Pawtuckaway, NH

After about a week in Vermont, Erika and I spent four days in New Hampshire, three of which were spent climbing at Pawtuckaway. This place is one of my favorite climbing areas in the world. It's always great to come back here, especially during the crisp days of fall. The trees are glowing, the granite feels sticky and the smell of wood fires permeates the air. It feels like home.

Erika Curry-Elrod- 'Scared For Life' (v0)

'Provia' (v6)

'Crimp Problem Sit Start' (v6)

'Edges' (v2)

'Cause For Commotion' (v2)

A three photo sequence of a fun v3

'Atlas' (v6)

Montreal

Due to our location just south of Burlington, we were also able to make a quick day trip up to Montreal. Crossing the border into Quebec is always a unique experience, as English abruptly gives way to French and the Vermont countryside slowly morphs into a cobble stone street city with a very European feel. Montreal is definitely a charming city. Walking the narrow alleys of the old town, one can easily be fooled into thinking they've detoured through France. Yet this city retains it's North American character and comes out as something uniquely its own. Erika and I had a wonderful time eating crepes and poutine, walking along the riverfront and exploring the many shops and museums.

McKenzie Pond, NY

While in Vermont, we took the car ferry from Charlotte to Essex, New York in order to spend a day climbing at McKenzie Pond. The ride across Lake Champlain provided stunning views of the Adirondacks and the fall foliage was in full bloom. We stopped for coffee in Lake Placid and then spent the afternoon enjoying the crisp granite blocks of McKenzie Pond. Another perfect day.

Erika Curry-Elrod floating 'Makaia's Problem' (v1)

A four photo sequence of 'Slobadon' (v5)

Adirondack Granite

Smuggler's Notch, VT

Erika and I began our our six weeks of adventure in the state of Vermont. In between eating maple syrup covered pancakes and staring wondrously at the kaleidoscopic fall colors, we managed a bit of climbing. Here are some photos from one of the days we spent playing around on the perfect schist boulders of Smuggler's Notch.

'Nemesis' (v5)

'One Eyed Monster' (v5)

'Jane Fonda' (v0)

'Pac Man' (v4)

'The Roots' (v5)

Joe's Valley

'UMWA Problem' (v1)

'UMWA Problem' (v1)

Erika and I met up for a few days of climbing in Joe's Valley. The weather was a bit on the warm side, but it was still a great trip. I climbed a number of projects and made progress on some others. Erika climbed her first v2, and left with enough projects to entice her to return. We didn't take a lot of photos, but here are a few we took on the last day.

'Sun In My Eye' (v4)

'Fuchsia' (v4)