Do you want to improve the world? I don’t think it can be done. The world is sacred. It can’t be improved. If you tamper with it, you’ll ruin it. If you treat it like an object, you’ll lose it. The Master sees things as they are, without trying to control them. She lets them go their own way, and resides at the center of the circle. – Heidegger
View of the Diamond from Mt. Lady Washington.
I didn’t make any new-year-resolutions but I have been trying to live my life with more awareness, consideration, and empathy for the wider world around me. I’m reading the Times more frequently, zoning out to interviews on NPR, and actually clicking on links regarding depressing coverage of natural disaster, cyber warfare, and environmental destruction. Maybe I’ve been spending too much time outdoors, or maybe too much time indoors thinking about being outdoors… But honestly, though this awareness (that in my youthfulness I’ve tended to be indifferent towards) of world suffering and environmental catastrophe has made me more conscious of how fortunate I am, how lucky I am to live where I do and have the ability to enjoy the things I enjoy doing, hiking along Chasm Lake the other day (admiring the incredible colors and chaotic designs of the ice beneath my feet, staring up at the radiant face of the Diamond, the imposing Flying Buttress and Iron Gates of Mt. Meeker) I realized there was no place in the world I’d rather be, with nothing else on my mind except for the natural beauty and wonder of a day spent in the mountains.
Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. – John Muir
Jim soloing up good styrofoam-like neve on the second pitch.
I met up with a new climbing partner on Saturday to climb Martha, a moderate snow/mixed gully that splits the S. face of Mt. Lady Washington. I have been wanting to climb this route for quite a while and though it was in thin shape, it didn’t disappoint. We simul-soloed the lower portion of the route, which started off with some fun thin mixed moves to gain access to a lower-angled snow ramp that leads up to a thin couloir, interspersed with a few interesting rock/ice steps, which we belayed in three long pitches. Good styrofoam mixed in with snice, ice, rotten rock, and deep unconsolidated snow made for a fun all-around outing… we even got to place a couple of stubby screws! I posted some more pics on mountainproject. Feel free to check it out.
Weather wise, it’s been an interesting week up in the mountains. A prominent high-pressure system has moved east, bringing with it much warmer temps and wind free days. Good for ice up high, but it isn’t doing much for the skiing. I’m hearing reports of breakable sun-crust in exposed areas, though good snow can be found in the trees – if they’re not already tracked out! It might be time to venture a little further into the backcountry in search of those secret stashes and mystery glades (the ones in the distance that you’re always eyeing up from the high-points of your usual tours). I’m heading up to Cameron Pass in a couple of days, so stay tuned for another CP-Conditions report.
I’ll leave you with this poem by Zen monk Jakushitsu Genko:
Old now, I feel it more than ever – so good
to be here in the mountains!
Die at the foot of the cliff and even your bones are clean.
