“Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves.”      — John Muir

West face of Ship Rock

Two climbers and an old VW Bug were heading west on Route 66 on a cool but sunny autumn day in the high desert. The stereo blasted Led Zeppelin, and the beer flowed freely.

George Bain leading one of the crux pitches.

“Wow! There it is. That’s quite a chunk of rock! Look at that West Face!” Moe said excitedly. “It’s bigger than I remembered.”

The sun was setting over the desert horizon, and the alpen glow on the West Face was spectacular.  Neither of them could imagine that they would be watching it from quite a different perspective at the same time the next day.

The rest of the story:  https://danceonedge.com/?page_id=1051

Table of Contents:   https://danceonedge.com/?page_id=22

Great book about the history of desert climbing  http://deserttowersbook.com/