Kevin Jorgeson

It's that time of year again: Valley season! Tommy and I will be in Yosemite for all of October and November trying to finish off the Dawn Wall/Mescalito Project. I'm packing up everything I need for the next two months: ropes, fresh shoes, haul bags, rack, tons of chalk, and a whole summer's worth of psyche. I think about El Cap every day. I even dreamt about the first traverse pitch a couple nights ago. The pitch ends standing at a no hands rest on a 9 inch wide foot ledge. You're smack in the middle of the blankest part of the wall, surrounded by a sea of granite, strangely comfortable. In my dream, I made it through all the cruxes and was rocking onto the foot ledge (also quite hard) when I finally stood up, only to realize that I was so precariously perched I couldn't reach to clip the anchors without falling! Noooooooo!!!!  While in Colorado this summer, Tommy and I did a long interview with Dougald McDonald in Estes Park. The interview and photos (from Tim Kemple and Corey Rich) just hit the newstands in the October issue of Climbing Magazine. I was worried about all the press this project has been receiving, especially considering the fact that it is still a project. I didn't want it to create the expectation and pressure of completion. Instead, To my relief, it feels like there is an overwhelming level of support, energy and encouragement. This goes a long way when the going gets tough, so thank you.