Most rock climbers know to be cautious when climbing on Cannon Cliff, but this is underscored when you see loose talus with bolts in place. Taken in September of 2004, this photo shows some talus below Cannon Cliff in Franconia Notch, New Hampshire. The climbers are Jennifer Tennican and Will Mayo, we were heading up to climb some pitches for Jennifer’s film Benedictus.

Photo Details: Nikon F100 with 17-35mm f/2.8 AF-S lens and Fuji slide film.

Bernadette Regan on Nobody Walks in LA (5.9). December 15, 2009. Joshua Tree National Park, California.

Photo Details: Panasonic Lumix LX3 in 16:9 ratio format, 1/800s @ f/5.6 and ISO 80, basic B&W conversion in Photoshop.

This photo is of the rock climbing route Touchstone Wall (V 5.8 C2 or 5.13b) on the Cerberus Gendarme cliff in Zion National Park, Utah. The route mostly follows a crack system in the middle of the photo, you’ll probably be able to pick it out.

Photo Details: 3 vertical photos taken with Canon SD800 IS, 1/400s @ f/5.8, joined in Photoshop Photomerge.

Heading way back into the archives, this photo is from March of 1999. Taken near the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro (19,340′) in Tanzania, you’re looking at penitentes and ice layers in the margin of the Southern Icefield. You can also see the summit of Mount Meru at 14,980′ on the horizon.

Photo Details: I think this was taken with an Olympus Stylus Epic point and shoot with Fuji slide film.

*Update* Sarah’s book Flakes, Jugs, and Splitters won Best Book in the Mountain Exposition category at the 2009 Banff Mountain Film Festival!

Flakes, Jugs, and Splitters is A Rock Climber’s Guide to Geology by Sarah Garlick. This is a great book if you are a rock climber, geologist, or just interested in the processes that have shaped the Earth. As a geology major in my college days, it was great to refresh my knowledge of the different climbing areas I’ve visited. I’ll post a few of the photos that I have in the book below (along with Sarah’s text). You should go find this book at a local store or order from the Amazon link above.

Shiprock, in northwest New Mexico, is the eroded neck of a volcano.

The North Fork of the Virgin River has rapidly cut down through the soft sedimentary rocks of the Colorado Plateau, forming the big walls of Zion National Park.

Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania is a stratovolcano.