Yes, "stranded on a mountain" would be fairly accurate -- actually, twice in the last 9 days. The first was an "unplanned bivy" doing a traverse on the Bugaboo spire. Sunset on the descent ... and the rope jammed on rappel. Which kind of shut us down for the night at about 11,000 ft. (f'ing COLD!!)

The second was last night when Rick & I hiked out from the trailhead hauling 70 lb packs after "Ropegun" (who had bailed early) didn't return with the vehicle to the trailhead at the designated 10:00 p.m. pickup. We were heading for the CMH lodge which was (supposedly) only a mile or 2 down the logging road. Got a little unnerved when the last sign I saw at about 1:00 a.m. said:

"DANGER AREA CLOSED"
Problem Bear in Area
Do Not Enter

Followed by a delightful graphic of a grizzly. (somewhere here I got a pretty good shot of the sign -- if I can ever find my camera cable). Went another mile or so & said "fuck it" -- crawled into the tent & figured the bear was gonna get a double burrito.

Found the CMH lodge in the morning -- and made our way down to Radium Hot Springs where I'm snarfing down a prime rib. (while Dogboy is soaking his ancient carcass in the hot springs)

Just for the record, as much as I give Canada a hard time, the Canucks I've met have been universally the finest kind -- including the guides & climbers who hauled a guy with a shattered ankle down mountain and the chopper rescue crew who peeled him off a rock ledge at Applebee Campground (got some good shots of that too -- which I promised to send the injured guy and his really hysterical girlfriend).

And thanks, Jurate -- I guess after all these years I've kinda learned how to take care of myself. But most of it is just keeping the fear and panic at bay -- ignoring fatigue -- and knowing when to shut down.

As one guy up here put it, "the primary requirement to be an Alpinist is a short memory"

He's right. Even now the trip is starting to feel like something I wanna do again -- soon.

Later folks,


Nice little hackle farm you've got there. Be a shame if anything happened to it.
~Reph