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martygarrison
Trad climber
Washington DC
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Sep 20, 2017 - 05:49pm PT
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What great pics Don!
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Gnome Ofthe Diabase
climber
Out Of Bed
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Sep 21, 2017 - 03:54am PT
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Thank You, You Sir. Still rock,
Fantastic
And a re-affirmaction that the Heros of my youth were every bit the coolest dudes on the planet !
also the strongest physically & Mentally bad ass climbers ever & still to this day
It has been a honor to have read this! thank you for sharing
R.E.B. P.P.s.H . . .
As the party will, the night faded into day,
the song came on
In our 'Gonzo' drunken state & looking as if we'd been on
some long and arduous adventure,
We, with slurred speech, rejoiced; "REBPPaH"
(Translation : the song "Rippel" by the Grateful Dead)
Robin Egg Blue Pork Pie Hat !
Thank You Sir!
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Nick Danger
Ice climber
Arvada, CO
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Sep 21, 2017 - 07:12am PT
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WOW, a history lesson and a truly great story. The taco just does not get any better than this. Thank you, Don, for telling us the tale. Werner is right about those shoulder-crushing piton loads and the manly men who carried and nailed with them. The NA wall represented my second of two failures on grade six climbs. "A man's gotta know his limitations" - Clint.
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Don Lauria
Trad climber
Bishop, CA
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 21, 2017 - 07:19am PT
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Rollover,
You noticed. No helmets, no harnesses, no tape, and no chalk. Chalk appeared at Stoney Point in the late 60s. A gymnast from Claremont University was the culprit that started it there.
To this day I have never owned a chalk bag, but then I haven't ever led 5.11 either. Think it would make 5.9 easier for me now?
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Cragar
climber
MSLA - MT
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Sep 21, 2017 - 07:56am PT
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Man, thanks for this thread and pic posting!! The quality and historic relevance of these pics is pure gold.
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PhilG
Trad climber
The Circuit, Tonasket WA
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Sep 21, 2017 - 08:07am PT
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Thank you, Don.
Like Werner, I hope the young climbers appreciate the history lesson.
After a certain point on that wall, there was little chance you could be rescued in those days.
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Scole
Trad climber
Zapopan
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Sep 21, 2017 - 09:22am PT
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"It was an art form placing pitons in long expanding thin pitches and bottomed out cracks so you wouldn't rip.
Now a daze they just paste pussy heads into the cracks.
I think passive gear and portaledges should be illegal. :-)
That way there would very few climbers lining up for big walls."
You said it Werner. Clean ascents and free ascents would not be possible but for those who showed the way. I miss the ring of steel!
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martygarrison
Trad climber
Washington DC
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Sep 21, 2017 - 10:29am PT
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Don when I climbed NA Wall I was a pretty solid 5.11 climber. However climbing the 5.8 Gulf of California pitch was a bitch in those Robbins boots!
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mcreel
climber
Barcelona
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Sep 21, 2017 - 12:37pm PT
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Thanks for the story and the photos! And, hey, give chalk a try, why not?
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Don Lauria
Trad climber
Bishop, CA
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Topic Author's Reply - Sep 21, 2017 - 02:25pm PT
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'Cause I'm 85 and it probably wouldn't help much - 5.7 doesn't make me sweat.
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chappy
Social climber
ventura
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Sep 21, 2017 - 03:21pm PT
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Don,
Great story and adventure! Brings back alot of memories of my early days in the valley. Pins,tubular webbing, hammers, oval biners, heavy heavy racks and of course blue suede shoes. No wonder we were so strong back then lugging all that gear around. Bravo!
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clode
Trad climber
portland, or
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Sep 21, 2017 - 03:36pm PT
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Like a crazed climbing fool I believed his every word! Thanks Don for ruining my reality!
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scuffy b
climber
heading slowly NNW
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Sep 21, 2017 - 10:46pm PT
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What a wonderful recounting. Gripping adventure. The photo of Henneck topping
out is indelibly etched in my mind (the b/w from Ascent). Bravo!
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
Nothing creative to say
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Oct 13, 2017 - 10:47pm PT
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Oustanding pics Don! Thanks for posting up (TFPU!)
After that great set, it almost seems rude of me to ask if the Twinkledolt pic came up in the hunt for pics?
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johntp
Trad climber
socal
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Oct 14, 2017 - 08:11am PT
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A most excellent TR. Thanks Don!
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McHale's Navy
Trad climber
From Panorama City, CA
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Oct 14, 2017 - 12:35pm PT
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I was at Stoney Point next to Boulder 1 when people were talking excitedly about the 2nd ascent of the NA that had just happened. I remember at the time not immediately knowing what the 'NA' was, but the excitement in the air said it was a big deal.
Great pics Don! :>)
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renzo
Trad climber
Whitefish Mt
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Oct 14, 2017 - 01:59pm PT
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Love seeing the vintage beer cans.. great spread, thanks for sharing when the NA was the toughest rock climb in the world!
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IntheFog
climber
Mostly the next place
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Oct 14, 2017 - 02:55pm PT
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That's a great story, well told.
The next ascent, by Davis & Kroger, was a little over year later. Were there any other attempts before that?
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AP
Trad climber
Calgary
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Oct 14, 2017 - 03:11pm PT
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There was a good story "The Walrus and the Carpenter" about an early ascent by Blob Wyvill and Ben Campbell Kelly. It would be in context for someone to post it
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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Oct 14, 2017 - 03:36pm PT
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Some of that tale appeared in Llargo's Rag Baloney thread.
Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
Apr 27, 2014 - 11:07pm PT
Campbell-Kelly - Sunday: "Two pitches later we were on Calaverous Ledge, a huge area of easy angled rock with a good flat bivvy spot. In comfort we fixed the next pitch and settled down for a leisurely dinner. Both of us were hungry and looking forward to our salami, I carved and shared it out. A few minutes later Blob vomited his portion back up; hastily I gulped mine down before he could get his hands on it."
Campbell-Kelly - Tuesday: "Today the haulbag won. Our trusty bat-tents again saved us from the slow torture of an inadequate ledge, and Brian-I'll-try-anything-once-Wyvill returned to his normal sardine diet while I laid siege to the half-savaged salami. At first light we resumed our vertical safari, and followed the only trial through a desert of bland rope up towards the sheltered oasis of the Black Dihedral."
Campbell-Kelly - Thursday: "Every corner of the bag was searched for food, but the cupboard was bare. Staggering up the summit slopes we stumbled over a tin of chopped ham, and while Blob chanted a quick chorus of "Spam, Spam, Spam", I opened it up. Manna."
Excerpts from the "Walrus and the Carpenter" by Ben Campbell-Kelly and Brian Wyvill.
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