A Time for Reflection and Humor

Gloria and I are taking a few days off from pretty much everything! We're down here in Klamath Falls, Oregon, hangin' out at the Running Y Ranch. We actually golfed this morning! First time in over a year and probably only the 5th time since 2002!








"I'd rather be climbing!"

















"I'd rather be running!"




Ah, such is life. Actually, it's pretty nice to get outa "Dodge" for awhile. It's given me time to think about, well, climbing. I found myself thinking about some of the funny things that I've seen and heard in the mountains over the years. Some of it first hand, some of it through the grapevine, most of it true.....

I thought it might be fun to share some of these things, since many of the people that actually take the time to read self-serving blogs like this are many times the stars of the show! Here's the first of (hopefully) many updates: Quotes and Stories

Quotes From The Mountains, Series 1

Arguably the best philosophical mountain climbing quote of all time:

"Getting to the top is optional, but getting down is mandatory."
~Ed Viesturs, Famous Mountaineer



After a long, hot, 15+ hour day of climbing that included a lengthy discussion on the dangers of drinking unfiltered water in the backcountry, these precious words emerged just as the author plunged his whole head into a slow-moving creek:

"I don't care of if there's a marmot upstream pissing on a dead deer carcass, I'm getting a drink!"
~Keith Hill, Chemeketan Climb Leader



We had just reached the summit of Mt Washington early in our climbing careers, when Gloria, Rick B. and I were faced with a ropeless descent back to the final rappel horn. As we stared down the 30', low-5th class wall just below the summit (widely considered the crux of the climb), our voices quivered as we asked our fearless leader if he really expected us to downclimb, given that a fall would send us bouncing 1,500' into the rocks below:

"Hey, you gotta learn sometime."
~Herb Fecker, Chemeketan Climb Leader



During an Advanced Snow & Ice field session with the Mazamas, we were instructed on the importance of keeping our knots neat and orderly. This was communicated in two ways:

"A not neat knot need knot be knotted." and "You need not knot a not neat knot." ~Wim Aarts, Mazama Climb Leader



One of our famous friends had just finished the Tatoosh Traverse near Mt Rainier. On the way home, the climb team stopped at the Morton Market, one of the few places you can get Dick's Beer, a microbrew brewed in Centralia, Wa. Tired and haggared from the climb and with a thirst for the ages, our dear friend pounded a Dick's Danger Stout and declared (in his Arnold Swartzenegger sounding voice):

"That's the best Dick (beer) I ever had!"
~Nameless Turk, Climber Extraordinaire



During our 18 mile approach to Mt Olympus, one of our team members was having trouble with his insides, causing him to make numerous off-trail pit stops. Ultimately, his T.P. supply was exhausted. When we reached the summit pinnacle, the conditions were such that reaching the top required a 5.6-ish "power move" over a lightly protected, overhung boulder. As I waited for him on the summit, I heard a HUGE grunt, followed by a sad groan and this gem:

"Remember that extra blue bag I asked you for? Never mind.... it's too late!"
~Keith Hill, Chemeketan Climb Leader, in the early years



Most people try to go as light as possible on multi-day climbs, especially when it comes to food. So when one climb team member pulled out an elaborate meal on the summit of Mt Baker, we all had a good chuckle at his expense. Never one to mince words, he exclaimed:

"It's a gourmet Thai roll with ginger-lime dipping sauce, DAMMIT!" ~Bill Saur, Chemeketan Climb Leader




Garry S. & Mike M. help Bill with his summit feast. What, no fried wonton?

Washington-Ellinor Traverse, Olympic Range - July 23-24, 2009

Mt Washington from the trailhead

What started out as a casual (so we thought) day climb, ultimately turned into a strenuous, fun-filled undertaking that not only satisfied our physical ambition but opened our eyes to a whole new climbing wonderland; The Olympic Mountains.

"Mt Pershing looks like an interesting challenge," Vince exclaimed (voice inflection and everything!) as he gazed west from Mt. Washington's rocky summit, "I bet we could climb the south ridge, descent the east ridge, traverse to Mt. Jefferson, and hike out to the same trailhead." "Yeah, and check out Mt. Cruiser," I offered, pointing southwest towards the dorsal fin of Sawtooth Ridge, "SWEET technical routes to the summit, and you can climb most peaks in the range from the same base camp! That's gotta happen!" Foreshadow alert; it definitely WILL happen later this Fall.

Sawtooth Ridge

So many mountains, so little time. But first things first. We've got our own traverse to complete.

It all started innocently enough. My (retired) buddy Chuck sent out a climbers-group email looking for a midweek climb. Easy for him, but me? Work... climb.... work.... climb.... dang. The never ending battle. After weighing my work responsibilities against my selfish desires, I arrived at the only possible answer -- I was on the phone to Chuck w/in five minutes. Within ten minutes we had our objective. Mt. Washington here we come!

Next to respond was Vincent. I always enjoy climbing with Vincent. He was the leader of Gloria's and my first ever Chemeketan climb - Mt. Hood - and we've always had a great time in the mountains. Daring Dan rounded out the team.

Vincent, Chuck, Dan, & Me


After a casual night at the Big Creek Campground, we rolled out early Friday morning and drove to the trailhead. Literally three steps onto the trail, we were ascending at a rate of 3,200' for the first two miles. I'm talking up. Hand over fist, foot over foot, swinging from vines.


Some may call it a trail I guess

Finally we reached the Big Creek Basin where we "enjoyed" the loose scree slope leading to "The Tower". Having never climbed the route, we knew we were ok because the guidebook rates it as merely fourth class.... as long as you stay on the trail of course, and avoid "The Tower". Sigh. Up we went.


"The Tower"

Hey, it wasn't death defying but it wasn't fourth class either. It was actually 80' of enjoyable low 5th class climbing on moderate (read: loose, crappy) rock. Just as we topped out, Vince looked over his shoulder and made two interesting observations: a rappel sling just to the left of us and even more surprising, the trail 80' below (oops!).

After a downclimb here and a short hike there, we arrived at the saddle near the foot of the summit pinnacle. We welcomed the gentle breeze that creeped it's way up the west side of the rocky slope. After a few short minutes we topped out. 3-1/2 hours from the car, Mt Washington was toast.


Still spry on Washington's summit

We now turned our sights on Mt Ellinor. Looking down the ridge that connects the two mountains, it appeared we may have a chance to boogie around enough gendarmes to make a go of it.

Looking down the ridge towards Mt. Ellinor

Unfortunately, as much as we were ready to tango, Ellinor was not. Dang wench! We descended a few hundred more feet, determined to stay as high as possible as we worked our way south towards our goal. After a short time, we ran into a couple of old guys (maybe a year or two younger than Vince) who said that the standard traverse route was to descend back into Big Creek Basin and follow a trail to the FOOT of the Ellinor Chute, 1,400' below the summit. Oh ok, sure, right, thanks, whatever you say.... NOT. We're Chemeketans not Cub Scouts. We held the course.

Up some talus, across a plateau, up a gulley, down a scree slope, up more talus, across a snow patch, down a cliff (thank you, hanging branches), across a short sidehill and we arrived at the dreaded final gulley. Hand over fist, foot over foot, swinging from vines (sound familiar?) and we popped out at the TOP of the Ellinor Chute, thank you very much!


Lake Cushman from the top of the Ellinor Chute

The welcoming party (a big Billy sitting in the snow next to his dear Nannie and baby Billie) cheered us on as we pranced (read: limped) by on our way to the final ramp leading to the summit.

Mountain goat welcoming committee

We were moving with purpose (read: slow) when another really old couple (about Vincent's actual age) approached us and offered their encouragement. They were wearing Hawaiian shirts and flip flops, and had obviously arrived via the Upper Ellinor Trailhead. "Hang in there Sonny," the ol' fart growled, "You can make it! Hey, you look like you've been through a war! Did I ever tell you about my experience in WWI....?" Good Lord, get me outa here! It's amazing how "old guy talking" gets your heart pumping again. The Ellinor summit was ours!

The summit was HOT but after that manly traverse, we felt very COOL. We readied ourselves for a summit photo right in front of a pile of rocks; the true summit. We were feeling pretty proud of our accomplishment as we puffed out our chests and patted eachother on the back. Just as a willing bystander raised my camera and prepared to document our place in history, Big Billie jumped up on the rocks behind us, baying towards the camera. Not to be outdone, Little Billie followed. We were upstaged by a couple of mountain goats!


What the....?


Ba-a-a-a-a-a-d goats!

We all had a good laugh and decided it was time to head down. Ahh, a real trail. After all we'd faced, the path felt like walking on goose down and rose petals. A few miles and a dusty pickup ride later, we were showering off under a roadside waterfall. The 8-1/2 hour trip felt more like twelve, but as we sat for dinner at the greasy Hoodsport Pub & Grub, looking across the table at eachother's cheesy grins, it was obvious that we were all thinking the same thing: Life is GOOD.


Oh yeah!