New (to us) boulders and the DMMFP -UPDATED

On Sunday I went up to Black Mt with Alex Hoffman, Marina Campana, and Eden and Itai Axelrad for another day of beautiful Pacific Crest granite pebble wrestling.

After the twins eventually sent Velvet Revolver, Alex sent the stand, and I failed to hold on to the upper hold from the sit yet again, we found a new cluster of boulders on top of the hill above the trail between Boulder Basin and Velvet. Our eyes caught a steep boulder up the hill covered in bright green and black lichen that looked like it could yield a difficult line. We brushed the features and chalked them up, and it will probably be something in the v12 or harder range, but only time will tell.

The start hold on the project

Eden and Itai puttin some chalk on those "holds"

Rather than waste too much skin trying this difficult project while none of us feel quite in shape yet, we decided to check out the rest of the boulders behind it and further up the hill. What we found was a cluster of beautiful moderates and a few potential hard projects. I've never heard of these boulders and they did not look as if they had ever seen any traffic, but it's Black Mt, so you can't really know. In honor of all of our growing obsession with Gloworms gummy candy, we jokingly began referring to the hill-top cluster as the gloworm boulders. (UPDATE: apparently the guidebook authors, Alan and Ian, have heard of this area, and although there appears to have never been traffic and holds broke on the V4 we ended up doing, they say that probably everything under V9 was done years ago)

Marina sending a beautiful V1

Eden in the middle of sending the V4 that we dubbed the Mystery Gloworm (will probably have a different, older name in the guide)

Myself pulling the cool (and a little harder than it looks) heelhook cross to a hueco on this bulletproof and enjoyable moderate (v1?)

Itai running up the topout of the same.

After sending the three most obvious lines on the same boulder, we headed back over to the main Boulder Basin area to throw down a few attempts on the recently opened (by Ian McIntosh) and more recently named DMMFP (Dan Mills Memorial Face Problem). Excellent name if you ask me. This problem is the Midnight Lightning of Black Mt in my opinion and I hope to send it in the next few weeks.

Eden trying the DMMFP (v9/10?), Marina Campana photo

Myself on the DMMFP, Alex Hoffman photos (above and below)

DMMFP fail, Marina Campana photo

We'll be heading back up this Saturday, so check back Sunday or Monday for more photos of beautiful SoCal granite.

More Black

In case it wasn't made obvious by my posts over the last couple of years, Black Mountain has become far and away my favorite Southern California bouldering destination. I'll let the photos below tell most of the story of the weekend, and it shouldn't be hard to see why I love the place. We connected with Ryan Kim, Anthony Tarascio and a crew from OC/SD on Saturday evening and climbed with them all of Sunday. These guys are way strong and full of psyche, so it's always a pleasure to climb with them. Brett pulled off an impressive send of Megalomania on Sunday and a rad onsight of Way Too High on Saturday. For the second weekend in a row I got my ass handed to me, but I just keep reminding myself that I'm in training mode and that hopefully it will all pay off and in a few more weeks maybe I can send a boulder or two.

Brett Gottdener, way off the deck on Way too High

Brett taking yet another lap on Where Boneheads Dare

Mike trying hard on Velvet Revolver

Can't really argue against this sunset


Sunday morning and Anthony is psyched about his omelette.


Brett Gottdener sending Moon Drops (v6)


Anthony Tarascio repeating Megalomania (stout v8)




Brett topping out Megalomania


Anthony on Man is the Bastard. Going ...


Going ...


... and gone. Maybe next time.

As always, I can't wait till next weekend. Until then, the training continues.

Black Mt Weekend

This Friday, Brett, our new friend Jenn, and I drove up to Black Mt for a weekend of camping and bouldering on some of the finest granite around. We got up there just in time to pitch our tents in the dark and enjoyed a few beers around the fire while making plans for the next couple of days.
Saturday morning we discovered an amazing slab right in our camp site (group site 3) to start the early morning warm up at around 8 am. From here we headed to the boulders at sites 4/5 so that Brett could finally send the beautiful egg-shaped Soulsnatch (v8), which I managed to un-send in the one attempt I took on it.

Brett Gottdener warming up near group site 5

Myself, two moves from the ego-crushing un-send on Soulsnatch.

The view from site 5

From there we headed down to the YMCA camp area, despite the fact that its lower elevation ought to have made it a little bit warmer, a nice steady breeze kept the temps nice and cool. Unfortunately it wasn't enough to make us send. I managed to un-send both Ghost Dog (7 points) and Beowulf (11 points) and Brett will have to return another day for both of those sends too. This cluster of boulders, although remote, is very much worth the approach, even if you end up hiking out empty-handed.

Brett Gottdener on the opening moves of Beowulf

We were pretty toast by the end of this session, so while we intended to explore the hillside of boulders around the group camp sites, we ended up passing out for a nap on our crashpads back at camp before dinner.

Sunday we took a much more leisurely start and took a pretty relaxed approach to the day. We warmed up slowly at Boulder Basin and ran into the whole Ian, Bridget, Alan, Anthony T, et al crew that I so often bump into up there. A bunch of us headed over to Velvet Revolver, which Brett sent the sit start to 2nd try (v8) with an impressive near-flash. I managed to fall off the top of the sit a couple of times for good measure before deciding to return another day. Apparently getting back into shape after a long break from climbing takes more than just two weeks. Who'da thought?

After Velvet Revolver, we tried a great new problem that Ian just got the first ascent of on Saturday. A new school classic nestled amongst decades old testpieces, it's amazing and so typical of Black. We didn't send, but we're totally coming back for it. It's such an aesthetic line. Not sure what Ian is going to name it yet, but he suggested approximately 9 v points. After Brett completed a cool down lap on the mega classic Where Bonehead Dare (v5) we packed it in and called it a day.

All in all it was an amazing weekend, full of hard pulling on beautiful rocks. Props to Brett for crushing as hard as he did on day two. Hopefully within the next couple of weeks I'll be able to actually polish off a few new sends of my own. As always, I'm full of psyche and looking forward to the next trip. So let's rally and get a crew from LA down there next weekend!

Brett tackling Ian's new line at Boulder Basin

Brett styling his way up a lap on Where Boneheads Dare

Off Broadway Painting

Last night Meg Cavanaugh and her lovely husband Johnny McCullough hosted an amazing house warming/painting unveiling party at their place here in London. The unveiling happened to be of the 4-foot-wide painting I have been working on for them for a while now. I had sacrificed some sleep to get it done in time, so I'm happy to say it seemed well-received by all in attendance.
I'm working now on a handful of smaller paintings, mostly of the same theme, that I'd like to finish before I leave London at the end of May.

New Online Portfolio

For those of you reading this that haven't seen it yet, check out my online portfolio at isaacpalatt.carbonmade.com, if you're curious to see more of my artwork in an easy-to-view presentation.

In other news, I'm almost done with a big new painting, which I'll post photos of when finished, and I'm doing my damndest to get back in bouldering shape. In as much as I'm returning to California in a month, I'd like to be prepared to face my nemesis, Ex-Patriot.

Stonehenge

Fav of the Grade

OK. So delayed update yet again. I've been doing more of the same here in London, working from home, drawing a lot, painting a little, working on Broadway Market on Saturdays, climbing infrequently on plastic, and desperately trying to learn how to play the guitar. Maya is finishing a term in grad school, where she's writing computer programs that interact with each other and create conditions for architecture. Cool stuff!. Not much else to speak of though really. We're keeping busy.

This post is inspired by Max, by request really.
His post about the most memorable boulder problems he has done of any given grade made me start to think about my own favorite boulder problems and what the experiences of sending each one has meant. It may be a bit self-indulgent, but isn't blogging inherently? For lack of a better method coming to mind, I'll follow the same format as Max. If an abundance of the problems are in Hueco, it's probably a side affect of spending several winter breaks there throughout college.

Think I'm missing a problem? Write a comment! I want to do it!

V0: Melon Patch, Hueco Tanks, TX
It's true that you want to climb this problem over and over once you have done it. Tall, striking, and independent. Extra points for doing it in tennies.

Honorable Mention:
- Black Dyke, Squamish, BC
- Bawl and Chain, Hueco Tanks, TX

Another warm up lap on Bawl and Chain atop Hueco's North Mt
Susanica Tam photo

V1: Hershey's Symphony, Hueco Tanks, TX
Although it is hidden just around the corner from Diaphanous Sea, for some reason I missed this gem my first few years visiting Hueco, but somebody corrected that for me in February of 2010, and I'm damn glad they did. A beautiful, tall line on bullet hard iron rock, hidden in a corridor on North Mountain. This line is also tall enough that falling isn't an option. Full value!

Honorable Mentions:
- Cast Iron, Hueco Tanks, TX
- Heavenly Path, Bishop, CA

V2: Ghetto Simulator, Hueco Tanks, TX
This is the ultimate jug haul, up a long 45 degree wall. I remember first doing it at the end of a long day of really pushing myself on North Mountain and feeling totally relieved to actually finish. A must do.

Honorable Mentions:
- Nobody Here Gets Out Alive, Hueco Tanks, TX
- Monkey Bar, Red Rocks, NV

V3: Hepatitis C, Central Park, NYC
Probably more for the experience than the rock quality or the setting, this is the most memorable V3 I have climbed. Friends Matt Morrow, Garrett Koeppicus and I ran the send train on this boulder in Central Park's "Ramble" area near the New York Museum of Natural History in the fall of my Freshman year at Pratt. The overhanging face of surprisingly clean (read, not chossy) Manhattan schist juts out over a pit of mud, algae, and used hypodermic needles, but luckily the problem "only" climbs over a stone stairway. Don't fall!

Honorable Mentions:
- Rings of Uranus, Fountain Red, AR
- Sign of the Cross, Hueco Tanks, TX

V4: Fight or Flight, Hueco Tanks, TX
Now to be fair, most problems (regardless of grade) in the world could be argued by somebody to be "the best V4 on the planet." The same goes for the V4s in Hueco alone. For me, this one takes the cake because of its commitment factor and the independence of the line.

Artie catching some air and sticking the lip on Fight or Flight

Honorable Mentions:
- Standing on the Head of the Dragon, Tramway, CA
- Moonshine Roof, Hueco Tanks, TX

V5: Dragonfly, Hueco Tanks, TX
While the sit-start holds little appeal, the classic Dragonfly is not to be missed on a trip to Hueco. A jugrail traverse leading to a heelhook/dueling gaston move ... how do you beat that at the grade? This is a climb that one must do at least once during any trip to the Dragon's Den area.

Honorable Mentions:
- Where Boneheads Dare, Black Mountain, CA
- Viper, Squamish, BC

V6: Anorexic, The Priest Draw, AZ
Incut pockets, a horizontal roof, and a foot-leading exit. What's not to love about this problem? This was one of my first sends in the Flagstaff area, completed on a high school trip to Flag to compete in a JCCA comp. I've climbed it every trip to the Draw since then, and never tire of it.

An old shot of me finishing Anorexic
Susanica Tam photo

Honorable Mentions:
- See Spot Run, Hueco Tanks, TX
- Guns of Navarone, Hueco Tanks, TX
- The Buddha, The Gunks, NY

Josh Jurenik cruising Guns of Navarone

V7: Babyface, Hueco Tanks, TX
This is debatable for sure, but I'd still say Babyface is one of the most aesthetic problems in Hueco ... or anywhere for that matter. Incredibly photogenic and it really gives it to you for the grade. When Babyface feels easy, you know you're capable of easily sending double-digit problems.

James Morris slappin the Babyface

Honorable Mentions:
- Crash Dummy, Hueco Tanks, TX
- Ghost Dog, Black Mountain, CA

Anthony Tarascio hitting the jug on Ghost Dog

V8: Mantra, Squamish, BC
A pretty darn beautiful line, although it could stand to be slightly taller, with a big move and classic Squamish sloper compression. This send is particularly memorable because I was completely exhausted when I did it, worn down from three weeks of granite bouldering with essentially no rest. It was one of those "in the zone" moments. Maybe not the BEST climb I've done, but certainly one of the most memorable.

Honorable Mentions:
- El Pasitos, Hueco Tanks, TX
- The Peanut, Hueco Tanks, TX
- Soulsnatch, Black Mountain, CA

Drew snagging The Peanut, another hidden new-school classic on Hueco's North Mt.

Brett Goettdener giving it to himself on Soulsnatch

V9: Try Harder, Hueco Tanks, TX
For being right on the trail, this is an often overlooked and underrated problem. Perhaps this is because it is so damn hard! Honey-combed roof climbing and a powerful throw (or toe-first trickery) lead into the giant hueco of the aesthetic and uniquely featured V4 stand start. EVEN better than Choir Boys, in my humble opinion.

Myself exiting the roof of Try Harder

Honorable Mentions:
- Choir Boys, Hueco Tanks, TX
- Brass Knuckles, Ozarks, AR


V10: Full Service, Hueco Tanks, TX
Supposedly also the first boulder problem ever officially graded V10, Full Service is by far and away the best of the grade that I have ever had the pleasure to climb on, let alone send. The "J," "H," "loaf," and "football" holds are nice and soft on the hands thanks to years of traffic and "pof" abuse back in the day, and the movement is not just powerful, but unique. I worked this problem during two consecutive yearly visits to Hueco, unable to do most of the moves at first, and finally sending on New Years Day of 2009. This is the American standard for the grade and a lifetime must-do for any boulderer.

Sam Tingey on the sculpted holds of Full Service

Honorable Mentions
- Xavier's Roof, Bishop, CA
- The Receptionist, The Priest Draw, AZ

Xavier's Roof, Bishop, CA

V11: Beowulf, Black Mt, CA
Similarly to Max's statement about the V10 grade in his post, I don't feel like I have climbed enough V11s to properly weigh in here, but I feel more than confident in saying that Beowulf is one of the best problems that I have done of any grade, anywhere, so it wins the prize this time.
Beowulf starts sitting with a perfect in-cut hueco in a steep granite cave, climbing about 13 moves while steepening into a fully horizontal roof; then you have to do the hard move, a full-span throw to a jug at the lip, after which you are rewarded by a seemingly endless slab, probably no harder than 5.9.
Ian McIntosh and Alex Savage shared this line with me when it was still a project, witnessing Ian's first ascent that day. I was fortunate enough to witness the first, second, and third ascents, and through obsessively returning to this remote part of Black Mountain three weekends in a row, I was able to nab the 5th. Like Max's experience with Americana Exotica, this one was particularly memorable because when I finally sent, I was alone, with only just enough crashpads to keep the crux safe. After a couple of warm up burns on a sunny/windy day in the San Jacintos, I turned the commitment level up to 11 and managed to find my way on top of the boulder. One of those experiences that is truly personal and can't really be described in words, as much as I am trying to do just that.

Myself nabbing the lip of Beowulf

Ian McIntosh on the first ascent of Beowulf

Honorable Mentions:
- Diaphanous Sea, Hueco Tanks, TX
- Loaded Direct, Hueco Tanks, TX


I guess that's the end of this short post (LOL). Leave a comment if you have something to add or a problem to recommend!!