I’m sorry that I didn’t post an update yesterday. We were camping in the middle of the desert with no cell service. You guys will get a two-for-one today as I will try to recap what happened over the last two days.

Sunday morning, we headed into Moab just in time for church service. We joined our brothers and sisters at Moab First Baptist Church for an encouraging time of worship. We saw some familiar faces, and we had a great time catching up. Their pastor has been with them for almost two years, and they were excited by his and his family’s service to the church and to the community. 

We planned to take a break from climbing, so we put the airbags to the test. PB&J is still riding high. We did Gemini Bridges Trail after a quick lunch. This is an off-road trail that is just over 13 miles long. It climbs the side of a cliff a few miles north of Arches National Park and ends up near Dead Horse State Park. We stopped a couple of times to take pictures, and then we hiked down to the natural bridges.

Here is a picture of Maddie on one of the bridges. Like most areas around Moab, this place is beautiful.

The temp varied between 100 and 105 degrees all day. Never let anyone try to convince you that a “dry heat” isn’t that hot. Do you know what’s dry and hot? An oven and that is what it feels like here in the desert. The heat was stifling as we pulled into our camping spot at the Fisher Towers some twenty miles outside of Moab. We had the place to ourselves, well except for the ants. At times, it looked like the ground was moving. They didn’t bother us too much, so we didn’t bother them.

We enjoyed the sunset as we ate our Ramen noodles and chicken. After supper, we packed the gear for an early morning start. It is best to chase the shade when climbing in the desert.

4:30 in the morning comes early when you are home in your comfortable bed, but when you are trying to sleep in a sauna, getting up that early isn’t so bad. Opening the door of the Jeep to let the 78-degree breeze flow in felt like air conditioning for about 30 seconds. We gathered our packs and headed out to the cliffs just after 5:00 AM.

The rock at Fisher Towers is basically glorified mud. It is perfect for producing the towers that you see in the photos, but it is far from being as hard as the granite that we climb on back home. You have to have a different mindset when climbing on the softer sandstone formations. We are still able to place gear, but the best protection you have is the ability not to fall. The climb for the day is called Stolen Chimney. This is a four-pitch climb with the fourth being called Ancient Art.

The second pitch of Stolen Chimney is where it gets its name. It is a squeeze chimney that isn’t made for a person wearing a backpack. Maddie worked her way through it with no problems. I, on the other hand, got stuck twice. I’m not sure how to explain the feeling of being a couple of hundred feet off the ground and being stuck in a squeeze chimney. My loaded backpack caused me to be wedged between the walls. I had no handholds to speak of and my feet were dangling in the void. You have to be in control of your mind. If not, it will take you into some pretty dark places.

After inch worming my way up, I was able to find a foothold. Once I got to the top of the pitch, my backpack looked like it had been tossed out of the Jeep going down the interstate. This was our view of Castleton Tower as the sun was rising.

It’s impossible for someone like me to put into words the views my eyes have been able to see over the years. A picture does a pretty good job of capturing the moment, but I think a good writer along with said picture can stir the senses to a different level. I wish I could capture more for you. I’m happy to share our adventures, but if you have never been to the southwest desert, I encourage you to go and see for yourself. You don’t need to be a rock climber to enjoy the area and views.

This is Maddie on the short third pitch of our climb. At the top of this pitch is a very small area that is shown in the opening picture. There is enough room for a couple of people to sit uncomfortably and a little room left over for your gear.

Exposure is defined as such: the state of being exposed to contact with something. In the context of climbing, you come in contact with nothingness. The feeling of being a few hundred feet off the ground in a chimney where you have walls surrounding you is totally different that the feeling of being on a corkscrew spire with 360 degrees of nothing but air around you. In the picture above, Maddie is taking in the 400 feet of nothingness below her. She is sitting on what is called: The Diving Board.

This is a very popular route, but we were the only ones crazy enough to climb it on this day. When we got back to the Jeep, it was 105 degrees. In the spring or fall, it is not uncommon to have several groups in queue to climb. The only foreign sounds we heard all morning were two groups of two hikers as they snapped pictures of the lunatics on the wall. I praise God for the lack of distractions as we climbed.

So many climbing accidents happen on the descent. Whether the objective has been met or not, fatigue can cause clouded judgment. We always double and triple-check our systems to make sure that things are set up properly. Maddie seems pretty happy with the day as we head down.

This is Maddie tackling the final 200-foot rappel. The views were just as beautiful on the way down even if the temp was around 30 degrees warmer.

The reward for the day was Mexican food in Moab. Even though many nicely dressed tourists flood the streets here, climbers, off-roaders, paddlers, and hikers flock to Moab. We didn’t feel bad walking into Fiesta Mexicana with our dirty stinky selves.

We ate half of our plates for lunch and the other half for supper in the motel room. Yes, you read that correctly, we had a shower, an air conditioner, and two queen beds last night. I know that at times, I take the blessings of first-world living for granted. Flipping a light switch, sitting on a couch, or adjusting the thermostat isn’t given a second thought. I wish my mind would focus on the Giver of the blessings more than the blessings themselves.

Psalm 19:1-4a ¹ The heavens declare the glory of God; 
    the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
² Day after day they pour forth speech; 
    night after night they display knowledge.
³ There is no speech or language 
    where their voice is not heard.
⁴ Their voice
    goes out into all the earth,
    their words to the ends of the world.

The creation that we enjoy each day points to its Creator. Even those who are far from God recognize its beauty. In fact, many confuse God’s creation as being a higher power. Moab, Utah is a hotbed for the New Age movement. Many worship the rocks, the trees, or even mother earth. May we never rob God by offering up worship to lesser things. As beautiful and vast as the earth is, it has a Creator Who is infinitely greater!

Because He Calls, Old Climbing Dad