Author: Brittany Goris

In a cabinet next to the bed in my van lives a very small collection of books. The collection includes a rotating cast of crossword puzzles and journals, but for lack of space few have made the cut as long-term residents. Hangdog Days by Jeff Smoot, Climbing Free by Lynn Hill, Advanced Rockcract by Royal … Continue reading The Index T-Shirt

The faint taste of peanut butter, the warmth of the early morning sun, the feeling of callused hands against my back as my partner Harrison kissed me goodbye on the 3rd of April, 2021. I had only been in Las Vegas for three weeks, a short stay by my usual travel patterns, but after six … Continue reading The Salathé

Every fall I’ve developed something of an annual bad habit. I bee-line for the Creek with no plan for the Creek with no plan other than to stay there until winter manages to creep its icy tendrils so deep into the sandstone that I have no choice but to leave at the last possible moment. … Continue reading The Impossible Dream

Climbing highlights from a long and fruitful season in Indian Creek I often tend to wax poetic when I talk about Indian Creek, telling romantic tales of this place’s immeasurable beauty, unmatched and endless crack climbing, unshakable community, or the way all these things make me feel like I’m living out the part of my … Continue reading From Indian Creek, With Love

Around 10pm I slipped away from the campfire to go watch a few office re-runs for the billionth time before bed. When there’s no service, you have to make do with whatever you downloaded on your last rest day… a year ago. Laying in bed, I opened an app on my phone to jot down … Continue reading You’ll Never Be a Wrestler

There aren’t a lot of places where it can be eighty degrees one day and below twenty and snowing the next, but the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains is one of them. In a divergence from my usual summer station in the Pacific Northwest, I found myself in Vedauwoo, Wyoming at the beginning of … Continue reading Dirtbag Date Night

*Edit- This post was written in the spring of 2020, during the initial outbreak of COVID-19. At the time, I did not want to publish the actual identities of my friends in this story, because it was that taboo to be on the road climbing that I was afraid to incriminate them by even including … Continue reading On The Run

Stingray and a season in Joshua Tree. Because the climb was more than just the climb, it was everything that happened in between burns. “Index isn’t known for splitters (perfect cracks). That’s okay, because I’m not much known for climbing splitters in the first place.” Almost two years ago I wrote these words in a … Continue reading The Desert Has Made Me: Stingray

The Life of a Hand Jammie "Closer to the skin is better," my friend Nick teased on more than one occasion as I strapped on my rubber Ocun hand jammies (protective and grip enhancing crack climbing gloves) for another perfect Indian Creek splitter. Each time I would laugh, roll my eyes, and insist that I … Continue reading Closer to the Skin