Travel with Manfred

Travelogues from around the world

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Copyright © 1995 by Manfred P.. All rights reserved.

Aug. 26, 1995

Climbing Manfred's Curse

Sequoia National Forest

by

Manfred P.

Keywords: USA, California, Sequoia Nat'l Forest, tourist, travel trip report, travel log, travelogue.

Another weekend getaway. It started in the grid lock of the Stanford football game, the weekend San Jose traffic jam, and temporarily ended somewhere south of Fresno where I pulled over to have late dinner and take a nap. It continued in the middle of the night heading eastbound into the sierras, the roads started turning twisty and I only ran into cars at the rate of one per hour. It was getting light when I reached the Kern River. I stepped outside to look down the water fall. The sign said "Extremely Dangerous. Do you want to stay alive? Please stay behind the fence." Yes, I wanted to stay alive. But the real reason for getting back into the car after a couple of minutes was the cold. It was freezing, the air crisp, clean, and cold. I could feel the cold move down into my lungs and soon I had goose bumps and started shivering. In the car I turned the heater on and slowly worked my way up the switch backs to the Sherman Pass at 9,200 feet.

The view up there is too breath taking to remain in the car. In the far back slightly north is the peak of Mt. Withney. It is not an impressive peak from this angle. Many Sierra peaks in the foreground appear higher. By 7:30a.m. I finally made it to my destination, Black Rock Ranger Station. I knew I was far from civilization when I noticed that my pager was out of range and my mobile phone was roaming without finding a cell. The best thing to do was to roll down the windows and take another nap in the car indulging in the mountain air. I was supposed to meet up with a bunch of friends in a camp ground further east. I hoped that while I was sleeping the sleep of the innocent they will make it over here to the ranger station on the way to the climbing area. After the nap I read a magazine and still not having hooked up with my friends I knew it was time to move my lazy behind. While driving through the camp ground at a 5 m.p.h. pace I couldn't spot the Volvo with the license place "NILLA". I was about to reach the end of the camp ground and to think "strange" when Nilla herself jumped up and down on the road to flag me down. The welcome was hearty.

Finally with me arrived we were ready to head for the climbing area. Glenn, Nilla, Reg, and Walter volunteered to introduce me to the beauty and excitement of rock climbing. From the ranger station we went north to Granite Knob passing a few lush meadows. Granite Knob is not a well known climbing spot, at least the lady running the ranger station didn't know anything about it. But it is not unknown either and featured in rock climbing books. When we got there a few cars were parked at the base already. We goofed around the rocks and I learned the trade. Glenn showed me how to secure the rope on the top. He added some ne words to my vocabulary: webbing, ovals, etc. Walter then explained to me how to rappel down the face of the rock. The toughest part of course was the first step, the leaning backwards. Once out on the wall it is pretty much child's play. Luckily there is only one rule to remember: Don't let go off the rope. Even I can remember that. Later while watching others climb I got to know techniques such as fist jam or foot jam. Eventually it was my turn. The climb was a 5.6 which in layman's terms means it is easy to medium for beginners. It was a good starting point for me. It wasn't long before I fell the first time. But unlike expected falling is no big deal. You fall a couple of feet and then you comfortably hang on the rope. At that point I used the opportunity to rest my arms and fingers. Needless to say that I still got lots to learn such as not using my knees and not using the bolts. Step by step the team guided me upwards advising me on what move to make next. As a team they got me up to the top. Getting down was to convenient part. Lean back and dance down on your toes. Later I learned the rest of the climbing, securing others, or belaying as it is called.

After a fairly eventful day, at least for me, I was looking forward to the camp site dinner affair. We had everything a heart could desire: pasta, wine, beer, garlic bread, a camp fire and much more. I enjoyed the dinner immensely. To add style Nilla even brought a table cloth. After our stomachs were satisfied we sat around the camp fire swapping stories and finishing the wine. The marshmallows turned out to be stale, I guess the have been sitting in my cupboard to long. However, the still burnt quite nicely. The later it got the closer we moved to the camp fire to keep warm. Eventually it was time to hit the sleeping bags. I placed mine next to the campfire and put on a sweater. I didn't get much time to look at the stars before I fell asleep.

Breakfast was as professional as dinner. Choices of tea and coffee. Boy oh boy. After a brief look at some potential other climbing opportunities we headed back to Granite Rock. While Glenn secured the rope Nilla, Walt, and I explored the back side of the mountain for more climbs depicted in our book. We found a few places with bolts and webbing and a nice little pathway between two of the smaller peaks. Meanwhile the rest of the gang had climbed a 5.8 wall. Now it was our turn. A guy had tried ten times here on a roof, an overhanging rock, before he gave up. At the same spot I had big difficulties. A fell a few times and being in bad shape I soon ran out of strength and energy. Had it been for me I would not have made it. But the gang cheered me on and convinced me to give it one more try, and another try, and another try. With each fall and each try I made it another foot up so eventually I was passed the tough spot and from there I made it to the top without falling. I have become such a wimp, a single climb and I was tired. Shame on me.

It was now time for a scenery change. We decided to climb on the back side. The best climbers Glenn and Walt had the honor of doing the set-up work again. Between the two choices they picked the easier route such that even beginners like myself had a chance of making it. I went first. The rock might have never been climbed. At least there were no signs of any previous climbs: no chalk marks, no bolts, lots of loose dirt, loose rocks, and moss growing on the face. It was a true challenge. I couldn't make it passed the first step. I tried different starting spots. It took a while until I made it to a height of 5 feet. From here I worked my way up slowly, cursing whenever I had difficulties. It was hard but not impossible. Half way up I kicked a rock loose. With sheer bad luck it landed to Reg's head who was securing me. It made me feel bad. But there is nothing I could do about it. She said she is okay, but I am sure it was painful. Minutes later I made it all the way up. Just like in the morning only my friends support is responsible for making it to the top. According to climbing tradition the first climber gets to pick a name for the climb. We jokingly named it "Manfred's Curse" since it took me a lot of words like "shit" to make it. The others were next. Everyone showed off with some good moves. There was Lindgren's Lunge and Stallone's Cliffhanger moves re-played by Walt and Glenn, hanging on a single hand off some overhang. We even have pictures to prove it. It was a great climb and I can't wait to see the pictures.

That was also pretty much the end of the day. Time to say good bye. Ahead of me was another long way home. The turns didn't seem to want to end. After each narrow turn another one appeared in my headlight. After making it up and down two passes of 9000 and 6000 feet eventually I reach the flat Central California Valley and finally I could step on the gas pedal. Having learned my lessons in the passed I didn't attempt driving home in one shop. I slept a few hours in a rest station and made it home safely next morning.