エミリー・ハリントンさんのインスタグラム写真 - (エミリー・ハリントンInstagram)「#RequiredRewind 2009 Venezuela: 📸 @BooneSpeed I was 22 and completely lost when @andrewbisharat invited me to Venezuela for an article he was writing for @rockandice (#180). Competition climbing was all I had done for most of my career and it had begun to feel monotonous. A trip to a place I’d never even considered visiting with a random group of people I didn’t know seemed like the best thing for me. We spent two weeks traveling through the eastern part of the country from the coast to mountainous jungle, exploring the sport climbing and deep water soloing. Initially we were 5 Americans and one Venezuelan (Jose Miranda) who showed us around, but somehow our group grew into a mix of Americans and Venezuelans caravanning, sleeping in people’s houses and on porches. I honestly forget the connections, who knew who, or where we were even going at times, but I do remember that we were always welcomed enthusiastically. We cooked and ate and slept on the floor together - strangers on a journey. We ate giant avocados and shared countless bottles of Ron Selecto (rum) during the hours of driving through rugged, winding terrain. Andrew broke out in hives after stepping on an ant hill, Jose karate-kicked a giant bees’ nest off the wall while cruxing out, it exploding below as we scattered. We hired teenage fisherman to take us out in their boats to the deep water soloing cliffs, where they hung out all day, taxiing us to the start of the routes, cheering us on as we climbed up and then launched ourselves off 50ft cliffs, plunging into the ocean below. We climbed 5 star routes and 1 star routes. I remember the grades of none of them nor did it matter. I went into that trip with an uncluttered mind, somehow free and focused on one goal: experience it all. It might have been one of the times in my life where I felt most present. The situation in Venezuela has changed significantly since 2009, and life for its people has grown increasingly more difficult. It’s tragic to hear of a place that held so much magic engulfed in crisis. I hope that magic isn’t gone. I will always think back on that trip with immense gratitude for the people and that place. @thenorthface」4月4日 2時53分