The Dump

It's hard to believe that I spent 4 years at ASU and never went to the Dump (AKA Warpin Endorphin wall). I was just way too obsessed with bouldering, I guess. But thanks in large part to my many various and ongoing injuries, I'm not so obsessed with bouldering and have found renewed interest in sport climbing (where there are a lot less repetitious hard moves done in one day). It's crazy that it's been almost a year now since I tweaked my left shoulder and neck and it's still bothering me.

Anyway, Melissa and I went up on Sunday and the weather was perfect, though a little warm since the cliff is south facing. I had no idea that this crag is so popular, either. There was a constant flow of people all day, and I even had to ask some college kids to turn off the country music they were blasting from an iPod while Melissa attempted her first sport lead ever (she did great). It was so loud and they were so obnoxious that she couldn't concentrate.

We only had a few hours to spend at the crag, but it was fun and definitely worth going back to. I stayed on pretty easy terrain--a few 5.10s and 5.9s, but everything felt a few letter grades harder than the rating. There are definitely a few routes at the Dump in the 12+ range worth projecting, and most of them stay in the shade of the big roof a lot of the day, so I may head there a few more times this summer and try to get some strength back. The stiff grades combined with the fact that I haven't climbed in 3 weeks made me realize how freaking weak I'm getting, even though I've been working hard in the gym to counteract muscle imbalances. I guess the strength just doesn't translate. The good news is I have no pain in my shoulder today. Sweet. Hopefully all the non-climbing work is finally paying off.