One of the inescapable truths in life is that history repeats itself. Almost 3 years ago, I made my first trip to the infamous Colorado area called Morrison. I tried Center Route, the classic V10 of the area. Two days later, I took an unlucky fall in the gym and suffered an ankle injury that ended up taking almost a year to recover from.

About a week ago, I returned to Morrison for my second day of climbing at the area. I climbed on Center Route and had a great time laughing with friends, including Alex Johnson. She and I (half) jokingly vowed to make that our last day at Morrison since we had completed our main objective, Center Route. Two days later, I took an unlucky fall in the gym and suffered another ankle injury. Luckily, this one wasn't nearly as bad as the first. Good thing, because I was less than 48 hours away from a trip to Fontainebleau.

Last time I was in Fontainebleau was after 4 weeks in Switzerland in 2008. I was very tired, and really ready to be home. It was raining in Fontainebleau, which was the first rain we had seen on the trip. I approached Font with a poor attitude. I knew the area was amazing, but I didn’t take the time to see everything Font had to offer. In short, I was a grump.

This time around, I approached the trip to Font as an opportunity to change gears and step away from a summer spent trying and failing on a single boulder problem. I was ready to climb on fun, easy boulders, and I knew Font would be the perfect place to do that. I have approached certain trips in the past with this same intention, but I often get side tracked trying boulders that are hard for me and end up sacrificing a certain amount of relaxation and enjoyment as a result. Hurting my ankle before this trip ensured that I would not stray from my casual approach, because the option of falling unexpectedly on something hard or tall (or both) was eliminated.

So far I have spent 2 days climbing in Fontainebleau. Already, I am seeing this place in a whole new light. Instead of deciding what to climb on based on grades like I admittedly did for a good portion of my last trip, we have just walked around trying anything and everything that looks short and fun. I have climbed on many amazing little boulders that I overlooked in 2008. I am having a wonderful time flailing on lowball warm-ups that are certainly no harder than V5. It is nearly impossible to comprehend how some of the shapes here formed, and many of the holds are like nothing I have ever seen.

I am looking forward to 4 more days of climbing on the seemingly endless supply of boulders that hide in the beautiful forest of Fontainebleau.