241 replies to this topic

[jflo]

John, can we steak our tents or do we tie them?

[John]

Jim, it depends on the size of your tent. Last time I was there, I used 11 stakes and tied to rocks the other 2 spots I would normally stake.

[John]

How to make The Narrows easy:
1. Look down at your feet and talk to yourseelf. Can you move your foot forward? If so, do it. Concentrate fully on your feet and just the next step.
2. Touch the rock to your left with your left hand for extra balance. Your right hand can also hold onto the rock on your right.
3. Other than encouraging each other and pointing out the easiest way, don't stop to talk. You have better balance and concentration if you keep moving.
4. If you do stop for any reason, make sure your left hand is touching the rock. You will have better balance that way.
Mike Donahue, The Longs Peak Experience and Trail Guide

[junkie]

John, on 15 August 2010 - 08:19 PM, said:

How to make The Narrows easy:
1. Look down at your feet and talk to yourseelf. Can you move your foot forward? If so, do it. Concentrate fully on your feet and just the next step.
2. Touch the rock to your left with your left hand for extra balance. Your right hand can also hold onto the rock on your right.
3. Other than encouraging each other and pointing out the easiest way, don't stop to talk. You have better balance and concentration if you keep moving.
4. If you do stop for any reason, make sure your left hand is touching the rock. You will have better balance that way.
Mike Donahue, The Longs Peak Experience and Trail Guide

I'm not sure i am following this advice... it IS NOT THAT NARROW. This makes it sounds like ur between air and a wall of rock with just a couple feet of surface to stand on.

[John]

According to the "about the author" description in the book he is the director (as of 1992) of the Colorado Mountain School, who climbed Longs 6 to 18 times a year since the mid 1960's. I'm not saying he's right or wrong. Here are his thoughts about the Home Stretch:

"The Home Stretch is a fun, easy and not nearly as long as it first appears. At this point, the mind is so anxious that all distances look insurmountable. Do not be deceived. The Home Stretch is only about the length of a football field. Take in five, ten, fifteen yards at a time and you will soon be standing on the top of Longs Peak! Every fifty to one hundred feet you will come to a nice rest spot. Take advantage of these for both setting goals and taking breathers. As you move up, notice how far you have come up the Home Stretch and how fast the summit is coming towards you." Mike Donahue, The Longs Peak Experience and Trail Guide

Edited by John, 16 August 2010 - 12:41 AM.

[Bill 007]

No escalator!!!!

Bill

[hector]

Oh, the anticipation! Now, can we have a great forecast for our jaunt up the mountain?

[John]

"If there was a road to the top of Longs Peak and you simply stepped out of your car, would the summit be nearly as high? As spectacular? As rewarding? How much of life's satisfactions and rewards have we lost in our pursuit to make things easy, to avoid effort, to find instant gratification? What is the cost of our modern way in terms of enjoyment and experiencing the full rewards of being alive?

With every minute, every stop, every struggle and doubt, every spectacular view and internal burst of exhilaration, Longs Peak has been giving you an internal summit. A summit that will go home with you and stay with you forever." Mike Donahue, The Longs Peak Experience and Trail Guide

[Bill 007]

John, on 17 August 2010 - 12:21 PM, said:

"If there was a road to the top of Longs Peak and you simply stepped out of your car, would the summit be nearly as high? As spectacular? As rewarding?

Yes.

Bill

[Rhonda]

I've never been to the Narrows and never will, but from pictures I've seen, I'm sure it's all in the eyes of the beholder if it is "narrow" or not, and the exposure may not bother some people like it bothers others. When you are petrified of exposure and heights, just the thought of them can make you woozy. So I'm sure the author has to think about that as he writes for anybody and everybody. Some can scamper right along and not give it a moment's thought, like my son, who can walk on steel beams three stories high, and then there's me, who can't step off a ladder onto a roof of a one-story house. So while it may not seem narrow to Junkie, I'm sure it would seem narrow and terrifying to me, and you'd have to scrape me off the rock wall I'd be so glued to it, if I were ever so silly to even attempt it, which I'm not. I know my limits.

[BigAl]

There are a couple of spots that are narrow, and the exposure in those spots can be breathtaking, but the vast majority of it is quite wide (like 6-10 feet wide). IMO most of the people who write about Longs take quite a bit of liberty with exaggeration about the difficulty and the exposure. Mike Donahue was a guide who owned a guide service, so it was good for his business to make Longs sound like a trip to the Himalayas (ie. since it is so hard you really need a guide to do it). I had nightmares virtually every night for a whole month before I went up the first time from reading all the information out there, and when I went up I found that it wasn't anything near what a lot of people made it out to be.

YMMV - my point is that you don't need to work yourself up about it based on what Mike or anyone else says. You need to go see it for yourself, because you are the only one who can make a proper judgment for you.

[renate1]

hector, on 16 August 2010 - 07:37 AM, said:

Oh, the anticipation! Now, can we have a great forecast for our jaunt up the mountain?

Looks good as of right now - I'm sure the forecast will change between now and then but according to weather.com for Friday (in Estes) high of 75 partly cloudy with a 10% chance of precipitation. Hopefully the forecast sticks because it looks great!

[John]

"When you are standing on top of Longs Peak, the thrill and excitement of the accomplishment can easily hide the fact that you are only half way. It is just as far getting down off of Longs Peak as it was getting up. After reaching the summit, it is awfully easy to have a mental let down and not be as careful and alert on the way down. More injuries and accidents occur on the way down than on the climb up. Remind yourself and your group of this fact. Wake each other up and stay mentally involved and alert for the climb down." Mike Donahue, The Longs Peak Experience and Trail Guide

[BigAl]

John, on 18 August 2010 - 07:42 AM, said:

"When you are standing on top of Longs Peak, the thrill and excitement of the accomplishment can easily hide the fact that you are only half way. It is just as far getting down off of Longs Peak as it was getting up. After reaching the summit, it is awfully easy to have a mental let down and not be as careful and alert on the way down. More injuries and accidents occur on the way down than on the climb up. Remind yourself and your group of this fact. Wake each other up and stay mentally involved and alert for the climb down." Mike Donahue, The Longs Peak Experience and Trail Guide

This is very true, and very good advice.

[Marvman]

BigAl, on 17 August 2010 - 08:14 PM, said:

You need to go see it for yourself, because you are the only one who can make a proper judgment for you.

Yea, me and my Depends.

Marvman
(mountaineering gives me a warm feeling)