Hot'n Cold - Two weeks in Geyikbayiri: Poseidon Tavan 8a+, Memory of Giovanni 7c and more..

Arriving at my new place in Geyik

I finally could arrive in my own place in Geyikbayiri for two weeks. Have no goals. I just needed to come here for a resolution, and may be some good climbing before the trip to the Font in April. Yeah, I probably should have stayed in the city and train for some more bouldering. But boy.. I was so restless in Ankara.

Here I was. Arrived on a cold Friday night on an empty house, which only had a single bed and nothing else. Covered it with some clean sheets, grabbed my pillow and my sleeping bag, and there it was: one of the best sleeps I had since some good amount of time. 

This was literally like living the dream. Ok, this is not my own house. Just a rental for some limited time. But that does not mean I can't enjoy it. I have been coming to this place for some 25 years, but here I am pretending to have my own place to stay. And guess what? Peyami abi is my flat-mate. His house is just the next door. How much better could it get? 

The next morning I had a deep cleaning of the house that took the whole Saturday, so definitely no climbing on Saturday. Starting from Sunday, I could reserve some couple of hours for climbing, and getting lots of work done in the mean time. I really do appreciate the ability to work remotely. This is literally living the dream for me. Having this time here, but also working as hard as possible to get things done on my work. 

Ok, let me cut this part short, and talk a bit about the climbs I could tackle in this mini trip:

Octos 7a+: Alzheimer's flash

Metin's quickdraws were hanging on the route for a while, and I knew he climbed the route, and Murat was also working the route, and he was close. We just wanted to have a day in Poseidon to get used to climbing with Erdinc. After some warm ups, I wanted to try the route. To my surprise, everything went smooth, and I was quite happy that I could "flash (?)" this stiff 7a+. The fun starts here: in the evening, when I entered 8a.nu to log my ascent, it was quite surprising to see that I already sent the route in 2006. Wow... so, ok. I am an old climber, and that was an Alzheimer's flash then. It has been 19 years, and I was almost sure that I did not climb this route before. Well anyhow, that was a remarkable repeat ascent then.. A good one to get used to climbing around Poseidon sector. 

Memory of Giovanni 7c: What took me so long to try this beauty? 

The weather was quite cool in the following days, so I could have a burn on this beautiful route. The route is slightly overhanging, and the climbing is not very specific. It's a type of climbing I am quite used to. However, the crux of the route was at the end of the overhang section when the route turns into a slab. I was literally clueless and could not find a working beta for the slab crux. Well, since Erdinc already climbed the route a long time ago, and wanted some training on the route, he tried the route to show me how it is done. His solution was not only working, it was also quite elegant and direct. In the next try, I could replicate his beta to learn that part, too. However, this power endurance beast already took its toll on me, so serious attempts were left for the later days. 

In the next day we came here, I quickly warmed up by hanging the quickdraws again. I could then send the route in the second burn of this second session. But it was not without a fight. I was climbing quite suboptimal on the lower sections of the route, and getting freaking pumped when I arrived at the crux. With those pumped arms, I could somehow show that determination and could make my way up the crux, and all the way to the chains. Wow.. I really love those ascents where things are on such a thin line.  

Poseidon Tavan 8a+: I can dance, and I also am darn serious and competitive! 

Spoiler: Yes, I did it against all odds...

This one is big. I remember belaying Mumin cruise this beautiful roof back in day - probably in 2006. It was so inspiring and amazing. Last year, I dared to have a look at the route. I think I've spent two sessions in two different trips. Those tries were literally futile. I was just making fun of myself. I mean, you try some difficult routes, and you probably can do most of the moves, but you probably would not be able to do some specific portions of the route. In this route, I could do maybe just a single move... And that was it... I could not do any of the other moves. What was happening? What kind of 8a+ was this? 

During my trip in January, we discussed the route with Burak while working on Metallica - 8a together. He told me he also tried the route before, and he had some beta that could work. We agreed that it would be terrific to work on the route together. All I experienced while working on Metallica together with him was positive feeling. I just love climbing with people who spread the positive emotions. Kudos bro. 

But Burak was strong, and he would not wait forever for me to show up in Geyik to try the route. So Burak, Abdullah, and Osman worked on the route and had a recent epic team send. I was a bit of sad that I missed this vibe, because I know things can really be easy when you are inside that kind of strong and supportive crowd. Congrats folks for your amazing team send!!!

Anyways, I was here, and just had a phone call with Burak, and he explained me everything he knew about the route. I took notes and watched to some incomplete video fragments from his work sessions. With this new beta, there could be hope for me, too. 

Using the new beta, I think I could do most of the moves in my first session. I could not feel the kneebar on the roof, though. That move is one of the most difficult and tricky kneebars I have ever seen in a route. In the second session, I think I could feel the kneebar just a bit, however, it was still feeling very awkward. But at the end of the that session, I started to "believe" that if I can refine the moves up there in the roof, and if I can climb the lower 7b part much more efficiently, I could have a "small chance" of sending the route. 

I was already tired of 5 climbing days with only a single day of rest in between. I am an old man who needs 2-3 rest days from time to time. The weather report was also showing some awkward cold and wind gusts for the following days, so I decided to rest for two days until Thursday. 

On Thursday, I was quite rested, but just I had a tiring workday, and I had just a couple of hours to try the route until the sunset. To this, let's add the random guy who would want to try the first pitch of the route while we were trying to work the 8a+ part (and who would not come down after falling a dozen times). Let's also mix in the meaningless tension in the air (for what?)...  afasfjlgsd :)

The fourth session on the route would only exist if I could find a climbing partner who would come up there and "support" me on the route. I was aware that I would not be able to climb this thing in the negative aura of some guy who tells me I am waaay far from sending this route because I was doing something wrong, being sloppy at somewhere and other. So I said to myself: if I can't have one of my favorite climbing partners, I am not trying this route. I would rather go to Echos and join Ali's crew which I can enjoy a whole day of cranking hard while having the utmost fun without machoing and ego crushing at each other. 

Suddenly I got this reply from Erdinc. He was okay coming with me to Poseidon after 3 pm. And there we were. I had a quick warm up on Demavend 6c, which is to the right of Poseidon. I could brush some of the holds on the entrance of the roof, and I could continue to the roof to refine my strategy for clipping the quickdraw in the edge of the roof. With this new strategy, I would do some foot switches on the roof from right to left and back to do the clip. Ok, it was hard, but it looked doable. 

Went down, belayed Erdinc on Demavend, and after some time I had my first go. I was quite strong in the entrance of the roof, but my new clipping strategy was wasting so much energy. I was stressed and exhausted so much, that I literally forgot the correct sequence after the rather complex clipping sequence. I tried to make a kneebar on the roof before going for the big hole with my left hand... Totally desperate. I fell a bit long, and did not want to pump the rope to try once again, so I just came down. 

In the mean time, I belayed Erdinc on Little Big Wall 7a+. I was quite confused... My first try was a total disaster. I could not even enter the crux of the route. But, I was planning to return to Ankara tomorrow, so, if I felt just a little bit hope, I was ready to try. 

It was getting late. People were leaving the crag. Erdinc was there to support me in all cases, whether I would try or not. We did not hesitate. Just waited there for a while, to get the crag less crowded, and to feel just a bit less lactic acid on my pumped arms. 

Then, off they went. We two were there, no one else. The last hour of daylight. Weather was super dry, and getting colder. I could finally gather my feelings about the route, my body and my mind together. I was tired. My first try was desperate. I was still not sure which beta was the best. But everything else was on my side. There was no one to pull my motivation down. Conditions were perfect. 

I needed to make a gamble. My previous beta did not work, and I was almost sure that it would not work today. Maybe another day, but not today. The other alternatives were: trust that kneebar and if you feel good up there, make the clip and go further. If you feel a bit shaky, just skip that clip and face the long fall into the void. Ok. That was the plan. 

I started to climb the first pitch. And I guess I climbed as ugly and inefficient as I did in the previous tries. The only thing I did different this time was, instead of doing the hard clip using the undercling, I did it using the side pull later on the sequence. That worked. I was in the resting position. However, I was literally wasted. But I somehow found a way to feel comfortable in that rest position, and spend as much as time I wanted. I don't know, maybe I stayed for 5 minutes.. Or 10 minutes? It was long enough to recover 99% of my wasted arms. I had no other rest positions on this route, so my strategy was to climb continuously up the chains starting from this rest position. 

I took off from the rest.. The first moves were hard as usual, and my right arm was already crying after a couple of moves. But somehow, I continued towards the kneebar. Now, another point: I started using my Sportiva Miura VS Women's shoes instead of my pair of Sportiva Solutions. Solutions are probably better shoes for this route, but my pair was quite worn up. The Miura VS was soft enough, and it also had a recent resole by our national resoler Cuneyt (kudos bro, for the great work, as always!!!). 

Anyways, I think the thicker sole on this shoes allowed me to press harder on the edging foothold required on the kneebar. And suddenly the kneebar felt bomb-proof. I could do the clip comfortably, and then I could get my right fingers on the next hold. Now came the hardest part of the route. releasing that kneebar, and resisting the swing by quickly pressing on the left foot. I was thinking: ok, I'll release this kneebar, and I'll just see what happens. I am just not sure if I would stay there or I will go down into the thin air. And man... My right finger held up like a finger jam, and while pressing strongly with my left toe, there I was still hanging there. I just reached for the undercling hole, had my time to adjust my grip precisely and the finally could get my right foot to the right side. When I was making a move to the first knob with my right hand, I still had some integrity. However, after taking that weak knob, and then taking my right foot to the next foot hold, I was literally on slippy ground. I was eyeing on the ledge. The final hold in this crux section. But f..k... why is it that far? Well, do I have any chance but to try? Ok, this move can never be done static. It's an explosive move. But to be explosive you should have some power left in reserve... But that was a lot of overthinking, and if I did only half of that thinking up there, I would surely fall down like a brick. I did not hesitate a nanosecond. I did not assess if I had any power or not. I wanted it, I rocketed towards it, and got that thing in my hands. Magically, I was still hanging on... My hand did not slip, and I could carefully pull the remaining moves on relatively bigger holds and I was finally up in the chains. 

Ok. This narrative has been a bit too long. But man... I've only climbed four 8a+ routes in my life. And this is one of them, so please allow me to blabber on it a bit too much :)  I just wrote every detail to make sure I won't forget any of these glamorous moments. 

Again, many thanks to you Erdinc. Your support was really, I mean really important and it was what made me climb this route today. Even I myself did not believe that I could do this today, but... sometimes it just happens. I know that we should never give up on our hopes and crazy goals, but just work towards those with everything we have. 

... So I can dance, and I am crazy darn competitive. But there's a difference though: I am competing with myself, not with others. That is my personal choice. If I liked competing with others, I would probably be doing another sport. And this experience once again made me remember that I am not comfortable around climbers who try to transform their climbing experience into a race with others. I respect them, but just can't function around them. Just a note to my future self. 

Photos? Sorry. I was so focused on climbing, and there was no one to take a photo or video. I can share a couple of scenes from Geyik, though. 

Geyik's stairway to heaven...

Cats on the wall

Geyikbayiri: the village...

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.