Boots at Elevation – Saga 3 Yesterday’s solo hike up Mt. Baldy brought a bit of wisdom: No matter what it is you do, there will always be those who did before you, do it more often, faster and with more panache than you, and are able to achieve this while being older than you. I commenced my ascent about 6:15 am and shortly thereafter was passed by “The Gang of Three,” two older gentlemen and a twenty something female laughing and bouncing stories off the canyon walls. Being passed by any, of any age, is routine for me and I am always good natured about it. About half way up, at the Ski-Hut, the gang had stopped for food, water and more stories and I passed them. Maybe 20 minutes later, they passed me like I was standing still. About 45 minutes later, they had stopped for another food, water and story break and, once again, the Old Tortoise passed with the exchange of routine mountain slope pleasantries; only to be followed, a very brief time later, by the swish of the gang once again racing ever onward and upward. I completed my 7th ascent of Mt. Baldy, at what is for me an amazing time of 3hrs and 45 minutes and there I was greeted and congratulated by “The Gang of Three.” I gave them my biggest grin and mountain top greeting and spit out, “You guys really know how to hurt a guy, by passing and stopping and passing.” Acknowledging my statement with a smile of her own, the young lady offered to use “my cell phone” to take my picture.” First off, I had to explain this ol”guy doesn’t own a cell phone and, then, this was not my first visit to the summit and I already had several such photos. That last part was a big mistake because the young lady then went on to introduce me to Shin, the elder statesman, absolutely in excess of 65 years, and most vocal of “The Gang of Three,” who had summited Mt Baldy more than 320 times and the other gentle, middle aged, don’t recall his name, who had been at the top in excess of 100 times. To which I mumbled, “I guess my seven doesn’t count for much.” We had a good natured laugh, shared some fresh fruit and generally enjoyed the somewhat warm, but with a cooling gentle breeze, ambience overlooking a huge segment of Southern California. I interviewed all eight people on the summit and learned that all were there in preparation for a Mount Whitney journey later this summer. I also learned that Shin was already set for two Whitney hikes and would probably add yet another in the coming weeks. Am looking forward to our “Gang of Four,” daughters Jen and Jaci, son-in-law Forrest and myself, hike up Mount San Gorgonio (AKA: San G) on July 6.
Posted on: Sat, 08 Jun 2013 14:37:07 +0000