Am I really doing this?

Next week I leave for Las Vegas, Nevada on a solo trip to explore Red Rocks.  This trip came together for me a couple of months ago as I thought about how I was going to get through the long New England winter without any outdoor climbing?   Simple... I wasn't!

Don't get me wrong -- I love climbing in the gym.  It's very social, relatively safe (when your belay partner is actually paying attention to you & not the hot guy walking by...) & it keeps me active during the week.

But, on the weekends I crave the outdoors.  Winter hike?  No thanks.  I'll happily daydream about an outdoor climbing getaway only "xx" weeks away.  So, without a partner to make this winter dream come true, I started researching Red Rock guiding companies online & decided on the American Alpine Institute.  They're headquartered in Bellingham, WA which is just outside of Seattle & they have some guides located in Las Vegas year round for guiding in Red Rocks.

I just started learning to lead climb & really want to continue my training through the Winter months to be more experienced when Spring rolls around again.  I'll never be a 5.10 lead climber, but I'll be pretty damn happy if I can trad lead a 5.7 or 5.8 route by the end of next Summer (which I feel is my current gym climbing ability).

After signing on for 2 full days of guiding, I received an equipment checklist & proceeded to go to work gathering gear.  Gym climbing for chicks requires minimal climbing gear + spandex pants + sexy tank top.  Outdoor trad climbing, with temperature variants of 20-30 degrees and elevations of 500+ feet, requires special climbing gear (cams, nuts, slings, etc..) multiple technical clothing layers, hydration equipment & nutritional planning.  Oh, and cell phone protection...  I just shelled out $50+ for an Otter Box Defender Series cell phone case that must have doubled the weight of my iPhone5.  I'll do anything for a great climbing pic... stay tuned!

So, while I'm really excited for my solo journey next week... I'm also nervous.  I can only prepare myself physically & mentally so far... (physically, I've been training at the gym every 2-3 days!).  However, when I take a step back & really think about it, I'm putting my life in my own hands & the hands of my guide.  Am I really doing this?  Yes.  And it's going to be awesome!