Paul Knox

Paul Knox passed two years ago. He was senselessly murdered by a stranger while walking his dog on a Monday morning. He died on September 26th, 2023, at 41 years of age. Far too young for a kindred Peter Pan spirit that enjoyed playing in the dirt.

An excruciatingly long court case was finalized a few days ago, and Paul's murderer was sentenced to prison. Fortunately, the murderer is off the streets. However, I think I speak for many when I share that I feel there is very little sense of closure. I personally feel that the grievance wound has been reopened.

Paul was equally a listener and a talker. A rare trait to balance. He was thoughtful and kind. Dependable and trustworthy. He was compassionate, open-minded, and very capable of being a mediator in troubled times. All these traits made him the wonderful person that he was. These same traits make the story of his murder all the more nonsensical. How a stranger could become so enraged with Paul, on an early morning, nonetheless, and feel the need to shoot him and drive off will forever remain beyond comprehension. 

Paul was tough as nails. Mentally and physically. Since Paul's death, his spirit remains very much alive within me and others.

I've enjoyed redpointing routes that he had climbed in the past. Regarding his fortitude, if he made it through a crux, he would fight with everything he had and would not let anything cause him to fall throughout the remainder of the climb. Only once do I recall him falling after making it through a crux, in that situation, he fell right before the chains. Unfortunately, for his next attempt, the crux hold broke away on him, which caused the already hard route to become even harder. His opportunity to redpoint the route was taken from him, not by the broken hold, but by the person who took Paul's life. Amongst so many things, Paul's opportunity to figure out new solutions to the problems that he was presented with was taken from him.

I'm now beginning to project a route that Paul projected and redpointed a few years ago. I remember him struggling with figuring out beta for the crux on several sessions. He humbly stated the rest of the climb was not easy, but did not put much emphasis on it. The time Paul solidified his beta for the crux and made his way through, he huffed, puffed, and grunted his way up the rest of the route. Paul was a very smooth and gracious climber, so this was always a rarity to hear him audibly struggle. I naively thought he was exhausted simply from the overhanging and thuggy nature of the opening crux. Little did I realize that the remainder of the climb is continuously powerful and overhanging moves for a very long time, with no real chillout rest until you get to the chains. There are a couple of places where you can stop to chalk up, but by no means a place where you're hanging out and shaking out to recover. The fact that he sent the whole route on that attempt without having the remainder of the climb dialed is staggering to me.

Paul was a really good friend to many. He was a well-rounded individual and was loved by many people in the climbing community and from other walks of life.

I miss him dearly. He lives in my heart as well as in the hearts of others. I'm saddened that I don't have more time to spend with Paul in the physical realm. So my heart will always ache for more.

RIP, Paul. You are loved.

What a senseless loss.  To lose one's life while walking their dog is tragic..  My condolences to his family & friends.  Your post is quite thoughtful and well written.  

Is that photo taken out near Castaic Lake?   It sure looks like it.  I might have run into him perhaps. 

Our friend Dave took the photo in the area that you are thinking of. It was a few years ago, during a wet spring, so it was beautifully lush and green at the time.

Paul was the first free ascensionist (likely the only free ascent) of Cowboy Coffee at Texas Canyon. I know at some point he met you or your friends who bolted a lot of the early routes at Texas Canyon.

https://www.mountainproject.com/route/113953538/cowboy-coffee

There are a couple of photos of Paul climbing routes in the Texas Canyon Guidebook.

A beautiful tribute!!! What a horrible and senseless loss!!! RIP

Really nice tribute, Ryan.