Introduction to the RED

Last weekend, I had the pleasure of enjoying the Red River Gorge for the first time! My girlfriend, two friends, and I made the ~5hr journey Friday night. After some decent road time, we rolled into Miguel's near full-capacity parking lot, unpacked and set up camp in the goat pasture. Then we headed to the heated tiki lounge to discuss the next day's itinerary. Having done my research, I suggested Lady Slipper. It was an easy sell and we all called it a night.

Lady Slipper was a great destination for us, full of moderate climbs. In one day, I led a 4-star 5.6 sport route, two 5.7 gear routes and a 5.8 gear route. The climbing was great! I learned some things on those gear routes. For one, I need to relax. The added stress of climbing on gear makes me significantly more tense and tunnel-visioned. Easy moves become hard and I get pumped way too soon. The Rock Warriors Way talked a lot about ways to calm the mind - focus on breathing, soft focus, positive speech, asking questions, etc. I want to actively incorporate those techniques.

On day two, we headed to the ever popular Muir Valley. We first headed back to the stadium where we found some awesome stuff. I led a 5.7 route that was pretty fun. I intentionally focused on placing lots of passive pro and felt much more solid doing so by the end. The day before I got some constructive criticism from a friend about setting my stoppers better. After the 5.7, I top-roped a sweet 5.9 that transitioned from a juggy overhanging start to a hand crack to a slab. It was full value for sure! One friend led a gnarly route called No Bones About It, but I didn't climb it.

Rather, the gf and I headed over to Great Wall to find some easier stuff. It was pretty full and we had to wait to get on some 6's and 7's. In the meantime, I ambitiously onsighted my first 5.10 in the southeast. Some might call it soft with lots of jugs and plates. I climbed it and am proud of it, regardless! Then, she and I ate lunch before jumping on the 5.7. Also at Great Wall, I top-roped a 5.10c, 5.10 crack, and led another 5.6 sport route. I was really happy to get the mix of tough TRs and easy leads for me. Also, I really wanted to find some easier climbing for my girlfriend who is still learning.

All in all, the weekend was a great success. I had a blast camping with friends and climbing. Miguel's is super cool though very strange. We got our time and money worth at the Red, climbing ~12 pitches in total. Each day we woke with the sun and hiked back at sunset. I hoped to spend many more days exploring the Gorge.