Is 16 too young?

+20...spent the past 15 years undoing bad decisions and life choices that were made from ages 15-20. Fun times, but make smart choices.

"Bad people can sniff out vulnerablity. In those two, and a half years of difficult, and dangerous times on my own, and being exposed to terrible people, and things it felt more like 20 years. Don't grow up too fast unless you really have to. Some of the crap out there can scar you for life. No joke."

this.

..and keep an eye on the wing-nut of your group so he doesn't hose it for everyone else.

Justin Moon wrote:I have already received the Ok from my parents. I just wanted a general perspective from others.

If that's the case, then reread my post...
You'll see the 'old enough' category starting to fill in a bit.

But when you re-read it, focus really hard on the first line about the legal issue and remember any sort of trouble you cause or get into will really come down on your parents hard. Remember that any car or campsite you are in, that your friends do anything dumb in, counts for you to.

It is a HUGE investment of trust on the part of your parents and it is yours to make or break. Your relationship is transitioning from a parent-child relationship to an adult relationship... Remember what they say about first impressions- you don't get a second chance to make one. SO DON'T SCREW IT UP! Don't even get a speeding ticket- your parents don't want to drive 1/2 way across the state to take you to court for a ticket. And they would have to, because you are a minor.

If you are the driver the answer to your pals being jerks is easy:
"Dude, I got a long leash here, and I'm not even risking F'ing up the next two years of this kind of thing. Quit screwing around or find another ride home... I'll call your parents to pick you up and explain why if necessary."
If you are the passenger, the story is a little tougher, but is similar: "Dude, I got a long leash here, and I'm not even risking F'ing up the next two years of this kind of thing. Quit screwing around or I'll have to find another ride home... I'll have to call my parents to pick me up and I'll have to explain why if that is necessary."

Don't do anything to attract attention to yourselves. Remember, rangers are Law Enforcement personnel, and you are 'unsupervised' minors. I dunno state-to-state what the laws are, but you could end up in a situation, whereas even doing nothing wrong and having to be transported by the cops to get to your parents or your parents having to come get you.

I had to deal with a kid who took too many drugs last summer. He mixed E, Alcohol and god-knows what in the space of 2 days but not eating well and was hallucinating pretty steadily for 24 hours. By the way he was cycling I though he might have gotten some LSD in there too. (I was working as a psychiatric counselor at the time, so it was the nature of the beast)

He was on his post-graduation celebration trip and his parents had entrusted him to go... It was pretty sad. We ended up having to have him call his dad from out of state to come pick him up, meanwhile he ended up in a psychiatric care facility for 2 days while waiting... Anyway, drugs aside, imagine being OK and still having to have your dad drive 6 hours to come pick you up- no matter if you did something wrong or not... just because state law won't let a minor who is detained go back out unsupervised. Even if it is just for making too much noise in a campground.

The moral of the story- Nobody ever got in trouble for being too well behaved. Believe it or not, the kids I knew who were like that at 17-18 are the ones I stayed friends with, and the ones I still respect today. And they'll be the ones worth still knowing for you too.

Good luck, and have GOOD CLEAN FUN. If you ever have to be a jerk, do it when you are right under your parents noses, and won't make them feel as betrayed.

PS- go to campgrounds with auto-pay boxes. That way you don't get the business from Law Enforcement after you check in without an adult.

Three friends & I took a week-long roadtrip from Oregon to UT when we were Seniors in HS. I guess we were probably 17. We were definitely too young, but we all survived. Literally one or all of us nearly died every single day of the trip, either from poor driving or ignorant climbing behavior.

The next year we did it again and totalled our car. Apparently we were still to young.

Its funny... I couldnt wait to get away from my adopted parents when I was your age... I fought them every step of the way until at 17 I was released into the world. Now, at 35, I only wish I could go climbing and hiking with them.

Funny how life takes you... YOu spend your entire youth trying to grow up and our entire grown up years trying to figure out ways to get younger...

At 16, remember you dont know shit and be respectful and you'll go far dude.

When I was 16, I was on my 4th trip to Hueco Tanks (no parents present). I did the 2nd ascent of the Final Stone and was higher than a Giraffes ass the whole time. I soloed All the Nasties on acid and fed a skunk a fig newton out of my mouth at the picnic table at night. Go big or go home....brah! It's only illeagal if you get caught.

acid.

not at all. just use protection.

my guess is someone covered that already but i just wanted to make sure.

Take risks, live life. I really don't have regrets but if there was one it is that I didn't take enough risks. Whether it be ditching class to climb, pushing on when I don't feel like it, or even with the ladies. That's pretty much changed for the better though ;)

Get after it. Keep your head about you but get after traveling. You will learn more in this world by getting out and seeing different things that you ever will by reading about it. Not to mention climbing while traveling is one of the greatest things you could do in life. My opinion only. Think about what you are doing ahead of time. Dont get yourself into trouble. Stay cautious and enjoy. Bring books about the areas you are going to and read about the history as you are seeing it. Above all take pictures and have fun.

Crag Dweller wrote:i don't know you or your parents and i have no idea if you are mature enough at 16 to be going on road trips. but, i suspect that most parents would not react very well to their child using internet opinions as an attempt to overrule their decision. and, while i think MP is a community of good people, if you are putting up posts like this elsewhere on the internet, i hope your parents would use this as an opportunity to talk to you about the dangers of internet predators. if you are engaging in this discussion elsewhere on the internet, please don't provide any information about the trips you're thinking about taking. i don't want to read a news story about a group of teenagers who went missing after talking about their road trip plans online.

internet predators really are not a problem unless your a dumbass and stupid enough to post pictures of yourself naked on the internet. idk, I've been talking to strangers on the internet for a long while (such as here for example) and haven't had any problems.

Seriously. If you're asking while already having permission, you'll be fine. It means you realize you are probably not the most experienced person in the world and will likely make mistakes.
To those mildly paranoid parents here I would say that while I understand your concern, most 16 year olds are not as dumb as they like to act. When they get out alone and realize there is a higher level of responsibility (like the OP seems to have) they actually make pretty good decisions. Between 15 and 18 I went on a bunch of these trips with many different people, and while we made mistakes, got cars stuck, got benighted,broke laws, pushed limits, and learned a whole load of other lessons, we never did anything where in retrospect we really risked our lives more than climbing already does. Maybe we were lucky, but I think based on the fact that the OP asked this question he will be just as capable at fucking up without dying as many of us were at that age. Go for it. You'll be fine. oh and that dirt road with the 3 foot rocks that leads to those sweet climbs... go for it. Your civic (or whatever you drive) will totally make it through!!

Justin Moon wrote:I have already received the Ok from my parents. I just wanted a general perspective from others.

Have fun! :)

Keenan Waeschle wrote: internet predators really are not a problem unless your a dumbass and stupid enough to post pictures of yourself naked on the internet. idk, I've been talking to strangers on the internet for a long while (such as here for example) and haven't had any problems.

I know that some people drive drunk for years... and never get in an accident. Totally safe?
Sex with hookers in Thailand- most folks don't get AIDS. Totally safe?

So perhaps the risks to younger people are pretty low if they aren't doing anything stupid, but I wouldn't be so quick to scoff at the warning. I know a guy who was raped at the YMCA locker room when he was 8 years old. Great, huh?

I 'attracted' a predator when I was 16 and my only crime was working in a grocery store where he apparently shopped. You wanna talk weird? After he committed suicide, his mother came into the store I was working in and gave me the photos of me that were in his house. She'd found them after his death & was curious about my relationship with the guy. I guess she was trying to piece together the puzzle. Apparently he'd been following me around and figured out where I lived and went to school too. That was literally decades ago, so rest assured it had nothing to do with chat rooms. But I am not convinced that I was safe.

Gigi works at a facility and sees both the predators and what their victims can eventually become. I work PT with people who get a little overboard with drugs. The stories are real. Bad shit happens.

Hank Caylor wrote:When I was 16, I was on my 4th trip to Hueco Tanks (no parents present). I did the 2nd ascent of the Final Stone and was higher than a Giraffes ass the whole time. I soloed All the Nasties on acid and fed a skunk a fig newton out of my mouth at the picnic table at night. Go big or go home....brah! It's only illeagal if you get caught.

Although I'm not a parent, this little golden nugget of advice from the Hankster made me giggle. Guaranteed to give any respectable mother nightmares. :0)

Hmm, the very fact that you feel the need to ask makes me wonder.

Generally speaking, I don't think 16 is too young. When I was 16, I was absolutely chomping at the bit to go to the Valley. I didn't have my license yet and, thinking my folks would say no, I talked my sisters into driving me to the Greyhound bus station and took the bus.

The trip started off pretty grim. I missed the once a day connecting bus to the Valley by an hour and had to spend the night in the bus station in downtown Fresno. I met a pimp named Tree and some really wierd people.

When I finally got to the Valley the following evening, I pitched my tent just outside the camp boundry in Camp 4 (not as well marked in 1978) and got woken up and ticketed by Ranger Carol Moses the next morning (yes, I still remember her name). A bear got my food sack several days later, which was hung just low enough for a bear to leap into the air and tear the bottom off of, pinata style.

Eventually, once I got squared away, I met some cool folks and had an AWESOME time. My dad and sister even drove up and made sure I was OK and had enough cash, etc., without trying to drag me home. The three weeks I was there I did lots of classics: E. Butt of MC, Royal Arches (with the Rotten Log), the Arrow Tip, NW Face of Half Dome. We were even going to try the Nose the following week but my cash was down to $0 and I had to bail.

Still, one of the best summers ever. I have to remind myself that that was 30 yrs. ago. It's almost starting to feel like someone else's life. It's like I have to stop and ask myself if it was all real.