Often times when climbing or sailing with people that don’t live here I am asked why I decided to make a permanent move from the US to Rio. The answer is always pretty obvious; Rio is just so beautiful it is hard to want to live anywhere else. The beaches, the forest, the mountains… all right in the heart of the city. I can’t think of anywhere else that has all this natural beauty so close and accessible to a major metropolitan area.

Sometimes though, when sitting in traffic or when reading the daily news I also have my doubts. Maybe Rio is too big. Maybe it is too hectic. Maybe I would be better off living somewhere else. But then its seems something crazy always seems to happen to remind me what an unique place this is and why I like it so much. Just like what happened the other day with Ducha and I.

We meet up in the morning and went to go climb an easy route up Morro dos Cabritos, an impressive rock feature that sits on the shore of the Lagoa, right in between Copacabane, Ipanema and Botafogo. The route we were going to climb is called Última Opção and its 270 meters of easy slab climbing up the west face of the mountain is only interrupted by one 5.10 move to overcome a well protected roof that runs horizontally across the rock. The view is breathtaking, as the higher you climb the more you see of the Lagoa and the beaches of Ipanema and Leblon, not to mention the dramatic backdrop of Pedra da Gavea and Dois Irmãos. You would think that would be enough to forget the hustle and bustle of the city, and it usually is, but this day we had a special treat waiting for us as we started to climb.

Ducha was roped up and just about to start leading the first pitch when he stopped in his tracks and slowly called me over to investigate something he saw in a small hole not 2 meters away from where we were standing. My eyesight isn’t the best and in the shadow of the forest canopy I found it difficult to make it out at first, but sticking out of the hole was the head of a full grown adult boa constrictor!!

My first reaction at seeing a snake head the size of my hand was to want to get out of there as quickly as possible. But once we realized was type of snake it was and it was clear to us that it was not aggressive we decided to keep going. Ducha began climbing up the route while the snake simultaneously started slowly slithering down the rock into the forest. I had to sit there and belay Ducha while keeping one eye on the snake to see what direction is was going to take.

In the end it was all good and the run in with ths snake that was nearly 2 meters long and fat from just recently having eaten was a positive one. It was exhilarating to see that scene so close up and right in the middle of the city. The climb was relaxed and fun, which made the whole day that much better. I of course want to start a movement to rename to climb to something better suited like “Rio’s Snake Dike”, but I don’t expect many people will be as excited about the idea as I am.

Either way it was one of those days that remind you just why this city is so special and why I will probably be here for a good time to come.

posted by: Andrew -- 24/10/2011

Mingo and I ticked off a few more classic routes here the other day.  Two routes I have wanted to do for years.  The first was Aquarius (6º VIsup, 280 meters), which is an incredible 6-pitch route up the east face of Pedra da Gavea. This route has several things going for it.  You begin climbing at about 500 meters above sea level and quickly traverse over to a part of the wall that is just a shear uninterrupted drop down to the forest below, so the sense of exposure is unique.  It also has several tricky pitches that mix trad with bolts including probably the most beautiful dihedral pitch in the entire city.  It extends 50 meters of moderate lay-back climbing all protected with friends and nuts.  The dihedral is so big you can clearly see it from the São Conrado beach 600 meters down below.  This pitch alone makes the long approach and the hand full of tick bites we both suffered well worth it.

The other route when did is across the bay in Niterói. Its on the southwest face of Alto Mourão in the state park of Serra da Tiririca in Itacoatiara and is appropriately named Face Sudoeste do Alto Mourão (4º V, 550 meters). Itacoatiara is a special place and even though it takes longer to get from downtown Rio than Teresopolis it is well worth a visit. It is basically the Urca of Niterói with an incredible beach surrounded by huge domes and tropical forest. Alto Mourão is the tallest of the domes and is also known as the Head of the Elephant. It has a hand full of routes on its southwest face the most classic of which is probably Face SW. This bolted route is long and easy and mixes some face climbing with a lot of friction. Mingo and I simul-climbed it and cruised through the entire 550 meters in about 2 hours even we had never down it before. We got a little lost in the middle but now knowing the route it could easily be done in probably closer to an hour. Some people have spoken poorly of this route since it’s a little dirty and not technically difficult but we both really enjoyed the style and esthetic beauty of the wall, which is full of bromeliads and cactus. The best part is that after the climb and the charming summit, from which you can see all the way to Cabo Frio on a clear day, its just a quick hike down to get back the beach for a refreshing swim.

posted by: Andrew – 16/10/2011

So its been a while since I last made a blog update and a few things have happened since then.  One interesting update is that Ducha, Mingo and I have all been officially certified by AGUIPERJ – Associação de Guias, Instrutores e Profissionais  de Escalada do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (Association of Guides, Instructors and Climbing Professionals in the State of Rio de Janeiro).

AGUIPERJ is an organization that was founded in 2001 with the intent of setting a recognized standard for safety and professionalism for individuals workings with and offering their services as climbing guides and instructors.  To be certified you have to present a minimum climbing curriculum that proves you have sufficient climbing experience, pass a series of written and practical tests and have also completed the required number of hours of first aid and self-rescue training.  Certified guides must also participate in additional trainings and organizational meetings offered by AGUIPERJ throughout the year.

We are excited to have this certification as not only as welcome addition to our credentials but also as a tool to better connect us with the climbing community that been growing so quickly here in Rio de Janeiro.

I turned 30 the other day and got l to celebrate it just the way I wanted. Mingo graciously offered to climb the route Argus (5º VIsup) with me on the North face of Sugarloaf on the day of my birthday. This is one of the longest routes on Sugarloaf (500 meters) that was opened coincidentally 30 years ago but had been forgotten until recently due to its difficult approach. It is a fun and adventurous route with a beautiful view of the bay and mixed styles of climbing. The first half is relatively well protected, but after you pass the 4th pitch its more run out and harder to stay on route. We ended up losing ourselves and finishing the climb from the neighboring Iemanjá route. It actually worked out because it was already 10am and was too hot to climb anymore, but I still want to go back to climb the final pitch wich is all trad.

After that climb I raced off to a great birthday barbecue with friends and family at my fathers place and then headed out the next morning to spend the rest of the holiday weekend in Salinas about 3 hours from Rio (its nice to have a birthday on a holiday). There I camped up Mascarin’s place, close to the Valle dos Deuses, and climbed two classic routes on the Capacete mountain, CERJ and Sólidas Ilusões. Both routes are fantastic and offer exciting climbing on solid rock. Sólidas Ilusões (450 meters, 5º V) which I climbed with Vinicius, has some great trad pitches and was climb I had been wanting to do for a long time. CERJ (400 meters, 5º A0/VIsup) is one of the most popular routes in the region and was opened with great style in 1970. This route I simu-climbed together with Tomás quickly before heading back home on Sunday.The weather and company was great and I couldn’t have asked for a better 30th birthday.

posted by: Andrew – 02/05/2011

So apparently soloing routes while taping yourself has become the new fashion here in Rio.  Two good friends of mine have now taken up the habit. Ducha, who is also part of our team recently bought a new small camera that films in HD and decided to film his solo of Dedo de Deus, a famous 1692-meter peak about an hour north of Rio.  The route mixes via ferrata with mostly chimney climbing and tops out on one of Rio most remarkable summits.  The most impressive part of his feat is the fact the he did it all in 28 minutes, even though the route usually requires a least a couple of hours.  Here is the short and artistic video he put together:

Our other good friend and close climbing partner, Tomás Zveibil, successfully soloed two nice routes on Sugarloaf not too long ago.  The first route was São Bento, which he cleverly filmed using an overhead camera and created the great sort video posted below.  He then soloed the longer and slightly more difficult chimney route “Stop” (280 meters). This is one of Sugarloaf’s oldest routes and is still offers a great adventure until today. Although it is considered a relatively easy route many people still find it a tough to lead.  As Tomás says, “The bolts are so far apart and so oddly placed that soloing and leading are basically the same thing.”  Unfortunately he didn’t film this solo, but he did take a great picture of himself towards the end of the route once you come out of the chimney.

Congratulations to both Ducha and Tomás for both of the climbing and media arts skills.

posted by: Andrew – 27/04/2011

This past weekend was great one for me as I got to climb two routes that I had been wanting to climb for years but never got around to. On Saturday I climbed Sensação De Extasê, 200 meters / 6° VIIb (5.10c w/ a crux of 5.11c), on Pedra da Gavea with a good friend Tomaz. And then on Sunday Ducha and I went up Calis, 90 meters 5° VI (5.9 w/ a crux of 5.10c) on Cantagalo. These are two very popular routes here in Rio that for some reason I had not found time to climb. They are very different from each other but both are definitely worth getting to know.

Sensação de Extasê is in the middle of the forest on the North face of Pedra da Gavea and is a very diverse route. It starts out with a pitch of crimps and friction moves and then heads into an incredible pitch that includes a relatively easy roof section with nice hand holds. The next pitch is the crux pitch, which is well protected and has interesting vertical moves with small holds that require good balance and solid body positioning. The last two pitches are the hardest psychologically to lead since the pro is further apart (but nothing too bad) and the holds much smaller.

Climbing Calis on Saturday was completely different. The route has good crimps pretty much all the way up and is located in the middle of the city in between Ipanema and Copacabana. The first pitch is easy and a little but more run out, but the second pitch is the real beauty and where the harder climbing starts. It is an incredible vertical pitch with holds that don’t always seem solid but that pave your way through a sequence of holes so big you can fit a person in them. The climbing is exciting since the bolts are generally a few meter below you and most of the time, you cant tell exactly where you are going due how vertical it is. This is a great route to lead and also offers fantastic views of the Lagoa and of Copacabana.

posted by: Andrew – 18/04/2011