Well, I hardly expected this to happen. All during the Christmas break I had been unable to climb a short roof problem on a small, steep boulder just beside the creek. Then there had been weeks of rain. I went up there on Thursday and surprised myself by reaching the crux move twice. Then yesterday I actually did the problem. I had expected the process to be much more protracted and to provide the overall subject for this diary, but now it seems I will need to find a harder problem and to think more carefully about the nature and scope of this project.
Now that I have climbed the boulder problem, the convention is to give it a name. I have called it “Huffman” after a radical anthropologist friend. Not quite sure what I’ll call the overall boulder yet.
The problem is very short. It involves climbing a metre or so through a small roof to a large horizontal break and then scampering up to the top. Here are two images, one of the overall boulder and the other indicating some of the relevant holds.
Distant view of Huffman problem
Sequence of hand holds
Here is a detailed account of the problem.
- Start lying on the mossy rock terrace at the base of the boulder with hands matched on the starting holds, right foot placed on a small depression in the roof and left leg flagging underneath right leg. Pull up off the rock terrace, making sure no portion of body remains in contact with the ground, then swing up for the first left hand hold.
- Reach up high for the first right hand hold – an awkward sloping hold with a small crimp at the back.
- Pop left hand up to sloping eyebrow style hold.
- Smear left foot quickly on pale wall underneath roof as a basis for stepping up high with the right foot to the far right edge of starting hand holds, then lunge in a controlled manner for the horizontal break. This is the crux move – easy to lose body tension and drop the right leg.
- Match left hand in the horizontal break.
- Lift left foot up to first left hand hold position and reach up with right hand to the sloping hold at the top of the boulder, place right foot in the horizontal break and step up to the top.
Lie down beneath the boulder
Grab start hold with both hands
Jam right toe into initial foot hold
Reach with left hand for first hold
Pop for crux right hand hold
Left up to eyebrow style hold
Smear left foot and jump right foot up on the start holds
Lunge to horizontal break with right hand
Match in the break with left hand
Lift left foot up on to initial left hand hold
Clamber up to the top