A tiny Camp 4 story

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Jello

Social climber

No Ut

Sep 19, 2009 - 02:23am PT

Good story, Jim. I think it's well to leave the rest to the reader's imagination...

Here's a little story about a time in that same era, when Bev Johnson impressed my father:

Dad and I walked into Deep Lake in the Winds, 1969 I think. The next day I did a roped-solo recon of the first four pitches (up to the arch) of what would become later that summer when Geoff Heath and I completed the route, "the North Tower of Haystack". Although the climbing was all free, route finding on the slabs was difficult, I was in no hurry, and I had to hand-drill several bolts for protection. So Dad had five or six hours to kill before I would join him back at camp, so he took a hike over Jackass Pass and down into the meadows of the Cirque of the Towers.

As it happened, I returned to camp before Dad. But when Dad strode up about an hour later there was a notable spring in his step, his cheeks were ruddy and flushed, and overall it just seemed like the mountain air was doing him a world of good, providing a type of stimulation lacking from his day-to-day work as assistant DA in Weber County, Utah. But the story he related as we went about preparing a dinner of trout I'd just caught, and bisquits, revealed the true source of his stimulation.

Seems he'd no sooner arrived in the Cirque than he was pleasantly surprised to find a couple of completely unclothed wood-nymphs frolicking in the trees and woods around him, chasing chipmunks, giggling and generally having a wonderful time. Even better, after a while the beautiful creatures seemed to sense Dad was to be trusted, and engaged him in playful conversation, innocent and bare as the day they were born. No wonder Dad had elected to spend some extra time on his little hike. "Now Jeff," he said "I'm not sure your mother would understand the context of this, so maybe we'd better just not bring it up in her presence". He was right. Although Dad's work had exposed him to folks high on pot and acid, and he had come to the conclusion those drugs were probably less harmful to the individual and society than alchohol, Mom was less sophisticated in her views.

For some reason (a certain cover of the old Vulgarian Digest comes to mind), I had a hunch that the two lovelies of Dads' encounter might just be Bev Johnson and Elaine Mathews, but for nearly four decades I had no way of knowing for certain, since I was not personally acquainted with either of those ladies, and I was a little shy to contact them out of the blue to query them about the incident.

But the universe works in funny ways.

Last winter, an editor was newly assigned to me by the ever-hopeful would-be publisher of the book that I've been threatening for several years to finish writing. Ali Geiser is her name; she's a climber and a writer; young and gorgeous and full of fun and mischief and a chip off the block of one of the original Vulgarians, Pete Geiser, himself! One night after a hard day of trying to get the book restarted, Ali and I were relaxing with several glasses of wine and she was coaxing stories out of me from BITD. I told her the one about Dad and the naked meadow sprites, and ended with my suspicions that it was Bev and Elaine.

"Well, that's an easy one," says Ali, "Elaine is my godmother and we're really close. I'll ask her!"

And so my hunch was confirmed, forty years after.

-JelloLovesNakedWoodNymphs

John Moosie

climber

Beautiful California

Sep 19, 2009 - 02:29am PT

Now that is a classic story. Wood Nymphs are groovy.

Roger Breedlove

climber

Cleveland Heights, Ohio

Sep 19, 2009 - 09:24am PT

Cool Story, Jeff.

I would bet that if we had the means we could confirm that in 1969, in the meadows of the Cirque of the Towers, there could have only been one possibility: Elaine and Bev.

Bev was the first truly fearless women I ever met; not at all rough or reckless, just fearless. No wonder we all loved her so.

And Lynne, playing with hatchets is part of my job description. Including the folks on the sidewalk is extracurricular.

donini

Trad climber

Ouray, Colorado

Topic Author's Reply - Sep 19, 2009 - 10:23am PT

Sweet story Jeff. I wonder if wood nymphs still occasionally frolic in the Cirque, or were Bev and Elaine two of a kind?

Fletcher

Trad climber

Shivasana

Sep 19, 2009 - 10:50am PT

Superb stories Jeff and Jim. The economy of the storytelling only adds to their enjoyment. Thanks!

Eric

Toker Villain

Big Wall climber

Toquerville, Utah

Sep 19, 2009 - 11:43am PT

Perhaps they became soccer moms.

Jan

Mountain climber

Okinawa, Japan

Sep 19, 2009 - 01:34pm PT

Thanks for a really funny thread!

It seems Camp 4 got a lot more interesting after the 60's.

Jan

Mountain climber

Okinawa, Japan

Sep 19, 2009 - 01:46pm PT

And here's to Jim and all Special Forces medics.

When I come back from Nepal with weird stuff and the Air Force and Navy docs tell me it's psychological, I hunt down an SF medic and get their diagnosis. Once they write it down, then the others will give me the meds I need.

For example, I once had a Navy doctor tell me that I only thought I had amoebas because I was a hypochondriac and amoebas was on the first page of my medical dictionary?! SF got him straightened out on that right away.

Chicken Skinner

Trad climber

Yosemite

Sep 19, 2009 - 04:41pm PT

Great story Jeff,

I had the pleasure of meeting Elaine and climbing with her last year. She still climbs very well.

Ken

MH2

climber

Sep 19, 2009 - 06:52pm PT

Elaine Matthews also still remembers the cute smile of a Vancouver visitor to the Valley back around the time that hatchet sank into the tree.

(to return to the OP)

Steve Grossman

Trad climber

Seattle, WA

Sep 19, 2009 - 07:07pm PT

The girl in the offwidth nextdoor...

This image and the previous one from The View from the Edge- Life and Landscapes of Beverly Johnson by Gabriela Zim. Mountain N'Air Books, 1997. A wonderful gem of a Bev bio!

WBraun

climber

Sep 19, 2009 - 07:34pm PT

Mungeclimber

Trad climber

sorry, just posting out loud.

Sep 19, 2009 - 07:40pm PT

great story Jello!! hahaha

love woodland nymphs!

Steve Grossman

Trad climber

Seattle, WA

Sep 20, 2009 - 11:33am PT

Hey! That's Pingora in the background! I wonder if that famous portrait of Elaine came from the same trip?

Great tale Jello and one that likely brought a smile to pop's face whenever the topic of hiking came up for quite a while! LOL

Them's some formidable fairies!!!