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I joined Ivan Cross in Red Rocks Canyon, taking a Greyhound from Los Angeles to Las Vegas.

We first began our approach towards the Brownstone Wall within the Juniper Canyon. Along the way, we ran into boulders where iron had oxidized into a fascinating polka dot fashion.

We hiked for about 2 hours before reaching the brownstone wall. We got our gear on and went up The Nightcrawler. I succeeded at my first chimney climb, although, it was emotionally demanding. I worked through it and pushed on up, feeling more strength than I had in a while. However, I completed it with pride. I fell into a mild hypothermia and was unable to fill in my promise of a belayer.

We went back to our camps, rested, and slept amongst the ice cold stars. After our morning oatmeal with peanut butter, we packed out bags once more, and began our 3 hour hike towards The Schwa, a classic crack climb within Red Rock Canyon from the 70’s. Also, my first attempt at crack climbing, at least I got two moves up the wall, failed the rest but I was happy to see Ivan complete a goal of his.