The North Face

Feb 14 | China's First Ever Trad Climbing Festival.

By Cedar Wright

A couple of months ago I attended China’s first ever Trad-Climbing Festival in the small village of Li Ming with fellow athletes and good friends Matt Segal, and Yuji Hirayama.  Matt had visited Li Ming the year before and established “Air China,” the hardest trad-climb in China, and roped me into the trip.  “Dude you are going to love it their,” he told me.  I’m always game for something new and adventurous, but was skeptical.  As far as I was concerned the only good sandstone crack climbing was in the U.S.

 

Li Ming is located in a river valley surrounded by wild red and black streaked Sandstone walls and happens to have hundreds of cracks of all sizes splitting through the steep towering walls.   The terrain is reminiscent of Zion, Arches National Park, and Indian Creek, if you mashed them together with the sensibilities of a Buddhist landscape artist, and then dropped the amalgam into a mountainous high altitude jungle.

I first visited China for climbing about eight years ago to visit Yangshuo, the premiere limestone sport climbing area in China.  I was excited to see a budding Chinese climbing community that was still finding its legs, and “learning the ropes.”   Returning this year I was impressed by how quickly the climbing community has grown and progressed in China.  Not only were are ten times as many competent climbers as my last visit, but many had graduated from sport climbing, to the more technical and committing world of gear protected Trad-Climbing.

Three years ago there was no climbing in Li Ming to be heard of!  American Mike Dobie was one of the first climbers to realize the epic potential of Li Ming and has spent the last three years leading the charge to develop what may be China’s best Trad-Climbing resource.   Mike, put up countless routes, established trails, and made a guidebook.  With the area opened, word caught on in the Chinese climbing community.  Soon, the Chinese were putting down their quickdraws and putting together racks of Cams for burly crack climb assaults!

For Mike this years Li Ming Trad-Climbing festival jointly sponsored by The North Face, and Black Diamond was a emotional and cathartic experience.  Over two hundred climbers from around the world showed up to climb on the routes that he had developed.  “Sometimes I wondered if I was crazy to spend so much energy on this project,” he told me one evening, “but seeing everyone enjoying the climbs here makes it feel like it was all worth it!”  Yuji, Matt and I all agreed that Mike’s time was well spent!

I lead two days of intermediate crack climbing clinics, and was impressed by the enthusiasm of my group.  Most of them were sport climbers but they seemed much more open to trying something new than most American sport climbers.  I think because China is a young climbing community there are less preconceived notions of a separation between sport and trad that have developed over time in the U.S.  To them it’s all just climbing. 

I put up several burly offwidth climbs for them to practice on.  Offwidths are considered by many to be the most physically demanding and miserable form of climbing in existence.   I think offwidth climbing takes, heart and grit.  Most American climbers avoid offwidths like the plague, so it was heart warming to see my motley crew of Chinese climbers throwing themselves at this unique type of challenge with boundless enthusiasm. 

Almost all of the good sandstone crack climbing is in the United states, so the fact that China now has what I would consider a world-class crack climbing destination is huge for Chinese climbers, but also for Eastern European climbers who now have a way practice this unique art form much closer to their homes!  And Li Ming is only about twenty percent developed, with many side valleys that have yet to see first ascents, so crack climbing only just beginning in China!

In America the routes of our climbing history are in trad-climbing and while I believe it’s all just climbing, there is a special place in my hear for trad-climbing.  It requires more expertise, commitment and risk, and therefore I believe yields a deeper and more meaningful reward than sport climbing.  To put it simply, Trad-Climbing is more adventurous.  To put it colloquially, Trad-Climbing is more badass!

Because China is still a developing country, especially in terms of climbing, there are literally hundreds of world-class crags waiting for a motivated soul to develop.  In the United States several generations of climbers have left few crags left to pioneer, but in China a country with as much land and variety of terrain as the U.S.A.!   It is truly a climbers frontier of mind boggling proportions. 

I’m already planning my next trip back to China to travel deeper into the beautiful and in terms of climbing, unexplored country. 

 

 

Nov 01 | Yangshuo Part IV

By Emily Harrington

Our trip to Yangshuo has sadly come to a close.  We celebrated the festival and our last night at a Chinese family-style restuarant followed by a huge Halloween party at the local bar.  Fun was had by all, to say the least, and Sam, Yuji, and myself were sad to say goodbye to all the friends we made. 

  Dinner

The festival was a great success.  Clinics and an outdoor climbing competition were all held on Saturday, and a bouldering comp and our slideshow were on Saturday night.  Our presentation was about the recent trip we all took to Turkey together.  We included several photos in addition to seven of the "Free Range Turkey" dispatches.  Everyone seemed to enjoy it and we felt like we accomplished our goal of giving an entertaining and professional presentation. 

  Slideshow audience

We spent our last climbing day in the same place we spent our first:  Moon Hill.  It was perfect weather and we climbed till dark, watching Yuji successfully redpoint Sea of Tranquility (5.14a), a proud line that voyages all the way through the steepest part of the arch. 

  The magic of Moon Hill

  Sam reaching the top of the center of the arch

I can honestly say that this trip to China was one of the most eye-opening and inspiring I have been on.  Traveling, especially in a place that is completely unfamiliar and different from where we are from, can be unsettling and frustrating.  I had this feeling when I arrived in China.  Everything was so different from back home, and the language barrier and cultural differences felt alienating at first.  After a few days of adjustment, however, we settled into a nice routine of climbing and immersing ourselves in the culture and community.  We met genuine and passionate people from all over the world and shared some very positive experiences.  In the end, I felt like I had embraced the differences and gained a little perspective along the way.

  Yuji, Sam, and I (courtesy of Sam Elias)

I am now at the Beijing airport, preparing myself for a thirteen and half hour flight to Chicago, where I'll spend the night and leave at 6am the next day for Mexico to attend the Petzl Roc Trip.  The journey continues.....

- Emily

 

 

Oct 27 | Yangshuo Part III

By Emily Harrington

Our days in China are slipping by and the climbing festival is approaching quickly.  Yuji (Hirayama) arrived a few days ago and we’ve climbed the last two days with him, inspired and motivated both by his skill and joyful spirit. 

We volunteered to forerun the boulder problems for the competition this weekend, deciding on the difficulty and suggesting slight tweaks to make improvements.  Two mornings we’ve gone to the gymnasium to boulder and then rallied to get an afternoon of climbing in.  The first day we wanted to go to White Mountain, which is about a 40 minute bike ride from Yangshuo.  To save time due to our late start, we decided to rent motorbikes to get there.   We zipped down the main road amid the chaos of bicycles, buses, and every other mode of transportation, swerving and dodging one another like in a video game.  

  Setting & forerunning

  Yuji & Sam

  Me in the rearview

  Yuji

“This is dangerous.” Sam said when a giant tourist bus barreled past us, laying on its horn and kicking up dust so bad we could barely see. 

“This is really dangerous!” He said again. This time, a dump truck had pulled out in front of us and we were forced to slam on the breaks and skid to a halt in the middle of the road. 

  Sam, after the near-collision

I was beginning to question our decision to rent the motorbikes to save a mere 30 minutes of commute time.  Eventually though we reached the small dirt road leading to crag and all fears subsided.  We were coasting along admiring the beauty and uniqueness of the countryside, farms and small villages nestled against karsts towering dramatically above.  We would encounter stone-faced farmers on the road, hard at work and seemingly unwelcome to our foreign presence.  “Nee-How!” we would burst out, which means “Hello” in Chinese.  Their faces would brighten and they would respond “Ha-Low!” sometimes giving us a thumbs-up sign.  Children wave and shout their “Ha-Lows” over and over again, giggling and hiding their faces.

  Yangshuo countryside

  "Ha-Low!"

We were about 3 minutes away from White Mountain when I realized Yuji wasn’t riding behind us.  Uh oh.  We turned around, hoping he hadn’t had an accident.  We found him a ways back on the dirt road, trying in vain to restart his bike, which had broken down.  Now we had a problem.  We had no number to call for help, and even if we did, none of our cell phones work in China.  We debated our options and decided on the most resourceful alternative.  Sam pulled out our climbing rope and rigged a towing system to pull the bike to the cliff so that we could climb for the day.  The system worked really well; Sam and I on the bike in front with Yuji on the broken one, steering it and breaking so that the rope would stay taught.   At one point, however, the dirt road turns to a single track trail, with sharp turns and steep sections.  Steering became difficult and at one point the bike overturned on top of us, Sam and I trapped beneath it in a tangled mess of limbs and briar bushes.  Thankfully, we were both alright.  We puttered along, reaching the cliff and enjoying a fantastic day of climbing, which involved everyone sending something and Yuji onsighting everything.

  Yuji is saying "I smell gasoline, maybe?"

  Two motorbikes, attached as one.

I was really worried about towing the bike back to town on the main road, especially after the several close calls we had on the way there.  Towing another bike 20 feet behind, with a person on it, in the fading daylight, presented another challenge altogether.  We took our time and Sam drove cautiously on the far side of the road to avoid the fast-moving vehicles.   In the end, we made it back all in one piece with no injuries.  Thank goodness.

That night, we were invited over to a potluck at a friend’s apartment in town.  It was some of the best food I’ve ever had.  Stir-fried bamboo shoots, vegetable curry, stuffed peppers, and a coconut-kiwi dessert were all on the menu.  It was delicious and quite a treat to be able to share the evening in the company of some new friends.  We’ve quickly become immersed in the climbing community here, a group of tight-knit climbers from all over the world: US, Canada, Australia, Britain, New Zealand, Norway, China, Singapore, and Japan.  Everyone has a story to tell and we’ve enjoyed spending time with each of them, sharing our tales of travel and climbing.

  Cheers

  The Feast

The following morning we woke up to crisp fall weather.  There was a nip in the air and a brusque breeze that made the warm temperatures and humid air of the week before feel like a distant thought.  We foreran the boulder problems in the morning and then went to an area called Banyan Tree for a day of climbing.  We took the bus this time (no more motorbikes for me) and enjoyed a day of perfect conditions and glorious climbing.  We all tried a route called “Nine Deep, One Shallow,”(5.13d), a beautiful and unique climb involving hard face climbing, knee bars, and a long tufa at the top, a real full value route.  Sam and Yuji both sent on their second try.  We left the crag feeling refreshed by the cooler weather and motivated to try hard in the next few days prior to the festival.

  View from the cliff

  Sam on "Nine Deep, One Shallow"

Today is a rest day. We are preparing our slideshow for Friday night and trying to rest up for another few days of climbing!  Check back in a few days for a fill recap of the events.

~Emily

May 04 | FREE RANGE TURKEY_dispatch#7

By Renan Ozturk

Samarai warrior??....Ninja assassin??.....Bruce Lee??...no it's Yuji Hirayama!!! In dispatch 7 we discover his personal philosophy for life and climbing as he floats up some of the world's most difficult rock climbs [Devers Royal 8c+? Hardest Climb in Turkey!] . Loosely translated from Japanese. Edit: Renan Additional Imagery: Boone Speed Music: Omar Faruk Tekbilek GREEN BUTTON MUSIC Of Porcelain

Apr 30 | FREE RANGE TURKEY

By Emily Harrington

Today was our last day here in Geyikbayeri.  The crew has dwindled significantly. Now only Sam, James,Yuji, and myself remain.  It has been a wonderful experience here, lots of laughs and many good memories and friends made.  

I bolted my first route the other day at Trebenna, a line up a white wall with a blue tufa in the middle, around 5.12a I think.  I bolted it and climbed it for the first ascent and then Sam, James, Yuji, Boone, and Renan all climbed it too.  I decided to name it “Eneko’s Last Dance” in honor of Eneko because he had to go home and didn’t get a chance to climb it with us.  

It was fun to create a new route; like doing an art project: being creative and ambitious enough to find the line in the first place, scoping the holds, deciding where to put the bolts, drilling, hammering, cleaning, and finally climbing it.  It’s an arduous process, and I woke up the next morning sore in weird places, with remnants of limestone powder in the corners of my eyes.  I really enjoyed it though, and will continue to bolt more routes in the future.  It’s another aspect of this sport that makes it so unique and special.  There are endless ways to personally express and contribute, and attempting to explore everything that climbing has to offer is an exciting lifelong endeavor.

Tomorrow, the last of us will part ways to either return home or move onto the next adventure.  Sam and I are continuing our trip. We will spend the weekend in Istanbul, fly to Zurich and then drive to Italy for the Melloblocco bouldering event. I will miss Turkey and all the good friends I have made, but I am certainly looking forward to a change of scenery and more new experiences.

 
"Eneko's Last Dance" (climbs up the obvious gray tufa then traverses right and finishes with a balancey slab move - exciting ;)

Boone and Yuji - Antalya

Antalya - old town

Sam

Looking at rugs in Antalya

Last evening climbing as the rain approaches

 

Apr 26 | FREE RANGE TURKEY: A Tribute

By Emily Harrington

Our group has become quite diverse. We have several nationalities represented: Japan, Spain, UK, and the USA as well as several different generations of climbers.  Renan, Jimmy, and Boone represent the media side, always coming up with innovative and creative ideas to portray each of our characters and tell our stories. Each member of this team has brought something unique and inspiring to the trip and it has been a wonderful experience to be able to share our passion and knowledge with one another.  I feel incredibly fortunate to be in the company of such influential and motivated individuals.  There is no shortage of inspiration, laughter, and good times.  The youngest members of the group: James, Sam, and myself have had the opportunity to spend time with some true legends of the sport.  We’ve dubbed them “The Elders”: Eneko Pou, Boone Speed, and Yuji Hirayama.  Here is my tribute to them.............

ENEKO POU

Eneko, or “Enrique” as the Turkish local climbers call him, is a classic character and the most entertaining member of the crew.  He is the older half of the Pou brother team.  Both Eneko and his younger brother Iker are famous Basque climbers known for bold big wall and alpine ascents and Iker has also been known to destroy 9a and 9a+ sport climbs on the regular. Eneko’s enthusiastic sense of humor coupled with his Spanish accent never fail to have us all in hysterical fits of laughter.  His love for climbing of any kind is obvious – I think he’s been averaging about 15 pitches a day here, “Emily!  Emily!  This route is incredible!  You cannot believe!  OH MY GAWD you must try! You will take very fun!”

BOONE SPEED

Boone Speed is one of my good friends and climbing heros.  He was one of the pioneers for hard American sport climbing and bouldering in the 90s.  Now he is a successful and talented photographer. Boone is quite possibly the most energetic person I have ever met. He approaches photography like he used to approach climbing, with maniacal drive and an intense desire to succeed.  Boone’s motivation to get the best shot is unrelenting.  He has the spirit of a 16 year old, always smiling and never afraid to have an adventure. 

YUJI HIRAYAMA

We have all had the privilege to watch Yuji climb during the past few days.  I have never seen anything like him.  He climbs so quick and light you’ll miss some of it if you blink. When he’s onsighting a route, you get the impression that he’s been on it a million times before.  He has it dialed. There is no hesitation or doubt – he doesn’t even stop to think, just moves fluidly upward until he reaches the anchors and yells “OK! Thank you! Wooooohooooooo!” There is no doubt that he is a true master of the sport and one of the best all-around climbers in the world.  His achievements can attest to that – World Cup Champ 2x, two 5.14b onsights, Speed Record for The Nose on El Cap, etc – but I had no idea how impressive he was to watch in real life.  He is also one of the most genuine and good-natured people to be around. We have decided to call him “The Grand Master” due to his calm-yet-focused demeanor and astonishing skill.  We will all learn a lot from watching him in the coming weeks.  

Climbing is truly a special sport when you can be one of the best at age 16 or 41.  There are so many lessons it can teach and it can take a lifetime to learn them all.  Right now I am learning that strength can take you far, but experience just might take you further.  In this way, climbing can be much more than a sport; it can be a lifestyle. These three individuals represent this lifestyle and the various ways it can enrich one’s way of life.  They all began young and inexperienced, were influenced and educated by the generation before themselves, and are currently living their own dreams.  Now they are the ones influencing the way I think about my life and climbing’s place in it.  It is thanks to them that I am looking forward to the many years I have ahead of me to climb, explore, grow, learn and enjoy.

An Antalya Sunset........

Apr 19 | FREE RANGE TURKEY

By Emily Harrington

Our trip is moving by quickly!  We are now a group of seven, soon to be eight when James arrives tomorrow.   Sam bolted another route today to the right of his first one (he decided to call it “Dog Wars”.)  It climbs a giant overhanging tufa that looks like a snake.  Pretty awesome looking, but he has yet to try it and find out how hard it is.  Today was Yuji’s first day of climbing.  According to Renan, “He fell asleep while onsighting a 13c and woke up when he was at the anchors!” I can’t wait to see what he does in the next two weeks when the jet-lag wears off………

It’s been a little over a week since my accident and I am just now starting to feel recovered.  The bruises are fading, the cuts are healing, but my ankle is still swollen and painful when I move carelessly with it.  Hiking to the cliff is still a slow and annoying process, but I can climb almost normally when I tape it tightly and immobilize it, preventing it from wobbling from side to side.

A few days ago, I decided to return to Turkish Airways, the route where the accident happened.  I had been thinking about it ever since and I wanted to try and do it.  When I reached the first bolt, I hesitated and looked down, my stomach churned and my heart started racing.  The gut-wrenching feeling of tumbling headfirst and crashing to the ground was (and is) still very fresh in my memory.  I couldn’t believe how far down it was, how many obstacles there were, and how lucky I had been to escape with only a few minor injuries.  I continued climbing but I felt nervous and rushed.  My mind was all over the place and I was unable to focus, my heart rate was too high and my breathing too quick.  I fell in the crux section and continued to work through the moves and my emotions until I had reached the top, falling multiple times in several sections of the route.  

I tried the route several more times over the course of two days, unsuccessfully, always feeling too jittery and uneasy to put the pieces together and actually climb well.  I made silly mistakes, falling in sections that were not very hard for me; getting confused and forgetting key beta.  I had so much doubt and fear swirling around in my head each time I climbed.  I was facing a mental battle rather than a physical one, and I had no idea how to fight it.  I felt defeated and frustrated.    

Climbing has taught me that failure is an essential and important part of learning and succeeding.  We must understand this fact and accept it in order to progress.  For some reason, I forget this everytime I have a project, and I am forced to relearn this lesson.  I have learned it thousands of times, but I cannot seem to grasp this concept in the long-term.   I decided to give in to this idea of failure and embrace it after falling on the last move of Turkish Airways last night.  I told myself that I would try again, but not to succeed, just to try; to experience climbing in its purest and most natural form.  I also promised myself that if I fell, it was ok.  I would not be upset.  So guess what happened?  I didn’t fall.  I just climbed like I would have if nothing mattered.  My mind was clear.  There was no past, and no future, just movement and action.  I did it.  I was proud that I had conquered that mental demon.  Another lesson learned (more like re-learned), onto the next project…………

Media crew at Turkish Airways (Boone, Renan, Jimmy)

Reeling Yuji in after his second 13c onsight

Renan filming at Trebenna

Apr 16 | FREE RANGE TURKEY

By Emily Harrington

Daniel departed yesterday morning and we were all bummed to see him go, but we are looking forward to Yuji’s arrival tomorrow and James’ only a few days later.  The group dynamic has been great and I can only imagine how motivating it will be in the presence of these two talented and inspiring individuals.

Yesterday, our friend and part owner of Jo Si To camping, Tobias, told us that he was going to the beach at Olympos to swim, climb, and eat dinner and he invited us to come along.  Olympos is a small town on the coast of the Aegean Sea about 60 km west of Antalya – about an hour drive from where we are.  We set out in the early afternoon for a day of rest, sun, and good food.  We had no idea what was in store for us. 

We climbed at a little limestone roadside crag for a couple hours so that Boone, Jimmy, and Renan could get in a few pitches.  Most of the time these guys go out to the cliff with us and work: shooting photos, video, rigging ropes, setting up the crane, etc.  They rarely ever get to climb.  So today was their “rest” day, and they each got in a few pitches.  Then we drove to the nearby beach for dinner. 

This beach was magnificent.  In was quiet and peaceful.  The sea was perfectly clear and there were huge mountains in the distance.  We played for a few hours, swimming and trying to find “lucky” rocks – ones that “feel good when you hold them for a while” (Boone’s definition).  Then we sat down at a single table on that beach to one of the best dinners I’ve ever had:  salad, stewed vegetables, latkes, fresh fish, and lamb.  We talked and ate and laughed.  Can’t get much better than that.  It was a memorable night of great friends in a beautiful place. 

Yeah................

Lucky rocks!

Boone and Jimmy juggling

 

Dinner with friends

 

Fish dinner.

Apr 03 | FREE RANGE TURKEY_dispatch #1----> live from the field!

By Renan Ozturk

FREE RANGE TURKEY_dispatch #1 from camp4 collective on Vimeo.

Spinning in space 100ft off the ground with a camera is where we expect to be a lot on this expedition: the "Free Range Turkey" trip, a climbing exploration supported by The North Face to Antalaya in southern Turkey. We will be updating videos live from the field featuring a bad-ass international roster of athletes including: Emily Harrington, Sam Elias, Daniel Woods, Yuji Hiriyama, Eneko Pou, James Person and Renan Ozturk. In this first installment the crew makes the initial journey and gets psyched for the adventure to come. edit: renan ozturk music: robot koch