More beautiful photos from AK. I have a few more that I am working up right now. But I am putting a bit more English into these. Enjoy for now.

Oh yea, the weather here is nasty yet again. I sure hope the rainy season has not started yet.

Alaska, Alaska. What a beautiful place. So pure. I will write more later. Photos just for now.

Yes I am talking about Alaska. We are going to Anchorage on Saturday and will be staying for a week. I have never been to Alaska, so I am looking forward to this trip very much. Star has more training on the military base there and Gavin and I are planning on checking out the surrounding mountains. I am aware that this time of the year there are many hungry bears out, so GnE will not be venturing out too far by ourselves.

That said I have very lose plans to take some photos on the water and in Anchorage. I know of a few climbing areas that are on my list to visit too. Gavin and I are meeting Star's grandparents for the first time next week. Long over due. I have heard so much about them I can not wait to meet them.

This should be a great trip and I hope I am able to take some nice pictures. We will see. Here are some random pics from the last month. Enjoy and My next post should be from Alaska and hopefully drinking an IPA!!!!


Go Climb Something!!!

Joyama today was great. We went to Wild Boar Gorge. WBG is a steep sport climbing area that must be visited by all climbers in Japan that climb in the 11+ to 14a range. A very nice area with some nice history. Jack Nakane, Yuji Hirayama, and Dai Koyamada, to name a few, all have FAs here.

Hiroko and I started with Jack's 12b, Child's Play. The route is very fun and all of the moves require your attention. If you are tall like me(for Japanese standards) the moves are not tough until you reach the last bolt. The small crimp and terrible pinches had our attention for sure. I think I can send it, but I will have to work out the top moves. Hit Chan is in the same boat.

Shuji's project is a 13d through an overhanging face that has it all. One jug, several crimps, and at least seven slopers that are just not enough. Shuji one hung today, and I know he will send soon. He looks very strong on all of the moves.

I climbed another classic, Gigolo 11b/c. This route really reminded me of climbing back home in the Little River Canyon. An overhung line about 70 feet long. The rock is no where near as good, but it is very close to sandstone. There are no jugs on this one. The line is chalked full of sloper ledges and OK sidepulls. Gigolo is well protected and I will redpoint next time I go.

On this trip I set up a couple of flashes for more practice. I think that this round was far better than the last and infinitely better than the time before that. I played around a bit with my f stop and ISO but tried to keep my shutter around 125 due to the action/climbing. I still have several that are a bit blurry, but overall I am very pleased. I hope that as I am posting photos that you can notice improvement in the composition or at least in the picture quality.

I will be taking a couple of days to rest but i think that a new area is in the works for this week. Till next time.....


Go Climb Something!!!!

Golden week has been the most widely celebrated holiday in Japan thus far. I have never seen so many people outside. I do not fully understand what the holiday is for, but it has something to do with the emperor.

Anyway, for a break from the city Gavin and I joined Jack and his wife for some bouldering at Mizugaki. We met up at the new area and decided to try a few new potential problems. Jack also wanted to send his V5/6 that we finished cleaning last week.

The first boulder of the day was one that had been wet on one side in previous trips but to our delight we found it quite dry. The Coffee Can boulder is small on this side, but has three stiff, fun problems. The same boulder on the northern side is the site of the 25+ foot lines that we closed last week. This is where Jacks Ideal Johnson V5/6 is. Jack cleaned it and sent first go. I on the other hand took my time to make it to the last scary dead point. After several tries and copious skin loss, I decided to try and send next week.

The trip was a success though. I played with a borrowed flash and I believe that I took a few nice shots. Jack took a few nice ones too I might add. In total this area now has 2 V2's, 3 V3's, 3 V4's, 2 V5's, 1 V5/6, 1 V 6, and over 25 lines yet to be climbed. And there are too MANY lines for me to ever be able to climb in my life here.

This weekend I am planning on heading to Mitake for some bouldering and shooting. I have lots of work to do with this flash technology. Monday I am going to Joyama with Hiroko and Shuji. Shuji and Hit Chan are working some projects so I hope I can take some sweet shots of them in action!!! We will see. There is a cool looking 12a that Jack put up there that I want to get on. Should be fun.

Enjoy the pictures and remember.....



Go Climb Something!!!!!

To catch everyone up, the last month has been a bit turbulent to say the least. Of course the catalyst for this was the earthquake and horrific tsunami on March 11th.

It so happened that on this day Star, Gavin and I were in the Yokohama area at a MontBell store. In the past three weeks I have described the EQ to several people, but I am not sure if I have given my full impression. I have to say that because we ran outside and I was not near any man made torpedoes, I was not scared for my safety. It was exhilarating to be honest. As a climber, terra firma is something that you always expect to be just that. When the ground you walk on everyday starts to move like the ocean, you start to see things a bit differently.

I could not believe the strength of the forces at play that day. I imagine that someone who witnesses an avalanche, tornado, volcano, or some other force of nature first hand feels the same way. When everything stopped, after the two rather large aftershocks, people started to disburse.
There are a multitude of city speaker systems all over Japan to communicate emergency information to the public asap. A voice came over the national system to announce that an earthquake of 6.0 struck north of Tokyo and for everyone to go home.

We do not own a television so we went to a friends house and saw that a devastating EQ had taken place. It was surreal. Now I have to admit, this was my first large EQ, so I did not even fathom that something like this could even take place. Over the next week everyone I came in contact with was very concerned with the continuous EQs that were and are happening at least twice a day. Then you throw the nuclear power plants into the mix and as parents with an infant we decided that it might be best for the little guy and I to go visit the states for a "vacation". Star was scheduled to participate in some training in San Antonio in two weeks so we figured that at the longest we would see her then. So Star and I made the very tough decision for Gavin and I to leave while she was still on orders to stay on base. Gavin and I left Yokota Air Base on March 17th.

We took a military standby flight to Seattle and met up with Star's parents. Gavin and I stayed with them and friends for two weeks. These were two of the toughest weeks I have been through in my life. I do not mean that taking care of Gavin solo was what did it. Rod, Robin, Sean, Michelle, and my parent's help can not be thanked enough. It was being without my wonderful wife. It was worrying about her everyday because of the lack of information or maybe just the unknown in terms of the nuclear plant. I love my wife dearly and being in that situation really made me think about what it would be like to have her taken from us. It was terrible to say the least. Aside from not knowing exactly what was happening in Japan I didn't know when I would see my wife again.

My wife is in the military and she literally belongs to them. She has to have permission the go more than three hours from base on a normal work day. So when there is a natural disaster near base, well let's just say she was not going anywhere anytime soon. So during this period the military was changing there minds several times a day about what exactly to do with the personnel and civilians on base. In the morning it was she was not going to be going to her training in San Antonio and by lunch she was being told that they were setting up a staging area to prepare for iodine tablet distribution. And by dinner she was told to go home and pack a bag because she was probably going to be sent to Okinawa until things"blew over".

In the end, she was sent to her training in SA and we were finally able to reunite after two weeks of uncertainty. I met up with my parents in Austin, where Star and I had planned to go before the training in SA. On Saturday, just over two weeks from the last time I saw Star, we headed to the airport to pick her up. It was a wonderful moment. I hugged my wife and Gavin nuzzled his mother at first touch. We spent the next week catching up and promising each other that we were not going to do that again to our family. During the week Star went to her training during the day and Gavin and I went on adventures. We went to the Alamo. We drove due west from SA to the Pecos river to see the fabled limestone cliffs towering on either side. We went to Enchanted rock and back to Austin. Our nights were spent together as a family eating, laughing, and loving each other. These times will never pass from my mind. I will hold them dear to me always.

We landed back in Japan on the next Sunday, April 10th. I will say it sure was nice to be back home. It is interesting that it took being sent away and put in a state of uncertainty, fear, and angst to realize what the word home really means. Home is, for me, wherever my wife and son are.

Thanks again to our family, friends and even Mountain Khakis for checking up on us while this was going on. It really shows how much you care.

For anyone that reads this and would like to help the thousands of Japanese people affected by this terrible disaster, here is a link.

Here are some photos of a new line. What a nice day it was. I bolted the line, then sent it. Come On Eddie is 11a and fun. For a two more wonder that is. Sorry that the climbing photos are terrible. It turns out that not all of the Japanese cameras are good. Proof in the finished product.

In other news, Gavin is 4 months +2 today. He is meeting all of his 4 and some of his 5 month goals already. We are very proud of him.

This weekend the fam is heading on a small adventure. There are a few boulders in the Kofu area that Jack and I are developing. Star has not seen them so I am taking her and the little dude on a over night trip to the mountains. We are planning on staying at a Japanese BnB. The BnB is located right on a beautiful mountain river. The weather looks to be fric-tastic!!!!!! I am taking the new Organic pad in hopes for some killer photos!!!!! Photos coming soon.


Go climb Something!!!!!

The new area cleaning has begun. I have taken a couple of photos but none are very becoming. But saying this I have one just to show what it looks like. The new area is about 60 ft tall and just as wide. The rock is limestone and as of today we figure that there are about 12 routes ranging from 5.7 to 11c-ish. We will be bolting the lines very soon. The trail is being put in now and looks very good. Anyway I have spent some time here and it seems like this will be a great place to bring beginner climbers. Privater guiding area.

The other trip that Gavin and I took today was to Hinohara. Hinohara is about 30 minutes from Fussa and a nice drive. There is an old crag there that looks amazing. But the cliff, Kanoto 100m high, has been closed for many years due to the cliffs status. This cliff in Japan is to us in the states like climbing Mount Rushmore. Without the old dudes faces. The rock is very nice and steep towards the top. I really wish that we could still climb there. So it goes. I took some nice shots of some old scary gear. If this place did ever open, a hardware overhaul would have to take place asap. There are some nice large boulders nearby that have seen some climbing it seems. I know one of Yuji and Dai's hardest problems is in this area but not exactly sure where.

In other news, I am heading to Caramba tonight to set up some easy problems. I am teaching a bouldering class there on Friday, so I need to prep a bit. More cleaning and finalizing on the lines at the new area on Saturday and hanging with the fam on Sunday. This week is jammed packed with fun!!!


Go Climb Something!!!!!

So in the past few days we have been quite busy. Star is on leave for two weeks and we have been trying to get outside as much as possible. We have gone to Base Camp twice and went and climbed at Tennoiwa. Tennoiwa is a beginner to intermediate chert climbing area west of Akiruno. A fun area, but can be VERY busy. This area is considered the guides area. We actually went and were the only folks there. Next we went to Shojiiwa. this area is about 20 minutes farther down 205 from Tennoiwa. This area is Limestone and offers some steep fun. The approach is much longer to Shojiiwa than tennoiwa and much steeper. Now problem this is good to me, this usually keeps the crowds down. This area is also in the sun until about 2pm. So good for winter. Tennoiwa was in the shade all day for us. Both areas are sport. We also went on a great hike that I have no idea where but was fun. We went for about a mile up steep trail winding back and forth on a ridge. And we say tons of rock. I am super pumped to go and get a longer closer view of the tall limestone wall that litter this area. Not to mention the boulders here too. Anyway fun week so far and looks like the rest will be better. We are going bouldering at Mitake tomorrow and are leaving to go to the Izu peninsula on Wednesday. And yes we are going to climb when we are there. Jogasaki, Joyama, and a bouldering area look to be the primary places. Also the coastline seems to offer some great places for birds. I am going to bring my big lens to try and capture some of our feathered friends.