Baby Elephant

 I am stronger than I've ever been. The other day at Jeff and Sam's I did 10 pullups in a row and it wasn't that hard. I don't think I've ever been able to say that. And I don't really know how this happened, I think it's just from climbing quite a bit outdoors lately. And maybe eating more? 

I've also been doing pushups, the other day I did 80 for example and then yesterday I did a set till failure right before work. What I'm trying to say is that this has contributed to me being stronger than ever, and combine that with having better tactics than ever means I'm climbing the best I've ever climbed.

Of course, I still get shut down by V3's. But that's fine. Some V3's are hard. 

BABY FUCKING ELEPHANT. 

That's what I'm here to talk about today, my new project. My new obsession. Baby Elephant V5 in The Treasury, followed hopefully by Baby Elephant Sit V7. I really think Baby Elephant Sit could be my first V7, though maybe I should try the first move before saying that.

Anyway the reason I want to talk about Baby Elephant is because I couldn't find anything written about it. 

First, a very quick overview of The Treasury. 

If you're coming from Leavenworth, take a right on Tye Road just after cresting Stevens Pass. Then follow Tye Road for 2.3 miles and park on the left just before a big switchback. Or park wherever you want, just off the road. I am not your mother (but I also might be). 

To get to the boulders, follow the trail that starts on the north side of the street across from where I said to park. You should see a sign shortly after starting that says "Wellington Trailhead." This is because you have passed through a portal that transports you to Wellington, New Zealand. You are now a kiwi farmer. You say "fish" like "fush." 

ANYWAY, follow the trail. Cross a big ass log with hash marks knifed into it. Turn right. Keep following the trail. Eventually on the right, in a clearing by a creek, fairies buzzing all around it and guarded by a grumpy bear named Ovid, you will see the River Boulder. This is home of Baby Elephant, my new proj. 

You start on a big ledge, make a "big" move out right, figure out how to get your left heel up (actually quite hard for me), make a really cool move to a sloping edge, and then continue up the arete. It's a classic "big moves between good holds" boulder, AKA my style. So far I've only had one session on it, but I think I've done the crux? Or maybe crux is getting your left heel up and then making the move. Either way I think it will go in the next few sessions, which would be fast and satisfying for a V5 for me. The rock is incredible on this line. The moves are sick. And I can't wait to try the sit after sending the stand. Now, while I'm tempted to say this climb is soft, I think it's just exactly my style. Like I think it's very possible this would be easier for me than say an anti-style V3. 

So that's Baby Elephant, for now. More to come after my next mission, which will probably be tomorrow or Sunday.

Happy 4th, y'all.

"Bears"

Drinking FocusAid at my apartment in Leavenworth and doing pushups. Not a ton of wildlife to talk about today, but I'll see what I can do. 

Updates:

1) "Bears" got into the trash cans at Hannah's place. Now, it's unclear whether these were bears or raccoons. Evidence in favor of bears: these trash cans are massive and heavy and would be tough to tip, and they were indeed tipped over. Evidence in favor of raccoons: Occam's razor, and also I wouldn't put it past raccoons to know how to put their body weights together and move back and forth till the garbage can tipped. They're clever bastards. Of course it's all moot if I tipped the garbage cans over in a prank. 

2) Marmots officially live at Hannah's apt complex (apparently Hannah's apt is a hotbed of wildlife activity). Her dog wants to kill them.

3) HOW COULD I FORGET. Hannah's dog and I got charged by a deer in the field by her house. This is not a euphemism. We literally got charged. We had to step off the path and run laterally to avoid getting hooves in our faces. There was a fawn nearby, and I suspect this deer was one of its parents. Deer in Leavy are cray.

Some other news: I played pickleball this morning without caffeine and played much better. Several data points now in favor of not playing with caffeine. I focused on minimizing unforced errors, and that revolutionized everything. 

Also in other news my finger is healing. Still can't climb but sometime soon. Yesterday I touched real rock and my fingers felt fragile. 

We Saw a Mouse in Canada

 You've probably been wondering: When's the next whereswetzler wildlife update coming??? Well, I shall make you wait no longer -- the next wildlife update is here. This one is going to be packed full of crazy wildlife encounters from all over the Wenatchee Valley and beyond. Just kidding. Mostly kidding. Completely kidding. 

As I write this I'm looking at the basil I transplanted from its "living basil" state at the grocery store to "resident basil" state at my house. Does that count as a wildlife encounter? 

A couple weeks ago Hannah and I were chilling at Mad Meadows here in Leavenworth when I spotted some white blobs on the hillside across the valley. And lo and behold: Our first mountain goat spotting! Add that to the list. Actually, that's basically the only thing on the list so far: mountain goats. Still no bear, still no cougar. I MIGHT'VE seen a coyote the other day in a field outside Chelan. Unconfirmed. And when Hannah and I were chilling near Nighthawk, WA the other day I said, "This feels like wolf country." But obviously there haven't been any wolf sightings yet, or you would've heard about it in a blog entry. I am nothing if not dutiful. 

In other news,  I still need to get binoculars. In other other news, when I went up to Ski Hill today there was a handmade sign that said, "Bear recently in area. Consider bringing bear deterrent." And I hiked on, undeterred. I soon fell in step with some chatty mountain bikers that were about the best bear deterrent possible. I considered telling them so. I feared they would be offended. 

My basil is still in front of me. It's still wild. 

I'm soon to have an encounter with Hannah's dog, who definitely has wild tendencies. 

Also we saw a mouse in Canada. 

OK that's it for now. Time to have some rice. 

Wetzler Wildlife Report #1 (Marmots)

 Dear readers,

My name is Mark Wetzler and on January 1st, 2024 I moved to a small town in the mountains of Central Washington. The following is a report of the wildlife I've seen since then. 

Deer -- Lots of deer. I see tons of deer in town. If you go on any walk of any length there's a good chance you'll see deer.

Marmots -- These ones are harder to spot. They're cute but pretty dumb with cars. Definitely slow down if they look like they're going to cross the road, because they might run straight in front of your tires. 

There was also a marmot living under the garage of my neighbors across the alley. Not sure if it's still there. Haven't seen it in a bit (wanted to say "him" but how the hell do I know if it's male or female). 

Turkey -- Saw lots of wild turkey in the winter, especially in the condo complex near Hannah's apt. Haven't seen them much since the weather has gotten warmer. Presume they've moved somewhere else. 

Redwing Blackbirds -- I'm not much of a birder but I love these birds because they remind me of my youth in Minnesota. Their call especially. You show me a cattail, and I'll show you a redwing blackbird sitting on said cattail (except there are no cattails here so they're mostly on reeds/branches). 

Haven't seen any of the bigger more exciting wildlife yet. Still no bears, cougars or mountain goats. APPARENTLY there are wolves in the area, but I still want to do more research into that. For example the Napeequa "Pack" which is just north of where I live was reported in 2022 but at that time was just two animals, a breeding pair. So, like, the minimum required to be a pack. Seeing a wolf in real life in the wild is one of my greatest dreams in real life. 

Oh also had an awesome coyote encounter back in February, but that was on Bainbridge Island. Though of course I will report on ANY encounters with wildlife here, regardless of where they take place.

In other news I got a job and have barely been playing GeoGuessr. I got paid for the first time today. I'm going sport climbing today. Right now I'm going to drink some tea and maybe go on a walk and do some yoga. 

I wish you all the best.

- Wetzler

Chorizo ahumado and goal-setting in Esquel

 I gave myself the goal of writing a blog post tonight and then completely forgot. But here I am! It's December 3rd, 2023, 10:43pm, dear reader. I'm in Esquel, Argentina, at a placed called Hosteria Las Cachi, run by a lovely couple probably in their 40's. I came for no great reason other than a friend had told me it was cool and I hadn't been here before. The goal was to stay three nights. Tonight is night four. I've met my goal. Setting goals and meeting them makes me feel powerful. Moving toward a goal makes me feel like I have purpose. Like the goal I'm moving toward right now, fasting for 36 hours. I've been fasting for 25, and basically just need to go to bed, wake up, and then I can have breakfast at 9:45am. The plan is to only have eggs and mate for breakfast, and then the rest of the day no grains/junk food. So for lunch -- well, lets be real, I'll probably have two lunches -- it'll be that chorizo ahumado con papas españolas at PilPil, and then food from a grocery store or ideally just a similar dish at a different restaurant. I can't have beer, only wine. God I hope to god Mijal is at the climbing gym tomorrow. Pretty much the only reason I'm going. I've felt a bit desperate with that whole thing. 

Oh, you know what I should do? I should just get an early lunch at PilPil, chill for a bit, and then order a second lunch. I mean, shit, they're open from 9am to 1130pm. But also I need to go by the aduana tomorrow and also possibly rent a car and drive to Piedra Parada or Los Alerces. 

As far as getting home from Argentina, I just need to make a decision. Checking flights every day and waffling back and forth between Santiago and Buenos Aires doesn't feel good. Am I flying from Esquel to BA? Taking a bus to Bariloche and then to Puerto Varas? I need give myself a timeline for making the decision. 

I'm excited to get home to Washington. Not excited to chill on the boat, but hopefully I can mostly avoid that. Hopefully I can get an apartment in Leavenworth. It's daunting and overwhelming moving to a new place. What if I'm super lonely? What if I have no community? But I've made the decision, set the goal, and it feels good to move toward it, to know I'm getting off the boat. Moving toward the goal of Leavenworth feels like moving forward. 

Mijal, que diablos paso?