After some unseasonably snowy weather, Spring has finally come to Colorado! I have been trying to take advantage of the mostly gorgeous weather to get outside and climb. I have been working at a new job recently, and I am finding that when I do have time to climb, I am much more motivated to do so. As a result, I have actually managed to get some great climbing done over the past few months.

Back in February, I began to go out to Boulder Canyon in my free time. Despite its incredibly close proximity to my house, I haven’t spent a great deal of time in this area. While I’m not sure how this happened (seeing that I have lived in Boulder for ten years now), I am happy that I now have some great little boulders to work on in the canyon. The Hug boulder, for example, was developed more recently and has three great problems packed into a pretty small boulder. The granite is some of the better rock I have seen in Boulder Canyon, and the climbing is incredibly fun. I managed to finish the left and middle Hug boulders on my first day, but the Hug Right took some additional work. This boulder begins with a very powerful move followed by some exhausting but fun compression climbing. The top out of this is quite desperate, and I fell at this point one day before completing the boulder. I loved working on this climb, as it was a perfect mix of power and technique, and was very close to home too!

I also completed a great little thuggy boulder called Authentic Battle Damage, and also began working on the sit start. While this boulder is also relatively small, the climbing is a great combination of gymnastic movement, hard heel hooking, and compression. The top out is superb as well! After finishing the stand start to this boulder, I went to work on the sit start, which revolves around difficult heel hooks and core power. I absolutely loved this boulder, and was psyched to finish it off after a few days of work.

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