Even though we didn’t succeed in climbing Caliban, these two good friends remain undaunted. In between the “kitty” ears on Caliban.
“We awoke to rain falling off and on. It had rained hard during the night and my sleeping bag was wet at the toes… The sun dappled the hills. The Alaskans decided to go exploring and head for a grand loop over to hot springs canyon. Tony was to join Dave and I for a shot at Caliban. It was raining when we left. When we reached the ridge thankfully it turned to snow. We said goodby to Brett, Mark and Sharon and headed up a gully.” Journal – August 21, 1986
Steve was starting to feel the tickle of a cold. I’m not sure what Jim and Steve did on this day but we did spot them down below. I think Craig took the day off as well.
“The view from the notch was breathtaking. We decided to turn back because it was icy and really blowing. We traversed out to the ridge overlooking our canyon on the way down. We snacked on our last food then took off cause it was cold. We said goodbyes to Tony and descended in light snow.”
We had rock gear, we had some ice gear and I think we even had a deadman for snow, but there was nothing you could really put in that would hold in these conditions below. So, discretion being the better part of valor, we bailed. I’ve never regretted not doing a mountain. It’s all part of the game. As the great mountaineer Norman Clyde said: “The mountains will be here tomorrow. Reckon to be able to say the same about yourself”
“The trip down was truly amazing. A sort of autumn melancholia had descended on the landscape. Light snow on the mosses, lichens & berries gave a feel for the impending winter.”
“Back at [base] camp things were cold. Now it was snowing up the cañon and we were clear. We hastily made dinner and I jumped in the sack. Soon after Dave beckoned me to come out hastily. Aurora! Curtain[s] eerily shimmering near the horizon. The speed at which they would shift amazed me.”
As a backyard astronomer since I was a boy, I had always wanted to see aurora. While I was thrilled to finally witness the phenomena, I had no idea what was in store for us a few days later…
Great “retro” snaps that show climbing/hiking as a different activity to today. Live the 40 years on to the day, keep them coming!
Thanks for the flowers Paul. Back on July 29, 2020 you were on Mt. Williamson. You were the fourth SOTA activator I ever chased and you sounded like you were having so much fun that you inspired me to get into SOTA. Your manner of calling CQ was so inviting that I have mimicked it to great success. I guess I have you to blame for my Summits on the Air addiction 😉 BTW love your blog as well and your writing style. You obviously love the language and wield it well. The B&W shots of your south Asian walkabout are stunning.
Stayed tuned on the Arrigetch Chronicles for the big ascent of the Twin Sisters in a couple of day. Thanks for listening.