Is the title a little dramatic? Perhaps, but it was a great Labor Day weekend. The first 3 things I packed for living in Seattle were my bike, rock climbing shoes, and tent. Up until just a few weeks ago, I had used my bike extensively (and continue to), but the tent and climbing shoes were rather lonely in the closet... until I met The Group.
For Labor Day weekend, The Group planned a 3 night camping and climbing trip to Skaha Bluffs near Penticton, British Columbia (that's in Canada!). After precisely 87 organizational emails, we were on the road for a 6 hour drive over the Cascade mountains and north into Canada.
Forty miles across the border and we neared our campsite. We drove right past all of the "sardine" campsites in the city, where everyone was packed like it was New York City, and on up into the hills. Our site put us twice as far from the rocks (an extra 12 min) but the extra space was completely worth it.
We settled in before sunset and headed out for dinner.
The next morning we headed out for a day of climbing. It was a quick and beautiful hike from the car to the base of the rocks, everyone with gear in tow.
Once we got to the rocks, there was a bit of confusion as to which routes to climb. For those interested in outdoor climbing, it is almost imperative to have a guide of the area you are climbing in. The guide has pictures of the routes along with the names (which can be entertaining), difficulty rating, and quality. Once again, see Kristina's Blog for more information on climbing terms.
We quickly got to climbing. Hexar, Michael, Abbie, and Kristina lead the way and strung a few ropes up for the group. We spent the next several hours going up and down the rocks... a beautiful day to spend outside.
After we were sufficiently fatigued from climbing, we headed to the nearby lake (where the sardine camping was located) for some slack lining, but not before "the guy with a blog" could snap a quick semi-group shot with his portable tripod.
Slack lining consists of a nylon strap (like on your backpack) loosely strung between two trees. Participants then balance (or attempt to in my case) on the "slack line" and walk back and forth. Like most things simple, it's very addicting, with each attempt I was able to stand a bit longer. Hexar, the slackline master could walk forwards and backwards and almost could spin around!
The Group pulled together and cranked out some taco's and guacamole for dinner. Sarah (on the right) cranked out the guac, Nicole (in the white hat), chopped everything while Hexar manned the burners. Kristina... well... cleaned up! Everyone was hungry and the meal tasted great! While probably not the best meal anyone had ever had, it hit the spot. Nicole said it right "everything tastes great camping".
Day one, complete. More to come!
