Xanadu, Ariel and Caliban from our base camp on Arrigetch Creek.
“I got up around 10 or 11 and gathered a cup or more of blueberries for our pancakes. We sat around and pigged. The Alaskans had expresso!” – Journal August 18, 1986
After the previous day’s march, it was nice to leave the packs off for a day. It was a sunny day with only a few clouds so we all bathed in the icy creek
“…we went up the backside of The Tusk (also called The Elephant’s Tooth) to look for rock problems. We found a little corner and roped up after a wonderful lunch that included smoked salmon and cheddar with Dijon. The climbing was easy but we didn’t try The Tusk. The Christians never made it up and Jim and Steve took off up the valley behind The Tusk.”
At this point I should mention that I failed to bring enough cheese for lunches for three huge appetites. This would prove to be a costly mistake on my part – among others – that came back to haunt us later.
…the sun set… it was 9:30 pm. We looked for aurora but I could hardly make out Vega and Capella through the high clouds.
