We (McKenzie, Alina, Christine, me, and Nori) left on Friday, after everyone got off of work and arrived at Lil Abners around 2 AM Eastern Time. At this point we know better than to even try getting up early on Saturday, so we slept in a bit before getting up to start the date. This was McKenzie’s first trip to Kentucky.

On Saturday, 2018-04-14, we climbed at the PMRP at The Shire. It is a crag we’ve all, except for McKenzie, been to before. It contains some pretty good easier routes and is a good introduction to climbing outdoors at the Red.

The weather forecast for the weekend wasn’t great and this probably kept away the crowds. Despite it being Saturday, The Shire wasn’t too busy and we never had to wait for a route. We knocked out all of the sub 5.10 routes and a few of the 5.10s. I had hoped to hop on the My Name is Earl, but it started to rain so we headed out. Entire tick list below.

• Pee-Wee, 5.7
• Audie, 5.8
• Miranda Rayne, 5.9+
• The G-Man, 5.10c
• Significant Other, 5.10b
• K.S.B., 5.10d

Highlights of those routes include Miranda Rayne, Significant Other, and K.S.B.

Post-climbing, we ordered a couple of delicious pizzas from Miguel’s and spent the evening chowing down.

Sunday was a gloomy day. The forecast showed a good chance of rain all day and it delivered. It sprinkled on and off, with bouts of slightly heavier rain. It was also very windy.

We spent Sunday in Miller Fork at The Infirmary. This is definitely a good crag for rainy days. While there, we only climbed two routes. This is at least partially because we stubbornly didn’t move to the left side (as you look at it) of the crag, where the wind was supposed to be less of a factor. The weather definitely played a factor in reducing the stoke. We also spent a fair amount of time just watching some other climbers attack some seriously overhanging routes. The two routes we climbed are listed below.

• ReCooperAte, 5.8
• Recovery Room, 5.10b

I thought both routes were pretty fun. The top of Recovery Room was a little wet and you definitely got took soe water to the face near the top.

We took off a bit early and stopped at an actual restaurant on the way home. Windy Corner Market was quite tasty. I’d definitely recommend it.

Overall it was a pretty fun short trip full of moderate climbs. It was a good first trip of the year.