.embark.

The trip started on 12 February, 2022. Nursing prereqs were online this semester, which afforded me the freedom to hit the road and climb my way through the West for the entire semester. Amidst fresh snow and 15 degrees in Michigan, I packed up Penny (Pennsatucky) the Honda Fit with a haul bag full of cams, a phatbike and my Chacos.

Twenty hours of driving brought me to

Denver to visit my sister, her husband and their three micro-dawz.

Next I drove to Cotopaxi to visit my old friend and first trad mentor, Steve. Over breakfast burritos and Aeropress, we chatted about our many adventures over the years, including skiing off Handies Peak in June 2011 and biking in to liberate a classic 600' 5.9- in the [redacted location] during the government shutdown of 2013. Steve and I have known each other for twelve years and we always pick right back up where we left off. The first vertical endeavor of the trip was in Grand Junction, where Mr. Choss Boss and I established a new three-pitch sandstone offwidth route that we called "Freedom is a Prison" (5.10+ [5.9 PG-13]). Mike has a knack for spying virgin lines and was generous enough to share the first ascent of this one with me. The first two pitches went ground-up onsight, and the third went clean on the second attempt.

The first pitch starts with a thuggish roof pull over the Chinle on crusty crimps with a fat #5 above your head, then pushes you into a finger crack slot, then offwidth and squeeze. A hundred feet of this leads to a slender sapling that you can sling for a "meat+ anchor."

The second pitch traverses hard left on airy slab then pulls insecure 5.9 moves up rotten ledges with a good arete. Pulling through a thought-provoking mantel (pg-13 territory) rewards you with an overhanging thin hands crack (5.10+) to a good ledge.

The final pitch is splitter #5's and gains the first of three summits on a semi-detached pillar. It has a very desert-tower-esque feel.

We cleaned and established these three pitches over two days and barely beat a snowstorm on the second. Climbing with Mike is fun because he knows just the right balance to strike between being motivated and efficient and still maintaining a relaxed climbing atmosphere. We hike fast and climb fast, but don't rush the belay transfers or any other mission-critical moments.

Oh, and he has a nice rack ;-)

For the total FA counter, these were pitches 32-34. I love each and every new route that I've developed, whether it's in the desert, the [redacted], Unaweep or Kentucky, but this one was memorable because of the boldness of the second pitch and the classic wide groveling required on the first and second.

I'm not sure if anyone will ever repeat it since it's an hour hike and requires both wide technique and a strong lead head on face climbing, but I was glad to be a part of the process with Mike.