As I mentioned in my previous Red Chili blog the bouldering at the Buttermilks is good but Little Cottonwood Canyon is better. Not only is there as much to do in LCC as in the Buttermilks but the granite is also better. The quality of the rock is very similar to Yosemite or Cresciano in Switzerland, it's smooth, compact granite which is much less abusive on the finger tips than the granite at the Buttermilks. I think the only reason you don't hear as much about it as say the Buttermilks or Hueco is because it's not a place where people go and visit, hang out and climb like they do at Hueco or the Buttermilks. I guess this is because it is very near Salt lake City and there is no central place for people to meet and hang out before or after climbing. Whatever, if you are visiting or travelling in the states you should check out LCCand bouldering in Utah in general because there is also some great stuff to do at Joe's Valley and Ibex which are only 3 hours from LCC. A copy of the new guide book "Bouldering in Utah" should get you going.

The highlight of the trip was bagging the 1st ascent of Eclipse. Although in the end it went at a modest 8a+/V12 this arete had generally become know as one of the last great problems in the canyon and was obvious to everyone who visited the area. I think arete climbs are quite possibly my favourite style of climbing. They look the best and require a very unique style of climbing. Eclipse was no different. Check out the video footage in the video section for a little taster of what LCC bouldering is like. Both Eclipse and Prime Rib are classic problems and shows just what LCC has to offer.