Crab 'n Climb 2009

Two weekends ago was our annual "Crab 'n Climb" trip that we take with some friends every year to St. George. This year was a little later than usual, but that was perfectly fine since it was warmer and gave us a few more weeks with Maya before the trip.

We drove down Friday morning. We left just before 6:00 am to get in a few hours before the girls woke us. I figured we'd probably get in 90 minutes. I was pleasantly surprised when we got in about three hours! We stopped, had breakfast, then Maya went back to sleep and we drove the remaining 90 minutes without any interruptions! It was the smoothest trip in the car we've ever had!

Friday consisted of checking into the condo, saying hello to everyone, and climbing. The wives were gracious enough to watch the kids this extra time so we could get out and climb. We went to an area named "Utah Hills". This was my first time out since the fall in Colorado that shook me up. I spent my time top roping and getting comfortable on the rock again. It was nice, I got in about 5 routes.

Saturday we went to this awesome park that had "perpetual motion" toys. The ones where you start spinning and they just keep going. Penelope had an awesome time running around, climbing up and sliding down.



They also had a little 'bouldering' wall for the kids to play on. Penelope got her first feel for climbing on it:



We also got a good family picture (don't mind the random lady in the background):



We also had a few 'battles' on the round, sliding toy:



After lunch and naps we spent awhile playing in the swimming pool. I love swimming and it's even better that Penelope is a fish.

Saturday night was crab dinner night. We used to go to Mesquite to the seafood buffet for crab but since we now have kids, we just buy some at the store and cook it up. It's the one time a year that we eat crab and it was gooo-oood!

Sunday was more playing, swimming, and climbing. We went to Chuckwalla to climb. I got in my first lead since Colorado and it felt good to get it out of the way. Jessica also got in her first climb since Colorado and since having Maya. She did really well and is super stoked for the coming season.

Me:



Jessica:



The drive home was almost as smooth as the drive down. It was a killer weekend, good to get out with friends, climbing, enjoy nice weather, and be with the family.

Here's a short album of the trip: