the first pitch, and the rock quality is generally good. The angle gradually steepens until it becomes overhanging for the last ten to fifteen feet of the pitch. The crux move comes at three ancient pitons. I equalized the lower two and then clipped the third one as well, hoping at least one of them would hold in the event of a fall.



A big move up to a bomber horizontal, a good cam, and another move up to a tenuous stance finished the pitch beneath a roof.





(Photo: Looking down from the hanging belay at the end of pitch one of Mr. P's Wurst (5.8). My belayer Margaret is in blue. The climber in red is descending by the bolted rappel route.)



I found the hanging belay suggested by Dick to be rather unpleasant. There are two ancient pins, plus enough horizontals to place a few cams. It isn't unsafe, but it is truly a hanging stance; I couldn't let go with both hands in order to set up my anchor. Equalizing the cordalette and tying it in a knot with one hand wasn't easy.





(Photo: Approaching the hanging belay at the end of pitch one of Mr. P's Wurst (5.8).)



Pitch two is rated 5.7+. I followed Dick's instructions exactly, moving through the roof at the break and then stepping left. The move was fun and well-protected (you can get a good cam in the break in the roof), but I thought it was a big, reachy move, definitely harder than 5.7. It reminded me of the crux moves on Maria Direct and No Glow, both 5.9.



The rest of the pitch was easier, but still good. Getting past another roof on its right side requires a couple more interesting moves, and then the route joins Madame G's to the finish.





(Photo: Just over the roof on the supposedly 5.7+ pitch two of Mr. P's Wurst.)



After I pulled up the rope and put Margaret on belay, she immediately took a fall. Then she seemed to have no trouble climbing the pitch. She told me when she arrived at the top that she'd tried the roof my way, found it ridiculously hard, and then had moved four feet or so to the left, where she found 5.7 climbing up past the roof.



So maybe Margaret's way is the right way to do it, since it is 5.7. But it isn't how Dick describes the route. Personally, I enjoyed pulling the roof, and I did exactly what Dick instructed me to do, but if you do it this way the roof move is the hardest move on the whole route, and the 5.7+ pitch becomes more like a 5.9-. So you make your own call.



I would gladly climb Mr. P's again, but I would do it differently. I would just go straight up the gully rather than deal with the bolted rappel freeway and the downclimb/traverse. And I think I would bring a few extra cams and runners and do it in one pitch all the way from the ground to the finish on the GT Ledge. This would avoid the unpleasant hanging belay. And then you'd get one super long pitch of juggy steep climbing, wholly in keeping with other great climbs on the same buttress, like Columbia (5.8) and Madame G's (5.6).



If you do it this way I'm sure you too will end up a friend to Mr. P.