Coldest day (yet) on Barek Mountain

This week, we were quite hesitant about going for bouldering at Barek mountain. The weather report was patches of sun mixed with a maximum of 6 degrees celsius. We weren't sure if it would be windy or not. Anyhow, since Oguz was visiting home from Barcelona and we wanted to have a shot to show him the area and maybe climb some boulders. 

Without arranging exact time, we arrived on the place at the same time with Arda, Oguz, Mert, Yesim, Erkin, Me, Bora and Elif. Well done :) 

Warm up at Masa Kaya & Repeat Katil II, 7A+

We warmed up in Masa kaya with classic ones. The weather was quite warm without any wind. We also had another look at Katil II - 7A+ which - to my surprise - I could do a repeat ascent quickly. That was the best friction I felt on that route. That's the difference of winter weather I guess. 

Warmp-up & chit-chat at Masa Kaya

Bora on the one of the crimpy problems

Men at work... 

Super Ego, 7A+ at T9 - Hayde block

After warming up at Masa kaya, we went to T9 with Erkin as folks headed to Dombisot. There  was a lot more show there. It was even hard to find some clean path to the blocks without snow. The wind was quite stronger which resulted quite chilly conditions in which you could not feel your hands after some seconds. 

We wanted to setup an anchor to look at the upper section of the block, since it was quite high. 

The smallest rock on top of the block was the easiest to wrap a sling around (the one on the right of the anchor in the photo below) however, it was looking quite unattached, so we just skipped it. The block that we setup the anchor was more grounded, however it required a much more longer sling. So, we added 5-6 slings together to make a longer one + we used two cams to back it up from a crack behind the rock. 

After playing around using the rope, we could come up with a solution for the tricky upper part of the problem. However, we were already feeling too cold, and I was about to say "ok, this was a good day, at least we saw the line, let's get our assess off this ice world". But at the same time, my fingers were warm enough to have a couple of tries, so we said "heck.. let's just give a couple of desperate goes and see how it pays off". 

My first try went surprisingly good. I could even reach the gaston flake with my left hand, but I forgot the good horizontal crimp to the right of that gaston and fell. At least the wind was not very strong under a block to the left, so we could wait there in between the tries.

In the second try, I took off my fleece. I wanted to climb only with a t-shirt to be able to move better. I just needed that fight mode, and did not care how much cold it would feel at all... This time, I could take the gaston, and then compose myself up to go for the crimp on the right. There I was... after a couple of moves later, I just replayed what I figured out for the upper part. This time however, the left pinch crimp felt much weaker when coming from below. But I could somehow accept the holds and move up. Did not think of falling, but I knew it would be a bad situation if some foot pops up. I guess having Erkin on the spot gave me the such a confidence. 

Did it... Did not expect it to be this quick. It was freezing cold without a feeling on the fingers. But yeah, the friction was stellar. 

We met in Ankara and went to one of the ciger sis restaurants to have a nice dinner. But man... I just could not believe how crowded that place was...  We thought how many cows were killed for running this restaurant for just one day... Well, it's sad... At these times, my pro vegan thoughts deepen more. I eat meat from time to time, like once a month or so... But deep inside, I really feel there's something wrong with this meat industry... heck.. 

Snow all around in T9 sector

Our anchor on top of Hayde block

Erkin descending to have a look at the problem

Me trying to figure out upper parts of Super Ego, 7A+ (Photo: Erkin Cakmak)

New year's first boulders at Barek Mountain

After returning home from Geyikbayiri, I had two visits to Barek Mountain at the weekends. In the first visit, I climbed with Fikret, and in the second one I climbed with Erkin. Both days were great, but both Erkin and I were amazed on how much we climbed on the second one. That was a terrific day which does not happen all the time... 

Please refer to 27crags.com for routes in Barek mountain. 

Bir Zamanlar Anadoluda - Sit start - 6C+

This one is in the Tarla road block in Barek mountain. The problem starts with a sloper crimp for the left hand and good a hold for the right hand. Then I went to another crimp with the right hand. This is the hardest move on the problem, however, the rest is also sustained. I fell almost from the top on my last try before I sent it. 

Tarla Road - Sit, 6C

Fikret's solution on this one was a lot harder, but apparently, I found an easier beta by starting by a heel hook to the good crimp on the left of the block. I guess this beta makes it a full grade easier. 

Replikas, 7A - (feels more like 6C+)

We went to this problem with Fikret, and to my surprise, I could also flash it right after Fikret. Landing looked awful, so, retreating from the top out was not an option for me :) But, I honestly think that the grade is softer than 7A. It feels more like 6C+.

Surprise 7A (feels more like 6C+)

I was a bit anxious about this boulder, feeling like it had a long move, and it is pretty high. We went to this one with Erkin after warming up on Tarla road block. We watched some videos from previous sends by Zorbey. I started by skipping the first hard - long move and climbed the top out to gain a bit more confidence, and that strategy worked quite well. Surprisingly, the first move was not very hard for both of us. I sent the route in a couple of tries, and Erkin flashed it right after me. We both thought the route felt easier than 7A with our beta. 

For the starting move, there were two alternatives for the right hand. We used the crimp which is to the left. You can take this hold like a pinch, and it helps a lot to keep the body closer to the rock. For the left hand, there is a knob like small round feature on the rock. You can't really hold it, it's just to stabilize the body and gain some more upward pull.. Then we went with the left hand to the best hold on the upper left. The hold is good, but it might need some care to land on a grip with optimum position. The rest is high, but easy, especially if you watch the movie from Emre. 

Dadaruhi 7A+, Dadaruhi sit 7B

Ok. this is one of the hardest ones in Barek Mountain as of now. It is a tall block. But in the first session we had with Fikret, I could find the beta that could work for me, and Fikret climbed it in that session. In the second session with Erkin, after climbing Surprise we decided to work on this with Erkin. The boulder is in the shade, and first we thought it will be too cold there in this winter day. However, the weather was quite warm, and there was no wind, so we wanted to have a couple of tries. 

Once again, I started from the middle, and made the top out to gain some confidence, and shortly after that, I could do the standing version. Then, after resting for some time, in my next try, I could do the sit version as well. Wow... 

We set up an anchor and ropes so that Erkin can also have a look at the topout section. He then also sent the standing and sit versions after a short while. 

Dadaruhi sit - 7B

Happy sunny day!

Starting the new year at Geyikbayiri

It has been a while since I could not post. Still no structured training, but I could do some visits to Geyikbayiri before and after the new year's day. Finally, I could make a couple of visits to Barek mountain for bouldering just before the temps dropped to freezing levels. All in all, here's the stories of the routes I climbed since my last post in Geyikbayiri:

Boys are back in town 7c - Mevlana

After climbing Belladona 7c+, I looked at Boys are back in town 7c in Mevlana sector in Geyikbayiri. Unlike overwhelmingly long routes in the sector, this one was around 25 meters. The moves in the crux was quite hard to figure out for me. As it is the case most of the time, I had to solve the beta myself. It did not work out in the first session, but after I came back to Geyikbayiri on new years day to stay for 3 weeks, this was the first hardish route I climbed. 

There was a clip in the midst of the crux, and making that clip just a few moves later helped a lot to conserve my energy. I got that clue from Berk Keloglu while we were chatting spontaneously in Sun climbing. Thanks bro!..

By the way, the story behind the name of the route is: After Ozturk and Tafa have been away from Geyikbayiri for a long time, this one was the first route they opened after they came to Geyik. You guys find amazing route names. Well done. I just miss seeing you together. 

Jose Bove - 7b+

Sevda and Burak was climbing in Akdeniz Sector, and I could have a chance to join them on a couple of sessions. I sent this route in my first day in the sector. During my first try, I could not even solve the beta for the crux, and just gave up. In the second try, I just tried what felt possible, but it did not work out. However, I could find a toe hook beta which then worked great for me. The third try was quite an easy send then. Using other betas, the route could feel much much harder for me. 

Metallica - 8a

After sending Jose Bove, I wanted to try Metallica. A couple from Russia were trying the route, and along with Bura and them, I could finalize the beta that could work for me. Again, the first couple of tries were quite desperate, but the route unwinded finally. I was searching for some delicate - tricky knee bars when Burak just discovered that the move on the lower crux was possible with a straight forward twist lock. 

The crux on the upper part was more problematic for me since it involved a quite reachy move. Anyways, after some time, I returned there with Atilla, and in my first try, I passed the lower crux, but fell at the upper reachy move (as I guessed). Then, without actually changing any beta, I rested for some time and made a second try. This time, although I was more tired, I was much more confident on that long move. I could somehow tackle that move, and get past through the upper crux, too. The last third of the route is also tricky, and I was happy to have refined moves during my first try in the day. Otherwise, I am pretty sure I could fall there, too :)

Anyways, the route came in a total of two sessions, and in the second try of the second session. I was not expecting it to be this quick. Happy!...

Dio - 7b+ (flash)

After sending Metallica, we climbed with Gokhan Sifan and Kemal in Mevlana. It was quite a rainy and wet day, but we were motivated enough to stay late on the rocks! After eyeing on the long routes in Mevlana, I said.. f..k it.. I need something shorter. Tafa and Selo were climbing in Barbarossa, so we also wanted to meet them. On our way to Barbarossa, I wanted to have a look at Dio, 7b+. Last year, I climbed its cousin: Lemmy 7b+, which is in the same cave. Dio is on the left, Lemmy is on the right. Both lines are set by one of my favorite route setter: Volkan Ozkan. 

I was amazed when I saw that Ali (Agcal) was there, and I could have a chance to watch him while he walked the route :) He sprayed me with amazing delicious beta, and left the quickdraws so that I can give a nice flash try. And it worked well: I could climb the route on my first try. 

Last year, Lemmy felt more difficult to me. But that was last year. But still, I feel like this one is more forgiving. Anyhow, that was a great day, great climbing with Gokhan, Kemal and Ali. Thanks bros. 

Had a look at an 8b: Savasma Sevis: I'll be back

During my last days in Geyik, I just wanted to have a look at one of the 8b's in Akdeniz sector. I hang-dogged the crux section of this route. The crux is at the beginning. The first 3 clips are quite easy, but then comes the two clips of crux section. I believe the route is easier after that, but it still looks hard. 

I could at least see what I need to improve to make the moves on such a route. Well, I need power, precision and persistence. It's hard for sure, but it did not feel like something from another world. Will definitely work more on longish powerful moves on pinches to get prepared for this. On the other hand, the season for this route is not very long. You need to try this in winter since the sector faces south, and is always under bright sunshine. 

Tried Otuzbir 7c, Anatolia - will be back..

We spent the last day in Anatolia with Atilla. But that apparently was not the best decision. The weather was too sunny, and even in this winter day, rock was way too slippery. I was literally wasted while I tried to figure the beta for this long 7c in Anatolia. When the sun went down, I could make a second try, and I was looking surprisingly good on that. The lack of sun really made a difference. Still, that was not enough to get past the final difficulty on the last couple of bolts. I was pumped as hell, and all failed on that. 

This route saw quite many ascents lately, but I must admit that although it is a homogeneous route having many small cruxes, it is definitely not easy. But this route also made me remember something else: I need to get used to the style of climbing in Anatolia sector to climb something hard. I mean, climbing in Akdeniz and Mevlana for some 3 weeks, and then appearing on Anatolia to climb a 7c in one day... Well, that is hard for me for sure. I believe to climb something hard in this sector, I should dedicate some more sessions so that I can get used to the style of climbing in this sector. 

No climbing photos from this trip. But I here are some photos from the new year's party, times in Konyaalti, and in Alanya with Kemal: 

Final round on Belladonna 7c+

I was in Geyikbayiri this weekend (November 16) hoping to have another session on Belladonna. My last session on the route was full of surprises. I guess my brain just could not absorb spanning the distance from:

"Yeah, this one is hard, probably will take some 3-5 sessions" 

to:

"Dude, you were so close to sending it! That final jug was just into face, and you literally spoiled it by confusing those feet up there."

within just one day. So, we were in Koridor sector again, as early as possible since the weather forecast was blabbering about some heavy rain after 16:00. I knew I did not have too much time to warm up. Just wanted to hang the draws, remember some micro-beta, maybe tick-mark that last foot so that I won't miss it this time, and all that. 

As we were warming up on the 6b'ish face routes to the right of the giant fig tree with Pelin, I just saw that some guy attempted the route before me. It was no problem for me as long as there won't be a super long queue of people waiting to try the route. I asked them, and viola, only one of them would try. They were a couple of climbers from Germany. The girl was trying Jack Daniels 7c when we just arrived in Koridor, and I believe the guy just walked that thing - an easy flash. I asked the name of the guy to his belayer. His name was - I believe - Honnold. I kindly asked him to make a couple of quickdraws longer: the permanent one in the crux and the one right after that. He agreed, and suddenly we were soul mates trying this weirdo beauty together. 

My first try was: well... as good as a first try after some 3 weeks could be. I wanted to try my new Miura lace shoes; however, they just weren't cooperating much on delicate shapeless features on the limestone. I like stiff and new shoes when the foot holds are discrete and edgy, but prefer something a bit softer and maybe a bit broken down when the foot holds are shapeless non-uniform features. Since my other pair of Miuras was kind of too worn out, I decided to give these new ones a go. I only climbed a 8a last year using these: Karakedi in Karakaya - the route with notoriously hard small feet in its crux. 

So, the first try was kind of spent for getting used to the new shoes,and also remembering some micro-beta on hand-foot placements. I did try my best still, resisting into the crux, and falling while going to the slopy crimp with my left hand, before taking the jug with the same left hand. 

On the other hand, I remember some sneaky creaky movements in my finger ligaments while I was crimping hard on the under-side pull right hand crimp in the crux... At that point in time, I once again remembered that yes.. there was something called warm-up, and no... climbing a couple of 6b stuff before getting on one of the trickiest crimpy 7c+'s around is not right. You just have to find a bolt hanger, hang that damn fingerboard, and pull on some crimps - as hard as you can - a couple of times to get things started with your fingers. Did I already know it? Hell yes. Will I skip it again in the future? Well, probably yes :)

During this first try, I had a chance to find some alternative beta for the upper crux, but I was not 100% sure that I would want to apply this. Anyhow... During second try, I was a lot more composed. I don't want to say that it was like a walk in the park, but things were quite smooth, and I believe conditions also got much better in a matter of hours. Hands were sweating a lot less. It's really amazing to see how everything can change in between two attempts (any sometimes, nothing changes). I just call this like: planets come into a good alignment, so that I can send the route without many hassles. I know very well that the planets came to alignment, since that girl also "walked" Jack Daniels 7c just a couple minutes ago. 

Pelin wanted to try her route Patlican 6c, so thanks to Ali, who belayed me on my send go. In the meantime, Pelin could find an opportunity to take some footage from my send using her shiny new phone:

Also, thanks to the nice German couple Johannes and Annie for their support on the climb, and their warm conversation about Frankenjura. Thanks folks, and hope to meet you again somewhere up in the rocks. 

The next day, it was raining cats and dogs. Since I was quite hyper-motivated, we went to Sarkit, and squeezed some good quality tufas, bruised some knees, and cramped our hips. I tried a long-term project candidate, but well.. It was quite hard, and felt overwhelming, so I decided to give Inner Smile 7b+ some goes. Apparently, I was already too tired when I figured out the correct beta for me, so that tufa beauty is left for the upcoming tufa session. At least, the route is much more approachable after re-bolting by the legendary "Bolting Antalya" team. Kudos folks, keep up the good work!!

Bright - Cold Weekend on Barek Mountain

Sunset: New Block in T9 Sector

We were back at Barek mountain with Guner on Saturday. The sun was bright with no clouds, but the wind was quite high and chilly. We went to T9 sector to see what we can do. We decided to open some new blocks as a warm up, and found a new block that we called Sunset. 

Sunset block at T9 sector

After a few hours of playful discovery, the block became a very nice one to warm up, with 7 problems ranging from Fb 5 to 6C. The video is from Guner climbing "Crispy Crimp 6B": 

And this video is from "Dope Out 6C". 

Nimrod 7A+

We finished the other half of the day on a 7A+ opened recently by Bozkir folks: Nimrod. We were so focused on the route, so I forgot to take even a single photo there, but the problem looks like the following: 

Sit starts from a side-crimp with right hand, and an undercling for the left hand. Then a couple of moves with slopers, and a couple of jumps for me, with some weak heel hook. The top out was also quite tricky. When I first tried the problem on this day, it looked so far from my reach. Too hard. But it was quite magical that as I did more and more tries with some good rests in between, I could finally pull off the problem on the last minutes of sunlight. I guess this became the first 7A+ that I could climb in a single session in Barek mountain. 

There was a small rock crystal on the rock surface that we used for right heel hook, and it unfortunately it was broken before my final attempt. I think it makes the heel hook somewhat more tricky, but it still works. 

Kiddo: New Block near Skoptoma

The next day, we came back again. We were tired, but we still had some easier stuff on our todo lists, and maybe we could open another new block. When we arrived, Mert, Yesim and Nihat was already there, and they started opening a new block. In a couple of hours, we opened 4 new problems in this block. 

B.B. Kiddo is a very short, compact 6B+ that involves pulling on a sloper crimp, and then mantling over the lower of the block. This is the video from my first ascent: 

This is Hattori Hanzo 6A+ (FA by Nihat Candemir):

And finally, this is O-Ren Ishii 6C:

Dombisot 7A

After spending some time on the Kiddo block, we went to Skoptoma. The weather was perfect for trying Dombisot. After a series of desperate attempts, I could finally to the stand start version which is 6C. For that, I had to micro-adjust my beta by using the upper side gaston on the right (thanks to Yesim), and using a higher foot for the left foot. 

I was already tired from yesterday, but the conditions were soo good, so I thought this should not be missed. After a few tries, I could also climb the sit start version which is 7A. Happy. 

Dombisot 7A (sit start version)

Dombisot 6C (Stand version crux move)

Crossing the Bridge 7A+

My mind was just stuck on this route since I left it on Saturday. On Monday, instead of spending my training time in the gym, I could arrange my things, and could go for a couple of hours to Barek mountain. The weather was a lot colder than I expected, and the wind was very strong. I only had some 2 hours to try the boulder, and I chose to warm up using the actual moves on the boulder. I first tried the top out part a couple of times to spare myself from the stress of being solo. 

So, my expectation was: ok, I already figured out my beta the last time I was here, and now, I would only warm up, and put my fresh power into that one for a quick send. But the reality was not as I thought. Warming up alone was quite hard under this windy and chilly conditions, and when I finally could condition myself, after a few unsuccessful tries, I was pretty sure that there was something going on with my beta. 

I was making a toe-hook with my left foot to the yellow mark in the photo below. However strong I tried to endure and squeeze the rock with my legs, when I released the left toe hook, I could not resist the pendulum effect, and I was instantly lying on the pads. So, after a moment of realization, I started searching for something else. Heel hooking to the red mark in the below photo was another option, but that was even harder, as it did not help a lot for reaching the next hold. 

As I was trying to find something for my right foot, totally by coincidence, I could realize that I can indeed heel hook to somewhere in between (green mark in the above photo), and after some brushing, that place was perfect. It was nothing like a crimp or a big hold to heel hook onto, however, it was a big smooth surface with just a little fracture on it, and suddenly, it worked like a charm. The position of the heel hook was so perfect that the moves after that began to feel like a couple of grades easier. 

At the moment I realized the beta, I was both happy, and a bit angry with myself. I just can't remember how many times I tried this move, just thinking that I was just not strong enough for it. For the move before that (going to the big pinch with right hand), I apparently did not change any beta, but just got a bit stronger and coordinated. But for this move, it was not working. Regardless of how many sessions I would spend on that, it would not improve. But this new beta... Oh man... I wish I was more experienced.. But on the other hand, experience probably comes as a result of these "experiences", right? 

I was quite tired and wasted because of the previous 7-8 tries with the wrong beta. Anyways, after discovering the new beta, which is just some 20 centimeters shift of the heel hook, I could do the route on the very next try. In my video, you can actually see that I struggle more with the move before the heel hook, but the moves after the heel hook went a lot smoother. 

My own adventure, with my own beta, with a top out that coincides with the beautiful sunset on this gorgeous Bozkir evening. Could it be better than that? I guess not...

Crossing the Bridge 7A+

Back to Barek Mountain: finishing some projects, and progressing in others

We were back on Barek mountain for a bouldering session with Guner, Aysen, Murti and Cansu. The day opened at Masa Kaya as always. Murti and Cansu was just trying bouldering outdoors, so we spent some time at Masa Kaya with warm ups. 

Skoptoma 7B: What a send with what a fight!

After we tried some of the warmp ups on Masa Kaya, we went down to Skoptoma 7B to give it some tries. I unfortunately broke my index finger nail badly about ten days ago here. Maybe it was also because we were kind of in a rush since that was a weekday afternoon attack. 

Today, my finger nail was much better, and having climbed three days in Geyikbayiri let me take my mind a bit off from the pressures of sending my projects. I was just feeling more relaxed, a bit more confident I should say. The weather was still surprisingly hot. We gave a few tries to Dombisot 6C, however both Guner and I was still far from doing it, maybe also because the sun was still shining on the sloping holds of that route. 

Skoptoma was all in the shade. So, we switched our focus to that, since the main goal for coming there was that route. My initial tries were quite desperate, but I was also feeling that I just needed a bit more warm up, a bit luck, and well, maybe a bit more wind? I tried to show all the patience I can, by trying to take long rests between the tries. And finally, all the planets and the stars aligned, and I could pull the dead-point move to the left undercling crimp with near perfect positioning, and I was suddenly on the small footholds, trying to take the high sloping crimp with my right hand. Guess what, that move also went, and I just do not remember if I could close my crimp or not, well, maybe I closed it, because I felt quite powerful on that, and I could finally take my left hand to the other crimp. 

I was just hanging there with my feet on quite loose footholds, and my both hands holding the two crimps. One side of my brain was telling me that I was already two tired, and a soft-landing to the crash pads would be a good retreat. The other crazy side of my brain said: shut the f..k up, and jump to whatever hold there is in front of you. There was no time to think, and I was tired of falling from the last moves of this route, so I just lunched up with a loud slap on the sloper on the lip with my right hand, with no clue if I would be able to hold on or not. Guess what? I held on, and took the other hand up too, and after a few seconds of hesitation, my right heel was already grabbing the far side of the lip, and finally I was on top of this hard route. 

Well, this was a great route, and this ascent on this very day, was a great fight on my side. I would definitely try this route again in later times. It is such a nice looking, accessible and proper boulder. 

Here is some climbing-shoe tripod footage of the climb, with some tunes for sparing you from my actual screams during the climb:

Do It - No Name 6C

We went to the Do It block after Skoptoma, and tried some easier routes there. Guner made a nice accent of Do It 6b+, and I could send the line that starts on the left of the block and going directly to the top without using the holds of Do It. Ugur Yilmaz and Fikret climbed this route the last time they were here and there is not a name yet for this route. Unfortunately, the drawings of the routes on this block is quite tangled in 27 Crags, so, it is really hard to put this route there, but I could squeeze it here, anyway. 

Progressing on Crossing the Bridge 7A+

We ended the day on T7: Crossing the Bridge. I was back in this gorgeous route. It was a bit cooler than the last time, and I instantly noticed that the friction was better. Maybe I was also stronger, I don't know, but somehow, I could pull the move from the sloper crimp with a left arm lock off, to the far right pinch. The last time we were here, I wasn't even close to doing this move. 

However, the route is still hard after that move. I struggled a lot by changing the beta over and over, and when I finally could find one that could work for me, I was already too exhausted, and whatever Eminem song we would play and however loud, it would be silly to push more on this day. I left the route for another day, but I have a strange feeling of overall satisfaction on this route today. The progress since last time was well... quite noticeable. 

And I should one more say that this route feels quite hard for me. Harder than its assigned grade. I don't know, some routes are just harder on some people, and this comes harder to me. I can go as far to say that it feels harder than Skoptoma 7B - but their styles are so different, and I know that it would be a silly comparison. But that's just how it feels to me. 

A perfectly spent day with lots of good chit-chat with friends, with an energizing and patient team. Many thanks to Guner, Aysen, Murti and Cansu for their positive energy and the great photo shoots on this beautiful day.  

Here are some shots from my tries on Crossing the Bridge:

29 October National Holiday: Short trip to Geyikbayiri

I had 4 days off for the national holiday, so I decided to give a break to my bouldering efforts and clip some bolts at Geyikbayiri. My plan was to climb two days on Saturday and Sunday, then have a rest day, and then have a final climbing day on Tuesday. 

Working Belladonna 7c+

I am not in my best lead shape now, so I said to myself: why not look at the moves for some hard route instead of trying to finish a route? I had some previous projects in my mind, however either weather was not suitable, or the style was too off for me. So, I settled down to the  beautiful 7c+ face climbing in the Koridor sector, named Belladonna. Some say it might be harder than 7c+. I wanted to get on it to see it myself, since the route was in shade, and the style is almost vertical, with small holds, and a crimpy crux at the middle. 

Belladonna, 7c+ at Koridor sector

The first day, I could figure out most of the moves in my first try, and put the quickdraws. Then, I gave a second try on the route, in which I settled down the middle hardest crux. The route actually has three cruxes. A lower crux, which might be harder for folks with shorter arms, and a middle crux which is quite sick, with small crimps and small feet, ending up on a really big jug, and then there is an upper crux after resting on the jug. The upper crux is also no slouch, and one can easily fall there after climbing through the lower cruxes. 

By the way, I could climb with my broken finger, but pressing on small crimps made it bleed a bit more, and I felt that I could not use the index finger at its max strength. But ok, I could move on the route at least. 

Pharoes Curse - 7b: One of the worst (or best?) tufa climbs in Geyikbayiri

I left the quickdraws on the route, and the day after that, I switched gears to a different style at Trebenna East. After warming up on a couple of some classic 6a+/6b+ routes, I wanted to revisit one of my past crushes: Pharoes Curse: 7b tufa which clearly is not my perfect style. This is a mono tufa, beautiful line, but a badly placed bolt at the very crux of the route ruins the whole experience. I think the route equipper planned to go from the left of the tufa, however, the climb from that direction seems a lot harder than 7b, and it is extremely hard to put a quickdraw unless you use a beta-stick. 

I could climb quite well until that bolt, but since there was no way I could clip that bolt at the midst of the crux, I just used my "take" option to have a look. About two years before, I found a bouldery solution for the crux, which goes directly from the tufa. This time, I wanted to double check if there is another solution that goes with the line of that badly placed bolt, but no... I mean, for my height, a 7b'ish solution does not look possible. It would probably be at least 7c+ if there is one. But using the tufa, from the right, there is a solution and with a kneepad on the right leg, you can rest quite well before the crux, too. 

That attempt was quite physical, so I just called it a day, cleaned up the draws, and enjoyed the great Geyikbayiri scene with Pelin, having some coffee and mom cake. It really feels good to be able to retreat sometimes. But, make no mistakes, I'll surely return to that sick tufa sooner or later. 

Working Belladonna on 3rd day

I rested a day after two days of climbing, and I was back on Koridor sector to try Belladonna. We went relatively early, around 11:30. I was feeling still very tired at the beginning of the day. I only could climb three very easy routes up to 6a+, and those clearly were not enough for a proper warm up. With no surprise, my first try was kind of a flash-pump effort in which my body just could take in the stimulus to try something hard. I retreated at the beginning of the crux, worked the moves up the chains, and lowered down. 

Apo (Benna) also wanted to try the route. Apparently, he tried it some time ago, but can't remember all the moves. However, he suggested a better rest below the crux, on the right side of the route. My resting position was on the left side of the route, on the side-pull pocket-like holds, but I just could not recover anything there at all. At my second try, I tried my own resting position, but I was quite ok: could do the hard clip below the crux, and fell at the last move of the crux. But then, I inspected the resting position on the right, and I was convinced that it was better. You basically stand on one of the sloping ledges, and use the holes on the left and above to rest. There is even a little bit of knee support because your right foot is stepping quite high, and the left one is below, on a sloper ledge foothold near the previous quickdraw.

My third try was the last one. I knew I had to go all in at this try, because this was my last day, and the last try of this small trip. I climbed the below parts quite good, and did rest on the right below the crux. I could also do the clip before entering the crux, since I made that quickdraw longer by adding two draws to the permanent draw. I felt suddenly very strong on the crux. Could execute each move quite strongly, and I passed the crux. I had a short rest on the jugs after the crux, but then the upper crux was waiting for me. There, after making the clip from the two finger pocket on the small tufa, I mixed things a bit. I was confused about my left feet just before the jug, which marked literally the end of the route. I was so pumped, and unfortunately fell while going to that jug. 

I don't know what happened there. A small loss of focus, mind wandering elsewhere, or just a pure technical mistake? The left foot hold I was supposed to use was a bit below, and it was not a very safe one. I chose to high step on a sloping ledge instead. But that foot hold threw me out of the wall even further, and with those pumped arms, I would not be able to pull in. Therefore, I tried to undo that move. But that costed me a lot, because I was at a level of pump where I could not tolerate a single small mistake. Then I was suddenly flying through the thin air... 

Feelings of frustration, mixed with feelings of excitement, because honestly, I was not expecting to progress that far, that quick. But still, the remainder of the day I was thinking what happened there. I guess I will never know exactly. But what I know is: I fought hard. I gave three hard tries on this hard route in a day, and I was almost doing it at the final one. That kind of makes me happy: being able to try this route three times. Ok, but I am still feeling sorry that I could not finish it. Leaving the route for the next time, hoping that I will not forget my beta. 

Boulder Session in Barek Mountain -Broken finger nail

With Guner, we could reserve a half day for a quick visit to Barek mountain with the hope of making some progress on our projects. I had Skoptoma - 7B and crossing the bridge 7A+ in my mind. 

It was again a very cold day up in Bozkir, however as the day moved on, the sun was so bright, and the wind was quite low when we got there around 14:00. We warmed up in Masa Kaya, it was quite hot, and everything was slippery. 

We then went to the new block to try Skoptoma, and Dombisot 6C to the left of it. 

Oh shute! I broke a finger nail during on the of the warm-up tries. I've got very confused since I could not assess very well if it was ok to continue climbing or not. I taped the finger first, but it was absolutely impossible to hold on to the small crimps with tape, so I untaped it and gave it some good tried. But this simply was not the day for it, so we just moved on. 

Finger nail broke while trying Skoptoma 7B

Went to Prometheus: tried crossing the bridge. Can't get the right big pinch (the right-most hold marked with red in the photo). Need much more stronger lock off power on the left arm. I do not know if this is caused by poor beta, or is it just my body is coming off from a sub-peak and I am feeling significantly weaker these days. 

I then flashed Deve - Cuce 6c, and the left-most 6b on the block behind. We then called it a day, and went back home. 

Crossing the Bridge 7A+ (red holds), Deve Cuce 6C (starting with the same holds, then following the yellow holds). 

4x4 Training and Rest day

Rest on Sunday

Yesterday I was a nice Sunday chilling out at home.  I was quite tired, but still motivated. I could do the following as a rest day activity: 

- An outdoor run: 3.67 km, 155 bpm average heart rate. 

- Some easy body tension drills using the trx, and 2x2 turkish getups with a 8 kg kettlebell. 

- 15 mins of light yoga before going to bed. 

4x4 Training on Monday

Today, on Monday, I woke up even more tired than yesterday, but it was better as the day moved on. I went to the spray wall close to the home around 11:30 to do some 4x4 training. I quickly setup 4 easy routes which were around 5c+ - 6a interval. The routes were easy, but the training plan was a bit different than the 4x4's I tried before: Here it is: 

- 1 Rep: Climbing the 4 routes without any rest in between

- 1 Set: 4 Reps without any rest in between.

So, in one set, you climb 16 routes actually. Then, you try to do 4 sets of the above sets with 5-6 minutes rest in between. This would mean climbing a total of 64 routes per session. This was the type of 4x4 recommended by Fikret, so I would like to have a go at it. The other 4x4's I tried before used harder routes, but you only climbed 4 of the routes, then rested 3-5 minutes and then done that 4 times, resulting in 16 routes in total. 

This time, I could only do 3 sets (climbed 48 routes). But even that was quite a bit volume for me. I know that hard 4x4 sessions are even harder to recover from. On the other hand, I am quite motivated to go for a short outdoor bouldering session on Wednesday, so, all the plans are setup for that thing for the moment. I want to leave something in the tank for that. 

Bouldering at Barek Mountain

Ankara really started feeling cold. When I woke up, the temperature outside was only 2 degrees Celcius. I said, wtf? But the plan is already made, the team was strong, and stacked, so off we went. 

Barek mountain is the new bouldering area that we just discovered in the beginning of 2024. We already had Koprukoy bouldering region below the Barek mountain. We went to Koprukoy for years, just staring at that mountain and trying to figure out if the dark spots on the mountain was just trees, or rocks? 

I think it was around last January. Emre just pulled the trigger and went to have a look at. Since there was wind tribunes at the top of the mountain, there were already well established roads which made the access easier. And you know what? The place was fabulous. Some of the best bouldering region laid at an 1.5 hour of driving distance from our home at Ankara, and yet we were the ones to complain that Ankara was some of the worst cities to live for a climber. Now, eat this!... Ankara just started to become one of the best places to live - well.. let's say for a boulderer - which is not bad since we're hungry for any type of climbing. 

I believe I can't get into the full details, but let me suffice with dropping a link to the topos that we maintain in 27 crags.

On this day, the weather was surprisingly warm because of the lack of wind, and the bright Bozkir sun. Our day started at the Masa Kaya with some warm up. Then with Fikret and Erkin, we went to another block recently established. 

Trying Dombisot 7A and Skoptoma 7B 

I suddenly fell in love with the slightly overhanging crimpy 7B that Zorbey climbed recently on this new block. The name of the route is Skoptoma. The block is not very high, and the problem is just 5-6 moves. I fell at my last try, failing to close my right hand crimp, but I feel it's not very far. So, that entered to my list of short term projects already. 

On the left corner of the rock, there is another problem - Dombosit, which is around 6c/6c+ if you do it standing, or 7A if you do it sit start. I also worked on that, but could not link the moves yet. It has an unusual move to a high sloper pocket with your right hand, from a sloper pinch on your left hand. Quite sick. 

Trying Crossing the bridge 7A+ at Prometheus

The day ended at the Prometheus sector. The weather was a lot cooler here. I must say, cold enough that it started making our fingers numb. Crossing the bridge is a relatively new problem. It's graded at 7a+, but I must say: that one felt really hard for me, or maybe I was a bit more tired in the second half of the day. 

Trying Crossing the Bridge - 7A+. Photo: Guner Donmez

I gave some tries, and could make most of the moves in isolation, but I was far from linking them in one session. My main problem was with the move that required a far left heel/toe hook, and then apply so much body tension to reach out to a far above jug with the left hand. 

This route just threw a certain kind of weakness to my face: lack of lateral body tension. Being able to hold on to small holds is something, but then being able to steer your body from those holds when your hands and feet are so far from each other, is another thing. 

I believe that kind of specific strength will never be attained working on a fingerboard. What type of training can make you stronger on that? Well.. not sure for now. But what is for sure is: trying those type of sick moves will certainly train you for that. Maybe some board climbing, or routes setup specific for this type of challenge. 

Congratulations to Fikret on Prometheus sit - 7C+

In the meanwhile, Fikret first did the standing version, and then finally the sit start version of the overhanging project on the same block where "Crossing the bridge" is at. He called the problem "Prometheus". Fikret is at another level for sure, and it was simply amazing and inspiring to watch him do that. The evening light was amazing, and I could take a few cool shots of him on the route. 

Fikret on Prometheus sit - 7C+

* Bozkir: This is what we call the region around the internal part of Turkey. In Turkish, Bozkir means a piece of land without much trees, high plains and nothing else.