The Best Camera to Carry
Shooting photography has become a passion of mine over the last few years. I have lots of equipment that cost too much money, yet which camera do I always have on me and find myself constantly relying on? My iPhone! So I have delved more and more into shooting and editing with the iPhone. I use various applications to edit, but I still just use the built-in camera for shooting in all cases but one, which I will talk about later.
I’ve learned a couple of useful techniques for shooting photos with an iPhone. First, the “shutter” takes when you release your finger from the screen, as opposed to when you push the button. Therefore, the most effective way to take a photo is to put your finger on the button, focus on your subject, and then release your finger. Knowing this will give you a photo that is clearer, and you won’t get as much camera shake. Another technique is taking a photo by pushing the “volume up” button. This facilitates taking self-portraits like the one below.
shutter release timer. In that case, I use the app Camera Awesome,which was developed by SmugMug. This app also features a fast shutter that will shoot slow burst or fast burst, albeit at a lower resolution. You can find this app at www.awesomize.com
Here are some other apps that I use to edit:
I always keep my phone protected by my LifeProof case that you can find here:
Climbing Armenia
I am still getting used to speeding my life back up even though it has been over a week since I returned from the former Soviet state of Armenia. The life there is just a bit slower: you get a couple of hours to eat a breakfast that doesn’t even start until 9 A.M.! I actually figured one morning that I could drag breakfast into lunch and possibly take a quick siesta at the table and still be on time for dinner. Lest this made me feel a bit sluggish, I quickly woke up when I hit the Yerevan streets in my little Lada Niva. Locals all drive like they have just stolen the vehicle they are in: one foot on the gas, one foot on the horn. Once out of the bustling city I soon found myself in rolling hills that gradually grew into larger mountains. The country folks are a bit reserved at first but, like most Armenians, are welcoming and always very giving.
The climbing in Armenia is as far from developed as it could possibly be; the number of climbers there could fit in a small school bus. I was fortunate to get to hang out with Mkhitar Mkhitaryan, who started the climbing club Up The Rocks. Mkhitar has been the main developer for climbing in Armenia and was featured in Rock and Ice issue 189. Mkhitar graciously showed us as many climbing areas as he could in the two weeks we had there. Most of these areas held a smattering of routes with almost endless possibilities for future development.. From places where you could belay out the back of the Lada Niva to fairly long approches with some of the sketchiest bridges I have ever walked across, here is a photo essay of the trip!
Armenian Hardman
I was fortunate enough to be invited to the first-ever indoor climbing competition–a beginners’ comp for local Armenian Mountaineering and Hiking Federation members. The honorable guest, main speaker, and judge was Aghvan Chatinyan. Chatinyan is known as the “Armenian Hard Man” and at 84, he lives up to it. His list of life accomplishments is long to say the least. The greatest feat, according to many Armenian locals, was edging out Soviet climber Mikhael Khergiani in the 1952 climbing comp in Arzni, Armenia. The only place this was documented was a newspaper called the “Communist.” Chatinyan brought the original to the comp. Mkhitar Mkhitaryan (the founder of Up The Rocks) introduced me to the Hard Man. Chatinyan was very excited to meet an American climber and duly proceeded to present me with the pin that he received in 1981 after winning the first official Armenian climbing comp that was held in Noravanq canyon. It was truly an honor to receive a gift from a mountaineering legend from such an important event in Armenia’s climbing history. You can read more here on Aghvan Chatinyan
Carabiner Brake Rappel
A Number in Mind
I sit here writing this post from the now world-famous Miguel’s Pizza located in the Red River Gorge. It is amazing as it is a Wednesday morning and this place is swarming with climbers all talking about and getting ready to send their “proj.” I have never really tried to climb hard – by this I mean putting a ton of effort into a single route so that every move is dialed, and when it all comes together, I can call it a “send.” This year I picked a number and have been working towards it. I haven’t hopped on a route that bears this number grade yet; maybe today will be the day. The Red is very specific climbing that mainly deals with being able to hold on. I have spent more back-to-back days here this year than I ever have and also have a plan to be here this October for the Rocktoberfest and a short stint after as well. This is proving to help my endurance on these harder routes. I have been getting climbs that are a bit easier than my target grade in a few goes, but even giving a route a few goes is something I never would have put in the effort to do in the past. So here is to the process of working a route, chasing numbers, and Ale 8 One; though I still believe that what it is really all about is the good times we have with the people around us!
Muir Valley Trail Day
Muir Valley is located in the Red River Gorge near Slade, Kentucky. The amazing climbing destination is owned (but not kept a secret) by Rick and Liz Weber. These two folks have given this land up for use to anyone who likes the outdoors, but the land lends itself to rock climbing. They have spent the last eight years building trails, opening new ground, and maintaining the routes that have been established. This past weekend thirty volunteers showed up with the Access Fund Crew and did an amazing job fixing up a few trails as well as building a new one. Fox Mountain Guides gave a free anchor clinic to the folks who participated in the trail day, and two lucky people walked away with a total of $100 in gift certificates.
For more info on Muir Valley click here.
For info on climbing instruction in Muir check out Fox Mountain Guides.
For more info on the Access Fund and to become a member click here.
Locking Munter Hitch (Guide's Tip)
The Solution
I have been climbing in the Red River Gorge for the last few days and have been noticing the humidity rising with the warmer temps. This equates to slimy holds, slick feet, and well… not sending. The solution: La Sportiva Solutions. Though marketed as a bouldering shoe, the Solution’s sticky rubber wants to hold you onto the wall whether you are 10 feet off the ground or 50. I had worked a few 5.12s and was not having any luck fighting the pump on the steep overhaning sandstone that the Red so readily throws in your face. So I threw on a pair of Solutions and onsited the very next climb.
Today I was back in North Carolina at a new area developed by Eric Singleton known as Cathy’s Creek Crag. The climbing area offers great sport climbing on steep granite with crystalline quartzite edges. I used the La Sportiva Solutions again, and again with warm, humid air and thunderstorms rumbling in the mountains not far off. Lindsay and I ran laps for a few hours, and I had her try them out. Of course she loved them and is now looking at picking a pair up for herself! So I am going to stick with this shoe for a bit on the harder overhung routes and see if they are the “Solution” to the next climb.
