Youthful dreams become reality

I can still remember as a young boy cruising in the back seat of my parents car though the Adirondacks. Vivid scenes still run through my head of rolling through Keene Valley looking up at the monster rock slabs. Every meandering curve with an open view I hoped I would see tiny specs of people hanging off the rocks. If I was really lucky I could make out their ropes and possibly some of their enchanting gear. Even during the winter months I’d gaze up high in hopes of seeing people with ice axes in hand working their way up an ice covered wall. I can still hear myself telling my parents that I wanted to do that someday. Yes, rock and ice climbing absolutely fascinated me. Every time we made any pit stop in Lake Placid no matter how quick it was I had to go into Eastern Mountain Sports (EMS). I would play with the carabiners, chalk bags, and climbing shoes. Ice axes and ropes would make my fingers tingle. I just kept telling myself that someday I would do all of it. Unfortunately life gets in the way of some of our youthful dreams. Kids, jobs, and bills have a funny way of making you forget about silly dreams you once had as a child. Dreams quickly go from “someday I want to do that” to “ I always wanted to try that”. Eventually we convince ourselves that we are too old and too busy to do some of these things. The funny thing is that this dream has always stuck with me. As a dad driving through the mountains I would point out the climbers to my own kids. I still feel awe struck and at times jealous of those crazy folks dangling from a rope high about Route 73. I always figured the best I would do is a climbing gym once in a while when I had the chance.

Well let me tell you, sometimes your opportunity to do things you never thought you would can be sitting right next to you. In my case he had been sitting next to me for years at a weekly meeting and I didn’t even know it. But I can now tell you that one of my childhood dreams has now become a reality.

This adventure really started about four months ago. I happened to see a Facebook post by my friend Jason who sits next to me every Monday at our meeting. Jason and I have known each other since high school. Over the last several years we have become close because of work but we really didn’t talk much about our personal lives. His post happened to be about an ice climbing trip he had done. For once I was looking forward to our next meeting so I could ask him about it. Once the formal bla bla bla of a work meeting was over I started asking him about it. Instantly I had visions of my youth riding along that road looking up onto the ice slabs in my head. We talked about the climb, the equipment, and the training he was doing to get ready for such an amazing adventure. He then invited me to tag along to the rock wall at SUNY Potsdam(See blog 35 Off the Wall) with him. Over the last several months we have met weekly at the climbing gym and have struck up a solid bond. We became belay certified together and started talking about climbing together outdoors. I slowly started buying the equipment needed to climb. First, shoes, then a harness, belay device, chalk bag, and finally, a week ago, rope.

Between the two of us we had enough equipment to tackle a climb. I started to look over maps and apps in hopes of finding the perfect place to begin. After doing a little boots on the ground recon through some state forests I found what I thought would be the perfect place to try it for the first time. Welcome to the Glenmeal State Forest.

The rain from the night before still lingered on the plant life around us. The leaves and undergrowth still damp from the light soaking we had received. But the sun was starting to poke through the trees and a light breeze blew as we gathered our equipment and headed down the trail. The state forest property spreads across both sides of County Road 24 so we decided to do a little exploring to find the perfect place for our first ascent together. Almost immediately rock formations could be made out through the woods. Large outcrops of gray, black, and brown stone towered over us as we inspected each location.

Like little kids we couldn’t keep our hands off of them. We stood below looking for cracks, crimps, and slopes we could cling to. Then we would work our way around the back of them to see if there were any solid locations to place an anchor. On top of one of the walls we could see what appeared to be water in the distance.

We decided to explore and found a beautiful little pond off the beaten path. Dead trees lined with woodpecker holes slowly decayed as frogs chirped and birds swiftly flew overhead in search of their next tasty buggy meal. Once we decided that there were plenty of opportunities to climb here we decided to cross the road to the area I had previously looked over before. Right away I had to show Jason the wall I had stumbled on by accident. The last time I was here, on a whim I decided to take a look over a ridge not too far from the rather unused trail. Once on top of the ridge I couldn’t believe the beautiful rock face that was rising out of the earth.

As soon as we reached the wall Jason immediately said “We are climbing here”. Above the face of cracks and crevices was several large trees just perfect for an anchor point. We took a long look at the formation. We envisioned several places we could have success climbing. When we decided where our first attempt would be we climbed around the wooded backside and got to work setting up the anchor.

This was my first time doing this so he gave me a good lesson on what to look for and how to set it up safely. Next it was time to flake out the brand new, just out of the package rope. This was my first rookie mistake. Half the rope slithered down the rock face to the ground below with ease. However the other half of the 230’ rope ended up in a bit of a rat’s nest. For twenty minutes we twisted and unraveled the mess that I had made. It was definitely a blunder I will try to avoid in the future. But after all, this was the best place to make this mistake. No one around just the trees, rock, and the black flies to watch me make a bit of a fool of myself. Once we finally had our rope situated we walked back around to the front of the wall. This was when the butterflies started to flutter in my stomach. Sure I’d done this many times in a gym but this time we were in front of a real rock formation out in the wilderness. This is what I had always dreamed of. We pulled on our harnesses and strapped into our climbing shoes. With my belay device in place and Jason tied into the rope it was time for him to climb.

I talked myself through each step of being the belayer. Rope up and out, then down to lock it in knowing I had to get it right as I was his safety net if he slipped. I repeated this to myself as I cheered him on outloud. He slowly gained elevation as he jammed his fingers into small cracks and balanced his toes on small ledges.

Move by move he looked above for the next hold. It was stressful and exciting all at the same time. When he made it to the top we both let out an echoing hoot for joy. I slowly lowered him back down to the ground as he repelled gracefully down the rope. Next it was my turn. My childhood dream was about to come true. With knots in my stomach I tied myself into the rope. We did one more safety check and it was go time. I firmly wrapped my fingers around the cold stone face. I had done this part many times before but this time it felt different. Instead of picturing myself climbing I was really doing it. My feet felt around looking for a solid grip. I cautiously pulled myself up and found the next hand hold. Crack by crack I worked my way up the rock.

I had to admit that what I had envisioned for holds on the ground looked very different when they were at eye level. Holds that look big and easy were much smaller than I had thought. But slowly and cautiously I worked my way up. About five feet from the top I only had a few more holds to go and my nervousness turned to pure joy. I took a moment to savor my last move as I reached the top. It was everything I imagined it would be and to be honest it was even better. Standing above the ground looking down from my perch I couldn’t help but think about that little kid in the back seat of the car looking up at the rock climbers. I slowly repelled down the face as Jason slowly fed me line. This is where rookie mistake number two happened. About six feet from the ground I lost focus for a fraction of a second. Just enough time for me to not make sure I had a good foothold and I slipped. Jason instantly set the belay device and stopped me from falling as I clumsily crashed into the rocks. A few scrapes and bruises would be my reminder that in this sport there is no place for losing focus, ever. We spent the next half hour looking for new routes up the wall. We worked on hand and foot placements for our first moves up the wall.

Once we were satisfied that we had found another good spot we moved our gear around and made one more ascent. Both of our second climbs went flawlessly. We decided that two climbs was good enough for our first trip out together and we broke down our equipment. On our way back to the car we couldn’t stop talking about how much fun it was and how we couldn’t wait to get back at it again. We both agreed we would be coming back to this place soon to hone our skills and enjoy some time together as a climbing team. Finally I could say I was a rock climber and I had found another amazing Northern NY Adventure.

About this location:

The Glenmeal Forest is located in the town of Pierrepont in St. Lawrence county. This 826 acre state forest is the perfect location for hiking, hunting, snow shoeing, bouldering, and rock climbing. I did see a few trail markers for a ski trail however it did look a little overgrown.

We did quite a bit of hiking around but we really didn’t even scratch the surface to see what was in this forest. I can tell you that we did find several great bouldering opportunities and several locations to top rope. It was exciting to finally strap into the harness and get on a wall but the overall objective of this trip was to get used to setting everything up and get comfortable with our gear.

The rock walls aren’t huge but they were perfect for a starting point. I really look forward to going back and to find some new locations with taller walls. Even though I may be a little late at starting this sport this is proof that you are never too old to learn new things. If you are looking for a secluded place to explore or are interested in an easy location to climb, whether it's hanging from a rope or an afternoon of bouldering look no further than the Glenmeal Forest you won’t be disappointed. It is truly a great place for a Northern NY Adventure.

Aaron Hardy

Northern NY Adventures

“Make Life an Adventure”