Trip Report
The Lama Wrangler, the Cook, the Guidebook Author, Boston, the Luxumberger and his son, Harvard, the Counselor, and the Lizard.
Thursday August 18, 2011 1:23am
The Lama Wrangler, the Cook, the Guidebook Author, Boston, the Luxumberger and his son, Harvard, the Counselor, and the Lizard.

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M-Butress is the obvious formation with the Golden Dihedral to the lef...
M-Butress is the obvious formation with the Golden Dihedral to the left of the snow field. The apostle is the rectangular butress to the right of the M, son of Raid to the right of that and Raid is on the far right.
Credit: mike m
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This is a story about a trip that came to be through Supertopo. The Lizard posted up that he had more room on a trip he was taking to the Wind Rivers one of the great ranges of North America and had a couple extra slots. The Lizard is one of America’s greatest alpine climbers and was looking to go into the range in great stile. He said he had a cook, food, and lamas lined up for 9 days. The Counselor being a lifetime 40/hr per week kind of guy thought it was a great opportunity to get away from work and do some awesome climbing while hanging out with some legends of the sport. The Counselor emailed the Lizard and the Lizard sent him his number. They touched base and agreed to meet on the evening of August 2nd at Big Sandy Opening. The rest of the crew would assemble there as well and they would walk in the next morning. So that evening we feasted on salmon, quarts of fresh raspberries the counselor had brought from his yard, various other food, and canned beer from the Crow Peak Brewery in the Black Hills.
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Camp at Big Sandy Opening
Camp at Big Sandy Opening
Credit: mike m
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On the morning of the 3rd they ate a huge breakfast and spent several hours loading up the lamas and deciding what would stay and what would go, but first we had to round up a couple of the lamas that had gotten loose over the course of the evening.
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Credit: mike m
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As we were packing unbeknownst to most of us the Guide Book Author showed up. He had decided to join the group for a good chunk of the week.
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The Guide Book Author Leading the lamas
The Guide Book Author Leading the lamas
Credit: mike m
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They packed climbing gear, camping gear, and personal gear first, and then went on to work on the common gear. Things such as kitchen items, food, tarps, and so on. They then had to saddle up the lamas and equalize the load so that each lama had an equal amount on each side. There ended up being about 45-50 pounds of gear in each pannier which gave each lama about 100 pounds of gear as they each would carry two pannier. There were 8 lamas, 8 people, 800 pounds of gear, and 4 dogs hiking in the first day with Harvard to come the next day, but he had sent some of his gear to be packed in. Within the first mile there were several problems. First there was downfall across the trail and the lamas had a very hard time getting across it. Then the loads started shifting and several loads were dropped and much time was spent readjusting and reloading, but before too long the Lama Wrangler had things running smoothly and slow but steady progress was made into the East Fork Valley of the Wind River Range.
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Credit: mike m
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Lamas are wonderful animals with a great temperament and unbelievable agility. They walk anywhere a human can and are very sure with their movements. The back foot goes right where the front foot was and in that way they never seem to trip up or kick the many rocks in the trail. The first camp was set up at about 10 miles in at Skull Lake.
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Credit: mike m
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The views of the cirque and the many wildflowers are absolutely stunning.
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Credit: mike m
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Cirque of the Towers
Cirque of the Towers
Credit: mike m
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We finish the evening by making dinner, doing a little fishing, and having a few drinks. We decide that we will all climb on Mid Summer Dome the next day as a warm up for the bigger stuff in the Ambush Cirque the rest of the week.

August 4th: everyone sleeps in as the day before was a big day. We make breakfast and start heading for the Dome.
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Credit: mike m
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The Lizard and the Guidebook Author will make one rope team at 140 years between them they have a lot of experience. Boston and the Counselor will make another team as will the Luxumburger and his son, and the Cook and the Lama Wrangler.
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Credit: mike m
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As we hike up toward Pyramid Lake the views of Ambush, Raid and Gieke become more and more spectacular. The Lizard is the first on a route and he is a pitch up before too long only putting in three pieces in that pitch. Before too long the Cook is heading up to the right of that and the Luxumbergers are to the right of him. The Counselor waits for the Guidebook author to get a ways in front of him but then soon launches off. Before too long we are all in the same vicinity wandering around wondering where to go as we all forgot to bring a topo. Guidebook author is having trouble remembering where the routes go as he hasn’t been there in many years and he did not bring his own book. Mid Summer Dome routes seem to wander and we all cross paths several times that day. Everyone made a successful ascent accept maybe the Cook who ends up getting into some difficult terrain and takes a 30 footer. They traverse off and end up OK. The Lizard finishes first and heads off to stash his gear at the base of Ambush. The Counselor sees him going there on the hike off Mid Summer and scrambles to catch up and stashes his gear there also. There is a super nice bivy cave at the base of Ambush where we can keep our gear out of the weather. Everyone then hikes back to Skull Lake to fish, eat, and drink some more while telling stories about climbs and climbers. In the mean time Harvard had walked in and is at camp when everyone arrives. While cooking it starts to rain and the Patron starts getting passed around with mini key limes to take the bite out. We discuss tomorrow’s objectives which include Ambush Plaisar and the Great Grey Book.
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Cocktails on ice
Cocktails on ice
Credit: mike m
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August 5th: the counselor gets up early and goes fishing and catches 4 tiny trout, before too long Boston comes down and is fishing too. When they arrive back at camp a new plan is hatched to move camp up a couple of miles to Pyramid Lake so that 4 miles can be cut off the round trip to the climbs and several hundred feet of elevation gain.
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Pyramid Lake
Pyramid Lake
Credit: mike m
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We pack up much faster this time and we are on the way at around noon. It only takes an hour or two to get to the next camp site and we spend a couple of hours setting up camp. Also the Luxumbergers decide that this is not their scene and decide to hike out. So now there are seven of us.
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Credit: mike m
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We finish the night with a big meal, fishing, and drinks and decide that the Counselor, the Cook and the Lama Wrangler will to Ambush Plaisar a 1300ft 5.9 that ends under a huge roof at about mid height on Ambush. Harvard and the Lizard will do the Great Grey Book 5.9 on the Apostle a buttress of Ambush. Boston and the Guidebook author will take the day off to hike and fish. All get to bed planning on an early start.

August 6th: Again everyone sleeps in later than they want but we are close to Ambush now and no one seems too concerned. The Counselor uses twin ropes to lead the Cook and the Lama Wrangler up Ambush Plaisar. The Conselor belays both at the same time on the whole route which works well until the last couple of pitches where the terrain gets steeper, but they pull through and everyone makes it to the top of the route where they rappel the route.
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Bivy Cave at the Base of Ambush
Bivy Cave at the Base of Ambush
Credit: mike m
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Credit: mike m
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They miss the first four pitches of the route and end up doing some corners for about that length until they meet up with the route a mid height. The counselor finds some old pitons that pull out with his fingers, but the variation provides fun climbing back to the original route. Meanwhile Harvard and the Lizard make quick work of theGreat Grey Book on the Apostle.
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The Apostle
The Apostle
Credit: mike m
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Boston and Harvard have caught a bunch of fish and we spend the night cooking corn breaded brook trout over a large fire in a large skillet full of grease. Fish never tasted so good. Nobody is staying up too late and camp is quiet by 10pm.

August 7th: The Guidebook Author heads out today and everyone is sad to see him leave. He is so fun to talk to. Between him, the Lizard and Boston and their 205 years on this planet they seem to know every climber and loads of funny, inspiring, and disgusting tails to tell. They knew Kamps, Pratt, Robins, Barber, ect. Ect. Ect. And many of the “younger”climbers(everyone on the trip is at least 30 save the cook who turns 30 in a week or two) can not get enough of these stories. He sets off and the Cook and the Lama Wrangler will take the day off. The Counselor and Harvard are the only ones climbing today and they will do the Becky route on Ambush.
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Credit: mike m
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The Becky Route has a long grassy ramp that leads to a bunch of 4th to easy 5th class climbing that stops at a huge chimney. The chimney goes at about 5.7ish and is a bit wet and mossy at the start. It then is a beautiful full pitch after pulling a steep squeeze with a big jug on the outside of the chimney.
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Credit: mike m
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You can place gear up inside the chimney but then have to squeeze back down and go on the outside to finish. After the overhang you go deep inside the chimney to a great crack on the left wall. Once you get out of the chimney there is another 1000 feet or so of easy rock climbing to the most prominent of summits on Ambush. The view down from the summit towards the Golden Dihedral is stunning and we have better views than ever of the Cirque of the Towers. They hike down the backside to the Gieke/Ambush Col and ski gravel and now in their shoes for a 1000ft. back to the bivy cave. We cook steak, tell stories, and drink until we are all too sleepy to stay up.
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Credit: mike m
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Even though the mosquitoes are horrible it cools off enough that night for the counselor to camp under the stars where he sees many shooting stars after the moon which is getting full goes behind the ridge.

August 8th: The Counselor and Harvard will try the 1500ft M-Buttress Triple Direct on Ambush and the Lizard and Boston will try Boston’s steep 10 pitch route on a smaller buttress of Ambush just left of the Golden Dihedral.
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M-Buttress
M-Buttress
Credit: mike m
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The Lizard and Boston are off well before 5am and Harvard and the Counselor are not far behind them. Boston and the Lizard are at the snowfield blow the route by the time the Harvard and the Counselor are emerging from the bivy cave with their gear. The M-Buttress is just right of the Buttress that the others are climbing on.
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Credit: mike m
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There is unavoidable snow on both routes, but Harvard and the counselor don’t have an ice axe or crampons to negotiate the snow with so they just go around and end up doing a variation to the route, but get it completed. The lizard and Boston brought ice gear and dispatch the snow before long. The Lizard and Boston make some route finding errors and are moving slowly so they bail after several pitches leaving the gear and the snow pitch fixed for a return attempt. The counselor and Harvard use the Apostle 4th class decent to go back right to the bivy cave without problem, but many days of “going” have taken their toll and both will take the day off tomorrow. The Cook ends up being the hero of the day as we ran out of propane out of our 15 lb tank due to a leak and he hike out to the trailhead with one lama and the propane tank and hikes back in the same day he arrives just in time for dinner a 24 mile round trip. We have fried corn tortillas, black beans and rice we all eat massively for the first time in a couple of days.

August 9th: Harvard and the counselor decide to take a day off and hike around the cirque to look at objectives for the next day and decide to try a harder route on Mid Summer Dome rated 5.9+++ what that means they are not sure, but it seemed less committing than any other route that isn’t a huge step up. The Lizard and Boston again get up early and head for the route to the left of the Golden Dihedral. They get rained off and are back at camp before any one else gets up. Before too long the Lizard is heading over to Baptiste Lake below Mt. Hooker because he heard from a hiker that there is huge trout biting there and they are catching them with their hands. By the time Harvard and the Counselor get back to camp the Lizard has a bunch of huge trout back at camp. He says little about it but is obviously very proud to have brought a ton of protein back to camp. We cook the trout in tin foil with coconut and thai seasoning and it is a big hit. Boston also catches a bunch of small trout that are fried up with corn meal that are equally good but more work. We all get to bed at a reasonable hour in order to get up for our last day before we hike out.

August 10: The Lizard and Boston get up early again and head into do their route again. Harvard and the Counselor head to Mid Summer Dome a little later and the Cook and the Lama Wrangler head to Ambush to do the Beckey Route. The Counselor and Harvard get spanked on the first pitch variation of the 9+++ is rated 10 hard or 9+++ depending on what topo you look at.
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Credit: mike m
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They get summarily spanked and both decide they are done climbing and it is time to go catch some big trout in Baptiste Lake.
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Credit: mike m
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Credit: mike m
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The weather holds out all day and the Lizard and Boston get their route done free. As do the Cook and the Lama Wrangler. Harvard and the Counselor end up catching a bunch of big trout and hike back over the pass and pack the trout in snow to keep them fresh. We again have a huge fish fry and everyone is satiated. Lastly Harvard busts out an aluminum water bottle filled with 60 year old scotch that his grand mother had given him from his grandfather’s collection when she had to move out of their house and it is passed around with great care and delight to celebrate a great trip.
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Credit: mike m
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August 11: We get up at a reasonable hour and start cleaning up camp and packing the lamas.
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Credit: mike m
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We are anticipating a smooth hike out as we have at least a couple of hundred pounds less weight, but we are sadly mistaken the lamas seem a little grumpy and are fighting before we even leave camp. The lamas drop several loads and it stops the whole train for quite a while each time this happens. The Lama Wrangler ends up having to stay behind with a very stubborn lama. We get back to the trail head and split up the gear. All in all it was a very cool trip and the counselor heads home and has to be at work the next day. The lama wrangler heads into Lander to get a new pair of climbing shoes as his has a major blow out. The cook will stay and clean up the gear to head back in for another four weeks with the Lama Wrangler. Boston will head to Jackson for a day or two before flying home. Harvard is off to climb the Black Ice with some friends and the Lizard will give a slide show at the climbers ranch in the Tetons before doing some climbing in the range and then heading to the City of Rocks.
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Credit: mike m
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Postscript: I would like to say thanks to Jim Donini for inviting me on this incredible trip and to Terry for his use of the Lamas. The Cook, Darin Reay, was great for making incredible food in the back country. Joe Kelsey had amazing stories and was such a great character. Steve Arsenolt for pioneering great routes and sticking to it through all these years through many injuries incurred from Vietnam and climbing accidents. The Luxumbergers were great for the short time they were there but they were very engaging and exposed me to a lifestyle that I would love to emulate with my own kids some day when they are older. George Brewster was a great climbing partner who was continually stoked and always wanted to see what was around the corner. The counselor would like to thank his family who had to endure the motorcycle rally without a husband or father around.

  Trip Report Views: 12,987
mike m
About the Author
mike m is a trad climber from black hills.

Comments
Mighty Hiker

climber
Outside the Asylum
  Aug 18, 2011 - 01:55am PT
What a delightful report - thanks!

Still waiting for photos of lamas, wrangled or not, although the llamas were rather intriguing.
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Aug 18, 2011 - 02:09am PT
Sorry spelling has never been my strong point.
bergbryce

climber
East Bay, CA
  Aug 18, 2011 - 02:29am PT
Dang, this is awesome!
Great pics of rock and fish :-)
Captain...or Skully

climber
Boise, ID
  Aug 18, 2011 - 08:33am PT
That was badass! TFPU fer sure.
Whew.
Jaybro

Social climber
Wolf City, Wyoming
  Aug 18, 2011 - 10:38am PT
Wow, what fun! chasbro and I are already plotting a llama trip Into the Bighorns next summer!
guido

Trad climber
Santa Cruz/New Zealand/South Pacific
  Aug 18, 2011 - 10:51am PT
Awesome-Title alone is worth the TFPU.

Careful though we may see some new Fed regulations over having way too much fun.
drljefe

climber
El Presidio San Augustin del Tucson
  Aug 18, 2011 - 11:02am PT
Solid.
Beautiful country up there.
TKingsbury

Trad climber
MT
  Aug 18, 2011 - 11:18am PT
Nice mike! Looks like a great trip!
Cheeers!!1
SteveW

Trad climber
The state of confusion
  Aug 18, 2011 - 11:25am PT

WOW!!!!

Thanks for sharing!!!!
survival

Big Wall climber
Terrapin Station
  Aug 18, 2011 - 11:33am PT
Now THAT is a seriously top notch TR!!!!

More pix of the WALLS!!!!
neversummer

climber
30 mins. from suicide USA
  Aug 18, 2011 - 11:47am PT
Bad ass...
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Aug 18, 2011 - 12:31pm PT
Jaybro, I would love to get in on some Big Horns action let me know if you are looking for some more people to go.
Survival, I will post some more photos tonight when I get a chance. Thanks for the kind words everyon and thanks again to all the guys that included me on this trip it was a great group of characters and there was not one moment of strife or bad feelings on anyones part for the whole trip. Just stay away from talking about religion and politics and everyone seems to get along just fine.
John Moosie

climber
Beautiful California
  Aug 18, 2011 - 12:36pm PT
The only thing missing is a flock of trained bats to eat the mosquitoes. That was a dream trip.

Good people, beautiful country, great cook, and someone else carrying everything = peeerfect.
survival

Big Wall climber
Terrapin Station
  Aug 18, 2011 - 01:23pm PT
What is that wall behind the fish?

And who the hell are the Luxumbergers and why did they bail early?
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Aug 18, 2011 - 11:21pm PT
Alright Survival here you go.
MH2

Boulder climber
Andy Cairns
  Aug 19, 2011 - 04:05am PT
Quite an assemblage. Wild place. Nice pacing, Mike M (just as I was wondering if mosquitoes would be mentioned, there they were).

And a small personal connection: Steve Arsenault was at the table in Emil's that night in '68 after my first day at the Gunks, during the establishment of a strong and lasting association of beer with climbing.

I especially like the atmospheric photo just above, and the idea that there is still more out there to do.
Les

Trad climber
Bahston
  Aug 19, 2011 - 09:55am PT
holy crap, maybe the best TR I've ever read. You guys did it IN STYLE! We had visions of such luxuries when planning our Cirque of the Towers trip, but were saddened to learn that the pack animals won't go past Jackass Pass. But Mid Summer Dome ... oh my.
survival

Big Wall climber
Terrapin Station
  Aug 19, 2011 - 09:59am PT
Now thass whut I'm talkin' 'bout!!!

Now who are the damn Luxumbergers??????
Fritz

Social climber
Choss Creek, ID
  Aug 19, 2011 - 10:12am PT
WOW! Great report, great photos, and great people.

That Lizard Donini was all mellowed out from his Wind River's adventure, when we climbed at City of Rocks this week.

Now I know why!
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Aug 19, 2011 - 12:18pm PT
The Descent.
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150262649363935.333752.48530203934&type=1#!/video/video.php?v=1899612451674&comments¬if_t=like

The Luxumbergers are Jaque and Ben from Luxumburg. I believe Ben is quite accomplished for his young age and goes by Freerider on ST. You may have to get more info from Donini on that one. I think the lathering of 98.11% Deet at all times to keep the mosqitoes at bay took its toll.
donini

Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
  Aug 19, 2011 - 12:26pm PT
Nice Pics! Thanks for posting.
GDavis

Social climber
SOL CAL
  Aug 19, 2011 - 12:28pm PT
Awesome! Thanks for sharing :DDD
Ezra Ellis

Trad climber
North wet, and Da souf
  Aug 19, 2011 - 01:05pm PT
A++++
Thanks for your heroic effort!
Where is mount Hooker in the cirque?
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Aug 19, 2011 - 05:06pm PT
Hooker is north of the East Fork Valley probably 6-8 miles north east of the Cirque of the Towers. There are some good impages on Google Earth.
YoungGun

climber
North
  Aug 19, 2011 - 03:38pm PT
Love the llamas!! Great TR!!!!!
steveA

Trad climber
Wolfeboro, NH
  Aug 19, 2011 - 05:15pm PT
Hey Mike,

Your quite the story teller. After that trip, Jim, George and I did the Snaz in the Tetons.

That trip left me in good shape. I was feeling pretty good today on my local crag here in N.H.

I'm already thinking about next year!
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Aug 19, 2011 - 05:43pm PT
Steve good to hear from you and glad to hear you had a safe trip home. Thanks for the book. I hope I did not offend anyone by taking some literary liberties with our profiles.
seth kovar

climber
Reno, NV
  Aug 19, 2011 - 07:53pm PT
AWESOME!!!!!!111111
freerider

climber
  Aug 19, 2011 - 08:35pm PT
Mike,

thanks for the nice company on this trip , although short, and the nice trip report, luckily longer!

so yeah, the Deet and Mosquitos are not my strong point... but it's good to hear you guys enjoyed the rest of the time. we headed over to the city of rocks and then the valley, where we climbed some...

cheers

the small luxemburger.
rgold

Trad climber
Poughkeepsie, NY
  Sep 8, 2011 - 01:19am PT
Cool report Mike! I was in the area maybe 35 years ago with the Guidebook Author and Barbara Thacher. Among other things, we did the Ambush route, but used two points of aid on a dripping wet overhang which I assume must be the free crux. We also did one of the routes on Summer Dome, I thought it was the one by Williams but maybe not because I don't remember any 5.9.

On the hike in from Big Sandy, we stopped off at Shadow Lake and did the South Ridge of Sharks Nose. (Note the external frame pack, at the time the last word in load-carrying technology.)




Here are two shots of the Guidebook Author on whatever route we did on Summer Dome.



Can't find anything in the archives on the Ambush routes; you'll just have to take my word for it...
Gal

Trad climber
going big air to fakie
  Sep 7, 2011 - 09:20pm PT
Great report. Love the llamas!!! The climbing looks spectacular! Thanks.
Dirka

Trad climber
Hustle City
  Sep 7, 2011 - 09:27pm PT
AWESOME!
Chris McNamara

SuperTopo staff member
  Sep 9, 2011 - 01:22am PT
Never been so psyched to go back there as now... great great stuff.
sandstone conglomerate

climber
sharon conglomerate central
  Sep 9, 2011 - 10:15am PT
Damn, brings back great memories...i even miss the endless drone of the mosquitoes. Nothing tastes better than fresh rainbows, and the sound of the wind through the pine forests still echoes in my memories.
GBrown

Trad climber
Los Angeles, California
  Sep 10, 2011 - 01:09am PT
Wonderful story and pics. Thanks, Steve, for turning me on to this.
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Nov 2, 2011 - 05:03pm PT
OK gotta bump one of mine. Then back to work. Climbing Club Meeting at 4.
Zander

climber
  Nov 2, 2011 - 10:31pm PT
Nice thread!
Murzerker

climber
Away from Walhalla
  Nov 23, 2011 - 09:45am PT
Wind River bump.

Let us give thanks...
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Aug 12, 2012 - 02:41pm PT
went into the winds with a big st crew including cor, Steve A.&, his wife, Terry, Donini, his wife, mission, Roger s, Carla, and Liz. Lots of routes were climbed in the deep lake area and I believe cor got a video of Roger getting a possible fa on a sweet splitter. More to come I am sure...
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Aug 12, 2012 - 03:48pm PT
Norwegian

Trad climber
dancin on the tip of god's middle finger
  Aug 12, 2012 - 03:58pm PT
as life should be.

thank you for tipping my mundance on its side.

don't worry mike m.
spelling is an organized sport,
mostly based on revenue and marketyng.

your ill beliefs and wayward passages will
fare much better in the eternal scheme.

jesus, im speechless on the documents of your good time.
Dirka

Trad climber
Hustle City
  Aug 12, 2012 - 10:09pm PT
llama-tastic. Place looks heavenly!
le_bruce

climber
Oakland, CA
  Aug 13, 2012 - 12:43am PT
Whoa! Never saw this TR -- what an amazing place. Mike, you did a great job of catching the magic of it. Great pics.
WyoRockMan

climber
Grizzlyville, WY
  Aug 13, 2012 - 10:52am PT
This TR needs a sticky for the front page!

Thanks for the Monday morning stoke!
Karla

climber
Colorado
  Aug 13, 2012 - 11:07am PT
Hi Mike! So wonderful to share the week with you and the others. We got in ~11:45pm last night. Ready to head back:) PM me your address, I'll mail you your book. Kar
matty

Trad climber
Sad the forum is gone =(
  Aug 13, 2012 - 09:58pm PT
Sweet!!! How did I miss this the first time around? Drool
Big Mike

Trad climber
BC
  Aug 13, 2012 - 11:14pm PT
Nice work Mike! I read this last time around but forgot to comment.. Excelent read! Any new pics from the latest trip?
jahil

Social climber
London, Paris, WV & CA
  Aug 14, 2012 - 01:28pm PT
Llammas and Donini ? Does it get any better ?
:)

steve
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Aug 15, 2012 - 09:56am PT
Here are a few more photos from the trip. We were in the Deep Lake area this year. Steeple is the pyramid shaped peak with Haystack on the left and Lost Temple Spire and East Temple on the right.
justthemaid

climber
Jim Henson's Basement
  Jul 17, 2013 - 08:38am PT
Llammas and Donini ? Does it get any better ?
:)

Nope.

It really doesn't.
orle

climber
  Jul 17, 2013 - 08:59am PT

(close enough I guess)
Roxy

Trad climber
CA Central Coast
  Jul 17, 2013 - 11:45am PT
great story telling man, love your use of monikers! : )



RyanD

climber
  Jul 17, 2013 - 11:55am PT
This is all time-fun story, photos, & the tr even spilled into the comments with contributions from others. It's the best when that happens.
TWP

Trad climber
Mancos, CO & Bend, OR
  Jul 17, 2013 - 12:23pm PT
"The Llama Wrangler" - that's me - departs on the 2013 version of his annual Wind River Walkabout approx. August 1 and comes out of the Winds approx. September 21. (This trip report comes from one week of the overall Winds 2011 Walkabout.)

There is still room in the calendar for another group/individuals to join the Wrangler in "Wind's Walkabout 2013."

If interested, PM to me.

Criterion for inclusion are the exact opposite as those of an applicant to be guided up Mt. Everest. You can't buy your way onto a trip with the Llamero because there are no fees.

To the contrary, applicant's for inclusion should - to paraphrase JFK - "Ask not what E.L.V. can do for you, ask what you will bring to the Walkabout experience and the team as a whole?." I am looking for competent, experienced alpine rock climbers who will meld into a team for a memorable and enjoyable wilderness rock climbing trip.

El Llamero Vagabundo, E.L.V. aka TWP aka Terry Price
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Jul 29, 2013 - 08:43pm PT
Heading to Wyoming next week.
Peter Haan

Trad climber
Wyoming
  Jul 29, 2013 - 10:53pm PT
God how gorgeous. Fun to see Crusher and Fran too! Just terrific and thanks!! Fun to see J-Do out and I guess McCarthy? That is huge.
johntp

Trad climber
Punter, Little Rock
  Jul 29, 2013 - 11:07pm PT
nice fish. me hungry.

oh yeah, the rock pics are ok too.
mouse from merced

Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
  Jul 29, 2013 - 11:14pm PT
jesus, im speechless on the documents of your good time.
--weej

My vocabulary shrinks in comparison to this TR.

And Mt. Hooker, how much?
TrundleBum

Trad climber
Las Vegas
  Jul 30, 2013 - 07:26pm PT
Great TR !

A couple of thoughts:
I saw the 'Large Trout' shot and thought "Wow, isn't aht Hooker in the BG?" <---- obviously confirmed later in the thread.

On my first trip to Yosemite (78')
I bumped into two of my New Hampshire climbing heroes, Steve Larson and Base. They had made a trip cross country and while in Yosemite Valley did the (5th?) ascent of the Pacific Ocean wall.
When listening to their stories in Camp4 I was struck with the thought of:
"If you were going to Yosemite with the objective of doing an early ascent of the P.O wall... why would you bother to stop in Wyoming and trudge out to some crag (Mt. Hooker) and what in Wyoming is big enough to have you 'walled up' for three days?"
Boy was I ignorant at the time.

Your TR makes me long for another 'Winds' adventure
(but not the skeeters)
TFPU
steveA

Trad climber
Wolfeboro, NH
  Jul 30, 2013 - 08:41pm PT
Trundlebum,

Steve Larsen just climbed the RNWF of HD, with his son, 1 month ago.

Thought you would think that was cool.

I'm heading back to the area of this TR in 2 weeks, unfortunately Terry, ( the Llamas wrangler), is sick and will not be able to make it.
rgold

Trad climber
Poughkeepsie, NY
  Jul 30, 2013 - 10:00pm PT
'Nother shot of Hooker

mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Jan 13, 2014 - 12:39am PT
here is to the winds
kaholatingtong

Trad climber
The fake McCoy from nevernever land.
  Jan 13, 2014 - 09:31am PT
that hooker is quite the chunk of rock. good stuff here, cheers.
L

climber
Just livin' the dream
  Jan 13, 2014 - 11:03am PT
Loved the storytelling.
Loved the cast of characters.
Loved the magnificent photos.
Loved the whole damn thing...especially THE LLAMAS!
(And I especially love llamas when they spit on ya lol!)

Thanks for bumping this, Mike. I hadn't seen it and you just made my Monday morning.

mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Jan 13, 2014 - 01:57pm PT
No problem L. Was going through some old paper photos and have been "scanning" them with my phone. Seems to work OK
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Apr 12, 2014 - 02:10am PT
Donini, I met Craig Dobkins at an Adaptive Adventures and Paradox climbing clinic on the front range on Wednesday and Thursday that I took some Outdoor Education students to. He said he used to do some climbing with you BITD. He said he put on a harness for the first time on 19 years and inspired us all by climbing to the top of the first route he tried. The guy has major arm strength and you would never know he was in his mid 60's.
WyoRockMan

climber
Grizzlyville, WY
  May 28, 2015 - 09:22am PT
Bump because summer is coming and I gotta make some plans.
JEleazarian

Trad climber
Fresno CA
  May 28, 2015 - 11:03am PT
Every time I read this TR and gaze at the pictures, I want to stop what I'm doing and head straight to the mountains. What could be better?

Thanks much.

John
Gnome Ofthe Diabase

climber
Out Of Bed
  May 28, 2015 - 09:47pm PT
Brings a smile to your mug and a lump in your throat!

Best of the topo for sure! (If the meaning of the song was missed)

[Click to View YouTube Video]
Charlie D.

Trad climber
Western Slope, Tahoe Sierra
  May 28, 2015 - 07:24pm PT

Every time I read this TR and gaze at the pictures, I want to stop what I'm doing and head straight to the mountains. What could be better?

Amen brother! Great TR thanks for the bump, ST does not suck!
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  May 31, 2015 - 07:35pm PT
So I was watching some Sunday night TV and who do I see on naked and afraid but the cook. Darrin who I have not seen for two or three years was instantly recognizable. He is the perfect person for that show. He walked out like 15 miles in a loincloth with one llama to get more propane when we are in the winds in one day. I'm not sure he didn't rip the loin cloth off as soon as you left camp.
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Aug 19, 2015 - 08:53am PT
My favorite trip bump.
TWP

Trad climber
Mancos, CO & Bend, OR
  May 25, 2016 - 11:05am PT
The Llama Wrangler - me - Terry Price - and TWP on Supertopo - is going back to the Wind this summer for "Wind Walkabout 2016." Dates = first week of August through end of September. Plan to stay the whole time as long as partners are interested.

If you are interested in putting together a group for a rock climbing based trip, feel free to contact me and we'll see what we can dream up.

skcreidc

Social climber
SD, CA
  May 25, 2016 - 11:32am PT
Hard to beat the Winds. Great TR!
Vitaliy M.

Mountain climber
San Francisco
  May 25, 2016 - 11:38am PT
Really cool stuff, thank you for bumping.
mouse from merced

Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
  May 25, 2016 - 12:30pm PT
Ciao, brother Terry!I sure wish I was up to going on this kinda schlepp-fest. Have a great time in August.
MFM
brotherbbock

climber
So-Cal
  May 25, 2016 - 12:36pm PT
Wow....a little bit of everything in that TR.

Thanks for posting.
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Jul 28, 2016 - 03:32pm PT
Celebrating not talking about politics. Terry speak up if I am wrong but your are offering to take people into the Winds. Wish I could go and I would bring my son. He can now follow pretty much anything I can lead and will take the sharp end as well on occasion. He is really good at crack climbing too but it has been hard to get him to do much prancing here in Boulder. Hope you have a great trip. If you go in next year I would definitely be interested.
Grippa

Trad climber
Salt Lake City, UT
  Nov 10, 2016 - 07:49am PT
And bumpppppppppppppppp
i-b-goB

Big Wall climber
Nutty
  Nov 10, 2016 - 09:04am PT
I got "OFF" (the 9oz. bottle) on this spectacular TR!
steveA

Trad climber
Wolfeboro, NH
  Nov 10, 2016 - 12:34pm PT
Hey, that place looks familiar. Wouldn't mind being back in there right now, but only for an hour.

I don't like the cold much.
TWP

Trad climber
Mancos, CO & Bend, OR
  Nov 10, 2016 - 03:00pm PT
Yes, I plan to return to the Winds in 2017 with llamas and spend six weeks or more.

Got aced out in recent years due to vision problems, etc.

Now accepting requests for trips, plans, etc.
yanqui

climber
Balcarce, Argentina
  Nov 10, 2016 - 06:03pm PT
Cool report. I read this before and enjoyed it. Thought I'd give you a bump over Trump and do a little spray. Was at Baptiste Lake with Mike P. in (maybe) 1988 and we did the West Buttress of the Musembeah. I thought we did the old Beckey, Kor route (5.8) but, according to the description in Mountain Project. apparently the route we did was a direct 10a. At any rate, it was a really good line, as was every route I ever did in the Winds, and we were the only people, those days, at the lake.
Happy Cowboy

Social climber
Boz MT
  Nov 12, 2016 - 06:38pm PT
Excellent TR and photos! I love the Winds, used to spend a lot of time there. Friends to boot, Kelsey, Donini, Terry and others. TWP I've thought long about next summer 17' to join you for a trip, as we discussed at COR. I'll PM you, email?

A nice golden from the area.

Thought it relevant to mention that Babtiste Lake proper is located in the Wind River Indian Rez and requires a special reservation permit to fish legally. The outlet and SW corner of lake are permissible to fish with WYO lisc. It's a spectacular spot and does get visited by the locals. There's an obnoxious sign marking the line...

Keep up the TR's Mike, thanks HC
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Dec 17, 2016 - 04:16pm PT
HC. I think the line goes right through the lake so the one side is legal without the reservation permit. I might be interested in going in as well Terry.
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Jul 10, 2018 - 05:52am PT
Getting ready to head back to Wyoming at the end of the month to hopefully climb some undone big walls in the Big Horns. Anyone interested? Would love to go with someone with access to a decent 4x4.
eeyonkee

Trad climber
Golden, CO
  Jul 13, 2018 - 05:21pm PT
Hey Mike, I'd have to do some checking, but I might be game.

I've got a Toyota 4runner.
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Jul 10, 2018 - 10:46am PT
I am off from 7/27 to 8/5. Would not necessarily need to be gone the whole time, but I am sure there are many different lines to be done in that cirque. Just let me know.
hobo_dan

Social climber
Minnesota
  Jul 10, 2018 - 03:36pm PT
Aces for sure
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Jul 11, 2018 - 08:48am PT
Eeyonkee Big Horns are only a couple of hours from the black hills could hit a few classics over there as well if there is time. A 4 runner certainly trumps my forester. 5 .5 hours to Buffalo from boulder. It is not far from there. A four runner would have no problem getting to 1.2 miles from trail head where it has been pretty rough on a crv and an out back that I had driven in before. Getting to the wall from there is basically similar to doing an RMNP approach but could set up a camp just a few miles in. I have a bunch more pics I can round up if you want to see more. Also looks to be some offwidth on some the best looking lines so I am sure you are interested even more now.
eeyonkee

Trad climber
Golden, CO
  Jul 13, 2018 - 05:40pm PT
I'm a geologist AND a climber. I've never been to the Big Horns. Here is what I have discovered using Google Earth on the geology side. I never actually looked at any geological papers. I like to play Jeopardy without Alexa.

The Uinta, Wind River, Big Horn, and Black Hills ranges are all similar in that they are mountain ranges far from the coast that have "punched-up" through the continental crust. The Tetons are another good example. They are distinctly different than everything west of the Wasatch Front, which is shown more or less by the farthest west yellow line.
There appears to be a clear clockwise change in bearing of the range as you go to the east. The farthest west yellow line is the structural front of the Sevier orogeny, which is essentially unrelated to the other structures.

The pictures I've seen of the Big Horns always have looked like the Wind River range. I'm thinking that the two share the same structural elevation, exposing the same layer of basement rocks more or less.
zBrown

Ice climber
  Jul 13, 2018 - 08:54pm PT


WyoRockMan

climber
Grizzlyville, WY
  Jul 13, 2018 - 09:16pm PT
The pictures I've seen of the Big Horns always have looked like the Wind River range. I'm thinking that the two share the same structural elevation, exposing the same layer of basement rocks more or less.

The tenor and quality of rock (from a climbing perspective) are very different. One is a well known destination, while the other languishes in relative obscurity. Mostly due to the "choss" factor... The ages are similar.

The Bighorns have significantly more later intrusives throughout the range. Pretty cool to follow them for large distances.

Some unique rocks in the Bighorns as well.
"Leopard Rock", only here and in South Africa, IIRC.
mike m

Trad climber
black hills
Author's Reply  Jul 20, 2018 - 08:43am PT
A reunion of sorts at Jim’s slide show. There were a bunch of us from the second llama trip there including Karla, Tom, Liz, Corey, Angela and of course Jim. BTW it was one of the best shows I have seen at Neptune’s. He had some of the best pictures both from a current trip and from the 1978 trip. Hope Jim doesn’t mind showing this picture but they obviously became bivouac masters on that trip and here is a sick one.
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