The Hazard Chronicles

Note: Most of the pictures here are worth clicking on for better resolution.

Nick: I'm trying to get a short notice climbing trip out to Vantage this weekend...Interested?

   Me: Yeah, I'd be down for that. Details?

Nick: I don't have it all laid out yet...I'll keep you posted.


Two days later we were on the road. It was pouring rain.

I had never been to Vantage before, but I had definitely heard a lot about this oasis of climbing in the middle of an otherwise mundane desert. Tall columns of basalt were said to provide infinite opportunities for short, high quality routes, and most of my climbing friends spoke highly of the area. The only hang-up might be the weather, but we were confident that things would work out.

Several hours later we pulled off the freeway onto a forgotten street marked with a dead-end sign. A couple miles further and I was maneuvering my Toyota minivan into a glorified road turn-out that could have been mistaken for a used Subaru dealership, each car competing with the next for the number of stickers on the back windows. Vehicles were scattered haphazardly along a makeshift dirt road with bearded men and crunchy women wandering to and from the two latrines stationed at the far end of the climber's camp. The cool air smelled of woodsmoke, dirt, and weed, creating a unique laid-back atmosphere that falls somewhere between Camp 4 in Yosemite and an outdoor music venue. The rain was still falling, but only lightly, and we were cautiously hopeful as we set up our camp.

Once our site was established, we hefted our packs and aimed our sights toward the cliffs. As we meandered around small boulders and sagebrush the sun started to make its appearance, further stoking our optimism while at the same time creating out of the sky a dramatic composition of clouds and light that, in itself, could have made the trip completely worthwhile.

After about a quarter mile we came to a narrow cleft in the ground, almost invisible if you don't know where to look. We squeezed ourselves into it, and at least one member our our group had to remove his pack to fit through the narrow notch as the walls closed in around us.

Descending deeper and deeper into the earth, the notch seemed almost like a secret passageway of the kind I used to write about as a child. Back then, they opened up into other worlds, with dinosaurs or tropical jungles for my imagination to explore. In this one, however, I was met at the end with an equally fantastical scene, not of mystical creatures, but of an endless wall of gorgeous climbs, their bolts and chalked holds spaced closely together, its continuity broken only by a great sea of fleece and down jackets packed even closer together, each with a small set of legs protruding out from the inside. This, I reasoned, is what sport climbing heaven might look like, the occupants sharing beta and mimicking moves as their fellow cherubs worked their way up and down the various routes.

As for the climbing itself, there isn't much to say. It was lovely. The weather cleared and we were able to do enough in two days to keep my hands stiff for the next week. We did a nice mix of trad and sport, crack and face, mostly on pretty moderate level routes. The highly featured cliffs led so some interesting moves and positions that you don't see very often in other types of rock, and I'm pretty sure that we were all happy to be out again after a long winter of climbing on nothing but wood and plastic.

*****

As for our activities closer to home, it was a pretty normal week. Rach and I went to a high school production of "You Can't Take It With You," and went out afterwards for appetizers and good conversation. Also, Rach had a girl's night out with her friends while I was away climbing, and although I haven't asked her about it, I'm assuming she had a good time catching up with people.

The kids are enjoying the nice weather and spend more hours playing outside now than they do watching tv- a nice change for everyone. They participated in a North Idaho Easter egg hunt by hiding eggs with gift cards in them, and then posting clues in an online Facebook group for people to find. Afterwords, they enjoyed ice cream sundaes at the resort. This next week we are preparing to head down to Rexburg for Easter, and are looking forward to seeing family down there.

Life is good.

Have a good week!