The opening of a blog deserves something of a background, right? Something tangible to give the readers an idea of what is important to the author as well as an invitation for them to enter their world. Well the following is a short tale of my life for the past several months, and because it is not an inspiring story (yet) I included events from this week. I salute your efforts in reading it!
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| Quite the inspiring photo from http://www.muenchphotography.com/ |
In a letter to John Quincy Adams in 1813, Thomas Jefferson said: “ There is a natural aristocracy among men. The grounds of this are virtue and talents.
"Those who are not happy with the angle of the sun should climb up and change it."
Ancient proverb
"Decisions determine destiny."
Thomas S. Monson
2013
As my muscles burned and slowed, my brain raced proportionally faster through these phrases providing motivation to push through to the end. I was in physical therapy, recovering from injuries that limited my ability to climb.
My divinely mandated rest sent me scrambling for anything to feed my intellect. Far more than is reasonable, I climbed with others through media. Examples include the now famous Shark’s Fin with Jimmy Chin, Renan Ozturk, and Conrad Anker. Soon enough it became a trade route for me. El Capitan became my backyard crag and I warmed up on 5.14 with Adam Ondra. It was in this period of pseudo climbing that I read Yvon Chouniard’s essay Modern Yosemite Climbing.
“The future of Yosemite climbing lies not in Yosemite, but in using the new techniques in the great granite ranges of the world. A certain number of great ascents have already been done in other areas as a direct result of Yosemite climbers and techniques, notably the north face of Mount Conness in the Sierra Nevada, the west face of the South Tower of Howser Spire in the Bugaboos, the two routes on the Diamond on Longs Peak in Colorado, the Totem Pole and Spider Rock in Arizona, the north face of East Temple in the Wind Rivers, the northwest corner of the Petit Dru (voie Américaine) and the first American ascent of the Walker Spur of the Grandes Jorasses in the French Alps. Although these ascents are as fine and as difficult as any in their respective areas, they are merely the beginning of a totally new school of American climbing, that is to say technical climbing under Alpine conditions. The opportunities here are limitless. I have personally seen in the Wind River Range and Bugaboos untouched walls that are as difficult and as beautiful as any ever done in the history of Alpinism. There are in the Wind Rivers alone opportunities for fifty Grade VI climbs. The western faces of the Howser Spires in the Bugaboos are from 3000 to 5000 feet high. The Coast Ranges, the Logan Mountains, the innumerable ranges of Alaska, the Andes, the Baltoro Himalaya all have walls which defy the imagination.”
Searching the history and particulars for each of the ascents listed, I was struck by the North West face of East Temple Peak. I had never heard about this wall, and yet it was among the most striking. This imposing face had only seen one ascent, in 1963 by Chouniard and Gran in two days going at 5.8 A3 which followed the obvious left-facing chimneys in the center of the wall. In a not subtle fashion, this wall began to dominate my psyche and I made it my dream. My research into it was thorough and obsessive. I found every photo of it I could and traced possible routes. I studied weather patterns for the area. I spoke with people who had seen it and others who had climbed the nearby Lost Temple Spire to obtain any fragment of useful beta about the wall. Eventually I chose a route that balanced my desire to create a beautiful free climb with adventure, visible features, and aesthetics.
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| Photo from http://www.mountainproject.com/v/106885455 that shows the alluring face. |
This became my aspiration, my white whale despite never having even seen it in person. I trained, grew stronger, regained prowess on rock, and gained confidence. Armored with the information I had compiled and the motivation I had developed from hours of regaining old ground, I sought for a partner. My significant hiatus from climbing had left me with significantly less partners who were motivated enough for a mini expedition of this style. Eventually after sifting through numbers, I found someone who was willing to attempt it with me.
We planned on climbing the route during the week of July 13th. In a similar fashion to before, I gave every effort to engineer success into our equation. I coordinated training with my partner, I planned details, schemed logistics, and dreamed about topping out the face. We planned for adventure, to start our route from the ground up and onsight going for it in a day.
The day before we left, my partner told me he would not go, he had not placed this in a position of priority as I had, and thus other portions of life had gotten in the way, he did not have to motivation to make it work. I went to the Tetons for a couple days over that week, and while I enjoyed myself tremendously, there was still a tinge of disappointment from the countless hours of preparation that were dashed (lucky they are easily applied elsewhere!). Despite my serious attempts to join the “natural aristocracy” among men through applications of virtues, my project remains incomplete. Climbing is anarchy as Marc Twight put it and we are all free to determine our own destiny. Even with my friend’s decision, I personally could not let my fixation go so easily. I attempted to go with others and my project unfortunately never got off the ground despite false starts.
The year is late now for an attempt for a project like this, it will have to wait for a future day. Planning in the time ahead will bring the angle of the sun closer and hopes that I can complete it.
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| The Wind River Range for the Tetons? I think it is hard to be disappointed with this on your horizon! |
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| Are we there yet? |
Today however is a different day and the time is now. Fortunately the sun shines closer to home....and besides shinning over ideal conditions for rock (as it does in the Wasatch during autumn) currently it illuminates early season ice! Hard to believe, but it does exist with the correct aspect, however fleeting. As I was pulling into the parking lot to meet my partner for the day, I couldn't believe how hot it was! Regardless, with enough elevation gained it began to look like winter. Since I have been mostly sport climbing recently my approach time suffered as I re-realized that crossing mountainous terrain quickly is not a demand of sport cragging in the least!
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| Greeting winter on the approach. |
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| In the couloir. |
I still have projects on rock to complete before winter takes an absolute hold...lets hope the snow line doesn't creep towards home to fast!
