Red Rock Canyon, Nevada

We are now in Red Rock Canyon, which is so close to Las Vegas I think Matt might be able to hit it if he were to spit hard enough. Just like the name says, these actually are red rocks! Matt and I spent about 3 hours yesterday touring the park from our bike seats. It was a lot of fun, and a lot of hard work. We biked from the campsite into the park where they have a 13 mile scenic drive. Lots of people take this loop from car, motorbike, bicycle...we even saw a couple guys running it! Anyways, the first 5 miles are literally all up hill. I thought I was going to die with the hot sun and dry desert air attempting to choke the life out of my lungs. Anyways, it was well worth the view, and the major downhill around mile 8. We also saw a couple wild burros, and some stupid californian tourists who were feeding them from their car.

Later that day we went for a climb to one of the bouldering areas in Calico Basin. We've had quite a few days off inbetween here and Bishop, so it was nice to get out on the rock again. Our friends Lindsey and Nevin should be here tomorrow, and we are going to start doing some Sport climbing. We are very excited for them to arrive!

If your wondering who the guy with me is, its still Matt. Regretfully he said goodbye to his haphazard mane for a squeeky clean haircut. Matt refuses to look into a mirror now, and its a sensitive subject, so I'll just let the picture do the talking (just kidding).

We bought the first season of "Lost" and have watched a few episodes now, its pretty exciting and we are hooked now. We've set up a comfortable couch in the car to watch the show, for nights when its too cold and windy to play crib.

October 21st to 25th Viva Las Vegas

What to say about Las Vegas…well, for starters it is unlike any place we have seen so far on our trip! We have been staying with Uncle Andy and Aunt Vicki, who have spoiled us rotten with delicious meals, comfortable beds, showers, and great company and entertainment. We have toured through most of the casinos and spent a late evening out on ‘the strip’ before Jeff left.

We saw lots of light shows, water shows, and even a cannon battle between two ships (one of which was filled with scantily-clad women…much to Jeff’s delight). We played the slots, blackjack, and roulette. Jeff even placed some bets on some hockey games that night. Although none of us actually won by the end of the night, we had lots of fun laughing along the way at our misfortunes. I have a recommendation that Jeff never be allowed in a casino without supervision, as he likes to take big risks (until he’s flat broke).

From the pictures you’ll be able to see that the boys were at the top of their game with some new hats they bought in Victoria. Unfortunately lucky hats don’t work in Vegas. Some of the designs and themes of the casinos were very beautiful. I spent most of the time admiring the marble floors that had all this intricate tiling in it. It looked so pretty. You can see it in the picture of the boys with our hosts.

Farewell to the Rat

…and then there was two. Yes it is true, the infamous Jeff Gabrush has headed back home. Jeff spent nearly 3 weeks with us on the road, and we had lots of fun together. I (Holly) will miss my short climbing partner (Short 2: Tall 1), especially now that Lindsey and Nevin will be joining us (Short 1: Tall 3). Jeff, I’ll do my best to work scrunchy, crimpy, high hand-to-foot match problems in your honor. These pictures are a tribute to our narcissistic traveler. Jeff, we loved having you in all your quirky glory. Next trip we’ll have a primo ride for you (note to reader: Please refrain from rolling your eyes, but Matt and I have decided we need an old VW for the next trip…we’ll be riding in high style). Post us on the blog, and remember to put it all on red.

Ritz, thanks for coming on the trip. It was awesome to have you along, and I had a blast climbing and making stupid jokes all the time. It was aces. Anyway remember to write when you're up at the mine. We'll take some pictures of ourselves in your honour! You climbed strong, I wish I could say the same for our hands at the blackjack table... we'll get them next time...


Hugs,
Matt and Holly

Bishop Continued:

Climbing in Bishop was phenomenal. There was such a variation of terrain. In one area a volcanic rock bed made for some beautiful, unique and fun bouldering. Holly, Jeff and I tried some cool problems, and spent a day in the hot dry desert sun. I crawled through a cave only to look back upon the Mojave rattlesnake, which was hanging out at the mouth of the cave, as I obliviously walked past it. But don’t worry Joan and Brenda that was the only little guy I saw (unfortunately!). Another special experience was seeing a road runner (the bird from the cartoon). I was more excited for Holly, as that was a first for her.

The next day we went out to another area full of massive, round granite boulders. As you can see from the pictures, they were quite weathered from rain and sun, unlike the granite boulders in Squamish that we climber earlier. We tried an ultra classic problem up the corner of a very tall boulder (the white boulder that Holly is sitting on top of). After that we moved on to a smaller, less challenging line up another boulder. We finished up and hiked out in the dark, licking our wounds all the way back to camp. All 3 of us now have some pretty ragged finger tips, so the trip to Vegas will provide us with a chance to nurse them a little (they give out way before endurance, strength, enthusiasm, or anything else!).

The camping at Bishop was rad, since the days are so hot and the nights are cool it makes for a nice sleep. The highlights here were some of our gourmet food dishes, the most amazing starry sky I’ve ever seen, a very comfortable campfire, and an excellent 24oz bottle of Becks.

The slow pace of life in Bishop was enjoyable, as compared to a place like San Franciso. We were only in San Fran for an evening, but that was enough for all of us. It was late on Friday night and trying to find a place to crash amidst the night life and craziness was frustrating. Needless to say we skipped town and pressed on to find a motel outside of the concrete confines of the city.

On a more tasty note, we have pioneered a new dinner entre, a camping dish which is a variation on spaghetti sauce. “Spa-ghetto” sauce consists of adding numerous cans of vegetables to tomato sauce, some spices, and hoping for the best… So far we’ve had some winning combinations, especially when there’s cheese on hand to add to it.

Oh, and we nabbed the hitchhiker that was tagging along with us! A few nights ago we caught the mouse that was in our car. He was caching nuts in the engine, eating our chips, and pooping all over the place. Needless to say, he won’t be missed.

October 18th to 21st BISHOP, CALIFORNIA

Amazing! We’ll write more later, but for now its just pics…we haven’t been around the internet for quite a while now, but we loved reading all the emails from home, and we are having a great time. More to come…were off to Las Vegas to gamble our lives away!

P.S. John and Jon, we want to wish you both a happy birthday. We're sorry we cant be there to celebrate with you, and do it up right. However we're thinking of you both! Take care you two! We'll talk soon.

October 17th

Right now we are driving, a couple hours out of San Francisco, driving past vineyard after vineyard. Jeff and I (Matt) are knockin’ off a pack of grade A beef jerky (a road trip essential). It’s hot and sunny, about plus 20. I want to briefly recap on our past couple days:

In Jed. Smith State Park we spent the day walking around the campsite, then drove the coast for a bit, looking for a certain trail, called the Boy Scout Trail. We stopped at a couple beautiful beaches, with big rolling waves. There were a few people surfing at the beach outside of Crescent City. After driving for a few hours looking for this hyped-up trail, we finally found it once we were nearly out of gas. All the while we drove through amazing scenery lining the banks of the Smith River. We FINALLY found the trail and it was so beautiful I can’t explain it. The forest was prehistoric in appearance, with thick, beautiful ferns, clover lining the forest floor, and moss covering everything else in sight. Most of the trees were a few hundred feet tall. The thick canopy allowed only slivers of light to stream down and illuminate the misty air. In other words the struggle to find this trail was well worth it.

Tomorrow we are off to Bishop, California to do some climbing…we are getting stoked to see this legendary spot. The weather is getting hotter, and our tans are slowly getting darker. Holly’s busy lathering us with sunscreen though, so no golden brown surfer-boy for us.

October 16th

The morning after the rainstorm was clear and sunny. We could actually see that Lincoln City was directly on the coast (literally). After finding access to the local beach, the three of us spent some time walking around, and marveling at the ocean before we started a long day of driving.
The coastal highway is awesome for passengers, and a little stressful for the driver! I try to avoid driving as much as possible…it’s nice that there is three of us so we can at least trade off. Really, the pictures don’t do it any justice, but we tried to put a variety on for everyone to enjoy. We spent the whole day driving along the coast of Oregon before finally reaching our destination in Northern California – The Redwood National Park. We camped at the Jedidah Smith Campground. It was so beautiful and quiet. The campground was right on the edge of the Smith River, and is full of gigantic Redwood trees.
Matt and Jeff confirmed our suspicions that we have been carrying a stow-away or two with us from Squamish, BC. An unnamed member of the rodent family has been quite busy caching food in the engine of our car. The boys are going to get to the bottom of this problem tomorrow night when we get some traps.