video #26 "Super Herois"

I want to make an hour long film about my time here in Brazil. A lot of the locals have said they'd like to be able to purchase a DVD, and I feel like I'd be letting my Brazilian friends down if I didn't create something for them to watch in years to come...so.... I will begin work on a short film when I get back to the U.S. That means that I will sit on some of the best footage so that everyone has something to look forward to next year when the D.V.D. is released. But I have plenty of other stuff to keep you guys entertained for the next month or so, then I will be creating short films about my coming adventures in California. Vertical Carnival will live on....so please stay tuned...and thanks again for being a part of my creative outlet...lots of love...Cedar Wright.

This dispatch features local hardman Magråo on another Cipo mega-classic called "Super Herois," a 58 meter 28 quickdraw journey up some of the best stone I have ever climbed on. The moves are sustained, gymnastic, and in your face! You get to the top of this one and you feel like a Super Hero! Sitting in Rio digging through the two hundred gigs of footage that I shot in Cipo, I have decided that.... Read more...

Video #25 "Animais Selvagens"

Hey there guys!!! Hope life is good! I am enjoying my time back in Rio and realizing what an amazing amount of footage I have compiled. The last few days have been spent between the beach and the computer. I've been enjoying some much needed rest after over a month of climb, climb, climbing! As far as the future...I can guarantee at least four more dispatches and probably a couple more before I head home, and I've been purposely saving the wildest footage for last...so prepare for the next level!! As I mentioned before, I think I will keep the blog going with adventures in Yosemite and wherever else the wind may carry me so... for those who have grown accustomed to the vertical carnival...it will most likely be a party that does not end. Wooohoo! Stay tuned....I should have another episode up by the end of the week!

Wow! I don't know what is harder to believe, that I've been out of the country for over three months, or that this is the 25th dispatch. This episode displays some of the raw beauty of Cipo and gives you a feel for what a beautiful place Cipo is to climb...and just be. Thanks for watching...Cedar. Read more...

Video #24 "Calada da Noite"

For those of you following the blog and hoping for more videos, you will not be dissapointed, I can promise you at least five more Cipo Videos, and I am considering keeping the vertical carnival going back in the U.S. by creating short videos of my adventures in Yosemite! Cheers, thanks for being a part of vertical carnival, and LOTS OF LOVE, Cedar Wright.

Follow local hardwoman Anne up another Cipo classic called "Calada da Noite" loosely translated as the "the cover of night." Calada was one of the first climbs I did when I got to Cipo and I knew I wanted to film someone on it before I left! The rock is impeccable, the moves varied, and the crux culminates with a technical and esoteric mantel...CLASSIC! Read more...

Video #23 "Jah Sinos"

So after nearly two months in Cipo, I am finally back in RIo hanging out with Jah and Hugo and reviewing the thirty plus hours of footage that I compiled, when I wasn't busy climbing on the world class stone! Now that I am in the land of highspeed internet, I will try to bring you a couple videos a week that pay tribute to the beauty and hard climbing that Cipo has to offer. Expect at least five if not more short videos, in the next few weeks. And it's only going to get better, I'm saving the best for last....Jah and I free soloing "Murios" a beautiuful 45 meter route follows a striking streak of golden stone in Cipo, and perhaps the most amazing footage of all, Hugo and his friend Marcio jumping off the Tabeleiro a 1200 foot waterfall near Cipo. So To everyone following the blog stay tuned and thanks for being a part of my adventures! Lots of Love, Cedar Wright!

This dispatch features Lucas, aka "Jah" climbing "Sinos de Aldeberan" one of the most classic sport climbs I have ever done!! A 55 meter Journey up a striking gold, orange, and black streaked arete capped with a wild roof feature. While it is a "sport climb" the bolts are well spaced and when you mantel the summit, your arms and mind are pumped. It doesn't get any better than "Sinos!" Read more...

Video# 22 "Fortes Brasileiras"

For those of you wondering when the good times will come to an end...I have good news...with all of the amazing footage I have compiled and three more weeks in the country...there will be many more dispatches to come, including Jah Soloing hard sport routes, and cruising the megaclassic "Sinos" route. There will be Hugo basejumping off the tabeleiro, and there will be other hard routes like Super Herois and Projecta de Vida, 5.14 to come...so stay tuned, and thanks for being a part of my trip...lots of Love Cedar.

"FORTES BRASILEIRAS" Vertical Carnival Video 22 from Cedar Wright on Vimeo.

This is the second dispatch from Serra do Cipo where I have been living and climbing for the last month. There are a lot of strong women climbing on the limestone here, so this is my way of giving them props!!! Read more...

Video#21 "Out of Town"

So!! I have achieved what I initially though impossible and conquered the ultra slow internet connection here in Serra do Cipo to bring you the first in what will be many dispatches about this truly beautiful limestone paradise. I have been to many of the world's destination sportclimbing areas in the U.S., Spain and China, and think that this area is every bit as good as any of the top notch crags etched my "classic" climbs memory bank.

Future dispatches to look forward to include "Jah" doing one of the most bad ass solos I have ever witnessed which culminates with a show stopping dyno over a hundred feet off the ground. I also have filmed the locals cranking some of the areas most classic climbs so stay tuned for dispatches that show beautiful climbs like "Sinos" one of the top five best single pitch climbs I have ever done! Hugo and I set up a Cipo's first ever highline a week ago as well so stay tuned for yet another slacklining dispatch, and if all goes as planned I will be filming Hugo basejumping off of the Tabaleiro waterfall and then heading to Salinas so who knows how many more videos and how much more time the vertical carnival will see, but it won't be over soon.

I want to thank all of the climbers that I have met or who have given me beta on the blog or on the internet and apologize again for not being able to feature and visit every classic area that has been suggested. The good news is I am super psyched on Brazil, and will definitely be back. So...lots of love to everyone who has checked out this blog, and here is to lots of adventures and fun for you in the future. Cedar Wright!

The first in what will be four or five videos featuring soloing, hard sport climbing, highlining, and the raw beauty of Serra do Cipo, a little known world class limestone climbing mecca in the countryside of Brazil. Read more...

How Two Weeks Becomes Three Months!!!

For those of you who have been following the blog, you have probably noticed that nearly a month has gone by without a new post, well first of all, my aplogies, and second...there are several reasons for this month long drought of new content. The technical Guru Renan has left the building, forcing me to step up my blogging game, and I have spent the last month in a small town called Serra do Cipo where the internet works...sometimes and is slower than a snail on valium. The Slacker Stunts dispatch was actually created about two weeks ago but due to my lack of computer savvy and a botched ftp attempt...it comes to you a bit late! Better late than never right!!

The good news is that I have been pulling out the HD camera quite a bit here in Cipo! In the process I have captured some spectacular climbing, highlining, soloing, and scenic footage, so stay tuned for at least three and probably four blogs from Cipo, which incidentally has to be one of the best kept secrets
as far as world class climbing destinations go. We are talking impeccable limestone, dirt cheap living, beautiful waterfalls and swimming holes for rest days!
This is truely a rock climbers paradise, and every climber I talk to mentions another must see crag around the next bend.

My opinion is that Cipo is a future destination for climbers seeking world class limestone in an exotic setting. I do not think I am exaggerating when I say this is another Spain in the making with an endless supply of undeveloped rock for future climbers. Do not expect to tick the big numbers here though, my experience is that Brazilian climbers have fully embraced the spirit of the sandbag. Expéct to get schooled!

I have another month and half here in the country, so after Cipo, stay tuned for dispatches from Salinas, where Hugo and I will be climbing granite big walls together! Again, to everyone following the blog, thanks for tuning in...the fun never stops! Lots of Love, Cedar Wright.

When I planned the vertical carnival climbing trip, I slated two weeks for Brazil thinking that this would be plenty of time to sample a little climbing and familiarize myself with the "small" amount of climbing the country had to offer. Well...two months later, and on my third ticket extension, I have realized that there is in fact a life time of world class rock here in Brazil! It is strange to think that Renan who started this trip with me, has now been to Borneo and back, and I am still here!!! Let it be no secret I have fallen in love with Brazil! Read more...

Video #20 "Slacker Stunts"

This is the last Video Dispatch from Rio, but stay tuned for several more from Serra do Cipo where Cedar, Hugo and Jah have been climbing up a storm!!! Read more...

Borneo Big Wall--"THE SUMMIT"

The team in Borneo just topped out the wall and tagged the summit. The last of 8 videos send from the field on the BORNEO DISPATCHES SITE


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Rio, The Best Climbing City in the World?

Rio is an incredibly diverse city, and the landscape that it is molded around embodies this fact. There are bigwalls towering over skyscrapers, white sandy beaches that stretch as far as the eye can see, and all this peppered with excellent crags and boulders. Rio is a paradise for the active city dweller. In one day you could be surfing, climbing, slacklining, paragliding, running, and myriad of other active pursuits if you were so inclined. And when the sun goes down, the nightlife here in Rio is legendary, with a festive mix of live music and fun people.
In my opinion Rio is one of the best climbing cities in the world! Where else do you have multiple big wall opportunities leaping out of the cityscape! And the rock isn’t choss, it’s world-class granite, with crystal protrusions that are sometimes reminiscent of Tuolumne’s knob climbing, but also forms in wild overhangs! The new route potential here is limited only by your imagination and work ethic. I really can’t say enough good things about the climbing here!
I would love to come back with more time and a better idea of the lay of the land, to explore Rio and the country of Brazil more thoroughly. For now, I only have a couple weeks left, so I’m going to make the most of my time in this wild and beautiful city. To say I have scratched the surface would be an exaggeration, and I haven’t even seen the endless supply of rock in the surrounding towns and rural areas. It seems like a return trip is in my future!
Beyond all the climbing and slacklining that has filled our days, one of the biggest adventures for me has been driving; lanes are suggestions, traffic lights are effectively stop signs, head lights are optional, and if you aren’t aggressive you will probably be pushed off the road by an impatient Brazilian ready to merge! Add one of the impressive thunderstorms that have been slamming the city and you’ve got a recipe for white knuckles!
And now I drive alone, I’m the last man standing! Renan and Tim have headed back home, and left me to finish the adventure and the blog with my Brazilian friends, Hugo, Jah, and Diogo! Stay tuned for a couple more blog posts as I dig through the amazing backlog of footage and continue to shoot our climbing and slacking adventures. To everyone who has checked out the blog, thanks for taking the time, be sure to check out http://borneobigwall.blogspot.com/ where believe it or not, Renan is already chronicling his next expedition to Borneo.
Lots of Love!
Cedar Wright.


Rio is an incredibly diverse city, and the landscape that it is molded around embodies this fact. There are bigwalls towering over skyscrapers, white sandy beaches that stretch as far as the eye can see, and all this peppered with excellent crags and boulders. Rio is a paradise for the active city dweller. In one day you could be surfing, climbing, slacklining, paragliding, running, and myriad of other active pursuits if you were so inclined. Read more...

Video #19 "Impressions Of Rio"

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Video #18 "Island-Liners"

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Tickets are Made for Changing!

To give you an idea of the last ten days, just imagine a bunch of over caffeinated under slept, over stimulated monkeys in a whirlwind of slacklines, traffic, rock climbs and night life…now add a few video cameras, still cameras, and some crazy Brazilian characters to the mix and you are starting to get the picture!
Just getting still photographs can be a bit of an undertaking, but it’s nothing compared to Video which takes an incredible amount of coordination, collaboration, and sometimes coercion…not to mention a little good old fashioned luck and timing to pull off successfully. Major Props to Nic Rosen for simul-tasking the roles of director, producer, and videographer! He only pulled a few small tufts of hair out of his head in the process! Now that Renan and I are the last men standing, it’s time to let the dizzying head-spin come slowly to a stop.


A huge shout out to the Bintang crew, especially Hugo, Diogo, and Lucas aka “Jah” who have stepped up my definition of the word hospitality! These guys have opened up there homes, driven us all over the city, and generally been indispensable, and inspiring. So a huge Obrigado to the Brazilian Monkey Crew at Bintang who have made a potentially harrowing adventure in Rio, smooth and seamless.

So according to the original itinerary, Vertical Carnival would be over now and the post your are reading would be a whimsical goodbye, a philosophical and nostalgic look back on the good times, the bad times, and all our adventures, but Brazil is just too darn much fun for that…so Renan and I have extended our tickets! We just don’t want the good times to end, and in our ten days here in Brazil we have barely scratched the surface of Rio, let alone this massive country. So…Renan is staying for another week, and I am staying for nearly another month! I’ve always been of the philosophy that life is short and your trips should be long…so there you have it!

To everyone who has been following the blog, we hope you are enjoying our “labor of love,” and thanks for taking the time to surf our blog a bit. Renan and I have both spent some late nights obsessing, micro-editing and generally burning the candle at both ends to bring you these dispatches. It got to the point where most of our inside jokes involved “Final Cut” terminology! So, while it may seem like a quaint little hobby, each two-minute or less clip represents countless hours of work; from shooting, to editing to upload, and then repeat!! It’s bigwall and beach time!! I get to chill, and bring you a couple more dispatches at a slower pace…before I head home! Stay Tuned!

Lots of LOVE to everyone out there!!! Cedar Wright.


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Video #17 "Urban Art Forms"

I have always loved Graffiti that goes beyond the visual pollution of mindless tags and enters the realm of Urban Art. One of the things that I have come to love about Rio is the endless supply of eye candy in the form of gorgeous installations of high quality street art.

After years of fighting against the growing prevalence of graffiti in Rio, the city designated certain areas “legal” for emerging graffiti artists to explore their craft.
A few days ago, we took a tour of some of the incredibly long murals that stretch along the walls of the Batofogo District. Entire blocks of this part of the city are covered in colorfully surreal art.. Everywhere you go around Rio, you will find all varieties of creative, vibrant, masterful art. From street posts, to circuit breakers boxes, to walls, to fire hydrant; in the world of graffiti the possibilities for a canvas are limited only by the imagination of the artist.
Driving, exploring the urban art scene, climbing, surfing, and even the nightlife is an adventure here in Rio! So…stay tuned for more dispatches as we explore the amazing climbing and highlining potential that abounds in this unique and diverse city.

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Brazil Black and Whites

Out of the cold of Patagonia and into the heat and humidity of Rio de Janeiro Brazil! Thankfully we have the knowledge of the Bintang crew to guide us as we learn to navigate the labyrinth of roads, trails, and beaches. This trully is one of the most dynamic urban environments I have seen. tk

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Video #16 "Rio Craggin"

The whirlwind of Vertical Carnival continues to spin. The pace of the trip might best be characterized by the traffic that endlessly cycles through Rio, chaotic, fast paced, and seemingly never ending.


This is one of the most unusual settings I have ever climbed in; picture world class granite sprouting up in huge plugs throughout the city, with chunks of crazy jungle, and cactus sprouting out of the cliff. The climbing style is amazingly varied, from wild trad, to burly steep sport. Some of the most beautiful faces are littered with crystal intrusions and red and black streaks.

The people at the Bintang house especially Diogo, Hugo, and Lucas aka "Jah" have rolled out the red carpet for us, giving us a place to stay and driving us to the crags through the mind boggling maze that is the streets of Rio.

This dispatch gives you an idea of the wild climbing around the city, and features Lucas or "Jah" as he is better known. Jah is one of the coolest most psyched climbers I have ever met, and embodies the passion that we should all strive for in our lives. Hope you enjoy the dispatches...stay tuned for the Urban Art dispatch which will take you on a tour of the world class graffiti that is strewn across the city! Cheers and lots of love...Cedar Wright.

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Montanhistas californianos gravam no Brasil.

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Video #15 "High-Liners"

After a month of cold, snow, rain, and sitting and waiting for a weather window that embodied our time in Patagonia, the heat, humidity and non-stop action that has entailed our time in Rio since we touched down has certainly been a welcome juxtaposition. Fresh off the plane from Buenos Aires, we marched two hours with heavy loads straight uphill through the jungle to an amazing perch at the summit of the Gavea Stone, (translates as The Crows Nest) which offers 360 views of the city.

Our good friend Hugo had set up a mind numbingly exposed highline, and we were psyched and scared to give it a whirl. One similarity between the summit of the Gavea stone and Patagonia was the wind. That first day on the line was a total head-trip with high winds propelling clouds up from the city and then straight into the summit of the Gavea Stone. We were literally walking in the clouds, which made crossing the line next to impossible.
Renan and I got beat up big time, and hiking up for another round on day two, we both had strong doubts as to whether we were going to pull off successful crossings. The line had only seen one ascent by Hugo and repelled all other suitors so we were definitely psyched to break through and walk the line. But not before some more spine rattling, soul wrenching falls.
I walked in the traditional forward on the line style, but Renan side-stepped the entire line facing out towards the city. Renan has always been a side stepper, which is how he feels comfortable walking, but to watch him walk a line this way is horrifying. Each time he would have a bobble and nearly fall it looked as if he was going to do a back flip or front flip off the line!! Crazy!!
So since the line we’ve had some other wild climbing adventures here and gotten more footage for Sender Films, so stay tuned for more videos and writing. A final note about our short videos which we have been working very hard on is that a lot of the unusual “light tricks” you are seeing are not video filters, they are us playing around with mixing shots of car lights or streetlights reflected in the rain with action footage. We are also doing some fun stuff where we animate Kempy’s photos to give it a wild moving effect. Our aim is to create something truly unique, from my original music which scores most of the pieces including this one, to Renan’s artistic eye for editing we are combining our skills into something we hope you find fresh and exciting. Cheers from the field. Lots of Love. Cedar Wright.


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video #14 "Enter Rio"

WoooHoo! We’ve made it to Rio and couldn’t be more psyched. A little sun and beach time does wonders for the Soul and we are soaking up the Brazilian “tranquil” culture as much as we can, drinking Acai, stumbling through Portuguese and getting to know the amazing climbing community down here with some of the coolest characters you will ever meet. People like Hugo who spent the last six months living in Yosemite learning, California-bulgarian-climber English from Ivo Ninov! Hugo has been a star, showing us around, and setting up one of the coolest Highlines EVER. Stay tuned for the totally unreal Highline footage that we’ve captured! Lots of Love…Cedar Wright
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Video #13 "GoodBye Patagonia"

After a month in Patagonia it is time to say goodbye to the edge of the earth and head deeper into South America to Brazil. While we didn’t experience much clear weather we made the best out of the moments we had and climbed what we could when we could how we could. Our first ascent on Mochito was Burly, Steep and Classic, and definitely the hardest line on the cliff even if it was a bit of a consolation prize. Stanely’s wingsuit basejump of El Mocho was harrowing for us and cathartic for him. And finally Kempy and I harnessed the last of the good weather and waning group psyche to tag one final Summy; Raphael.
This dispatch brings us out of Patagonia and and back into the travel blur. Stay tuned for impressions of Rio…climbing and highlining. Cheers…Lots of Love…Cedar.

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