Chambers

There's been a lot of talk floating around about this one over the last year, and I was anxious to finally get my shot in it. The slot intrigued me for two reasons; possibly the most aesthetic slot in the Roost, and extremely photogenic. Not to mention, it has some very fun climbing obstacles.

After rearranging our plans for Day 1 due to concerns over possible water, we were relieved to find everything basically dry in NEEP, and figured Chambers was in good condition as well. The weather was still brutally cold, and I was unwilling to even budge from my warm bed until 10 a.m. Being unsure of how the cold weather would effect us midcanyon, we set up contingency plans for a fixed line midcanyon if we needed to jug out, and afixed a backpack to the line with all sorts of gear to get us through the night if a worst case scenario developed.

By around noon, we were all set and ready to drop in. Chambers is really quite short, so getting a late start was a compromise between warmer temperatures and shorter hours of daylight. It is the perfect cold-weather slot.

After fixing the line midcanyon, we headed to the drop-in spot. The slot literally drops right into the ground with a nice elevator. The temptation to stem high for the first hundred yards or so turns out to be a bad choice. I know, as I got stuck above a flare. Fortunately, I was able to get a partner assist from below, and it was no big deal. Definitely more excitement than I wanted though.

Immediately, the slot is the business. You can characterize the canyon with two sections. The first is very tight and squeezy, with some very easy off the deck stuff. The second, after the fantastic chambers, is more of an "R" canyon, a few strenuous upclimbing moves, one significant silo, and plenty of off the deck stemming. Both sections are really good.

We moved through the first section quickly, and I enjoyed the photogenic qualities of the slot. The chambers were simply fantastic, and definitely worthy of the hype. I only wish I had a tripod with me to do it more justice. Maybe next time.

The frozen few arrived back at camp as the sun was setting, just in time to break camp and get the hell out of there. I was cold and tired of the wind, and hoped Sandthrax would provide some better conditions.