Vedauwoo, Wyoming
Medicine Bow National Forest
Sept 28, 2007
Thanks for stopping by. This short video clip provides a snapshot into our latest adventure. We plan to create a “long-play” video which will be available soon.
With the irresistible urge for road trippin’ I packed the car early and we headed up to Wyoming – Vedauwoo to be exact. What we found was a warm welcome from our extended family and plenty of rock, going at all grades.
Windy Wyoming is an alluring place of endless open space. It is home to miles of snowfences, antelope, PBRs, whirly-gigs (wind turbines), oil derricks, and the friendliest down-home people you’ll ever meet.
The advantage of climbin’ the woo in autumn, is that the cool temps make your body armor bearable. Armor you ask? Yup. You’ll want to stock up on tape and thrift store clothing to shield your body from the ferociousness of the stone. It’ll shred even the hardiest crack-meisters. This is a place where blowing a move can very likely mean a trip to your local plastic surgeon.
We played on the Nautilus formation then went over to the lower crags for full-on exploration and bouldering. As some tested their mettle on The Warden ( 5.13- V7) and others took a whack at Life Without Parole (5.11d V4)….Alison and I slithered through the narrow sidewinder gallery to a room we called “The Jailhouse”. Once there we bouldered on up and over to a rock formation we named “The Alien”. Mike, Bart, and “company” gave us bouldering pointers. Craig gave us an offwidth climbing clinic….and then we put ourselves into motion on the rocks.
Our cast of characters:
Mike Alkaitis, Joe Vallone, Craig Luebben, Bart Paull, EJ Nogaski, Kevin Bains, Sarah Pancoast, Mark Hammond, Todd Reeves, Jill Salva and Alison Salva.
Given its close proximity to Boulder, the adventure of Vedauwoo is definitely worth checking out for both climbers and non-climbers. One could spend endless hours enjoying the scenery, spinning yarns around camp or painting, drawing, skipping and slithering among the crystal giants.
Carpe Diem!
