Flatirons Circuit Ramble

Flatirons Circuit Ramble

Had some time to kill after work in Boulder, so I cruzed up and ran a fun circuit that involves a bit of bouldering. I've done this circuit off and on for 15 years or so, and have always found it to be very enjoyable. It combines a bit of solid running, some talus hopping, bouldering, a fun climbing route, and exposure all in one. From Chautauqua I cruzed up to the Second Flatiron access and then up the trail to the Satellite boulders. Since I'm just messing around, I do all of the easy problems in the area, then head over to the Gutter and do a lap or two there. The Gutter is a great climb, and doesn't see much traffic these days. After a solid pump, I go up the flood wash and hop through the talus behind the Second, before doing a fun scramble along a rib to the top. I wanted, this time, to then head up Green and continue on, but since Boulder's trails seem to be an icy mess compared to those in Jefferson county, I took a class 3/4 route down and back to the Mesa trail. From there, I went and ran some of the loops on McClintock, Kholer, and Skunk, which were relatively dry and runnable, before returning back to Chautauqua. Fun adventure running.

Tick Free Bouldering: Climbing Without Ticks in Boulder

It's tick season here along the Colorado Frontrange. These little buggers bother the hell out of me and they always make for an unpleasant climbing session. They can be found all over the Flatirons, Boulder Canyon, Clear Creek Canyon, and Eldorado. However, there are a few places that one can go and still get in some really great climbing without the fear of finding ticks later that day in the shower.

The Satellites are tick free (although there seem to be more and more people there all the time), the Gutter is free of them, and so is most of the stuff on Dinosaur Mountain. Therefore, while waiting for the high country to melt out, Tara and I have been hitting the Gutter and Dinosaur Mountain a fair amount.

The Gutter is a great endurance problem located on the side of the Second Flatiron. I've been climbing here for almost 10 years, and I can still get a solid pump on the problem. My current favorite is to do the low version up, rest at the top, and then downclimb the high version. That is over 160 feet of solid climbing at 12c or above. Not bad for a little session.

The Dinosaur Mountain stuff is different. You can either do some of the bouldering right off the trail, hit some of the obscure stuff tucked away in the talus and off on the sides, or try and do the Avs traverse. We have been hitting it all up, finding a few new gems and getting very close to sending the Avs Wall. Yesterday I fell off the last move before getting to the final rest - at which point there are still 20 feet of climbing left. The temps were hot - I'll blame it on that.

Sure hope those ticks go away soon so the other areas open up.