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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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May 20, 2014 - 04:01pm PT
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The Log fell in 1984. The last time I climbed it was in 1981, and it was vibrating quite wildly then.
I'm told (I can't remember if it was by Galen Rowell or Wally Upton) that a group allegedly went up with the announced intent of knocking it down in the early 1960's, and some forerunners of our modern "tree sitters" stationed themselves in the fall line below it.
Guido, you must have some insight on whether this is true.
John
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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May 20, 2014 - 04:40pm PT
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What kind of tree was this long-lost log? Where did it originally grow? What caused it to be where it was on the route? Are there bits left below?
These are all questions which historians (and enterprising relic hunters) would like to hear answered.
It could spawn a cottage industry like unto splinters from the True Cross.
Donini might have some insight.
Mouse :0)
Thank you, John.
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gunsmoke
Mountain climber
Clackamas, Oregon
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May 20, 2014 - 05:11pm PT
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Just a standard pine. It fell where it grew. Miraculously when it fell over, the top hit a ledge across a chasm, ending up at about a 45 degree angle. When it was pushed off in the 80's it would have taken a nearly vertical fall for hundreds of feet. Finding what was left of it, even back then 30 years ago, would have been hard.
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TwistedCrank
climber
Bungwater Hollow, Ida-ho
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May 20, 2014 - 05:12pm PT
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The log - or its remains - belongs in the museum.
Here's my story:
My first climb in the valley, 1980. 3 humans, 2 45m ropes. Two of us crossed the log without problems, laughing and giggling, pondering 5.4 or so difficulty of the moves and how it was not at all like crossing a raging creek on a horizontal moss-covered log carrying a backpack.
We looked back and our third was sitting on the ledge shaking and trying not to make eye contact with us.
"C'mon up, Johan, it's pretty cool!"
"No f*cking way, man. No f*cking way. Let's rap. There's no f*cking way I'm going up that, I can't do it."
"It's not that bad. It's fun, really."
"No f*cking way, man. No f*cking way in hell."
"It's cruising to the rim from here. We need to get down North Dome Gully. It's getting late."
Johan was visibly shaking. "F*ck. I can't do that. That's f*cking crazy. F*ck. F*ck. F*ck."
(Narrator's sidebar: I don't recall the exact conversation, but I do recall Johan saying "f*ck" more times than you can shake a stick at.)
"We can't rap. We're on different sides of the log! We've got you on a solid belay. Let's do this."
At which point Johan started untying from his end of the rope and mumbling something about down climbing on his own. (Insert multiple "f*cks" here.)
This compelled us to untie the chord connecting us to Johan and informing him that he was on his own and asking him to be careful rapping. I'm not sure, but I think this entire event must have taken a couple of hours. Time is not linear at times like these. We two remaining climbers made dash to for rim. And, of course, we only made it to the shady grove bivi one pine needle-covered traverse away from the end of difficulties and a spring. It's my understanding that we were not the first - or last - to spend the night at that location. Ah, the life of a gumby.
I don't recall North Dome Gully being particularly trying, but this was the fall after I had spent the summer scampering about on Class 4 terrain for money. And it was before global warming, so maybe it was a bit more solid back then. Back in C4 I peaked into Johan's tent where I saw him face down and palms up after a night of making a damn fool of himself at the Mountain Room Bar and Grill. Or so the story went.
Johan split the valley shortly thereafter, and I hung out for another year or so, finally achieving my nebulous goal of being solid groveling up 5.9 off width.
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TGT
Social climber
So Cal
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May 20, 2014 - 05:30pm PT
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Shinnied up it in 72.
I had just recently acquired a real piton hammer, a Chouinard alpine hammer.
Sunk it in once and then decided that wasn't really a good idea considering that it had been deemed "rotten" for forty years already.
It was in about the condition in the Dogfathers photo already.
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Sierra Ledge Rat
Mountain climber
Old and Broken Down in Appalachia
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May 21, 2014 - 05:58pm PT
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...like crossing a raging creek on a horizontal moss-covered log carrying a backpack...
Crank, that's a fuking hilarious story. Thanks.
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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May 21, 2014 - 10:54pm PT
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Thanks for the archival images Guido . . . thedogfather, nice shot of the climber on the log in '76 . . . brings back the memory of climbing the route as my first Valley climb in '77, thanks man.
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KP Ariza
climber
SCC
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May 22, 2014 - 12:05am PT
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I did the route in '82, Shultz thankfully booted the log in '83/'84?
I was too much of rook to know how sketch it actually was, but I do recall being a little gripped.
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Todd Gordon
Trad climber
Joshua Tree, Cal
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May 22, 2014 - 12:10am PT
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Climbed the log in 1977;...my partner was fearful and didn't wish to climb across it;...he said that if we bailed from there, he would pay for all the hexes and stoppers we left behind. Eventually, he made it across. We didn't want to do the N. Gully descent, so we walked, in our rock shoes, to the falls trail and hiked down;...it was a long day....
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mark miller
Social climber
Reno
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May 22, 2014 - 01:36am PT
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The first time I did it was about 80' and the last time was about 83' it had gotten down to about less then a 2"x4" and was a little sketchy. Almost wish the powers that be reestablished that route because it was so classic.
There are currently some better climbing options up the corner but it isn't the same.
The Lovers Leap style pitch up the corner through the typically wet or the burly wide fist crack direct.
Somehow they all lose the beauty and innocence of the "rotten log pitch" presented in 50 Classic Climbs.
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cliffhanger
Trad climber
California
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May 22, 2014 - 02:05am PT
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High Traverse - "The traverse to the Jungle scared the bejebus outta me."
Most people take what seems to be the obvious way, the low traverse, which involves a poorly protected, dangerous, slick, often wet 50' final section across the water course and is all off route. The high traverse is the on route way to go; stay very high. It involves easy 3rd class thru blocky terrain, with a well protected 5.4 traverse across the water course to the forest.
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JerryA
Mountain climber
Sacramento,CA
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Topic Author's Reply - May 22, 2014 - 11:43am PT
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Al Rouse,first Brit to summit K2, was guiding at PSOM in 1976 & described the Royal Arches route with the Rotten Log pitch & Jungle finish as among the mellowest climbs in the Valley.
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Floyd Hayes
Trad climber
Hidden Valley Lake, CA
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May 22, 2014 - 12:02pm PT
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In retrospect I'm very happy that my much more experienced partner talked me into leading it during my third roped climb on August 4, 1982. I was scared and started shimmying up it, but my partner said it was easy and urged me to climb it like a rock because it had handholds and footholds like a rock, so I did.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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May 22, 2014 - 12:18pm PT
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Randisi, I assume those are Confucian rhetorical questions?
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