Goat Rock
MVP:
Eric—He was the rock climbing instructor and was an amazing one at that. He was so chill and comfortable; which in turn made all the students much more comfortable and confident. I hope to take other classes with him in the future!
Hike Review:
We started at the renovated parking lot (south lot), which was surprisingly empty at 8:30am on a Saturday. The other times I’ve come to Castle Rock, the parking lot is completely full by 9am.
The trail had lots of fallen branches and leaves from the trail crews that were performing maintenance on the trails.
There were not too many folks on the trail, and the trail to Goat Rock had full shade, although it was not needed due to the overcast weather.
What I Learned:
Rock climbing is so fun! I really did not expect myself to be able to climb the rocks I did and I really really did not expect myself to have as much fun as I had. I can’t wait to join the local gym so that I can get better at it.
When rock climbing, it’s easier if I keep my body away from the rock a bit. This helps me see the foot holds which are critical when rock climbing. Relatedly, it’s also super important to center the weight on the anchor foot, as not having the weight centered on that foot makes it easier to have a bad time.
I always thought rock climbing was about upper body strength, but I found out that it’s actually more about lower body. I mean, upper body is still needed, but the legs need to do the brunt of the work.
Friends Made:
Venkatesh, Shraddha, Kashish, and Eric
Fears Overcome:
Fear of falling (to my death)—because I was connected to a rope, and there were trustworthy classmates who were belaying me, I soon got over my fear of falling while rock climbing. I did not get vertigo at all.
What Happened?
~1.9 miles, 1 hr, 530 ft of ascent
I signed up for a rock climbing lesson with Adventure Out LLC through Groupon. I hadn’t rock climbed in 10+ years, so I was a bit nervous, but once I met the instructor and fellow classmates, well, I was so busy thinking about the fun stories we were trading to really worry or be anxious. We hiked the 15 or 20 minutes to Goat Rock and waited as Eric went to the top of it to setup the anchor.
Once everything was setup, we learned how to properly put on the safety gear, and started climbing, one by one. I went third on the first route, which was great as I did not see how I was going to climb this wall that looked way too difficult for a first timer like me. However, once the two people in front of me did it, I was like, I should be able to do it. But before I talk about my climbing experience, I first must describe my experience as a belayer.
I belayed for the climber in front of me (Kashish), and what I’ll remember most is how much my neck hurt, keeping my head up! I actually asked Eric about this and he said that there is a tool that allows you to see up while keeping your head straight (called belay glasses), so if I get into this, I might want to invest in a pair of those. Other than that, it was really fun communicating with the climber and seeing how I was going to climb the rock myself. Oh, and when the climber was coming down, I thought it was so cool how you could feel the climber’s weight through he harness, as he trusted the rope and put most of his weight on it. I really enjoyed the challenge of trying let the rope go as smooth as possible; which in turn allows a smooth decent.
Then it was my turn to climb... huh. I don’t remember too much about it! I think I must have been just fueled on adrenaline. What I do know is that kept my eyes in front and focused on the next foot or hand hold. It was really meditative, as in, its an activity that demands your full attention. I wasn’t thinking about anything other than how I was going to climb a little further. I was so surprised when I made it to the top, as I really wasn’t expecting myself to make it (or the climb to feel so short, in terms of time). But I did make it to the top, and the high that I got is/was incomparable. Especially since I had my classmates and instructor cheering me on. I did however, feel queasy in my stomach, probably from the fear of heights and the adrenaline (so I ate some trail mix to help it calm down). Venkatesh then went last, and I felt like he was the best climber out of all of us—he was so graceful and smooth.
After he came down, we waited as Eric set up a second climbing route. Once it was setup (and Eric self-rappelled down like a badass), Shraddha went first, just like with he first route. However, after a few minutes of struggling, she gave up on it as the start was a little too difficult for her. So instead, we went in the reverse order of how we went at the first climbing path, which meant that Venkatesh would go first. I thought I did a good job of belaying Venkatesh and he made it up with little struggle.
I then went up and conquered the first part of the climb that had flummoxed Shraddha with ease (though this was only possible because I had “solved” this portion in my head by watching Shraddha and Venkatesh). However, after another 8 or so feet, I got to this part where there were no good hand holds (but great foot holds). As I was thinking about how to move up, my left leg, which was not holding weight, started to shake uncontrollably. Eric shouted up that I was having “Elvis leg”, but that I just needed to trust the hold my left foot had and push up on it. I was slightly panicked as I had not expected it, but after what felt like 5 minutes (but probably 30 seconds? A minute?) I did as he said and pushed up using that leg. It felt surprisingly good. I had expected that leg to just fold or shake me off the rock. Instead, it held. It did not shake. It was steady. This move allowed me to place my right foot on this super stable spot, and the rest was easy breezy.
After I reached the top, I started to rappel down and I was so comfortable (unlike my first rappel down), that I was able to take photos and even a short video of myself going down. It was so fun!
Next went Kashish, and it was really fun helping him figure out the hand/foot placement, as I had just gone and remembered the difficult spots. I think he really appreciated the help, which made me even happier. And when he conquered the route, it felt like I conquered it a second time, so I was doubly happy.
Lastly, Shraddha decided to give it one more try. And she was amazing! She conquered the obstacles that had held her up on her first try and steadily reached the top! By the way, this route was extra hard for her as she was the shortest of the group, which meant that some of the moves the others were able to do in one go, she had to find intermediate moves between the more stable holds. It was so fun watching her conquer her fears and the route.
We were all done after that. We then hiked back to the parking lot, thanked and tipped our instructor, shared some laughs, and headed home.
When I got home, I looked up the routes that we climbed and found the names and difficulty for them. So the first route at Goat Rock is called Center Route and is rated a 5.8. The second route is called Corner Route and is rated 5.8-, which is an easier rating than the first route. I felt like we all found the second route harder, so I’m not sure about these ratings, but maybe we took an easier line in the first route.