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| Why not take a photo on the way back down? |
When Kyle and Scott disappeared, it was a big deal. Of course it was a big deal for climbers all over, but as far as locally? Two of the pillars of the Wasatch community were gone. I wanted to keep their memories alive, so I decided to repeat some lines that they had made the first ascents of. One of the reasons I love climbing is for the history of it. I love being able to have the same experience and interact with the same rock people that I admire have. This is, in a way, how we can start to understand their perspective on climbing.
In the fall I decided I wanted to repeat two lines I hadn't ever done, one by each of them. Highway to Hell from Scott and Happy Hour from Kyle. It's always hard to predict what will happen with mixed lines in the Wasatch, but unfortunately, neither really formed. Sure there was some verglassed rock, but I really wanted to repeat them in somewhat of the same condition as when they were first climbed.
I still haven't been able to be lucky enough to repeat one of Kyle's lines yet, they all seem to be rather ephemeral. I was able to grab one of Scott's though, Shrink to Fit Wranglers. It's a real fine line, so I made sure to get several laps on it. NWS after all.
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| Jewell starting up the rock. |
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| My favorite photo, Shrink to Fit Wranglers a good line with fun movement. |
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| It's much steeper than it looks! The backstory behind the name is worth knowing. I'm told that when Scott did the first ascent, he was wearing a pair of wrangler jeans and he got super wet. Voila! Custom fit jeans! |
