Hueco Tanks is a kind of strange place. Even the name is redundant. Hueco means hole, and tanks are water holes. Hole holes? The landscape is flat and barren, with this out cropping of unique rock called syenite. The park itself is also a bit strange. All the corridors and different levels give the park a larger feeling than is suggested by its relatively small footprint. Of course you can't forget about all the rules, many of which I barley understand even after watching the 20 minute orientation video. One thing is certain though, there are plenty of good boulder problems to do.
I have been avoiding Hueco mainly because of the difficult dog situation, but decided I just needed to go anyways. There are so many problems here and I have been trying everything, and mostly not climbing anything. I find with new areas it often takes me some time to adapt. This is especially true for me with much of the climbing in Hueco. I'm just getting worked on all the steep and powerful stuff. Still I have managed to climb some classics like the Egg, and I am really enjoying having so many new problems to work on and figure out.
The Egg V8
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Enzo NahumuryMe about to try the crux move of Alma Blanca v13
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Enzo NahumuryEnzo sticking the crux of Alma Blanca v13
Me realizing how weak I am, trying the big first move on New Religion v7. I eventually sent.
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Enzo NahumuryIf I stick around long enough I'm sure I'll become more conditioned. Then maybe I'll dispatch more of the things I'm psyched on. One thing is for sure though, I'll be leaving here stronger than when I arrived.
As for Karma, her knee seems to be doing much better. I'm letting her run around again, just on good terrain and not too much. Maybe in another month I'll let her do whatever she wants. Also, here is her x-ray for those interested in these things.
According to the vet, the x-ray showed the knee joint to be stable, meaning no fully torn ACL. What struck me was how much smaller the right leg had become, due mostly to her favoring the left leg over the last few weeks.
On an unrelated note, there have been new developments in my ability to attract other vehicles while asleep. Last night makes the 3rd time someone has drove their car or truck into my car while I was sleeping inside.
I awoke last night in the starbucks parking lot to the very unpleasant, although familiar situation, just in time to see some headlights as the car drove off. In my alert but half-awake state, I noticed Karma was also sitting up, ears and eyes perked, confirming what I knew had just happened. I looked at the clock, about 2:30am. Some probably drunk person bumped into me, nothing more to do. As soon as the adrenaline receded, I went back to sleep.
I was surprised to find in the morning that I was hit quite a bit harder than I had thought.
My friend Axel and I were able to bash out the big dent a bit, and there doesn't seem to be any damage that should cause problems. I asked the stores around if they had a camera pointed that direction, but no luck. If I got a plate maybe I could have gotten some insurance money.
For anyone wondering, the last time I was hit was just a fender bender in a camping area. No big deal. The first time however was a bit of a interesting situation, since I was hit by semi-truck.
I was travelling west through Nebraska and had stopped in a rest area. The truck parking area was full and the semis were parking in the car parking. I pulled in, making sure to leave more than enough room between me and the semi in front of me, and went to sleep.
The next thing I remember was waking up to a jolt, and a semi backing into me. Thankfully, the ground was covered in snow and I was just being pushed back. My instinct was to hit the brakes, but I quickly realized that was a bad idea. While continuing to be pushed, I had time to wail on the horn for a while. The semi eventually stopped. I figured he had herd me, but then he just took off driving. I thought, I should follow him, but figured my car was messed up. I ran outside to take a look, and to my surprise there was just a very small scratch on the bumper.
I stood there for a minute, looking around at the other cars and trucks which seemed not to notice anything at all. I drove my car a little to make sure it was fine, and once convinced, continued my drive. Looking back I think another semi must have pulled in, filling is the gap between me and the semi in front of me.
Hopefully this is the last time i'll wake up to a hit and run.
