Friday 5 October 2012

New Brunswick Bouldering at it's Finest!

I just climbed forty-eight boulder problems today.  I must have been making up for lost time, as the weather has not co-operated with my work schedule for the past month.  After a couple hot sunny days the boulders were pretty dry at Munson Lake and the friction was good though –and I took full advantage!

It all started innocently enough.  I turned the car radio off after the 11:30 news update, and parked shortly thereafter, then climbed atop Kingpin.  There, in the sun, I did some calisthenics to get limbered up and decide what problems to get on.  I figured I'd start in the Slab Area and Cornerstones, then depending on the friction and my psyche, work one of my really hard projects.

For speed and ease of travel, I brought just one pad along to Small Slab, then Inversée and Mace.  Very quickly, I got into a groove, sending problem after problem.  I decided to hit up every problem at Cornerstones that could be safely protected with a single pad and no spotter.  Then decided to do the same at Sue Boy and maybe work the project(s) later in the day.
Boulder in the Brook was given a good scrub in the rain a few weeks ago.  This face, and the aretes are now home to 3 beautiful boulder problems.

By 3:00 I was back at the car for some food. Thirty-four problems in less than two-and-a-half hours works out to about 6 minutes a problem.  How much longer could I keep this up? There was no way I was going to stop and rest so I could work some hard stuff. The circuit is too much fun!  I decided to keep going.

I hit every West problem that's fairly close to the roads can be easily protected without a spotter and with one pad.  The only thing I didn't send was Compre(hen)sive.  It may have been slightly damp, but not enough to make it any harder.  Maybe I was beginning to fatigue by then.  In any case, At V7, it's out of place in this circuit, so I felt it was fine to move on.

I'm not really sure if I did keep the pace or not. It probably slowed a bit.  When I realized that there was plenty of daylight and no need to hurry, I did some minor trail work, (foolishly) took a break thinking I could then work the start to a very hard project since I was in the area, and scrubbed what I decided would be the final problem of the circuit.  It's a short, steep problem; all your weight is on your hands.  The holds are very good, but they are SHARP!
Secular Undercourse V1,  the latest addition and final problem in the circuit.

So after drawing blood (and getting the FA), I went down to the river for a quick soak.  The water is high, but not that cold considering it's October.  Once air dried, I walked back up, doing some more trail work along the way and got back to the car at 6:00.

The standard has been set: Six hours and thirty minutes to complete the circuit of 48 boulder problems.  This works out to just over 8 minutes per problem.  In reality it was probably under 7 minutes each, but without a watch it's only a guess, so I counted all the minutes spent doing other things before and after the circuit as well.  This leaves plenty of room for you (and me) to up the ante.

Here is the circuit:
Though listed in the order I chose, you can complete the problems in any order, provided Secular Undercourse is the final (48th) problem.
You must travel between problems on foot. You cannot ride a horse, bike or take a car.
In some cases, an option has been provided for alternate problems in the circuit.  This is because some problems favour a particular body-type or meteorological conditions that may be rare.  Be prepared to give up something in the exchange!
The clock starts when you first leave the road for one of the trails.
If you choose to stash supplies along the way, the clock will start at this time if you leave the road.
The clock stops when you are fully submerged in the Lepreau River.

The problems:

Slab Area
  • I'm Brian And So's My Wife (V1)
  • Slab Moi Ça (V0)
  • That Stinks (V0)
  • Stop That (V1)
  • Dalle Inversée (V0)
  • Husk Musk (V2)
  • Pepper Spray (V2)
  • Mace (V2)
  • Flail (V2)
  • Nutmeg (V0)

Cornerstones
  • Rails Direct (V0)
  • Tongue Exercises(V0)
  • Curvy Trunk Cedar (V2)
  • Le Pro (V0)
  • Munson Burner (V3)
  • Cheese Grater Accident (V3) or Enter The Dragon
  • Sideshow Bobbed (V3)
  • Rubberman (V0)
  • Roy Toy (V0)
  • Gutterball (V0)

Sue Boy
  • Eye Burst (V1)
  • Headache (V2)
  • Rash (V3)
  • Mockingbird (V1)
  • Edgecation (V3)
  • Elementary (V0)
  • High School (V1)
  • Junior High (V2)
  • Multiple Choice  (V0-V2)
  • Oral (V0)
  • Big Foot (V2)
  • Banane (V0)
  • Ghoti (V2)
  • Ghoti (V1)

Roadside
  • Sugar Ditch (V1)
  • R-U-N-N-O-F-T (V0)
  • I Think I Tore My Sack (V0)
  • Unnamed (V0) on the middle boulder of Hidden Wall
  • Vlad You Are There (V1)
  • Red Belly (V1) or Emma's Exit
  • Pinch Overhang (V3)
  • Cow Birther (V1) or Rock Hog
  • The Clam (V0)
  • Use Your Mussels (V4) or Double Misnomer and El Coucaracha and Rock Hog/Cow Birhter and Red Belly/Emma's Exit

Megacrystals
  • Taurus (V0)
  • Four-Peckerd Bull (V2)
  • Dunce Cap (V0)
  • Secular Undercourse (V1)
48 problems have now been completed, but you're not finished until you completely dunk yourself in the lake. No matter how cold it is, you must get fully under!



7 comments:

  1. Nice work Cory!! It pays to have your clients cancel their Thursday session! ;)

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  2. Hey Cory, I'm up to try that circuit many times in November.

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  3. Hey Cory, Where can I find directions to munsen lake? Your link up top isnt working like the one for cape spencer.
    Great reading here too!

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    1. Matt, I've been working on a new guide and taking down the old info as I transfer it. Here's what's left, and enough to get you started: http://goo.gl/maps/PzAsE

      Let me know when you'd like to go, and if I'm available I'll show you around.

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  4. Hey there,

    Not sure if this page is still active or not but just wondering if there are any resources for updated beta on this area? I'm new to Saint John and would love to get outside.

    Thanks.
    Andy

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    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    2. I am in the process of writing the guidebook. I'm not sure how much longer it will take, but until then I may be able to answer specific questions.

      I should warn you that sections of the road washed out last fall, so it's a likely about a 2km hike to the nearest East or West boulders, depending on your vehicle and what damages occurr as the frost comes out. Also this time of year it can be deceptively soft http://mygoodacorn.blogspot.de/2012/03/this-could-get-expensive.html

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