Rock climbing at Wagon Caves

Remember how we couldn't go rock climbing over spring break because it rained? Well we did it on Memorial Day instead. We heard it was going to get up to 99 degrees that day, so we went as early as possible. I made breakfast burritos the night before, and we ate them in the car. 

We really debated going. Brennan now had Levi's fever, and we didn't know if he'd be up for it. But we didn't want to sit around the house, so we packed Ibuprofen and hoped for the best.

We went to Wagon Caves, which is about an hour and 20 minutes away. There was no one else there (I can only imagine how crazy the beaches were that day), and there was plenty of space for the kids to play and explore. Plus lots of shade.

 We never put the harness on Chloe, but she was content to climb this high on her own.

We had to wait a few minutes while Dave hiked around to the top of the rock and set up the climbs (i.e. connected the ropes to the anchors at the top).

We've gradually collected all our own gear over the years, but we borrowed another rope, some helmets and a bunch of shoes from our rock-climbing friend. He has three huge bins full of just shoes!

This is such an awesome place to climb b/c the sandstone is easy to grip and has tons of great handholds. 

 Tyler was the smart one to wear long pants. The sandstone was rough on legs!

Brennan went first. It turned out to be harder than he expected  (it's been a few years since he's done it), and he wanted to get down pretty quick.  But we gave him lots of encouragement, and he did great. Then he wanted to go up again right away.

See that little white rope tied onto the back of his harness? We call that a tail, and it's there to help pull the younger ones back down afterwards if needed. One of the hardest things about rock climbing is letting go of the rock to repel down. It is such a perfect analogy to faith! You know the rope is there, but it's just so hard to let go and rely completely on the rope to hold you.

 Next was Levi. It was his first time rock climbing, and he couldn't wait to try it!

 It was harder than he expected also, and Dave climbed up next to him to help.

Yes, there were some tears, but look at that smile! 

Now on to our experienced climbers. Dallin started out doing the harder of the two climbs, and he got as high as the big overhang, i.e. the crux. I tried it, and it's hard! Only Spencer and Dave were able to get to the very top of this one.

 Tyler got to the top of the "easier" one, and he said it was his favorite climb he's ever done!

 Taking a breather and enjoying the view!

This part was scary for me. It's so high and steep! I climbed along without realizing how high I was, and then I realized it at this point and suddenly got very nervous. Plus the surface is covered in moss and tiny pebbles, making it harder to get a good grip. 

Dave, Spencer, Tyler and Dallin all made it to the very top. I just couldn't do those last 3 feet to the anchor. My boys rock!!

 Way to go, Tyler!

 Spencer's turn - he zipped up the hard one so fast, I barely got any pictures!

 We were almost done when I realized there weren't any pictures of me. I had Spencer snap a couple.

Fun repelling pic!

 We were there about 3 hours, and everyone got to do both the climbs. 

Dave went last. I belayed him, so I couldn't take many pictures. He wore the GoPro on his wrist, though, so we got some cool video with awesome views from the top. I'll try to put some pictures from it on here.

There was a bit of a hike there and back. It was close to 100 degrees by the time we hiked back, and we were hot, tired and thirsty. We had so much gear that everyone had to help carry stuff. We were SO happy to get back to the car, drink lots of cold water from the cooler (good thinking, Dave) and crank up the A/C! What a fun day.

The rocks around Wagon Caves are full of these holes. Any idea what they are?? 

The Salinan Indians made them grinding grain into flour. Pretty cool!