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Haworth
Big Wall climber
Sheffield, England
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Topic Author's Original Post - Apr 30, 2019 - 05:40am PT
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He’s Flown
We are saddened to tell the climbing community far and wise that our Dad, Edwin Drummond, died on Tuesday 23rd April.
We each climbed with him at some point in our lives, but unfortunately never all together, that will have to happen in another realm.
Like the late sun on an easy slab, it warms us to know that some of his life’s greatest happinesses and achievements came while he was climbing.
His spirit is out there with you.
With love and peace: Haworth, Fiume and Areanna.
*We welcome any recollections, stories or photos you may have of him. Share them here or send privately to hello@haworthmusic.info
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Apr 30, 2019 - 06:16am PT
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My condolences...he was quite a man.
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Mark Rodell
Trad climber
Bangkok
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Apr 30, 2019 - 06:19am PT
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I never met him but I sure enjoyed his writings. Happy trails Ed.
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
Sands Motel , Las Vegas
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Apr 30, 2019 - 06:31am PT
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Didn’t know your dad but remember watching him rappel out of a cloud bank on el cap , soaking wet , looking like a Norse god...condolences....
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Tom Patterson
Trad climber
Seattle
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Apr 30, 2019 - 06:45am PT
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My condolences to you and your family. What a name he has in the climbing world and beyond. And what a lovely tribute to him on your part.
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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Apr 30, 2019 - 06:56am PT
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Sincere condolences to Edwin's family and friends.
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steelmnkey
climber
Vision man...ya gotta have vision...
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Apr 30, 2019 - 06:56am PT
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Dreaming of white horses...
RIP to a fine writer.
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WBraun
climber
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Apr 30, 2019 - 07:05am PT
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Remember him up there soloing the NA wall and got nailed in a bad winter storm in an exposed spot outside of the Cyclops Eye.
We encountered a lot of Ice on the approach slabs from the LZ.
Sar pulled him to the top.
How was it down there Ed?
"Ummmmm .... a little too freezing cold damp for me"
LOL ... I would have been long dead frozen solid.
Good man ..... condolences .....
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ron gomez
Trad climber
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Apr 30, 2019 - 07:22am PT
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RIP, condolences to his family and friends.
Peace
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Apr 30, 2019 - 07:52am PT
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"Mirror, Mirror" is a really fine piece of climbing literature. If you can find a copy of Ascent 1973 give it a read.
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Brian in SLC
Social climber
Salt Lake City, UT
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Apr 30, 2019 - 07:54am PT
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Ditto that^^^.
RIP. Some of the better musings about our sport out there...
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Delhi Dog
climber
Good Question...
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Apr 30, 2019 - 08:07am PT
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Condolences.
I sure enjoyed his writings as well.
Quite the character it seems.
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GraceD
Trad climber
Santa Cruz, CA
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Apr 30, 2019 - 08:12am PT
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In the Valley with Ed, circa 1974. Not dirty or bloodied so this obviously was pre-climb. We delighted in each others company for 4 years.
He was complicated, controversial, but always, always courageous.
Go forth, Ed, and show the angels how it's done.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Apr 30, 2019 - 08:24am PT
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Very sad to hear about your father's passing but I am relieved to hear that he is not suffering now.
Ed is probably my favorite mountaineering writer and a true master of the epic aspect of climbing.
I only met him once when I recorded a slide show done with Royal Robbins about their respective adventures on the North America Wall. Ed brought a tall ladder on stage and did a wonderful performance piece about his harrowing attempt to solo the NA that ended in rescue. He was in the early stages of being ill and talked candidly about the trajectory that he expected his life to take at that point.
After the presentation was finished, I engaged him in conversation and told him frankly that he was the "measure of a man" in my estimation at that point being such a curious amalgamation of hardman, artist and poet. He thanked me for the unusual compliment as he tried to wrap his mind around what I meant and we parted company to get on with our lives.
Truly a unique and talented human being as well as an indelible character and undoubtedly a considerable challenge as a parent. My sincerest condolences to your family and Ed's community of friends and admirers of which I am one. Our world is a duller place without such a splendid rascal in its midst. Please let us know if there is going to be a memorial gathering as I would be honored to contribute to it.
If you would like a taste of Ed's unique writing style take a look here.
http://www.supertopo.com/climbers-forum/771326/Mirror-Mirror-Ascent-73-Your-Favorite-Short-Climbing-Story
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Apr 30, 2019 - 08:35am PT
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A man of inestimable accomplishments of which he wrote inestimably.
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Russ Walling
Social climber
from Poofters Froth, Wyoming
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Apr 30, 2019 - 08:40am PT
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Condolences to Eds family and friends. I enjoyed the few interactions I had with him back in Yosemite, especially around the time of his attempt on the North America Wall. His writing was also top shelf. Great chap. RIP.
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Gnome Ofthe Diabase
climber
Out Of Bed
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Apr 30, 2019 - 11:43am PT
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Forever
A Climber
Unique,
From no mold at all
A large part of what was inspiring came from his writing.
Through his vision & understanding: from his words, that grasp you, everyone can always remember.
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Modesto Mutant
Trad climber
Santa Cruz, CA
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Apr 30, 2019 - 12:42pm PT
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Edwin was a larger than life figure. I remember him coming into Royal's shop in Modesto with a big topo book of all the buildering routes of San Francisco. He always filled the room with his presence. A wonderful gentleman.
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Don Lauria
Trad climber
Bishop, CA
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Apr 30, 2019 - 12:50pm PT
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My memories of Ed:
It was 1968,
Royal was hanging out with a British climber – Ed Ward-Drummond. It seems Drummond had arrived from Britain with intention of doing the NA Wall and not being able to find anyone to climb it with, he was going to approach us. Royal knew this and two days before our intended start, he asked if we would like to do Bridal Veil East with him and Drummond (or Ward, he kept switching his name around). We did the climb and Ward never stopped pleading with us to let him go with us on the NA. We were adamant – we are a two-man team - we’ve been planning this for a year – another climber would slow us up and we don’t need anyone else. The answer is “No!”
Ed's personality could be off-putting as evidenced by others on Supetopo:
“Edwind Drummond is a splendid writer and his book ”A Dream of White Horses” (London 1987) is one of my favorites. 40-45 short stories and poems. He’s not always a likeable guy and has a somewhat inflated ego - to be noticed in his account of a badly planned Makalu expediton (A Grace Period) and from his rescue from NA Wall (and stalking of R.R.)” - Michael Hjorth
“He was complicated, controversial, but always, always courageous.
Go forth, Ed, and show the angels how it's done.” - GraceD
One thing we all agreed on, he could damn well write!
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L
climber
Just livin' the dream
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Apr 30, 2019 - 12:53pm PT
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May Ed's entire lineage find peace in knowing that he
enriched many, many lives.
Rest in peace, dear philosopher.
Couldn't have said it better myself.
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JEleazarian
Trad climber
Fresno CA
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Apr 30, 2019 - 02:48pm PT
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RIP, good man and great writer. Friends and family have my sincere condolences.
John
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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Apr 30, 2019 - 03:21pm PT
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hey there say, Haworth... i do not know all the wonderful climbers from the old days, or, many of them, even now--
however, i am always the richer, after i learn of them...
thank you for sharing this, about your dear dad--with all those that did know and love him...
my condolences and prayers for you, and family, and other loved ones, that
will go onward without him, missing him, deeply-- to be strong, and
find new memories to love, from others that SHARE here, about him...
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nature
climber
Boulder, CO
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Apr 30, 2019 - 03:47pm PT
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Condolences to you, your family and his many friends. Thanks for sharing. There are some great stories in this thread. I appreciate everyone sharing.
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David Knopp
Trad climber
CA
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Apr 30, 2019 - 05:51pm PT
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Godspeed you Ed! Peace to your family, freedom from suffering for you.
We met at a small climbing shop in Berkeley, became friendly, i climbed with Ed a few times (in a gym!) as his body then mind gave way on him-but those few hours were precious ,mostly because of how sweet and kind he was to all.
Godspeed Ed!
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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Apr 30, 2019 - 08:08pm PT
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Skyward Edward . . . thank you for your kind influence all those many years ago.
Best to the loved ones.
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Mungeclimber
Trad climber
Nothing creative to say
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Apr 30, 2019 - 08:32pm PT
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Well sent Ed. Well sent.
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duncan
climber
London, UK
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Not-rest in peace Ed.
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Roger Breedlove
climber
Cleveland Heights, Ohio
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I'm sorry to hear this. Ed and I had wonderful times in SF, meeting in the Panhandle,we lived on opposite sides, or off to some terrible bouldering. My condolences.
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malbogies
climber
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Many years ago I spent one day climbing with Ed in the Avon Gorge, Bristol, UK. I was there alone midweek. He wandered over and said "Like to do a route?" I did, of course - I knew who he was. We had a great day. I never forget Ed, he was a real gent, very modest, quiet, unassuming, and great company. And of course a superb climber. RIP Ed.
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Bad Climber
Trad climber
The Lawless Border Regions
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Whoa, another legend takes his last lead. Off belay, Ed.
BAd
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SC seagoat
Trad climber
Santa Cruz, Moab, Bozeman, the ocean, or ?
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Very sad to hear this. He was a unique person.
Susan
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Levy
Big Wall climber
Calabasas
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I never met your dad but he was kinda legendary in Yosemite when I began climbing there in 1981.
R.I.P. to a man who by all accounts, was a terrific person.
My condolences on your loss.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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You haven’t lived if you haven’t done ‘Dream’.
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BLUEBLOCR
Social climber
joshua tree
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Such the awesome Dude!!
RIP Edwin
Be in Peace, to the Family of Edwin.
GraceD, that was sweet🤙
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Peter
Trad climber
San Francisco
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Edwin was one of a kind and was no slouch. Only climbed with him once, picked him
up in the panhandle for a slingshot up to Lovers Leap. He was wearing a cap and knickers that were neither new nor stylish. His hands seemed massive, the size of cantaloupes. We stopped to pick up a bag of apples, which he considered the ideal climbing snack.
I led up either The Line or the bolted route to the right, as he wanted to suss out the Jay Smith route that led out from the anchor. Not End of the line, something else? 10c my ass rating. Ed headed off with my rack as his mostly belonged in an antique shop. He was proud of his Muira’s tho. The route was meandering, thin and much too hard for me. Ed showed no sign of concern, it was like watching someone enjoying a good crossword puzzle as he sorted out wherever the hell the route was going. I was gripped trying to follow as the route was far from straightforward, and the placements were “sparse”.
On the way home Edwin was conked out in the passenger seat and there was this freaky dry lighting storm as we passed through Benicia or Vallejo. As we came over a rise in I-80 there was ball lightening buzzing across the sky, the only time I have ever seen. I blurted out “Holy Shit” and Ed lurched awake as this blue ball of electricity buzzed across the horizon.
Bumped into Ed from time to time at Mission Cliffs after that as he struggled with the effects of Parkinson’s.
RIP Ed. You are missed.
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colin rowe
Mountain climber
scotland uk
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Hello Haworth
I'm very sorry to hear of Ed's death. Ed and I climbed Nelson's Column together in 1978. I last saw Ed when he came over for the Long Hope invitation and stayed with me in Scotland and at Kendal. I stayed with him in San Francisco in 2011 and we went up to Yosemite together. During that trip we also climbed at a climbing wall in San Francisco and even Parkinson's did not deter him from leading 5.10.
We climbed at Harrison's Rocks with Al Alvarez following Nelson's Column and then Ed gave a poetry recital in London. I still have vivid images of Ed in his 30's and his physical and mental strength that meant he was very much the inspiring leader. I have memories of him unravelling the banner which said "Barclays Profits Apparteid Coffins" and fixing it to the column.
Ed suggested when we were found not guilty of causing criminal damage to the column that we ought to sing for "he's a jolly good fellow" to the Judge in which we duly did and was fined for contempt of court. The Jury and the Gallery enjoyed the rendition in our best baritone voices.
Thinking of you and your sisters' and sending you love.
Warmly (Ed ended his correspondence to me this way)
Colin
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
Sands Motel , Las Vegas
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That’s awesome. Thanks for the chuckle .
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Risk
Mountain climber
Marooned, 855 miles from Tuolumne Meadows
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Sorry to here this. One of the family. RIP Ed
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sharon oakes
climber
Sheffield
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Sorry to hear about your loss Haworth, Fiume and Areanna.
I knew your dad from when I was twelve years old and here's a picture from happy times when he, Lia and Fiume were around for the birth of our eldest son. As said he was a complex man but he had a great influence on me growing up and Ieft me with a sense of belief in myself. One was that I could write-and later on in life I have become a published writer and the last time I saw him, i was able to send him a link to my first radio drama. He later became friends with my husband and also left him with unforgettable memories, notably climbing Dream of White Horses. Your dad had the great gift of making the ordinary something very special, and i remember when I was about 14, him making pesto, cheese on toast when i thought spaghetti hoops were something exotic! One of our great pleasures is drinking a morning Lavazza-your dad stayed with us after he lived in Italy and introduced us to proper coffee-and that legacy lives on in Liam-the baby in the photograph, who is a coffee aficianado. I hope Ed's found peace and am very glad he has had the great love of his children and through what must have been very difficult years. He was very lucky. I imagine him now in a bright turquoise fleece, beret ajaunt , a packet of nuts and dates in his pocket swinging free of pain towards a clean, white rockface. Love to you all, Sharon Oakes
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Roger Breedlove
climber
Cleveland Heights, Ohio
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These are from the first ascent of Golden Bought, the line on the left side of the Gold Wall. I had been up to the next last pitch with Dave Birchieff but the big corner was a major drainage and full of dirt. Four years later, when I lived across the Pan Handle from Ed, I asked him to go up to the Valley and finish it. I had studied the wall and thought there was a way straight across the face to a straight in crack. Ed ended up the crux lead (5.4).
An early pitch
The lower corner before moving left onto the face
At the base of the large corner leading to the top of the Gold Wall. Ed is standing on the diorite dike where it passes through the corner.
Ed was very uncertain that there was any where to go out on the face. He had not done enough climbing in the Valley to know of the sorts of holds that show up on this sort of intrusion dike.
Hard to see, but once out on the face Ed was ecstatic. Big grin. 5.4 in the middle of nowhere. A crux pitch if there ever was one.
To get off we rapped to the West and were benighted on a moonless night. The forest is atop huge talus blocks with 30 foot drops. We ended up crab walking and scooting on our butts to avoid falling through the darkness. It did not feel safe. But, by looking up into the tops of the trees we could see the abrupt changes in the heights of the tree tops againts the slightly lighter sky, indicating a clifflette. This is the only part of the ascent that Ed seemed to remember when we caught up 30 years later. I remember this but mostly his trepidation melding into a wide grin as he climbed out onto the face.
Goodbye, my friend.
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hamie
Social climber
Thekoots
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Eulogy??
:) H.
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jonnywoodward
climber
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May 11, 2019 - 07:33am PT
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Your dad influenced so many people during his years of impressively diverse accomplishments. It's funny the things that individuals remember about someone, and as a climber I remember him for his unique brand of youthful non-conformism on the rock. When I was starting climbing in Staffordshire, not yet a teenager, Ed was stirring up the scene in the Peak with his ascents on grit and elsewhere - mixtures of genius and mad genius, but the theme was there. Despite its controversy at the time, his route The Linden at Curbar is the one which will always amaze me. When I first saw the wall, the line it took was surely the work of a complete madman? No, Ed's brain simply allowed him to go places most people wouldn't dream, and he had enough talent and drive to make it happen. Thank god for this. Life would otherwise be so ordinary.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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May 11, 2019 - 08:22am PT
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^^^^ Nicely put, sir.
Mighty, sue over a ‘u’? A pity Elgar never wrote an elegy.
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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May 11, 2019 - 09:17am PT
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The Long Hope, Orkney islands, first climbed over a period of seven days 40 years ago by Ed Drummond and Oliver Hill, reclimbed and -crawled in free by Dave MacLeod and Andy Turner: [Click to View YouTube Video]
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Rick A
climber
Boulder, Colorado
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May 12, 2019 - 07:32pm PT
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Ed Ward-Drummond was a significant inspiration to me and my circle of friends. I started climbing in 1971, the same year that Wilson, Crew, and Soper’s history of Cloggy, The Black Cliff, was published. Rob Muir somehow got his hands on a copy of the book when we were roommates in college, and we devoured it. The highlight was a black and white photo spread of Ed making the fifth ascent of Great Wall. The half-dozen frames made it seem like it must be the greatest route in the world.
The most dramatic photo was Ed spread-eagled on a move, fully extended, the hammer dangling from a sling, reaching up with his right hand. The caption is:
“After 15 minutes of trying to work out how to do it, Drummond climbs the crux and clips into the peg.”
When I met Ed in the Camp 4 bathroom in the mid-seventies, I was awestruck but managed to engage in a short conversation with him. I chatted with him a few other times, but never got to climb with him.
A few years later, in 1977, Rob and I travelled across the pond and managed a free ascent of Great Wall.
That’s the great thing about climbing, some dreams in fact come true. The source of that particular dream were those shots of Ed, wearing a wool sweater, shorts, and white helmet, working his way up the Great Wall.
My condolences to Ed’s family and friends.
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