There is a lot of work involved in opening a new area. It is usually enjoyable being outside and cutting a new trail or assessing new lines. Then there are things that are just hard work...like cleaning a face. This usually involves removing loose rocks, vegetation, dirt and other debris. We use wire brushes, crowbars and small tools to get into constricted areas. Nobody wants this stuff falling on them while they climb.
Every now and again, we get to do some fun cleaning. There was a line we were interested in but it seemed like a couple of blocks may have been loose. To see if they really are loose, we will use big prybars and/or car jacks to see if they will wiggle...It wiggled. Now there is no turning back, we can't leave a loose block. We worked on this block for over an hour and finally it tumbled off. It struck two other blocks on the way down and changed the entire middle half of the climb. It was by far the biggest rock fall I have witnessed.
While we were working, I noticed the block I was standing on shifted. We had another block to remove. This one came easy as it had been supported by the other block we knocked off. I didn't have my camera ready for the first one, but I got it ready for the second.
The video shows Jan prying off the second block. It was about 1/3rd the size of the first one and didn't hit any other blocks...but it was still impressive.
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