Keith, Dave and Mark at Peterskill

The plan was to spend a few hours Saturday at Peterskill climing on our own. Then on the Sunday the 3 of us would, with a guide, climb a couple of multi-pitches on some of the Shawangunk's bigger (200-300 ft) cliffs.  Sunday didn't happen - due to rain.

Saturday though was great.  The skies cleared soon after we arrived at Peterskill (around 2pm).  The sun came out and temperatures rose to near 70F.   We found some 40ft cliff sections where could walk around the back and tie a top rope.  Our first climb proved to be a little tougher than expected.   But we did allright with it - aside from a few cuts and scrapes.  As we climbed more and became less tense, the climbing became easier.

I didn't put in our top anchors quite as well as I should have.   They were safe - but not particularly friendly to the trees nor to our climbing rope.  We know better now.

We wrapped things up after about 3 hours.   Dave, Mark and I all had great fun.  It was a most excellent outing.

We stayed at the Superlodge in Kingston - it used to be a Howard Johnson's.  It was a decent place.  The Olympic Diner, just across the road, had good service and very good food.   I had broiled salmon with artichokes and potatoes.  Salad and desert were included, at a cost of about $16.

Rain fell through most of the night and continued into the morning.  At 9am we met our Mountain Skills guide, Dustin, at Rock and Snow. We all agreed that climbing would be better rescheduled for another day.

Dustin pointed us in the direction of the R&S consignment store for climbing equipement. We bought caribiners, helmets and a few other items then hit the road for the 3 hr drive home.

We stopped for lunch at the Ground Round near the mall in Binghamton.  The food was great.  I highly recommend the PBR burger - the flavor of the peppers was out of this world, the burger juicy and the bacon crisp and tasty.