Tour of the Dirty South 2010 - Rock Town, HP40, Red River and Lilly

OP will be again offering; The Tour of the Dirty South

This can be taken as a class too, 1 credit hour!

The southern climbing and bouldering trip or(Tour of the Dirty South) is December 26th- January 2. This is a one week long climbers dream. By the end of the week you will have been to Rock town Georgia, Lilly Boulders Tennessee , and last but not least  Horse Pins 40 Alabama at stop on the Triple Crown Series. All of these places are world class climbing destinations and have plenty of climbing for beginners to advanced climbers, whether your touching real rock for the first time or a V12 pulling mutant, you will find something to test your grip on.  This trip is full of great climbing, good people, and new experiences.


We travel by school van, with a box trailer for all of our gear, meaning we camp in style.  We spend the days climbing, nights by the fire, and crash in tents for a well earned rest.  We cook breakfasts and dinners as a group, eat as a group, all of a menu picked and planned by our experienced and dedicated staff.  If you have ever been on a HCOP trip, you know we don't mess around when it comes to food.  We plan and prepare hearty meals, that we refuel you for future sends.  Winter Bouldering? Cold? Don't worry about the cold, in only make the friction that much better! We also bring trick of the trade with us, we have more then one way to stay warm while climbing, and more then enough extra sleeping bags to keep you toasty at night.

There is no reason why you should miss this trip.  Even our "Little Justin", will be attending this trip again, only this time he will be a assistant trip leader, bringing with him the lessons learned from last years tour.

So don't miss this opportunity to see some of what the South has to offer in this non-stop climbing extravaganza.

Total Cost: $160 a person

Deposit: $55 due Friday Dec 10th

Pre-trip Meeting: Monday Dec 13 @5pm

· Open to all Hocking Students

· Gear Provided

· Most Meals Provided (fee covers breakfast and dinner every day)

· No Experience Necessary

· Beautiful Outdoor Setting

· Depart: Sunday Dec 26 @10am

· Return: Saturday Jan 2 @ 10pm

So if you already love to climb or even if you've never really tried it and you want to go, feel free to contact the Outdoor Pursuits Coordinator Tim Rice by Email at rice_timmy@gmail.com or phone 753-6541


Want some more info on the areas we might visit?  Check out these extra links:
HP40 on MP,
Rocktown on MP,
Lost Wall at Rock Town on MP,
Pdf for Lilly Boulders,
Lilly Bouldering on RC.com.
Lilly Bouldering Video on LT11

Mount Rogers Backpacking Trip

On the morning of Friday, November 19th the sun was shining as the Outdoor Pursuits crew loaded up a van for a weekend of backpacking along the Appalachian Trail in Virginia. The group arrived at the trailhead at dusk and quickly set off for the first campsite. Friday night the temperatures were a little colder than anticipated as we set up camp by flashlight under the bright southern stars. As we ate dinner, we were treated to a show of stealth bombers flying low overhead in what seemed to be a training exercise.

Day two of the trip began with high winds putting our tents to the test and we worked together to break camp without letting anything blow away. Encounters with the area’s famous wild ponies lightened the mood as we pushed on toward our destination. The sun peaked through clouds on a few occasions, adding some much appreciated warmth to the climb toward the summit of Mount Rogers. We made it to the highest point in the state of Virginia for a nice relaxing lunch, enjoying the fruits of our labor at 5,729 ft. above sea level.

The weather had improved by the time we reached our second campsite, and the nearly full moon rose above us as we told jokes and ate some delicious snacks around the campfire. Everyone slept much better the second night because we had all worked hard and it was such a calm and peaceful night.

Our second campsite was still a decent day’s hike from the van, so we had little time to waste as we packed up on the final day. There was, however, plenty of time for a trailside lunch, photos of the spectacular views along the way, and a lot of laughs before we wrapped up the last Outdoor Pursuits backpacking trip of 2010.

This past weekend Outdoor Pursuits hopped in the wagon and scooted on down to the Red River Gorge of Kentucky. Along the way, we made a pit-stop at Hillbilly Hotdogs in West Virginia, where the brave few try to demolish the Home-wrecker, a 15 pound hotdog, loaded with toppings.

It was a beautiful weekend, with the rain holding off until Sunday. We woke up Saturday and set out for a day at the crag. With good weather in our hands, we climbed all day. Everyone got to climb something that they enjoyed.

Sunday we awoke to a bit of rain, but we didn’t let that hold us back. We climbed in areas where the rain couldn’t get to. It was a great way to spend the weekend, with a rad group of people. Hope to see you guys next time!

Coopers Rock Trip Review

On Tuesday OP and some students took advantage of the class free day to go work some boulders at Coopers Rock WV. It was early and cold Tuesday morning when we packed up the van and started our trip to go climb for the day. Arriving to a awesome fall day at Coopers Rock couldnt have been better. Everyone had their eyes set on some problems that they wanted to climb. The climbing started at a gnarly V5 cleverly named helicopter while others climbed a classic V3 called Moby's Dick. Everyone climbed until there tips were purple. We left at night after several hours of some awesome climbing and headed to The Black Bear Burrito. The burritos were awesome and everyone was ready to head home. Stomachs full of burritos, we packed into the van a interesting ride back to hocking. This trip was a great one and I would like to give a big thanks to everyone who came and I cant wait for another adventure.

Kinetic Columbus Trip Report

On Thursday the 28 of October, we took a group of students up to Kinetic annual climbing competition, "CRANK-O-WEEN".  This is the second year that we have attended the event, which is a bouldering comp, hosted by Kinetic of Columbus, which is a climbing COOP.  They order new holds, strip their wall and set 48 fresh problems to test the strengths of those that attend. 

Check out this video from columbus alive about the event.


Kinetic Climbing Comp from columbus alive on Vimeo.

More photos can be seen at Kinetic's Facebook Page.

The contingency of climbers that we took down did very well, with someone placing in every division!!

Climbing Club Athens Bouldering Trip Review

On Oct 20th we packed up the van and climbing club went to Athens to crush on some local rock. We set off for the Trailer Park area to intruduce our participants to some problems they have never worked before.

Our first stop was the birds nest area everyone was eager to get on Tarzan a V4 and on Birds Nest another V4. We worked our fingers until it was night fall and everyone sent a problem they wanted or put a new boulder on there list. The crew hiked out of the woods to get some grub at some local burrito spots. It was a great way to spend a Wednesday afternoon and cant wait to do another one.

Bike Day Trip to Lake Hope SP

November 7th

Join us for a great day of biking on the trails at Lake Hope State Park. There are many mountain bike trails, one for every skill level. No equipment? No problem, we have bikes and gear for you to borrow to join in the fun. Join us on this fun filled day of biking.
Cost $10