Look for Western Gold right here at savagefilms.net on HD Download and DVD April 22nd. If you live in the Southeast, check out the world premiere in Chattanooga at the TBA Bouldering Gym on April 21st!

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Alex Savage attempting Barn Door 2000

This was a very well known project at Little Rock City for years and years. The wall starts with a slopey seam which stops halfway up the wall to leave a four foot section of blankness. Many people had tried it, several had been close but Jimmy finally claimed the FA in October.

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I know what you’re thinking after watching that video, it’s looks easy, right? WRONG! Don’t be fooled by Jimmy. He’s one of the most talented climbers in the country and he is VERY good at dynos.

Since the first ascent, the boulder has been climbed once, by visiting Ty Landman who managed to put it down in about an hour which was very impressive to see!

A few other locals have been putting in a lot of effort on the line, Rami Annab in particular is really close to snatching the last hold.

Rami Working Barn Door 2000

Rami and Ethan have come really close to sticking the dyno but it’s such a bizarre move that actually hanging onto the small crimp you are jumping for is surprisingly difficult.

Ethan Pringle staring down Barn Door

Ethan Pringle

Ethan Pringle attempting Barn Door 2000

Looks like he stuck it!

Ethan

Ethan

Ethan was able to get to the dyno on his second try but after three days of effort couldn’t pull off the send. Cold temps are quickly disappearing in the South so Barn Door may have to wait until next year for another ascent.

I’ve been living in Chattanooga Tennessee for the past seven weeks. It has been amazing. It’s a great size city at around 500,000 people. Very little traffic but you have access to all the amenities you need. I grew up climbing in the south but was always in Atlanta where four hours of driving is required to go climbing. Chattanooga has tons of bouldering, sport, and trad climbing within a 40 minute drive and it’s my favorite stone in the world. Amazing, grippy sandstone.

Cody Rony on Super Mario Brothers

Little Rock City (aka Stone Fort) is the main bouldering area of Chattanooga but there are lots of other smaller zones nearby which I had never checked out. Pep Boys is a beautiful area with lots of steep climbing. There is an unreal V9 with 20+ moves out a massive roof. There is some name confusion with this boulder. It’s commonly known as Salo’s roof but I’m being told that it was first climbed by Andrew Gross years before Andy Salo visited the area. So it’s actually called Gross’s Roof.

Greg Ward on Gross's Roof

Todd Clark at Pep Boys

Rocktown is another bouldering destination only 45 minutes south of Chattanooga and boasts a number of classics.

Golden Throttle. Photo by Les Warnock

Alex Savage on Rescue 911. Photo by Les Warnock.

Rescue 911. Photo by Les Warnock.

Western Gold, a feature-length North American bouldering film, will be released on HD Download and DVD in early 2012. Experience the beauty of bouldering in an action packed film set in the stunning locations of Red Rocks Nevada, Castle Rocks Idaho, Leavenworth Washington, and Squamish British Columbia. From the hardest to the tallest the West Coast has to offer, get ready to see something new.

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Alex Savage on the OG boulder V10

Snytonga V9

Snytonga

Mike Snyder on his problem Snytonga

Resolution V5

Resolution

My video from Cody is in the works. Hoping to publish it within the next two weeks.

I spent last week hiking with my mom in North Carolina. It’s beautiful country, especially this time of year with vibrant colors littering the hillsides.

Linville Gorge

My Mom enjoying a waterfall

I just arrived back in Atlanta today. Planning to stick around the south for the winter.

When I left Cody, my plan was to spend a week in Colorado before heading home to Atlanta. I spent one night in Denver but some of my plans fell through I didn’t want to go climbing in Colorado by myself so I decided to head home early.

At some point while driving through Kansas I started trying to think of other areas I could hit up on the way. It just so happened that the Red River Gorge was more or less en route. Then I remembered that my friend Carmen was planning on going to the Red. A couple texts later and I learned he was driving there the following day. After three LONG days of driving from Cody Wyoming I found myself rolling into Miguel’s on a Saturday night. I haven’t been to the Red in five years and I was not expecting the insanity I encountered at Miguel’s. The parking lot was well past capacity, and lines for pizza stretched outside the building. I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen that many climbers in one place. Climbing on Sunday was a madhouse with lineups on every line at the crag we went to.

Carmen Ing

Natalie Hunter

Luckily the crowds died down during the week which made for a much more natural climbing experience. I mostly climbed with Carmen who I met in Squamish and another Torontonian, Natalie. Considering I hadn’t done any sport climbing in 2.5 years, I wasn’t expecting much! I managed to repeat Fuzzy Undercling which is a pumpy 11b and on the second day I fell at the anchors on a 90-foot 12a which I was pretty stoked about! It was fun to mix things up and clip some bolts. On day three I couldn’t shake the pump from my forearms but I did get on an amazing 12c called Malice. I went bolt to bolt on it and one section took me awhile to get through but I was super psyched when I got to the top. Amazing full value route with a blank vertical section at the top.

Natalie

We had two forced rest days due to freezing rain that was coming down sideways. I had a fun last day climbing some 10s and 11s and getting back on Malice. Malice felt really easy compared to the other day but somewhere around the 5th or 6th bolt I got pumped and fell. After resting for a few minutes I cruised up to the top. Classic boulderer.

Carmen working Kaleidoscope

Kaleidoscope 13c

The Red is a phenomenal place. It’s gorgeous in the fall with splashes of red, orange, and yellow throughout the forest. There are so many crags, it’s hard to keep track of them all. It’s like Fontainebleau but for sport climbing. It was great to climb on some long routes and work on my endurance. I’m not about to project a 5.14 but am psyched to at least get back to the sport climbing shape I was in a few years ago and maybe even progress to a solid 13a climber at some point in the future.

Natalie

Natalie & Selene getting their yoga on

From the Red I headed south to North Carolina to do some hiking with my mom for her birthday and then I’ll finally be making my return to Atlanta, just over a year since I started my North American tour.

I heard about a sandstone bouldering area just an hour from Yellowstone and I thought I had better check it out while I was in the area. I would rather see a new place than go back to an area where I’ve spent a lot of time. I like to travel in case you hadn’t guessed that already! You never know what to expect when hitting a new place and that’s what keeps things interesting.

Marc

I found a few Wyoming bouldering blogs and sent some messages out to get in touch with the locals.  The next day I had a few phone numbers and the local Cody guys sounded psyched to show me around their boulderfield.

Wyoming has a very unique feel to it. There aren’t many people and the land is primarily wide open landscapes. Wyoming has the lowest population of any state in the US, with a whopping 500,000 people calling it their home. Maybe it’s cliche to say but it feels very ‘western’. Lots of open space, lots of horses, and lots of big ole trucks. It’s truly a beautiful part of the country and definitely worth traveling to.

The bouldering is a short five minute drive from the town of Cody.  The rock is very similar to Joe’s Valley and Red Rocks. Some of it is very high quality desert sandstone but a lot of it isn’t quite up to par with Joe’s Valley.

Cody rock

I got the full tour from my new friends including the classics and even some highball choss. I climbed several rad lines in the V9/10 range that were well worth the trip. It was a good time all around and I felt very fortunate to hang out with a great group of guys during my stay. Expect to see a short film from Cody featuring Marc Nardacci in the coming weeks.

Clint

Flying Marc

Marc

Yellowstone exists constantly.  It exists without people.  Yet for a moment you can jump into the beauty that lies within.

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I left Squamish last week on my long journey back east to Atlanta to catch up on family time and to edit my film. My plan for the trip was to stop in Yellowstone for a few days before heading to Denver to spend a couple weeks climbing in Colorado.

the road

At some point while driving through Montana I started wondering if there was any bouldering to be done there. A quick google search yielded a Montana bouldering blog which indicated there was a bouldering spot a mere three miles off the interstate near Butte. I’d never heard of any bouldering in Montana but I had to at least check it out, right?

What I found were interesting pancake shaped boulders sticking out of the ground. Most were vertical but a few were sticking out like flying saucers.

Unfortunately the rock was subpar granite. Not bad but not solid either. I climbed a few boulders, got scared when smears crumbled high off the ground, worked on a taller crimp line, and finished the day on the overhaning wall below.

It looks like a rad overhang but on closer inspection you find some of the sharpest holds known to man.

I managed to hang on to the sharpness to get to the top of the boulder but only because I didn’t want to try it again! I’m guessing it’s in the V8/9 range but who knows.

I only sampled a small area so I can’t comment on all of Montana bouldering, I can just say that the small group of boulders I climbed near Butte weren’t of the highest quality. After my half-day of climbing in Montana I headed south to Yellowstone which is in the northwest corner of Wyoming.

I ventured into Yellowstone without a plan of any sort. I don’t recommend this. The park is vast and takes hours to drive through. There is so much to see, it’s overwhelming. I spent three days in the park and just scratched the surface of what’s out there. I spent all of my time filming the amazing scenery and wildlife. From the geysers, canyons, waterfalls, bison, elk, mountains and landscapes. I’ve almost finished this short film and I’m VERY excited about it.  If you ever get the chance to visit Yellowstone, don’t hesitate.

A lone bison

Bison

Elk