Vedauwoo

Next stop was Vedauwoo, another Joshua Tree like destination, in southeastern Wyoming. What sets Vedauwoo apart is its abundance of off-width climbs ... and pain.

Some of the climbs are on a type of large crystal granite that results in the most painful climbing we have done. Long sleeve shirts, pants and tape gloves are a must for any of the off-widths. Knee and elbow pads are highly recommended for some. Imagine wedging yourself in a chimney full of sharp nails and climbing it. Some of these climbs would rip you to shreds if you fell.

We tried a couple of these routes, but in general stayed away. You need a special kind of drive, or masochistic tendencies to enjoy some of them. Some people love it, like the camp host of the pay campground. It was his favourite climbing destination. We don't think he's been to very many.

Thankfully, not all the rock is so unforgiving, and we found a couple of really nice lines. Edward's Crack 5.7 was one of the best easy single pitch trad lines we have climbed the entire trip.

Vedauwoo was also the sight of our first minor epic. A burly roof, stuck rope, stuck gear and lack of headlights (usually we properly prepare for late starts) meant our nice evening climb of The Hole '5.7' turned into a three hour ordeal that had us rapping off the top in the dark. At least the moon was pretty.

All in all, we only spent two days climbing and one day bouldering there. It's a pretty cool climbing destination, and the free camping is pretty awesome, but it really didn't have enough of our style of climbing (long trad routes) to keep our interest. The bouldering seemed more enticing. We only got on a few problems before being chased off by rain, but it left us wanting for more. We decided to move on though. Other destinations awaited.