Marvelous Trips
My vacation time has, for the past several years, been intimately tied with my passion for mountain climbing. Generally each calendar year I enjoy one long summer vacation supplemented by several smaller vacations somewhat evenly spaced, with winter being another local maximum in the frequency distribution.
This schedule is motivated by the fact that most mountains in the northern hemisphere are most accessible in the warm months, the exceptions being
a.peaks which are in the opposite hemisphere whence their summer is our winter;
b.peaks which are intentionally climbed as winter ascents, e.g. using snowshoes and/or skis with the emphasis on cold weather training;
c.peaks in tropical or subtropical latitudes for which the annual variation in temperature is minimal.
Over the past few years I have enjoyed several exciting trips of this sort. Included are:
Last summer, 1997, I traveled to Russia and attempted Mt.Elbrus (18,481 feet), the tallest mountain in Europe. Located in the Caucasus, Elbrus is of moderate difficulty. I wanted to go with my brother on private tour but he and his girlfriend Dana were married in April with a baby due just around when he would be in Russia with me.
Our climbing party explored Moscow and optionally Saint Petersburg (former Leningrad) after the attempt on Elbrus. I looked forward to various dishes which my brother enjoyed while in St.Petersberg some two years ago, not the least of which include lavish caviar preparations, but never made it to St.Petersburg.
As such my goal of Denali in Alaska (20,320 feet) will wait until some untold future summer. As seen on my home page this is my "ultimate" climbing goal, as it is somewhat more challenging than anything I have previously attempted.
I would fly to Fairbanks, Alaska in the dead of winter, possibly around the last week in January, to camp and live outdoors at subzero temperatures. This would assure me that various clothing combinations, especially hand and footwear, are adequate to the task. I suspect I will make motel reservations in case camping at -20 F (-29 C) becomes intolerable.
I am dead serious about climbing Denali, and there is no question in my mind that someday I will stand on its summit. The only real question is when.
Regarding climbing and fitness I have begun a weightlifting program to increase my general body strength and have begun to replace my habitual running with a combination of "urban backpacking" with a seventy pound load (a hilly four miles), and running uphill on a treadmill.
On Memorial Day weekend in 1997 Edward Earl and myself successfully climbed Mt.San Jacinto from the desert floor (about 400 feet above sea level) to the summit (10,804 feet) within one day. Although we have climbed St.Jacinto previously from a camp at 6,400 feet, I had never attemped to climb ten thousand vertical feet in one day. It was a test of endurance with plenty of water and a tent near the summit placed there the day before by taking the aerial tramway.
I have visited Alaska twice, both with my brother on my thirtieth birthday, and, in June 1995, as a member of an expedition to the St.Elias range bordering on the Yukon Territory. We climbed four new peaks (I succeeded on three) in a vast glaciated wilderness previously unvisited by modern man.
My friend and climbing companion Edward Earl toured Alaska in summer 1997, seeing as he had never been there. As a private pilot, noting the essentiality of that transportation modality in the Alaska bush, he flew himself around for a major portion of the trip (after flying in to Anchorage by airliner). Indeed, it would have been a shame if he were to have visited Alaska and not use his piloting background in some way or other.
I have a strong wish to visit Europe and the Far East to sample the finest cuisine this side of the sun. My eyes are particularly set on France, Italy, Hong Kong and Taiwan. My plan is to accomplish these goals when, as an older man, I am too feeble to climb mountains. Now that's something to look forward too!!
