Ever since my college adopted the full-week-off-for-Thanksgiving schedule, Natalie and I have made the most of the vacation at a warm climbing spot. Red Rocks in Las Vegas used to be the destination of choice, and would mark our last sport climbing trip until the following summer. Lately, Thanksgiving has become our first bouldering trip of the season, and we've been happily spending the week in Hueco Tanks State Park.
I'm no senior citizen, but I'm also not the youngest guy out here. Bouldering takes a toll on your body... after about an hour of hard bouldering, I'd say I could be sore for three solid days. But with only a week to climb as much as possible, there's no time for such a pampered approach toward the sport. We typically climb two days in a row, take a much needed rest day, and repeat.
Enjoying "Nobody Here Gets Out Alive" -- the best V2 in the world
I love rest days so much. Sitting motionless has always been a pastime of mine, but the joy of inaction is greatly enhanced when every muscle hurts. Today, my list of chores consisted solely of warming up my brand new climbing shoes in the sun, squeezing them onto my feet, and leaving them on for 10 minutes to stretch them out. This ambitious goal required approximately 47 seconds of actual activity. The sun did the rest of the work, leaving me with ample time to consider my cosmic foot-binding connections with that of a 19th century upper-class Han Chinese woman.
My new favorite rest day "activity" in Hueco
Bound feet, bloody fingers, and living in a van with two cats might seem unattractive to many. But it feels like upper-class living to me.