US Tour II: Moab, Utah

After Yosemite Valley, the next chapter for us was to head to a Thanksgiving Highline gathering near Moab, Utah, called Gobble Gobble Bitches Yeah 2.

So, we left Yosemite Valley, Brian, Emily and Kornie in one car, Janek, Damian and Jordan in my car. The drive was a bit cold, since my car was heater less, and it was so weighed down with gear that the backside was inches above the ground. Low ridin' times! The road out of Yosemite valley is winding and downhill the entire way. I drove the speed limit, even a bit slower at times, and yet halfway through the winding roads the smell of burning rubber was apparent. No, no, my car could not be failing this early in the trip! So, after the smell gradually grew worse, I finally pulled over to check it out. Sure enough, the brakes were smoking and hot. Shit. I waited for about half an hour until the smoke disappeared and the brakes had cooled, while everyone else sat with raised eyebrows, probably thinking my car was kaputt. So, we continued on south, and once out of the steep descending hills the car drove quite fine. Nevertheless, in Fresno, CA, I stopped at a Auto shop to make sure everything was kosher.



Fresno was a sprawled out American city, full of advertisements, cars and palm trees. But it was hot, and boy were we all ready for some heat! So, it was only $10 for the initial check of the car, and if there was a problem they would quote me. I stayed at the Auto shop to wait with the car, and the other guys left in search of ice cream. An hour later they returned, not with ice cream but Forties! Mmmm, good ol' Mickeys beer. So, we sat on the curb and enjoyed beer in the sun, while the mechanics checked out my car. The mechanic told me there was nothing wrong with my car. What!? Apparently, when you get a brake job, the rotors have to melt to fit, and since my car was weighed down they were just doing all the melting at once. Whew! When I went to get my paperwork and pay for the check, they told me not to worry about the money, that it was all for free. Sweet! The mechanic had even rotated the wheels for free to keep the rotors melting evenly. So, a weight was removed from my shoulders, and the guys finished the beers and we piled into the car. Next destination: Costco for shopping. This is one of those typical American stores that sells everything in Bulk, and you need a membership to shop there. It is a warehouse filled with families, screaming children on the floors, and old people. However, for a group of dirtbags this place is some kind of heaven.



We took two carts and began the shopping, buying huge quantities of things like Macaroni & Cheese, Cliff bars, pasta, sauce, cookies, chocolate, granola, yogurt, etc. The bill was large, but when split between 5 people wouldn't be so bad. We then loaded everything into my trunk (it barely fit!) and headed for Utah.

The drive was long, cold, and snowy. Once we passed into Utah we were driving through mostly mountains, all snowy. The roads were even covered in snow in some places, lightly, but slippery. The sides were huge drop offs, so it was not a good place to slide. The scariest part of the drive was passing Semi-Trucks, trying to go faster then them while staying off the shoulder where most of the snow was. The most amazing thing about driving through Utah, however, is the empty space! There is open land everywhere, and it is rare you pass through any city with large buildings. Open land is a rare sight for me. I drove through the night, and in the morning we stopped in Salinas, Utah for breakfast at the famous American diner, Denny's. I don't like this place, however there was nothing around for miles on end, and we were all hungry and cold. So, we ordered eggs and hash browns, bacon, sausage, and biscuits and gravy. The place was filled with old men in cowboy hats, talking to the waitresses that they knew by name. The Polish guys were not too pleased with the food, and Damian confirmed his belief that food in America sucks. I tried to convince him not to base his opinion off of a Denny's. Funny enough we ran into Brian, Kornie and Emily, who had left hours before us! Apparently they had stopped to sleep. So, we all left from Salinas more or less at the same time.

Finally, we reached Moab. This town is nestled between the Arches National Park and the Canyonlands. All rocks are red and orange and Mars-like. It is beautiful and bizarre all at the same time. We bought some tape at a climbing shop, then headed for the middle of nowhere, which was the meeting place for highlining. I cannot give details for the whereabouts, but I can just tell you it is down a long, long, bumpy, rocky and dusty dirt road. The only sign we had to stop was some other cars parked there. From the cars we could see in the distance some canyons with a highline rigged over it, with some crazy guy attempting back flips. So, we separated the food amongst us, and hiked down through the red sands, living soil, desert juniper trees, and footprints towards the camping spot.

Upon closer evaluation, we saw that the crazy fellow doing back flips was none other than Andy Lewis. Of course!

We also met a few other highliners, but were more focused on getting our camp set up so we could put down our heavy bags. Once everything was set, of course no one could resist the highlines sitting just walking distance away! I was tired as balls, but decided to get on the lines regardless. There were a few lines already up, and we would set up another one. I was inspired watching Janek on all these lines pulling great tricks. There were not very many people at the gathering at first, but the next few days more would come.

So, the next two weeks were spent in a great way! Everyday we would wake up at some point, when we felt like it, eat breakfast casually, then walk to whichever highline we pleased and walk it however many times we pleased. Highline heaven! The weather was quite good to us, cool in the day, but usually sunny, and cold or even freezing at night. But, we had a raging fire every evening.
I helped Janek rig the 60 ft "Chillum" highline, which was good practice for my rigging skills.

Here is the list of highlines (and my performance on them) at the Highland Bowl for Gobble Gobble Bitches Yeah 2:

"The Spliff" 77ft - FM send
"The Bub" 102ft - OS FM send

"The Great Bongzilla" 177ft - HM (1 way) send
"The Chillum" 60ft line - FM & FM in Swami
"Double Trouble Madness" 148ft - FM
Some 25ft line which I did not try...don't know the name...

and in the Fruitbowl, which is a couple kilometers away...

"Fuzzy Peach" - OS FM send
"Wet Beaver" 92ft - OS FM send

The two weeks we were there all meshed together, as each day was just another one spent highlining in the sun.

Many people showed up gradually, and at the peak there was at least 20 people. I also finally got to meet the highliners I had heard of in Europe, and put a face and personality with the name.
Thanksgiving night was spent around a fire, passing around pumpkin and apple pie with a fork, drinking wine from a bag and laughing. It was here that our crew met some people who would be our friends from then on. The fires were fueled partially by desert wood, but mostly by good hard wood that Terry Acomb (the creator and manager of GGBY) who brought it from his home in Fruita, CO. Terry is some character! He is awesome. He's one of the oldest highliners in the sport, but is more like a big kid.
He is one of the guys who found the place in Moab, and with another cool dude named Larry, bolted most of the lines there. Terry likes safety, beefy gear, chain hoists, and beefy leashes.

He also break-tests a lot of gear. In addition to his knowledge, he likes to walk highlines, in his own style. He wears running shoes, jeans, and a button down silk shirt almost everyday, also sporting a bandanna. Terry is awesome at catching the highline, and while we were there sent the 102ft highline for his new personal best. here is also Larry, who lives nearby, and comes to highline with his dog Slack. The thing I remember most about Larry is his neon yellow leash, pretty sweet. We also met Maria from Slackline Brothers, and she was so great in Utah. Hanging out with a bunch of silly kids, filming us highlining, acting so sweet! And, she encouraged us to come visit her in LA after Moab. She also came with Dylan Buffington. This guy is someone everyone should meet.
He has been highlining for years, and he is totally out there and totally unabashed about it. Dylan has an array of stories, from pterodactyl sightings to alien abductions, from his theories about the Zombie-apocalypse to why every family should own 14 guns (it has a lot to do with his zombie theories). Dylan is a great highliner, turning to face the exposure often, and pulling many other impressive tricks.

Once exciting rest day was when Kornie, Jordan and I went with Dylan, Maria and Corrian to shoot guns.
Corrian and Dylan are both from Texas, and brought with them a smorgasbord of guns. I had never shot a real gun in my life, and decided I would rather be educated then uneducated in that field. So, we drove a bit away from the campsite to some rocky formation, unloaded the weapons and ammo and begun our shooting day. Dylan first gave us a safety briefing, taught us how to load each gun, then basically said "so, pick a gun and start!" It was entertaining, to say the least. We shot at cans, boxes, target papers and water bottles. Some of the guns fired so loudly! We had ear protection luckily. I shot a Sig pistol, a 44 cal pistol, a 22 rifle with a hair trigger, an AR 15 military semi-automatic weapon, and some old Annie Oakley style rifle. So that was our rest day. From this, some crazy idea popped into my head: I should walk a highline with a machine gun!

So, Dylan was totally OK with the idea. We returned to camp, and I put on my "Decade of Sobriety" T-shirt, Janek's trucker hat, and brandished the AR 15. We made a mini-leash for the gun just in case I fell. I decided the 60ft line was ideal since it was short. Who would have thought walking with a gun would be so difficult! Granted it is extremely heavy.

It took about 4 tries to cross the line, each time trying to decide if it was better to step off the rock, or do a chongo.

I fell a few times, but caught the line. Dylan was nervous that I would smash his extremely expensive gun on the rock, so I made sure to scoot out far enough for its safety. And No, it was NOT loaded. I'm not stupid ya know ;) However after all this business with the guns, I decided I did not like the feeling of having so much power to kill another human in my hands. Something felt wrong about it. I will stick to highlining.

Another great day was spent fighting on "The Great Bongzilla." Everyone was really eager to walk this line, it was beastly! I fought a lot on this one. I watched as Alpha Mike crossed it,
Andy Lewis crossed it FM, Jerry Miszewski crossed it FM, Janek finally crossed it FM, Jeremy Louis crossed it, and Damian crossed it. But, since it was Jerry's gear, when he left early, it went with him. Janek agreed that we would rig the line again before we took off so I could have another try. At the time, it seemed unreachable. The line was attached to 4 bolts on each side, with Slackstar Distance webbing doubled over and taped. The pulley system was tensioned with a chain hoist. It was so tight, it was difficult to get past the first 10 meters. In the end I was bruised and beaten, but I put up a good fight I think.

The day after that we went to the Fruitbowl, which was some kilometers away, and the location of GGBY the last year. There was 2 lines rigged there, "Fuzzy Peach," and "Wet Beaver." We all walked both lines, and still "Wet Beaver" is probably the most beautiful line we walked in Moab (in my opinion, could be also Jordan's amazing photos of it). After walking we tried to find our cars in the dark, were lost for a little while, and finally found them and drove back to the Highlands Bowl for sleep.

After failing on "The Great Bongzilla," Janek rigged a brand new line that Terry had bolted, which was 45 Meters long. This seemed a bit more reachable, but still longer by about 15 meters then anything I had walked previously. Janek had the first ascent, and named the line "Double Trouble Madness." He also walked in a swami, which was frightening to watch and amazing at the same time. I walked the line after some fighting, and left with some bruises but totally satisfied. It was also some victory because previously the longest line walked by a female was 40 meters (by Libby Sauter), which I had just overcome by walking 45 meters. Kornie and Damian also sent, congratulations to them! Jordan fought long and hard on the line, but eventually had to surrender to exhaustion. This line was beautiful, once of the most asthetic lines in the Highlands Bowl.

In addition to highlining we spent our time trundeling rocks. This is the sport of pushing huge boulders over the edge of the canyons, and watching as they briefly fall before exploding upon contact in a huge cloud of red sand floating in ripples from the wind. It is something so simply satisfying. I almost trundled myself a few times, but survived.

The last couple days there we rigged "The Great Bongzilla" again. I was totally exhausted from almost two weeks of highlining with almost no rest days. I was feeling great about my progress, however. In Moab I had already set myself a new personal best, had walked the 60ft line in a swami (my first swami walk! such a free feeling!) and surfed for the first time on the 77ft line. Plus, it was in Moab that I also realized I was totally in Love. So, I accomplished some things :) But, there was one last goal: To walk the 177ft Bongzilla. We rigged it with Type 18 and White Magic, taped together. This time we tensioned the pulley system with man power, not a chain hoist. So, I fought on the line, and finally, finally walked it! After walking one way I was too tired to finish my FM, and with our lack of time decided to just leave the line as a 1 way send, feeling satisfied, and happy that I had gone from not sending a small highline in July 09 to sending a 54 meter highline by November 09. It was good progress.

After almost two weeks we packed up and headed for Terry's house in Fruita, CO, to rest and shower for a few days before heading to LA.

At Terry's we ended up staying for 3 days. He has a slackline-playground in his yard, with a long chain (really hard to walk!) and a long line that was rigged with tubular webbing, taped to a backup rope, taped to amsteel. So heavy! But I onsighted the line, and had some good fights on the chain. He also had a highline, between a tree and a telephone pole. The line is only about 40ft long, but good practice. The only deterring factor was that it was about 0 degrees F in Fruita. Once you walk Terry's highline, you can sign the telephone pole with your name. He has tons of signatures, some I recognized from the Moab trip. Terry's house is pretty great too. He does not like to do dishes, so he has all paper plates and plastic cups. He has one room devoted to climbing and highlining gear (a very nice room) and his refrigerator consists mostly of Coca Cola. Great guy though, allowing us to stay as long as we liked while we rested before a long drive to Indian Creek.

Finally, we had to head out. Our next stop would be Indian Creek for crack climbing!

Thank you to Jordan Tybon for some of the photos in this post (the most well-taken ones are his, its pretty obvious)

US Highline Tour: Yosemite Valley

Once I arrived back home in lovely Austin, Texas, I had quite a job set in front of me: to obtain a vehicle for our group of highliners for the trip. I had been communicating with a woman about a van to rent for three months, however this fell through (anyways it would have been super expensive) and so I was left checking craigslist five times a day looking for something we could buy cheap, that would drive us all over the west. As time ticked by and the guys were waiting up in the Bay area, I eventually just decided to take the car that was in my name; ze petit 94' Honda civic. This was the car I had driven before departing to Europe. It had about 200k miles on it, and my mother had been driving it for the 9 months I was away. I guiltily decided to swipe my car out from under her (thank you mom!) and fix a few things so it was in order to drive. I named the car Jenny so I could pep talk it the whole way.



I found a nice photographer for a rideshare part of the way. As usual I finally left Austin when it was already dark, then drove the 8 or 9 hours to get out of Texas. It was the first time I had been in West Texas, unfortunately it was dark and I could see hardly anything, though I doubt I was missing too much. After this we switched driving for a while, and eventually made it to Palm Springs, CA. This is where I dropped my rideshare. I was in the California Desert, it was hot as heck and windy, despite it being mid November.

After 33 hours in the car straight through I finally arrived in Berkley, CA. sometime after 10 pm. It was then I realized I had no address for the climbing gym where all the guys were staying. The only address I had was for Damian Cookseys home. After half an hour of walking up and down the street I finally found it, and saw that the lights were all out. Bad times. I knocked several times, waited, knocked some more, then gave up. I felt awfully bad about possibly waking his family up, however I did not know what to do! As I headed back toward my car I stopped by a Police man staking out the neighborhood and asked him where the climbing gym was. He looked it up and gave me directions. Whoo! I was on my way. I drove to the place he told me feeling relieved. When I arrived I headed to the big doors and began banging on them, yelling inside the crack " It's Faith!" however the only sound coming from within was the loud buzz of an industrial vacuum. Soon, I realized this was not the climbing gym where my friends were staying. At this point I was starting to freak out a bit, it had been a long drive, and the night was cold and my car had no heater. I had no way to find them. At about midnight, Janek called my phone. Jesus Christ finally! So, after obtaining directions I finally made it to Bridges Rock Gym, in El Cerrito in fact, not Berkley. I was tired as balls and ready to pass out, but of course with this group that is impossible. We proceeded to boulder around the gym, then slackline, then all get in our sleeping bags and lay on the slacklines, then we went to the sauna, and finally...finally...sleep on the crashpads.

The next day bright and early we awoke and prepared for the drive to Yosemite Valley. I could have used a rest day after the drive, but we were on a schedule! Damian, Kornie and the new addition to the group Brian drove together, while Janek, Jordan and myself took my heaterless car. We met Jordan's parents just before the Valley at a place called Cub Inn; a beautiful wooden house that a couple lived in who also rented out the extra rooms. Jordan's parents treated us to pizza and beer very generously. We slept on the back deck, however the night was cold and wet so Janek and I crept inside and slept on the floor at some point. The next day we finished the drive to Yosemite Valley.



After renting bear boxes, mapping our trail and repacking, we headed up the trail for Yosemite Falls.
This hike was possibly the closest I have ever felt to dying. We started as a group, but spanned out. Janek of course took most of the gear, but still made it second to the top. I had too much weight in my pack for my ability, and it grew more painful at each turn. Food, gear, the giant old tent Jordan's parents gave us, my clothes and sleeping bag...yeah, it was heavy. I arrived an hour later than most of the group at the top, it was grueling, however I just remind myself how great a workout it was. Yeah right! Anyways, it was dark by then and I set up my tent among the snow and natural mulch. Once campfire, a supper and some polish alcohol later we were settling down for the night. I laugh to think that our original plan was to sleep outside. The nights on top of the Falls were below freezing.

The next morning we were going to wake up at 5:30 and get an early start. HA HA. At 7:30 we started to stir and eventually made it over to the spire. This was it; the long awaited Lost Arrow Spire line. The highline that is the most classic and historical of all. The line that every highliner wants to send. No pressure, right? Damian and Janek began the rigging, climbing the spire and setting the bolted anchor. The other anchor was on a flake, created with natural protection. We rigged with Free Feet tubular threaded webbing, with a backup rope taped underneath. During the time they were rigging the winds picked up quite a bit and it grew colder. I befriended two crows, one which flew away with my apple core. I sat on the same outcropping of rock for quite a while trying to hide from the wind, as I walked each person walk the spire line. Kornie went first, sending it full man . Brian full manned next, then Jordan, then Damian. It was my turn. I had built up a lot of pressure on myself to on sight this line, and that day, the more I thought about it the less I cared. I only wanted to walk across that line, it did not matter which try, I just knew I wanted to send it. I belayed down to the flake and prepared. I thought I had more time to sit and watch, but it was my turn right that second! In that moment all I could see was the thin red webbing stretched from my feet 16 meters in front of me. Behind it the whole valley lay exposed, bathed in some strange light from the sun breaking through gray patched of clouds.

I stood up from a chongo, feeling good. The leash came untucked from the side of my harness and caught in my toes, No! That would not be how I went down, because of a leash! I continued walking, and walking and before I had time to even think about anything more I was on the spire. Cheers from my friends trailed over to me caught on the wind, what a relief. Ah, but then comes the return! I walked it back confidently, fighting on the very last step for unknown reasons, and stepped back onto the flake. What a lovely feeling it is to be on solid rock again.

Janek walked the line in a swami beautifully next, and I think the next time we are there he will probably be free soloing that line.

That day we all left the spire with everyone putting a full man under their belt, in my case full tits as I like to say. Janek and Damian stayed behind to rig down in the night (a bit worrying) and we all headed back to camp. There was a chance of rain (snow on top) that night, so we had to pack everything and hike back down to Camp 4. It seemed unreal, considering the sky was crystal clear, all the stars twinkling above and no clouds on the way. But, to be safe we did the hike down. Janek took almost all the gear this time, and was actually in pain on the descent, never have I seen him have trouble with a hike before. Finally reaching the bottom was a huge relief. We set up shop, ate some food and slept. Brian left in the morning to pick up Emily, another female highliner. The morning was clear and blue, and we could see that the descent was avoidable and not needed. Oh well, ti's life.

We went to collect my car the next morning as well as the food we left in some Bear boxes at a parking lot not too far away. When we approached the car I saw some huge muddy paw prints on the windows, as well as some panelling ripped off from around the windows. A bear had attacked my car. Seriously? I had scoped that car out top to bottom to make sure there was no food inside. Later, I would find the four or five tiny dog biscuits my mother had stashed in unlikely places all over the vehicle; in the ashtray, between the seats, in the console... Thanks mom. At least it was funny. There was a note on the windshield, something official that had fallen to pieces in the wet that described the situation: Your vehicle has been damaged by a Bear. I am thankful someone saw the attack and chased off the bear, because as we found out later seeing other peoples cars, it could have been much worse.

That evening we decided to hike back up to the falls to complete the Long Lost Arrow Spire line. Jordan, Janek and I began first, the others would join later. My time going up was an hour and a half shorter this round, so at least I know I had made progress! When we reached the top we were so relieved, and quickly got a fire going and drank some Franzia from an empty milk carton, with vitamin D! Damian and Kornie arrived hours later, chatting about their first experience with the wonderful American beverage; bottomless cups of coffee. We eventually passed out in the giant old tent, after finishing off the wine and having some deep conversations.

The next morning we awoke to the cold, ate something, realized we probably did not have enough food for the next four days, then headed to the Spire. Damian and Janek began rigging while the rest of us hid from the brutal winds. The line is bolted on both sides, one must climb the spire and set that anchor, and the other can repel down the face of the rock to set the other side up. This rig was white magic with a backup rope. It is about 33 meters in length, and in my opinion even more exposed then the shorter Spire line. Janek on sighted it full man of course, which was inspiring to watch. For myself, however, it was such a battle to walk it. Towards the spire I walked on the second try, and boy was I glad to sit on that phallic rock and rest. The winds were cold, and I had to return to the giant wall of rock in front of me. My start felt solid, then all of a sudden, down I was, catching the painful white magic in my hands. I fell 6 or 7 times I think, and each time was a painful gash or bruise somewhere. The last fall was an unplanned vaginal catch, which left me with a not-so-nice feeling in my nether region. That was all I could take, the line was fighting and winning. My philosophy with highlines usually go something like "when you are totally beaten and want more then anything to give up, and feel that it is useless and futile to fight anymore, try one more time." In shorter words, "It hurts so good." So, I gave it one last go, deciding if it did not happen that time I would crawl back across. It was then that I walked it, completing the line full man. Even if there was enough time to get on that line again that day, sometimes you feel that once sent, you should just walk away and leave the line for another day in your life. That was this line. I was happy to get the f off it. Damian on sighted one way, and full manned it, Jordan fought hard and walked halfway, and Kornie also gave it a good shot. We decided to leave the line and rig it down the next day, so then Jordan and Kornie could get more time on it.

The next day the winds were even stronger. They whipped around you and threatened to tear you right off of the top of those rocks! Not exactly ideal highlining weather. Kornie was the only one willing to get on the line. He gave it a couple tries, but was so cold he decided to come off it. Everyone else was really hiding in every crevice this time. We all returned to camp to eat and get warm, and discuss a plan of action. It came to Damian, Jordan and Janek staying behind to rig down the line, poor guys. We would then all hike down that night, sleep at camp 4 and then rig Taft point the next day. Little did we know the road was closed and Taft point line would be a no-go.

So, since Taft point was a lost cause, and we still had time, we headed to the Sequoia forest to find a place for a midline. We searched for a while eventually finding a place to rig a 45 Meter mid line. It was beautiful. We did one line with white magic, no backup. Janek on sighted it, eventually free soloing it as well. Brian and Emily had returned at this point, so they got to walk on it as well. Brian one way and Emily full babe. Kornie had returned to the car to be warm, so he did not get on the line. Jordan fought a bit on it as well. I walked it on sight and full man, very happily.
I was even more happy to get my socks back on afterwards. Damian had a fight in a swami, but decided against it. The fog had rolled into the forest in the meantime making for some beautiful scenery. We followed our usual trend of rigging down in the nighttime, then drove back to the Valley to eat some tourist's leftovers in the Cafeteria. This is a whole other story! Quickly, before the cleaners would pick up the trays, someone from our table would dart over and grab it. We ate so well for two days, dining on leftover french fries, salads, pasta, meat dishes and more. It was awesome. Sometimes we had minor scares when we picked up a tray before a tourist left, on accident of course. But, the longer we hunted the leftovers the quicker and better we got at it. Ah, dirtbagging. We also altered one of the signs a bit to represent the real truth about Yosemite wildlife, with my artwork and Jordan's photography skills :)

So, after this we headed for Southern Utah to go for Gobble Gobble Bitches Yeah 2, and great highlining gathering in the desert, but that my dears is another long post soon to come!

PS. Thank you to Jordan Tybon for most of the beautiful photos in this post!

POSTS TO COME SOON:

I have many posts to catch up on! Here are the post to come:

US HIGHLINE TOUR:

1. Yosemite Valley, California
2. Moab, Utah
3. Vegas, Nevada and LA, California
4. Joshua Tree, California

I have tons of photos and information to add, will get on it as soon as the trip is over and I am home again.
It has been epic! New personal records for almost everyone in the group!