After the eventful climbing on Rocket Boy, I (perhaps subconsciously) switched my sights over to bolt protected mixed climbs. The next week, Ryan and I cruised up to a new age classic, the Nutcracker. The Nutcracker is a fully bolted 4 pitch variation to the Hyalite test piece Winter Dance. It boasts awesome steep climbing in the most incredible position in the canyon. I got the send two years prior, but I followed the crux pitch and wanted to lead it this time. P5 of Nutcrac

First of all, my apologies for the high quantity of low quality iPhone pictures. Maybe some day I'll buy a camera... My last post ended with an upcoming attempt on Freerider, which eventually fell through. A nasty case of Poison Oak and an even worse cold shut down Cheyenne and I after the first 12 pitches. We ended up rock climbing around Tahoe for the rest of her visit, enjoying the beautiful climbing at Donner Summit. Cheyenne feeling the effects of a cold near the top of

This weekend marked the end of my guiding season and the beginning of my climbing season. All the hard work I put in this summer allowed me to save up for my time off. To make this period as productive as possible, I had to prepare to meet some of my goals ahead of time. The first goal I had was to free Kingpin, a route that Adam and I had put up last year in the Beartooths. It is a seven pitch climb with over 40 bolts, including belays. It went in ground up at 5.11+ A2, a wa