Monday... Jannette was flying down today. I had promised her I would meet her at the campgound.
Bob, Roger and I had decided to do The Spires this day. This was a BEAUTIFUL formation back in the canyon. Two spires that rose about 200 feet. A really lovely formation....with a number of routes on it
The approach seemed hellish. But it was just me...having a bad day. Roger got us to the base of the climb we wanted. There was a party just starting up the climb we wanted. We really wanted that particular route so we decided to wait for it. The route is called "Aguja Celo Rey". There is a detailed account of it on Day 4 (02/19/02) when I climbed it with Jannette. This route is a must do if you go to Potrero. It was my favorite route of the trip. I led pitch one, a 5.10, and Bob led the sweet summit pitch also a 5.10.
After we rapped off, I hiked back to the campground to meet Jannette. Roger and Bob went over and did "Jungle Boy" I believe.
Ethan, Bob and Roger were already down at Potrero Chico and I was going to meet them down there today. I left Monday February 18th at 6am for the airport to give myself 2 hours to experience the new security measures at the airport and beyond having a bit of a longer line through the X-Ray machines and being "wanded", it wasn't too bad. The flight was fine, uneventful, and I arrived in Monterrey on time.
I had made a taxi reservation with Rancho Cerro Gordo to get me there. I saw some guys holding signs with names on them, but by the time I got my luggage and passed customs, they were all gone! I didn't know if my ride was just a little late, so I sat around for a while and went through my spanish dictionary to come up with the words I would need to reserve a different cab. There was a desk with taxi companies shouting out their services to the passengers, all competing with each other. I wandered over there and mumbled something like "I reserved a taxi, but it not here! I go to Potrero Chico". One of the guys spoke English, they knew what I was talking about and 350 pesos later (approx $35), I had myself a taxi. The driver was so so nice, he barely spoke any English and I only had vague memories of what I learned in high school, but we still managed to have a nice conversation. He then tried to explain to me that if I wanted to go via the highway it would cost $5. I was trying to figure out if he was trying to screw me for some extra money or if he was talking about toll. My phrase book didn't have "toll booth" in it. But highway was "mas rapido". Would save "veinte minutos". 20 minutes, I wanted to get there, so after he pulled over and we had a bi-lingual broken English/Spanish discussion, I believed him and agreed. Sure enough, there was a toll booth, he took my pesos and gave me the change. Very sweet man, I have his business card if anyone wants a recommendation for a taxi service.
So I arrive at Rancho Cerro Gordo, and was so happy to see Ethan waiting for me. He already got a campground spot for me and pitched the tent (he carried it in his luggage for me since I had so much to carry without any help and he was traveling with a group). My luggage on wheels was useless on the rocky trails in the campground, so I was very happy to have some help schlepping my tons of gear to my tent. Better than wandering around the campground aimlessly looking for a tent with my tent bag in it. Bob and Roger were still climbing. After I got settled, Ethan and I walked to the cliffs so he could show me around.
We located Bob and Roger on the Jungle Wall, and headed to dinner at Checo's. Checo's was perfectly situated between the cliffs and the campground. It was a small restaurant with tables inside and outside and run by Checo and his wife, who were the owners, hosts, waiters and cooks. Checo spoke enough English to get by, taking our orders by having us fill out a little ticket and letting us self-serve our beverages. He was always smiling, always pleasant. Service was really slow, but no one minded. He had his hands full, and everyone was happy to relax with a beer after climbing all day. Ethan had already befriended everyone there that week, and we already knew a handful of people there who are Gunks regulars. Food was excellent, chips were greasy, beer was cold, company was pleasant. Life is good.
Then everyone was off to an early bed, the place was pretty quiet by 10pm, everyone psyched to get an early start on the excellent climbing. I know I certainly was!