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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Original Post - Apr 5, 2010 - 12:03am PT
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I recently picked up a copy of this classic early guide. It provides an interesting glimpse back into early Cascade climbing and includes some obscurities.
If folks find this interesting, I will post it in sections starting with Castle Rock.
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Fritz
Trad climber
Hagerman, ID
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WOOHOO STEVE!!
By all means, post up.
Glad to have you back!
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Wayno
Big Wall climber
Seattle, WA
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Nice post Steve. Did you catch my thread about meeting Don Gordon recently? He lives here in town over on Capitol Hill. He loves to talk about climbing and his memories of it. Do you want to meet him?
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 5, 2010 - 12:27am PT
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How did Don get the name Claunch, I wonder? Love to meet him. John Rupley is a good friend of mine and has lots of funny stories about those days.
Tami-I have heard Fred called a lot of things but sandbagger isn't among them. LOL
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Studly
Trad climber
WA
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This looks like the paperback guide with the orange cover?
The earlier one was the small 4" x 6" brown hardback Beckey guide to the Cascades I think?
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 5, 2010 - 12:33am PT
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Orange cover version.
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sac
Trad climber
spuzzum
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Thanks for this!!
there ain't nothin' like the real thing...
...
Baby
A.
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Wayno
Big Wall climber
Seattle, WA
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Don told me that Claunch was a middle name thing. I couldn't help but ask. I suspect there is more to the story. I'll give him a call and see what's up.
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Let's see the cover!
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Reilly
Mountain climber
Monrovia, CA
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I went to grab mine but it was my orange cover Teton guide.
Where the hell is my orange cover Leavenworth? Hmmmm.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 5, 2010 - 01:05am PT
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The rest of Tumwater canyon starting with Midnight Rock.
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mazamarick
Trad climber
WA
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Just got back from Escalante prompting a read of the desert guide by Eric Bjornstad, completely forgot about him co-authoring the Little Orange Book. It's still one of the classic guidebooks of the day.
Wayno, if you can get Don "Claunch" Gordon to post some WA rock history that would be some very worthwhile reading!
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Wayno
Big Wall climber
Seattle, WA
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It was totally out of the blue getting to meet Don and both encounters I had were one on one at his home. That's another story. But I sense he would love to share his vision of what it was all about to any one that wanted to listen, especially climbers. I didn't meet him as a climber, but once he found out that I was, and I knew his name and achievements, it was all we could talk about. When I told him I had done the Captain he just put out his hand. Don is way cool. I already told him about Supertopo and asked him to check it out. I suspect if I asked him again and pushed him a little he might post something. It's worth a shot.
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PhilG
Trad climber
The Circuit, Tonasket WA
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Thanks for the interesting post, Steve.
Was that the first guide solely for a Washington State rock climbing area?
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 5, 2010 - 10:43am PT
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Vintage 1965, it would have to be the first formal dedicated guidebook for a rock climbing area in the state.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
Monrovia, CA
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Just reading some of it for fun. I liked the description to the start of Angel:
"Route begins from the grassy platform just left of the base of Jello Tower..." HaHaHa-grassy platform!
What is scary is that there might still have been grass there in 1969
but who could remember that far back?
I also found it interesting that in '65 they admonish one not to aid the Angel Crack because of degradation.
Never knew T.M. Herbert was first to free Damnation!
And where on Rainshadow was there A4?
The same for Easter and Black Widow; I guess wood blocks were considered A4?
Gotta go find my copy; it has to be down there somewhere.
I'm willing to bet I bought it from 'Big Jim' at the old old REI; the one in the basement downtown!
That might have been the visit I bought the best pair of mountain boots they had, a goldline, some biners, some pins, and walked out with change for my C-note! HaHaHa!
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Studly
Trad climber
WA
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In 1975 when I was 15 my neighbor, Dean Scovell loaned me his copy of this guidebook, along with the pocketsize early Beckey hardbound guide. We lived in Issaquah and Dean had been injured in a serious climbing accident, and hobbled around, his leg never the same. But he got me into the Seattle Mountaineers, loaned us kids his rope and guidebooks, and got us started in the world of climbing. For that I am eternally grateful, as are my friends who learned to climb from me, and so on and so forth. What a legacy Dean started. Just recently I looked Dean up and returned his guidebooks to him. He is a minister now and still a very good guy.
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Mighty Hiker
climber
Vancouver, B.C.
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For some reason, I always found the starts of routes at Leavenworth to be a challenge. They often seem to involve awkward mantles. Things like Cat Burglar, Piltdown and Vertigo.
The Carlstad & Brooks book in 1976 was an improvement.
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Tricouni
Mountain climber
Vancouver
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There seem to be two different covers for this guide. One is bright orange, as pictured above. The other is a paler orange, slightly thinner paper, and reproduces the Snow Creek Wall illustration on the front cover. Interior of the book is the same in both variants.
This is really obscure, but does anybody know which was the first printing? Fred doesn't remember.
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Steve Grossman
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Topic Author's Reply - Apr 5, 2010 - 08:15pm PT
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My guess would be that the simpler cover as shown would have been the first printing. "Copyright, 1965" is all that is listed by way of release information. It doesn't get more brief than that! LOL
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SuperTopo on the Web
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Let us know!