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marv
Mountain climber
Bay Area
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Topic Author's Original Post - Nov 15, 2009 - 01:00am PT
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I just read an old Rock & Ice issue and was completely blown away. Beside my interest in the face itself -- something like 6,500 feet of very technical alpine terrain -- I was struck by the list of climbers who have attempted it. Mike Bearzi stuck out and was familiar given the recent "first free climb of Cerro Torre" thread here. [Here are some other familiar names: Alex Lowe, Randy Rackliff, Bruce Miller, Jack Roberts.]
I can see why climbers would throw themselves at this face, would subject themselves to such severe objective hazard.
But I was mostly struck by the comment made by Roberts (I think), who said (paraphrase) that if NW Face were to fall, it would fall to someone at the very vanguard of light-and-fast alpinism, someone really committed to paring things down to the limit, then race full-bore to beat the clock. If you look at the evolution of alpine climbing, the next logical step might lie in the acceptance of risk heretofore considered unacceptable -- even unimaginable.
anyway. Just thought the story was really compelling. Wondering if anyone else has thought about it at all
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Zander
Trad climber
Berkeley
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Nov 15, 2009 - 01:52am PT
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Supertopo's own Seneca spent three weeks in the area a lot of years ago. He told me the weather saved his life since he probably didn't have the chops to safely send.
Z
(Edited after reading about him in the AAJ article linked below.)
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TripL7
Trad climber
'dago
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Nov 15, 2009 - 03:15am PT
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marv!
Didn't David Stutzman and I believe Jack Tackle attempt NWF in 1975? Got to within 300-400 ft. of summit, and as Dave described it in his article in the AAJ were hit with a storm with 'Weather straight from hell"?
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Keeper of Australia Mt
Trad climber
Whitehorse, Yukon , Canada
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Nov 15, 2009 - 04:55am PT
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The next step in the evolution of alpine climbing might be in acceptance of unacceptable or unimagineable risk? Let us hope not for the sake of climbing and some families of climbers. That strikes me as the height of absurdity or rather stupidity! The only awards generated there will be Darwin Awards. A rather bizarre mutation into misplaced male machoism - really not much to do with climbing.
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Clint Cummins
Trad climber
SF Bay area, CA
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Nov 15, 2009 - 06:03am PT
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"Extreme Dave" Stutzman and Bob Plumb climbed the North Pillar in 1977 (VI 5.9, 57 pitches, 4 days). Bob is still around - he's a fire marshall in Alaska. He or Dave wrote an article in Climbing January/February 1978. It is the rib on the left edge of the sunlit face in Scurlock's photo.
Dieter Klose made a good case in the 2003 AAJ that the NW face will never come into climbable condition. It has something to do with a conflict in conditions between the lower and upper part of the face - they are extremely unlikely to be in shape to climb at the same time.
Read all about it right here:
http://www.americanalpineclub.org/documents/pdf/aaj/2003/30_43_klose_aaj2003.pdf
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kinnikinik
Trad climber
B.C.
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Nov 15, 2009 - 11:16am PT
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Guy Edwards /John Millar RIP
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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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Nov 15, 2009 - 11:19am PT
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Didn't Charlie Porter have a go at it some years back? Perhaps it should remain a 'virgin' face to remind us all of... something.
When I worked on fishing boats out of Petersburg in the summer of 1977, I use to look at the Thumb a lot, dreaming that I could do the face, but in the back of my mind knowing that I was not good enough. Toughest objective in North America? Perhaps the world. It certainly is up there on the list.
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Mighty Hiker
climber
Vancouver, B.C. Small wall climber.
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Nov 15, 2009 - 01:49pm PT
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I haven't been there, but it appears that the only time it might be a bit more stable is during a midwinter Arctic high. Cold, clear, stable weather. There would still be high risk of serac fall, and of rock fall and avalanche, but perhaps a bit less than usual. Whether getting to it and climbing on it at that time of year would be possible is another question, and it would undoubtedly be very cold and windy, and damn miserable.
Having lost two friends on it, and knowing others who've backed off it, it's clearly a place with extremely high and unavoidable objective dangers.
Edit: The Devil's Thumb is on the border between Canada (B.C.) and the U.S.A. (Alaska). It's northwest face is on the Alaska side. The location of the border is of considerable historical interest: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska_boundary_dispute
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Nov 15, 2009 - 01:53pm PT
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I believe that Perry Beckham (the chief not The Chief!) climbed a ridge route on the left margin of that side of the mountain.
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d-know
Trad climber
electric lady land
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Nov 15, 2009 - 02:45pm PT
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thanks for the
link clint!!!
Eventually,Steve and Damo felt comfortable enough to admit that they had found and cooked-up our potato peels and tea which we’d dumped in front ofour tents on the approach.We,on the other hand,didn’t feel comfortable telling them what we’d done to those dregs at night.
por brits, haha.
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Climbing dropout
Trad climber
Vancouver, BC
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Nov 15, 2009 - 04:19pm PT
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Guy Edwards was another friend of mine whom pushed himself too hard. Rest in peace Guy ...
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Keeper of Australia Mt
Trad climber
Whitehorse, Yukon , Canada
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Nov 16, 2009 - 07:36am PT
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Stich - The Devils Thumb is not the Eiger by any stretch of the imagination. In any case , if you are motivated to do it, go for it - we will reserve some space in Accidents in North American Climbing for your entry - whether the Darwin Awards will pick it up or not is up to that particular publisher. Depends what nuggets are buried in the accident report are I guess. I recommend that you solo it so some other poor dude doesn't join you in your fate.
Unfortunately, as the Miker Hiker notes two extremely talented and capable
Canadian climbers demonstrated the out of the ordinary nastiness of this little chunk of rock. A third fortunately exercised better judgement and avoided the same fate. There is no YOSAR or Denali Park Rescue team in this area to bail you out. Those guys are the real heroes in this game not dudes out looking to get a bit of climbing glory and a name in print.
All climbing involves risks - but being irresponsible and ignoring real and objective risks is pretty absurd. Fortunately we have lots of excellent and responsible mountaineers in North America as well as good mountaineering schools who are countering this nonsense.
But I will end on a positive note: it will be climbed one day - when climate change reduces the objective avalanche hazard, gravity takes care of thc choss, and tectonic uplift changes the inherent weather pattern affecting the locale - just might turn out to be Tahquitz Rock du Nord.
In the meantime we don't need any more fatherless/motherless families and unnecessary obituaries in climbing magazines.
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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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Nov 16, 2009 - 08:21am PT
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Keeper, you are wrong, I am leaving tomorrow to do that little face.
Actually, Jennie and I are going to do a 10-day Caribbean cruise (Explorer of the Seas, Royal Caribbean) from Dec 10-21 (Dublin-Heathrow-Newark-San Juan (where my father's father rode up San Juan Hill with Teddy) - St Thomas - Dominican Republic - Haiti - Newark - Heathrow- Dublin).
But after that, then that shitty little NW Face of the Thumb is going to fall (probably on me).
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can't say
Social climber
Pasadena CA
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Nov 16, 2009 - 08:39am PT
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Wow I hadn't heard Dave Stutzman's name in a long time. I was in the Army with him when we were both stationed in Garmisch in the German Alps. He was on his way out and I was just getting settled. The man had an aura about him, similar to many of the best climbers I have known. Lots of fuzzy memories from good Bavarian beer and GI craziness. He died in an avalance at Bridger Bowl, skiing the cold smoke. RIP
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Keeper of Australia Mt
Trad climber
Whitehorse, Yukon , Canada
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Nov 17, 2009 - 12:38am PT
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Patrick Sawyer- you know how to hurt a guy (sitting buried in a few feet of snow and teetering on going into the -20s C ! - otherwise known as winter) Actually (and you probably know it) - one of those cruises is probably five levels of objective and gnarly risk above the Devil's Thumb! Make sure your shots are up to snuff, that they don't stray into any ice bergs, avoid the Red Sea offshore, ensure the ship doesn't have a captain from the same school as the skipper of the Exon Valdez, and
wear running shoes to avoid the foraging mobs of cougars! The list of risks is long but these few will suffice! But if you do get into trouble additional support mechanisms such as Canadian embassies are available. Any port in a storm so to speak.
You probably can get Trailer Park Boys on ship satellite TV - new episode potentially where Leahy gets seconded to Yosemite park warden service to assist recovery and apprehension of park riff raff who have stumbled across a crashed aircraft filled with weed. Ricky, Julian and Bubbles feel
that a repatriated Leahy bound in park resource managment glory might spell the death nell of their park and economic framework so they gear up, and head off in Ricky's
doorless sweet machine on a mission to Yosemite. Their plan is to sabotage Leahy's plans, by getting to Yosemite first and building a partnersip with Camp 4 operatives to export and launder the weed to needy boulderers in the Land of Confusion south of Halifax and to confuse Yosemite park police by setting up a Nova Scotia weed franchise in Camp 4 and
on top of Lost Arrow Spire.
The boys also want to get enough money for a cruise of their own and to help JRoc get out of the slammer. Their plan gets screwed up when Ricky's lack of Gr. 11 geography gets them hopelessly lost en route and they end up in Canmore, Alberta. They meet a couple of reprogrammed ice climbing babes who have discovered the holy book and who are moving to set up a new Baptist church in the Trailer Park Boys very own trailer park - taking missionary work and the missionary postion to a new level. After successive adventures in Eastend, Saskatchewan, Wawa, and Charlottetown they arrive back in Nova Scotia, older and not the wiser - only to find out that Leahy had set them up on a wild goose(weed) chase in order to buy time to try and orchestrate some trailer park re-zoning - attempting to neutralize the boys once and for all. The Trailer Park Boys prevail in a close run race. With a new appreciation of the economic benefits of the climbing sector they hatch a new plot to build a trailer park climbing gym as a facade for weed distribution in the greater Halifax area. The plots thicken episode by episode.
Enjoy your holiday.
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TripL7
Trad climber
'dago
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Nov 17, 2009 - 01:30am PT
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Clint!
Thanks for that info on Dave Stutzman. I came very close to joining Dave on his trip to the Devils Thumb during the summer of '75. I recall getting postcards daily from Dave postmarked Independence, Ca. With instructions of where to meet him(campground west of town). Most, were of old Washburn pics. of the NW face.
I had little knowledge of what I would have gotten myself into at the time. But if I could go back in time I would not hesitate one second. The postcards were hard to ignore. Eventually the cards stopped coming. Dave made the journey and I recall him telling me that he and his partner made it to within 400 ft(possibly meters) of the summit(NWF). And then were hit by a "storm straight out of hell"(AAJ). He later climbed Isis on Denali(FA).
I would have loved to have been there to experience it. Even after all I have read here. But then, I have no fear of death now(although I have more desire to live and experiance life then ever). I wish it were so then. I would not have done so if I had children, that would have been the only thing that would stop me.
can't say! Dave spoke of many of his adventures in the Bavarian Alps and Swiss Alps. Did you know Carl Van Horn?
Trip~
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Clint Cummins
Trad climber
SF Bay area, CA
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Nov 17, 2009 - 01:47am PT
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Cool, Trip. I didn't know Dave, but I knew Bob Plumb from a few Leavenworth climbing trips in high school (1975). I ran into Bob and Dave in the Bugaboos in 1981. They also did Slesse and some other things together - Bob posted some brief stuff on cascadeclimbers.com .
It would be cool to see that article from Climbing 1978 again; my stack of mags doesn't go back that far.
I also once met Timothy (Nichols) Rouner, who died on a 1977 attempt on Devil's Thumb NW Face (R side) with his older brother Rainsford and Peter Cole. I knew Rainsford from college, and that was of course very tragic for their family. Klose's article says he was hit by rockfall, but Rainsford said he was following behind in their kicked steps, when a step broke out and he went over a big cliff.
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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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Nov 17, 2009 - 03:43am PT
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Hey Keeper, they even have a climbing wall on this ship, so I will be pulling plastic on the high seas.
But seriously, my two main objectives next year are Ben Nevis this winter and Mt Blanc next summer.
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Prezwoodz
Big Wall climber
Anchorage
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Nov 17, 2009 - 03:44am PT
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On our recent trip to the Arrigetch we found a stopper on the summit with KLOSE stamped into it. I think it was from his and Bearzi's FA of the Magnum Wall on Shot Tower. Its awesome to be following in the footsteps of such climbers.
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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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Nov 17, 2009 - 03:55am PT
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Hey Matty, that is similar to a flight I took over the Thumb back in '77.
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hooblie
climber
sounding out stuff , in the manner of crickets
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Nov 17, 2009 - 04:02am PT
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extreme dave climbed with more of my friends than i realized, though i only simu solod with him up in icicle canyon, he in barefeet. didn't know that he climbed with plumb bob, my partner for the north ridge of stuart. it's a visceral jolt to make these connections here on the forum. i've been thinking of writing up a thing about spending a few long nights, cozied up in dave's sleeping bag, below the grand at a couple dozen below. it was not long after his sad and unwarranted passage, the details of which tear at the hearts of those who know. some of dave's closest lurk here, maybe someone with more authority than i could start the stutzman thread, in hopes of calling them to the fire. i know their respect for him is huge.
i've only seen the devil's thumb from an airliner, though i've seen it in my minds eye ever since. how's that for lack of authority
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TripL7
Trad climber
'dago
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Nov 17, 2009 - 04:58am PT
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hooblie!
Sounds like a good way to start an extreme dave thread as any. I would love to here the story.
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Clint Cummins
Trad climber
SF Bay area, CA
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Nov 17, 2009 - 05:51am PT
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hooblie,
Did you do Stuart with Plumb Bob in in around 1977? I remember reading in the summit register then that he had freed the gendarme.
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can't say
Social climber
Pasadena CA
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Nov 17, 2009 - 08:41am PT
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Trip, yes, I know Carl Van Horn very well. I still see him at our yearly ski patrol reunions. (http://afrcski.com); if you're interested here's the link. Carl is a great guy and he and I managed to tie in together a few times before he rotated back to the states back in 75 I think.
One of Dave's nicknames when he was in the Army was Dancin Dave, which due more to his climbing skills then actual dance floor toe tappin, which we all did a lot of in those days at the International Bar and Grill in Garmisch
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hooblie
climber
sounding out stuff , in the manner of crickets
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Nov 17, 2009 - 01:17pm PT
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clint, not as early as '77. i'm impressed with your archival tendency. the exact counterpoint to mine, memory erodes starting the next day. donini's son was born during that visit. that made a lasting impression! though i got the gender wrong, so what could be right about anything i remember? quite possibly a repeat for bob.
just emailed jim williams and made a personal appeal to him to surface here on the tacostand with the story of the ascent of rudshie konka, early bigtime china accomplishment where he and extreme dave pulled off a mega deed in fine extended style.
there's every likelyhood jim is well out pocket, leading some exotic journey on any one of seven continents so we'll see.
although many are qualified to start a stuzman thread, me surely the least. meanwhile back on the devil's thumb...
edit: nov 19th. ok, as expected jim williams is in nepal, says he will fess up mid december. those are my words, not his. i'm just ratcheting up peer pressure
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Handjam Belay
Gym climber
expat from the truth
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Nov 17, 2009 - 04:25pm PT
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A proud prize. One that will certainly fall in time.
Pair any of these 2 up...House, V. Anderson, Rolo, Cordes, Haley, Wharton, Gillmore, Mahoney.
Thast just Americans!?
I'm sure the list is much deeper, I haven't been in touch with the scene for 3 or 4 years now.
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Clint Cummins
Trad climber
SF Bay area, CA
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Nov 17, 2009 - 05:58pm PT
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It might get done someday, by somebody with a lot of free time on their hands, who doesn't value their life very highly, and gets very very very lucky with the conditions. But I still think that Klose made a good case that those conditions will most likely never happen.
With fluff snow on blank/bad rock, being a good ice/mixed climber does not help. It sounds more like a bolt ladder to me. Ditto for the Zorro Face on Hozomeen. http://www.pbase.com/nolock/hozomeen Although each face has some nondirect lines which are nonblank.
Sort of like trying to do one of the rarely formed Yosemite ice climbs. It doesn't matter how good you are, if the ice is not there, you can't climb it unless you want to aid up the rock.
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TripL7
Trad climber
'dago
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Nov 17, 2009 - 06:30pm PT
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can't say!
That sounds right about Carl, Dave was already in Mammoth the fall/winter '74-75, Carl arrived @January. Carl was one kick azz skier, bombed-down everything. Carl & Dave were tight. Carl must have a story or two in him. I recall Dave stating that the two of them bailed from the Steck/Salathe for some reason or other, right before we (about half-way)secondary to inclement conditions, ended up doing likewise. Dave told me "you don't know what your getting yourself into"! I soon found out(50m cord=50%++ down-climb).
EDIT: like hooblie said "back to the devil's thumb"(sorry about the drift).
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ontheedgeandscaredtodeath
Trad climber
San Francisco, Ca
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Nov 17, 2009 - 07:26pm PT
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That AAJ image is awesome. Cool thread, thanks.
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Bldrjac
Ice climber
Boulder
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Nov 18, 2009 - 01:38pm PT
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There's a lot of interesting comments here..............Let me just say that it does present an irresistible challenge to the dedicated alpinist....It's the perfect objective for light and fast.
IMO, the NW face does not pose quite the extreme danger that Dieter suggests it does. When Bruce and I were there it was mainly the hanging glacier from the left that was the most regular and dangerous threat from above. The big hanger on the right, about 3/4s up the face did not go off that regular but when it did it was always around 3pm when the sun hit the face.
Being successful on this face does not require suicidal tendencies. It requires lots of time to observe the weather and mood of the mountain. It's also going to require that the face be iced-up.
Safety will be found in speed and lightness. There are a couple of great places to hide from anything that comes down but you have to be quick enough to reach them. The climbing will be hard but not extreme. You just have to be climbing on neve or ice and not flown fluff
Every few years what was an unacceptable and irresponsible objective hazard becomes more acceptable and eventually becomes just another problem to workout and climb around. What was once considered suicidal for one generation becomes a normal and acceptable risk to the next. More dangerous faces in the mountains have been climbed but this one requires much more time in order to get the conditions that increase the margin of safety. Who will be the most patient?
The NW face of the Thumb stands as perhaps the biggest unclimbed face in Alaska at approximately 7500 vertical feet. It will be a great prize when it gets climbed. And that it will.
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hooblie
climber
sounding out stuff , in the manner of crickets
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Nov 18, 2009 - 02:01pm PT
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bldrjac, that's the kind of post this thread deserves, sober-sided judgement calls such as your's will carry the day.
worthy, worthy objective obviously. patience and understanding (cunning opportunism?)in addition to a sterling skillset
will be rewarded as you suggest
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Patrick Sawyer
climber
Originally California now Ireland
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Nov 18, 2009 - 02:10pm PT
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I have no doubt that somebody will climb the face, it is just a matter of time and the right conditions. But I have seen it from a float plane, and it is one big 'mutha'. Good luck to those who go for it, because, not being negative but more so realistic, they will need luck.
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qt
Mountain climber
psg, ak
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Nov 24, 2009 - 02:26pm PT
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Wasn't it the big face on Mt. Burkett (rather than the Thumb)that Stutzman tried in 1975? They got close, but the weather wouldn't allow the cigar?
It makes sense that Boulder Jack doesn't think the objective hazard on the NW face of the Thumb is very high , because he only spent, at best, one week there looking at it.
Same with Guy and John (RIP), before the objective hazard apparently ended their lives. Kai Hirvonen seemed to think the extreme hazard was perfectly intact, and wisely walked away.
Try spending, aka: wasting, a month below the NW face, watching it --then you may have a true sense of the intricacies of it's objective hazards (I use the plural because there's more than one or two). Meanwhile, you'll enjoy the temperate rain-forest weather.
But timing is everything-- with good ice, good weather, good luck, and a pocket-full of hubris, a skilled climber can climb that thing. Can. Whether or not it actually happens is another story.
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Oplopanax
Mountain climber
The Deep Woods
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Nov 24, 2009 - 03:25pm PT
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Imagine the reputation the north ridge on Latok I would have if it had killed 50% of those attempting it.
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qt
Mountain climber
psg, ak
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it aint 7500' tall either, more like 6700' , by the map anyway; unless the glacier has gone away or the mountain got taller. But hey, whats an 800' difference from reality, since its already "the biggest"?
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Brian in SLC
Social climber
Salt Lake City, UT
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Wow I hadn't heard Dave Stutzman's name in a long time...He died in an avalance at Bridger Bowl, skiing the cold smoke. RIP
Big Sky I believe. Wasn't he on ski patrol there?
Sad deal.
-Brian in SLC
(BB season passes in the early 80's)
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Plumbbob
Mountain climber
Juneau, AK
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Guess I missed this thread last year. After reading through the posts I thought I would put in some things as I remember them.
Dave and I climbed the lower part of the NW Face and then traversed out to the ice fall to viewers left then accessed the N. Pillar which we followed to the East ridge. We summited in mid August on a beautiful sunny day.
Dave returned to the Stikine in 1979 and attemped the S. face of Mt. Burket (I think he was with Dan Cauthorne) They were turned back several hundred feet below the summit by stormy weather.
Dave and I did a free accent of the complete N. Ridge of Mt. Stewart in June of 1977. This included freeing the Gendarme. We spent 10 days in there below the N face of Mt Stewart and Sherpa Pk. There were a number of people who joined us there. One of the climbs I did was was with Hooblie and I think it was called Razorback Ridge (viewers right of the Stewart Glacier Couliar.
Dave died at the Big Sky ski resort on Chritmass Eve 1982. His death still hits me hard. (The accident was documented in the Snowy Torrents 1980 to 86, incident # 82-21.)
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Do you still live in the NW Bob?
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Plumbbob
Mountain climber
Juneau, AK
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Hello Jim,
I live in Juneau AK.
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Next time you need sun visit me in Colorado.
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Clint Cummins
Trad climber
SF Bay area, CA
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Thanks, Bob! I did Mt. Stuart N Ridge in July 1977 and remember seeing your name in the summit register with the gendarme free at 5.9! (It took me almost 30 years to get back and free it)
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bmacd
Trad climber
Beautiful, BC
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Bob I took the liberty of trying to pull some details of that super contrasty photo of the face, for reposting.
I hope you are okay with that ? So this last great problem has actually been climbed ....
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Plumbbob
Mountain climber
Juneau, AK
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bmacd, quite alright to play with the photos.
The NW Face is still unclimbed. We exited viewers left low on the face on a ledge system from the snow fields in the center of the face.
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bmacd
Trad climber
Beautiful, BC
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Everyone is possibly too awed to comment on these photos Bob, but I hope you post them all ....
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tom woods
Gym climber
Bishop, CA
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I'll post the way cool props to bump this one up.
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Zander
Trad climber
Berkeley
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Great thread bump!
More pics would be welcome.
Z
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TripL7
Trad climber
san diego
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Plumbob!
Dave and I were good friends and climbing partners off and on after he arrived in Mammoth the winter of '74-75 tell about '77. I was hurt deeply to learn of his death. I had first heard of a patrolman being buried in an avalanche at Big Sky on Christmas Eve '82. I was on the way to my sister & brother in laws house up at Lake Gregory above San Bernadino. They didn't give a name, it was on the news several times that weekend. I kept wondering/thinking how sad it was being Christmas Eve/the holiday's. Couldn't get it out of my mine, being a skier and all.
When I walked into my apt. a few days later the first thing my roommate told me was that it was Dave.
Alison Ossias(sp.)wrote a great memoriam to him back in the 80's or 90's I recall her saying that he was one of those individuals who was born 100 years to late. He was offered a nice cabin to live in as one of the percs for guiding(she and Dave were guiding in the Cascades)and he never moved in and chose to set up camp up in the woods next to a creek.
I'll never forget the time he walked into my shiny new bachelors apt. that i had just rented on the eastside. It was one of the umpteenth times we had bumped into each other after not seeing each other for a while. Total disdain. It was as if I had sold out, and I had to admit it just wasn't me. I quit my job that day and bailed on the apt and went climbing.
Alison also mentioned that when they found him, one foot/ski boot was exposed. As if he had almost freed himself.
It's with a heavy heart that I discuss these things, it saddens me greatly that I will never see or climb and laugh with him again. Dave had a great sense of humor, a dry sense of humor at tmes.
I'll never forget his gripping tale of his ascent of the the NF of the Grande Jorass. He and his partner were high on the face and a huge storm was coming in. They were to high to retreat, and to far bellow the summit to be pulled off. Everyone was retreating below and getting pulled off the summit by choppers(they were warning everyone to retreat or die). Evidently it was one of those killer storms and they were on there own pushing for the summit. They came upon a Spanish team that had pretty much given up/couldn't get any higher. Long story short Dave got everyone up and back down. Storm lasted over a week and initiated winter with horrendous conditions.
So as I sat there in silence for a few minutes after the harrowing tale, a thought comes to my mind. And I ask, in regards to the Spaniards, "Did they know any English?" Dave sits in deep reflection for a minute or so, then suddenly a smile/half laugh breaks out on his face and he says "Yeah...HELLLLLLP!
I will forever regret not going to Alaska and attempting the NW Face of the Devils Thumb with him that summer '75. I didn't have a nickle in my pocket, or a clue to what I was getting into, but he was willing to drag me along somehow. It would of been one helluva adventure...that's what Dave was about.
It would be good for someone to start a In Memory of... thread.
RIP Dave...we love ya Bro!!
Trip~
BTW, Thanks for that pic of Dave. Would love to see more.
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Plumbbob
Mountain climber
Juneau, AK
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Here are some additional pictures.
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Max
Social climber
outer space
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Max
Social climber
outer space
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TripL7
Trad climber
san diego
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Plumbbob!
Great photo's!
Wish I had a camera back then.
Thanks.
Max, great shots of the NW Face of the Devils Thumb!!
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marv
Mountain climber
Bay Area
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 31, 2010 - 01:33pm PT
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could someone post the text/photos from "50 Classic Climbs"? [I would if I owned a copy]
aside: if a book is out of print (which I believe Steck/Roper is), are there any legitimate copyright objections?
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Clint Cummins
Trad climber
SF Bay area, CA
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Oct 31, 2010 - 02:19pm PT
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You can buy Fifty Classic Climbs of North America for $32.46 used on amazon - it doesn't really matter if it is technically out of print. Easy to get.
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Chief
climber
The NW edge of The Hudson Bay
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Oct 31, 2010 - 11:15pm PT
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Steve Grossman offered this bit of info which I wish was true.
I believe that Perry Beckham (the chief not The Chief!) climbed a ridge route on the left margin of that side of the mountain.
Steve, I've only been to the Thumb in my dreams and those dreams ended when Guy and John lost their lives trying that face. Kai Hirvonen is a dear friend and workmate and his tale of loss and survival on the long journey out is a sobering story. It makes me wonder if sponsorship causes young climbers to take risks they wouldn't if they were climbing on their own dime.
Tragic. RIP Guy and John.
Respectfully,
Perry Beckham
ps. Hi Bob, it's been decades, hope you're well.
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ms55401
Trad climber
minneapolis, mn
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Sep 28, 2011 - 08:30pm PT
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unclimbed still
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mojede
Trad climber
Butte, America
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Sep 28, 2011 - 10:09pm PT
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Those photos from August 1977 made it look more like a long-azz rock climb (ala' Becky/Chouinard) and a lot more tantalizing than a romp up an ice ramp in full-on Winter condition.
Maybe global warming will bring that big bad boy into rock shape in the next decade, eh?
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ms55401
Trad climber
minneapolis, mn
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unclimbed still -- get the canadian-american conquistadors on this one
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Clint Cummins
Trad climber
SF Bay area, CA
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and Generalissimo Francisco Franco is still dead.
Great photos from 1977!
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ß Î Ø T Ç H
Boulder climber
bouldering
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Has that obvious 2 pronged pinnacle been climbed?
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ms55401
Trad climber
minneapolis, mn
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bumping this so I can enjoy it (near the front page) fully with a cappuccino in seven hours
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Johnny K.
climber
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Jan 16, 2014 - 09:49am PT
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Up, Respect.
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ms55401
Trad climber
minneapolis, mn
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Jul 11, 2014 - 07:02pm PT
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wondering whether climbers get excited about faces like this anymore. probably not.
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MH2
climber
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Jul 11, 2014 - 07:58pm PT
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If you have to ask the question...
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mikeyschaefer
climber
Yosemite
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Jul 12, 2014 - 12:36pm PT
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I definitely know it still makes a few climbers excited. though I doubt there are that many. I've been on the col between the witches tit and the devils thumb and looked down the NW face. looks a wee bit scary.
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| Messages 1 - 69 of total 69 in this topic |
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