Where Have All The Old Climbers Gone?

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phylp

Trad climber

Millbrae, CA

Jan 30, 2014 - 08:00pm PT

John, you express a lot of good ideas in your OP. Nothing there I would really disagree with.

Something I think you didn't go into has to do with many older people having a more acute awareness of how precious their time is. So then the question becomes "how do I spend the precious time I have left?"

Even when I was mad crazy to climb as much as I could, I would still make the choice to take vacations to the east coast to spend time with family and young nieces and nephews, rather than take climbing vacations.

It's a question of how you weigh the value of various things.

Dingus McGee

Social climber

Laramie

Jan 30, 2014 - 08:52pm PT

Tangled up in Blue?

All the people we used to know
They're an illusion to me now
Some are mathematicians
Some are carpenter's wives
Don't know how it all got started
I don't know what they're doing with their lives
Me, I'm still on the road
Headed for another joint ---a climb?,
We always did feel the same

or perhaps

Across the Great Divide Nancy Griffith

where the years went I cant say,

I just turned and the're gone away

zBrown

Ice climber

Brujo de la Playa

Jan 30, 2014 - 09:00pm PT

This is for Pete Seeger, who just went to the graveyard and Donini, who always loves one of my musical references and if I recall is slightly older than I.

Gone to graveyards, everyone.
Oh, when will they ever learn?
When will they ever learn?

Brokedownclimber

Trad climber

Douglas, WY

Jan 30, 2014 - 09:11pm PT

Probably to the bathroom. We all have to pee a lot.

Dingus McGee

Social climber

Laramie

Jan 30, 2014 - 11:04pm PT

Hey MooseD,

It sounds like you got a good script for getting the "GO" into yur life.

If a once active person is crushing beer cans on the couch is there some sub clinical depression going on with those types we have lost?

Darwin

Trad climber

Seattle, WA

Jan 30, 2014 - 11:14pm PT

Taking off from ZBrown's post above:

From Seeger and Joe Hickerson (last verse actually)

Where have all the flowers gone, long time passing?
Where have all the flowers gone, long time ago?
Where have all the flowers gone?
Young girls have picked them everyone.
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Oh, when will they ever learn?

Where have all the young girls gone, long time passing?
Where have all the young girls gone, long time ago?
Where have all the young girls gone?
Gone for husbands everyone.
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Oh, when will they ever learn?

Where have all the husbands gone, long time passing?
Where have all the husbands gone, long time ago?
Where have all the husbands gone?
Gone for soldiers everyone
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Oh, when will they ever learn?

Where have all the soldiers gone, long time passing?
Where have all the soldiers gone, long time ago?
Where have all the soldiers gone?
Gone to graveyards, everyone.
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Oh, when will they ever learn?

Where have all the graveyards gone, long time passing?
Where have all the graveyards gone, long time ago?
Where have all the graveyards gone?
Gone to flowers, everyone.
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Oh, when will they ever learn?

Where have all the flowers gone, long time passing?
Where have all the flowers gone, long time ago?
Where have all the flowers gone?
Young girls have picked them everyone.
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Oh, when will they ever learn?

hamie

Social climber

Thekoots

Jan 30, 2014 - 11:17pm PT

They've gone to Potrero. Where it is nice and warm, but not too hot. Where the beer is cheap [for pensioners], and comes in 1.2 litre bottles. Where the food is good, and the company is better. Where there is a good range of climbs for all abilities [and ages]. Where the cartels spare the gringos.

All 6 climbers in this pic are over 60. I am over 70.

Evel

Trad climber

Nedsterdam CO

Jan 31, 2014 - 10:16am PT

I was born to climb. I'll keep doing it until I am simply unable

SPOT ON!!

vmcgal

Trad climber

New Paltz, NY

Jan 31, 2014 - 10:16am PT

was going to post some pics of my 70th birthday on the rock - but i have to meet someone to go climbing.
e

johnr9q

Sport climber

Sacramento, Ca

Topic Author's Reply - Jan 31, 2014 - 11:33am PT

Original Poster back again. You people are coming up with great insights. Please reread my original post as I have made many changes in it after hearing all your thoughts. I am really having problems with the following sentence in my post as it doesn't really express what I mean to say. Maybe you can help me: "This desire to "sit on the couch" may be more motivated by the old saying "been there, done that" rather than older climbers bodies giving up".

jstan

climber

Jan 31, 2014 - 12:29pm PT

In a nutshell. At the age of 26 when I started climbing, getting up a piece of rock meant something to me. Now it does not. Climbing is a fun form of physical exercise but there are attendant risks. There are other forms of exercise out there.

For someone in the dessert phase of life, as I am, it is an easy choice.
1. Do something pointless that may cause me to have to leave the table early.
2. Use the time remaining to do something that needs to be done.

Anastasia

climber

Home

Jan 31, 2014 - 12:40pm PT

Marriage, Babies, Responsibility... It does put a damper on things and yet... It's full of incredible stuff too. My kid is a great joy. I can't imagine life without him.

AFS

JEleazarian

Trad climber

Fresno CA

Jan 31, 2014 - 05:15pm PT

My kid is a great joy. I can't imagine life without him.

Some of my greatest joys have involved sharing my passions with my wife and daughters. My daughters, in particular, must have inherited my love of the mountains, and often now ask me to go climbing with them. (In fact, my older daughter wanted to have her bachelorette party in Camp 4). I hope I'll be able to introduce grandchildren to climbing as well.

While I no longer define myself by my climbing ability (and I consider that fact a sign of my mental health), I view climbing the way I view every other human activity, namely as an expression of our humanity.

In Christian circles, I've often come across what I like to call the "Utilitarian Heresy," meaning that unless what we do directly and overtly advances the Kingdom, it's merely "worldly," rather than "spiritual." I strongly disagree, both as a human being and as a Christian. Our climbing, music, art, sports and other "frivolous" pursuits have as much meaning as any other activity.

My only qualification to that view is that I don't want my life to collapse into mere self-indulgence. For me, spending all of my energies to maximize (rather than to optimize) my climbing ability would be self-indulgence at this stage of my life, where I'm dealing with my wife, my 102-year-old mother, my wife's 91-year-old mother and 92-year-old father, and two adult daughters, all of whom still need me.

If that means I don't hang out climbing the way I used to, that's OK with me. I made that choice several decades ago when I got married, and really made it before then when I turned my back on perfectly good climbing potential to get a full-time job and go to graduate and professional school.

I just wish I could have afforded all the gear and services money could buy back when I was young enough to spend it all climbing.

;-)

John

donini

Trad climber

Ouray, Colorado

Jan 31, 2014 - 05:20pm PT

Where have they gone? Well one I know just arrived in Coyhaique, Chile and is hesding South to the North Patagonia Ice Cap region tomorrow.

RDB

Social climber

Jan 31, 2014 - 05:26pm PT

Still around...but amazing too how many have died off in the last 50+ years. The deaths you remember might be climbing but many more gone from more natural causes. The longer you live, the longer the list.

When I think back I can rememebr a lot more getting into and then out of climbing long, long before they ever got old. And that was when I thought 30 was old.

ladyscarlett

Trad climber

SF Bay Area, California

Jan 31, 2014 - 05:26pm PT

We're all still here...

:)

Cheers

LS

Reilly

Mountain climber

The Other Monrovia- CA

Jan 31, 2014 - 06:47pm PT

Yeah, but what is that in climber years?

yedi

Trad climber

Stanwood,wa

Jan 31, 2014 - 07:17pm PT

Sometimes we drift into new arenas, sometimes we have kids and other responsibilities, sometimes we grow tired of the scene. Sometimes our ego doesn't need the constant challenge and conquest. Sometimes we get injured and the effort seems too much. Sometimes long time partners leave and the magic disappears. Sometimes the risk, reward doesn't balance. Sometimes we find other things more interesting. Sometimes just knowing we participated for decades is enough. Sometimes I dream of returning.

mouse from merced

Trad climber

The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.

Jan 31, 2014 - 07:36pm PT

This is to the point.
http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.php?topic_id=1954729&msg=2332499#msg2332499
I don't want to give up and I won't because I have old climber friends now.

I wonder how
The 'REST' is in RIP.

We'll all move on soon enough to Tombstone Territory.
I intend to go at a leisurely pace at all times.
I will not succeed, I predict.
I just want to stick around for the Super Bowl, really.

THIS COULD GET MAUDLIN.

Don't let it.

I mean it, heartily, friends.

Cheers!
I hope we all get to hang around a little more and with each other a little more, as well. Sorry the visit's a bust, Tad. It's for the best. Thanks again.