Sorry that I created such conflict. It was a true story and I love to write but sometimes get carried away and forget who I am writing for. Apparently I need to work on my attention to detail. I was not trying to boast about my climbing abilities, as I stated that I had no bushiness being up there. However, I know better now. The route was Kiener's to Stettner's Ledges, which does have a 5.8 pitch. When we crossed the top we could not see anything, but I do know that we found rings and rapped down two pitches to a boulder field that was covered with snow. I am terrible with directions and route finding and the snow did not help, but I should have gone back and researched the route before submitting my post. As for the cringer I am sorry that I made you cringe. It won't happen again and if you see my name you should avoid reading my messages. Sorry to have offended you. I will be sure to keep my stories to myself next time.

Is this real ???

Or are you in a writing class and wrote this for an assignment ???

Real. Is it cheesy? Really did think that I might die, but am still alive.

Seems to be discrepionsies in the descriptions to what you did and where you were.

It sounds to me that the descent was via the old cable route.

What did you learn from your experience?

This little gem sits in the back of the Back Country Office of R.M.N.P. I laminated this photo, and placed it in my pack. It is there to remind me of my place among the mountains, and what will happen if I forget it.

food for thought Submitted By: Boreas on Nov 3, 2009

Thanks for sharing, Jennifer.

"...But We Do!"

Thanks to both of you guys for reading my essay. I was not offended at all by either remark but took them as compliments and insights as to what parts of stories interest readers. I really wrote about my trip because climbing and writing are my passions. I love describing and sharing incidents so that people can connect and respond with their stories too. I put little thought into whether I was a wimp or not. I added the details because, in retrospect, I thought they were kinda of funny, now that I am alive. I definately feel like life is full of twists and turns no matter who you are and how right you do everything. The beauty is that it is all a part of the adventure and the outcome is in how you perceive and react to the bumps along the way. I am working on this! Thanks again for your thoughts. Climb safely and share any good stories.

Okay, I am confused. The mountaineering route up Longs that you allude to is Kiener's route, and (with careful routefinding), never exceeds 5.5 in difficulty. The approach to that is up Lamb's Slide, traverse Broadway, then up 2-3 pitches of 5.5 (or easier) terrain. So you dial it down from a 5.10a romp on the Diamond to Kiener's route...or did you do some other route? Nothing from your description makes sense...I agree with Jim on this one. No doubt any adventure on Longs can be an epic, but if this is on the up-and-up, you should be grateful that you didn't tackle anything on the Diamond proper, as you obviously were ill prepared to do so.

"Chasm Route" = "North Face aka old Cable Route"
"Keystone Route" = "Keyhole Route"

Sorry for the criticism, but I cringe as I read this.

Congratulations on not becoming a statistic.

Jennifer,

Thanks for sharing your story with us. I enjoyed it but didn't have time to post up until now.

Climbing is certainly an adventure and I've definitely had my share, some good, some bad. It takes courage to share them on the internet and subject yourself to a forum like this and I think sometimes people read more into things than they should.

I also think some of the comments are unfair and in bad taste, but hopefully it won't discourage you from sharing your next climbing experience.

Thanks.

john

Hey Pink Eye!.....What the heck did you write that was so bad? Did you delete it? I can't seem to find it....

Hope to see you at the gym soon....

I thought it was a good story. you should put it back up. MP.com has a particularly nasty peanut gallery

I agree, there have been many times when climbing above 12,000 feet that 5.5 has felt like 5.9 to me, especially in bad weather conditions when I'm cold.

It takes guts to climb, just like it takes guts to show the world who you are through your words. You do both, and that's more than a lot of people can say. Keep doin' what you're doin, if you like it. You'll always make mistakes, but that's where the stories come from. No one ever wrote an "epic" about how everything went smoothly, including remembering the exact route in hindsight. Your story is yours and it was a fun read. Be proud of your courage, in the mountains, and on the page.

thank you for your story. I enjoyed reading it. Please post more.

I enjoyed your story, entirely accurate or not.

Stettners Ledges makes more sense to me. Thanks for clarifying that.

I was cringing at the thought of lightning striking all around you. That can yield some of the most frightning moments in one's life. I'm glad you are safe.

And, for the record...I did enjoy the story.

Don't listen to the a-holes Jennifer, I enjoyed your story. Keep writing & posting trip reports, beats the hell out of another political thread!

Bring back the essay.

You should not let a few negative comments discourage your from posting you essay or any other stories/comments in the future. Some people get caught up in the not so important details. It was 5.9. No, that's only 5.8. It was this route. No, it was that route, etc, etc. In your story these were minor details, whether perfectly accurate or not. What was great about it was you conveyed the essence of the experience quite well. You thought you were well prepared, the weather forecast appeared great, all seemed well. But, instead, your hands were numb, the weather turned, and you gave some serious thought to religion. This brought me back to a similar experience that I had last summer on Spearhead. One pitch to go (runout friction), and the skies opened up with four inches of hail and snow. We stood there and shivered for 45 minutes even though we thought we were dressed properly. Then, the lightning started and so did the religious thoughts as death seemed likely. We knew we needed to move. So, we started to climb (rapping was not an option at this point), clearing snow and ice off the holds, blowing into our hands to try to regain feeling in our numb finger tips, water running down the rock splattering into our faces and crack and sizzle lightning on top of our heads. Fortunately, we survived. Three people got struck by lightning that day below us in the Glacier Gorge. How we survived, I don't know. Thanks for recounting your story.

Bring back the essay!

Bring back your essay, Jennifer. Don't let the pooptards in the peanut gallery dissuade you.