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California Climber Summer 2012

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California Climber Summer 2012 free WAY LAKE summer 2012 CHIPMUNK FLAT California Climber WOODFORDS CANYON N° Sonoma bouldering 01 Destinations 3 / california climbER / / summer 2012 / 4 California Climber on the cover: Nope! Not Tuolumne SUMMER FEATURES DEPARTMENTS Meadows, it’s Brad Parker climbing 25 The California Climber Anthem 07 Editors Note: Spinal Tap (5.11b) at An editorial from Fitz Cahall A Land of Opportunity Chipmunk Flat, Sonora 29 Exploring Way Lake 09 California Climber: Pass. The Eastside’s coolest bouldering DaveYerian IMAGE + Jerry Dodrill 35 For Whom the Bell Tolls 11 Review: Alpine granite abounds at Chipmunk Flat Canned Beer this page: 45 Into the Horizon 13 Creature Comforts: Eric Sanchez pulls the Bouldering on the Sonoma Coast Paras-Haul crux move on Grand 51t The Long to Short Club 15 Road Warriors: Finale, a V9/10 on the Year-round cragging at Tahoe’s Woodfords Canyon Stand by your Van spectacular Fort Ross 17 Golden State: boulder. Summer Photo Gallery IMAGE + Anthony Lapomardo 5 / california climbER / / summer 2012 / 6 California Climber PuBLISHER/EDITOR IN CHIEF Dean Fleming Art Director Alton Richardson Departments Editor Nicholas Miley SENIOR CONTRIBuTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Jerry Dodrill, Jim Thornburg SENIOR CONTRIBuTING Editors Fitz Cahall, James Lucas CONTRIBuTORS Jim Thornburg, Jerry Dodrill, Anthony Lapomardo, Bill Serniuk, Nicholas Miley, John Vallejo, James Lucas, Fitz Cahall California CLImBER 22502 Colorado River Dr. Sonora, Ca 93570 Phone: (209) 768-0110 Email: [email protected] Most, if not all of the activities depicted herein carry and present significant riskS of persnal injuRy or death. Rock climbing, bouldering, ice climbing, moutaineering, alpine climbing and any other outdoor activity are inherently danger- ous. The owners, staff and managment of California Climber do not recomend that anyone partcipate in these activities unless they are an expert or accompanied by an expert. Please seek qualified professional instruction and/or guidance. Understand- ing of the risks involved are necesassary and be prepared to assume all responisbilty associated with those risks. Josh Vale on Hanzo Blade (V5), Way Lake. IMAGE + John Vallejo . Find out more about the world’s first Snake-Loader™ backpack. THE7 /PACK california clim REVOLUTIONbER / IS COMING: mhmgear.com / summer 2012 / 8 MHM 1-2 Page Ad.indd 1 3/1/12 4:02 PM EDITORS NOTE A land OF OpportuNITy WORDS + Dean Fleming of love. Fueled by cracked beers, creative climber into a dehydrated zombie. With that in energy and gallons of coffee, countless mind, this summer we choose to escape the late nights were spent collaborating on this west-coast’s crowded areas to venture into free regional climbing magazine. While our the pristine wilderness and cool temps of the A FRIEND ONCE told mE that suggestions and styles don’t always match, Golden State’s lesser-known crags. holding the first copy of a new publication we are motivated by a common goal: to share is similar to holding a newborn child. “In our love of California’s spectacular rock In this issue we highlight a fine selection of some ways it’s better” he added, “magazines climbing destinations through quality printed local cliffs with prime summer conditions. From and books can’t bring tattooed boys to manuscripts and photographs. the high elevation peaks and boulder-fields Thanksgiving or talk back at the dinner table.” of Lake Tahoe, Mammoth and Sonora Pass to As I write the inaugural Editor’s Note for And what better season to ignite California’s the salt-sprayed buttresses along California’s California Climber I can only visualize its adult first regional climbing magazine than summer? northern coastline, this issue is packed with form. While the printed edition will probably Summer is a time of open highways, endless summer-accessible crowd free destinations spark some sense of pride and parenthood, I possibilities, alpine adventures and star-gazing and tips to keep you on the road and racking certainly won’t be the only one to experience bivies. But as we all know, warmer climates up. So fill those ice chests (see our beer-in-a- a deep connection with this magazine. don’t always produce ideal climbing conditions. can review on page 11), pack up your crag van Anyone who’s spent a summer in Yosemite (check out Logan Talbott’s renovated Sprinter To each and every contributor, the first knows that sweltering on big walls and fighting on page 15) and join us as we head to the hills edition of California Climber has been a labor traffic can turn even the most dedicated for five excellent summer climbing trips. 9 / california climbER / / summer 2012 / 10 CALIFORNIA CLIMBER DAvE yERIAN DOB – 1/3/57 RESIDENCE – Berkeley C.A YEARS CLIMBING – 39 Anyone who’s had the pleasure of meeting Dave Did you move to Yosemite after High School? Yerian can distinctly remember their first encounter with him. From a shadowy figure wailing on a harmonica in a “Yeah, right after high school I moved up to Yosemite to get on the dark corner of a house party, to a friendly hitchhiker on rescue team. I just ended up climbing full time and trying to establish the crest of Tioga Pass, Dave’s personality is notorious myself within the community there.” and infectious. Dave has been climbing since 1973 and though a Do you still maintain a connection to a lot of the people you met in part of Yosemite’s Stonemaster era, he hasn’t attained Yosemite? a super hero status. He isn’t famous for stark runouts, soloing, or pushing the limits of technical climbing. Simply “A lot of them don’t climb anymore and that was our connection so we put, Dave Yerian has been obsessed with climbing since don’t really talk that much these days. We are all living different lives. he was 17 years old and has somehow managed to climb When we do see each other it’s great but I think only about 20% of my steadily for the last 39 years. And at 55 years old, he’s generation is still climbing.” just as psyched on the sport as he was the first time he roped up. You’re still climbing full-time. Do you continue to train for climbing? This season we had an opportunity to sit down with Dave and learn a little more about his style, his views “Yeah I still do for sure. I mostly just lift light weights and do some on technology, training and most importantly, what has core exercises. Then I get into the climbing gym twice a week, go out motivated him to throw himself at cliffs and boulders for bouldering three times a week and ride my bike.” over 30 years. Is it harder to train or to motivate to climb than it was when you were younger? CC - What brought you into the sport? “No way; I’m building towards more work outs all the time. I’m probably DY - “I started climbing with a mountaineering class at Carlmont high just as psyched as I was when I was a teenager. But I realize now that school in Belmont California in 1973.” I don’t have to train as hard as I used to. It’s easy to over-train and get hurt.” What are the most significant changes have you seen in the sport since you began climbing? Do you feel innovations in climbing gear like cams, sticky rubber & crash pads are a positive thing for the sport of rock climbing? “Styles of climbing have changed a lot; like people previewing and pre- protecting routes from the top down. To me, coming from the top down “Yeah totally, 100%; if I can protect myself with a good rack, a good is less exciting because by viewing the climb in advance you’re taking rope and bouldering pads I have more fun. I don’t have to kill myself if I some of the adventure out of it. It seems like people are sacrificing the don’t want to.” sense of adventure for the sake of number gain.” What would you say is the greatest factor that has allowed you to climb This issue’s cover story is an area on Sonora Pass, can you tell us a full-time for over 30 years? little bit about growing up in Sonora and how this area affected you as a climber? “Motivation; when you give up on your motivation that’s when you loose creativity, you become disconnected from climbing. If you are motivated “When I first moved up to Sonora I was going to high school. I was the possibilities are endless.” probably 16 when I started bouldering at Columbia College. At the time there was only a few other climbers there. For a while we had it all to What motivates you? ourselves and I thought that was pretty cool. We didn’t have to talk about it and even if we wanted to, there was no one to listen so we just “You see a lot of people my age give up. I just want to be remembered climbed. It was a great place to grow up.” as a contender; to know that I never gave up and took it until the end.” Dave Yerian, incognito. Tuolumne Meadows, July 1982. IMAGE + Bill Serniuk. 11 / california climbER / / summer 2012 / 12 REVIEW BEER IN A can WE livE and drink During A great timE quality. Just remember the old axiom: looks can be deceiving. in the foggy history of beer. Now more than ever regional craft brews Cans are better in every way - especially for the avid climber. are available to a much wider portion of the drinking population.
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