Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Books and other thoughts

Hi Been catching up on reading , A guy came into the store this summer and told me about a book by Abbey I had not read. I found another when I went to order it so I got both , The Journey Home and Fool's Progress. You learn a lot in life!

Next several new books about mountains I had never ordered

The Falling season If you are into politics and want to see the inside of Search and Rescue (one?) this is a good read

The Last Step by Rick Ridgeway Harvey Lang.... always has quotes from great climbers He missed this one " I am going down and cutting the ropes behind me and burning the tents"

In the Zone by Peter Potterfield If you don't like the first two short stories wait for the last one, Bought a new belay device lately ?


Rode the bus down to Lancaster to get the truck . Bus works great Lone Pine to the Amtrac Station 3 hours , Next trip will be try the North ride to Reno Airport. Still working on the tie between Lee Vining and the Valley link on the same day so if you know anybody that knows anybody put pressure on them to get if fixed !

I rode down with one of the Backcountry rangers , the PLB topic came up, we both think a device that allows for two way transmission would solve many of the false rescues.Also the ideal of having a PLB may lead people into trips they would not otherwise try.

Also the "I know they need a rescue because they will never make it out " Did they ask for help ? No , but they only had .... and I know they will die. Were they injuried? No but the people that really saw them said someone should do something, Do you know where the person is? No but you should be able to find them they have on hiking shorts and a blue backpack or was it green?


Well about 9" of snow in the Portal now and very cold the last few days . Road may have ice from Lone Pine Campground up to the road closed sign . So watch for it.


Have a great Holiday stay warm and safe driving. Doug

The quote is worse than I thought after a reread. I'll show them, Let's leave this mountain right now. We'll go down and cut all the ropes behind us , and burn all the tents. That will fix those ...... pg. 199 chapter Problemas Grandes

Jr. recommended that I read two out of three of those books...

I liked The Last Step, don't remember reading that quote about burning the tents and cutting the ropes. That photographer guy from up in Bishop wrote about an earlier failed attempt at K2. Both books did a good job describing the conflicts that DO occur on long expeditions where you're stuck with the same people (egos) for months on end.

I liked the first short in Potterfield's book. Amazing self-rescue in Alaska! I was bored by the third story. We know the guy lived. Why'd it take so long to get the rescue completed? (I'm talking pages in the book, not SAR time.)

Doug, you're becoming the topic of conversation in many parts of the world these days... A lot of it centers around what a great host you are for the Whitney area. The rest of it centers around us being glad that we don't have to deal with the "circus" atmosphere that you have to deal with at the end of many spring/summer/fall days.

From my 200 or so mountain literature books, the one listed below is the best. Think extreme altitude and extreme risks. The feelings in these books will take you there. Harvey

In particular, I prefer Tasker, who said
In some ways, going to the mountains is incomprehensible to many people and inexplicable by those who go. The reasons are difficult to unearth and only with those who are similarly drawn is there no need to try to explain.
Joe Tasker, Savage Arena page 260

Boardman, Peter
Tasker, Joe
The Boardman Tasker Omnibus (1995) contains 4 books:

Tasker, Savage Arena (1982)

Boardman, The Shining Mountain (1978)

Boardman, Sacred Summits (1982)

Tasker, Everest the Cruel Way (1981)

Thanks for reminding me about the Last Step. I read it again over the last two days. Page 199 "We'll go down and cut all the ropes behind us, and burn all the tents. That wiill fix those sons-of-bitches" A quote of Terry Bech concerning his frustration over the complexities of a big expedition.

I loved reading the book again. This really shows the youth of the author who was amazed at how well Jim Whittaker did climbing to 25,000 feet at the old age of 49!

I think I read somewhere, possibly something written by Ridgeway a few years ago in which he said that he had given up going over 20,000 ever again as it was just too dangerous and not that much fun.

Ridgeway has enjoyed his share of fun over the years including having fun with his children. It helped that he wrote some great books and the fact that a close friend who started an amazingly successful clothing company is his boss. Yes, you hear a tinge of jealosy. But he certainly has paid his dues.

More on Books and Thoughts:

Currently some downtime is being used to read and to study for two of my Summer 2011 objectives in the High Sierras, the High Sierra Trail and the John Muir Trail. In the later chapters of life there is no longer an interest to go faster, longer, higher, more times than.... Instead there is a vague and uneasy feeling that on past treks I have failed to capture some of the beauty and secrets of the Range of Light.

In preparing for these two Summer activities I have decided to shun the hype of new gadgets and the thunder of today's techno-babble. Rather there will be an emphasis on learning from others who tramped through the Range in perhaps a simpler and less hurried era.

I just delved into Pathway in the Sky, the Story of the John Muir Trail by Hal Roth (Howell-North Books, Berkeley, California, 1965). This book's 231 pages has dozens of fine photos, all taken at least a half century ago. Thus far, Pathway in the Sky has been a good and instructive read.

Happy Holidays to all. Jim F

Where are they? Way back there. Then you ask and learn they say them at 9 am and its now 5 PM.

Joe Tasker disappeared on Everest while attempting a new route. I was previledged to have climbed with him in 1974 in Switzerland and France, as a student at ISM.

The Long Walk: The True Story of a Trek to Freedom by Slavomir Rawicz

This is the story of a polish POW that was imprisoned by the Russians during WWII. He was taken to a POW camp in Siberia. That would be a good enough story by itself, but he story continues to tell of his escape and WALK to freedom. He and a small group of escapees walked from Siberia to India. They went through Russia, Mongolia, the Gobi Desert and through the Himalayas.

It is an excellent story of a real life adventure that few could survive.

I found it at Vromans, but it is also available though Amazon.

While it's not on the subject of mountaineering, "Fatal Passage" by Ken McGoogan is one of the best I've read on hoofing it in the wild. John Rae, who was eventually credited with shedding light on the mystery of the famously ill-fated Franklin Expedition (to discover the mythical Northwest Passage), was an absolute showshoeing and wilderness beast in mid-19th century Canada. The guy snowshoed thousands of miles in northern Canada for years and years - mostly solo and in extreme conditions. Excellent read.

Hey Doug
Glad you enjoyed the books by Edward Abbey he is one of my favorite authoers as we talked about in the store. This is one of my favorite quotes from him:
… the love of wilderness is more than a hunger for what is always beyond reach; it is also an expression of loyalty to the earth, the earth which bore us and sustains us, the only home we shall ever know, the only paradise we ever need — if only we had the eyes to see. Original sin, the true original sin, is the blind destruction for the sake of greed of this natural paradise which lies all around us — if only we were worthy of it… No, wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit, and as vital to our lives as water and good bread. A civilization which destroys what little remains of the wild, the spare, the original, is cutting itself off from its origins and betraying the principle of civilization itself.
~ Edward Abbey
Stay safe
John Casey

Hi Thanks John for the hint to get me to read the books , each year I will talk with someone and they will ask if I have read???? I use the books for winter reading and always find a new view of the subject.

The Fools Progress caused me to stop many nights and reflect on 'MY Journey".Doug

Hi Doug
Have you read, "Minus 148 Degrees - The First Winter Ascent of Mt. McKinley" by Art Davidson?
It's a good read!!

Stacy (and Curt)
ps If we don't see you before, Happy Holidays to you, Earlene, and all of the Portal family!

While we're on this thread: This July I wanted to hike up Mt. Whitney, but had no permit. Through this board I connected with someone who did, and we climbed the MR together. I looked up his name on the internet and found he's an author (he didn't tell me). I decided I ought to support my fellow hiker, so I bought his book. It's called Skin of the Earth, and it's a collection of stories about growing up in back-country Nevada. I enjoyed it.

Gosh do I love to read.

A few of my last books read...

1. A Walk in the Woods-Bill Bryson
2. The River Why-David James Duncan
3. Annapurna-Maurice Herzog
4. On the Road-Jack Kerouac

While I'm at it, check out the DVD movie, "180 degrees South"

Here's a few to spend a few hours with:

1. Gorilla Monsoon (Climbing stories) - John Long
2. Downward Bound (Yosemite in the 70's) - Warren Harding
3. Touching the void (You've probably seen the movie) - Joe Simpson
4. Pure and Perpetual Snow (Alpamayo and Ausangate in Peru) - David Mazel
5. K2: Triumph and Tragedy (1986 K2 expedition) - Jim Curran
6. The Andes are Prickly (1966 Fantastic view of Andes climbing)- Malcolm Slesser

By reading, we can be in the mountains even when we're not.

I definitely prefer book form, but there is great reading here enough to last a lifetime.

http://www.alpinejournal.org.uk/Contents_All_Years.html

Like others I have been following the currently active WPSMB thread "Whitney Portal Snow Camp TR..." detailing experiences on the Portal Road and up at the TH during this Christmas Holiday. Evident is how challenging the Sierra winter can be. On this topic an excellent read is "High Odyssey, the first solo winter assault of Mt Whitney and the Muir Trail area" by Eugene Rose (Howell-North Books, Berkeley, 1974).

On Christmas Day 1928, Orland Bartholomew leaves Lone Pine and begins making his way up toward Cottonwood Pass. He then heads north and follows the Highest Sierras as he crosses the following passes: Siberian, Harrison, Kearsarge, Glen, Pinchot, Mather, Bishop, Muir, Silver, Island and Donohue. He tops out on several 14ers as side trips. April 3, 1929 sees him reaching Yosemite Valley.

Gene Rose does an excellent job in documenting this fairly unknown (Bart did not seek publicity), but important adventure.

Jim F

I know I've read some of these books at one time or another, but I ordered "The Boardman / Tasker Omnibus" a while back and have started reading it during the past few weeks. Just finished off the first book and noticed that the line that I like:


is only one paragraph above the quote that I've seen you post several times.

Richard, glad you are reading the BT Omnibus. Tasker is my favorite author, although Eric Shipton, and Frank Smythe are right up there.
Here are some good lines - some introspection on "Why Go?" You might see your self in there. Harvey

It used to be that mountaineers sought to give credence to their wish to climb mountains by concealing their aims behind a shield of scientific research. But no more. It is now accepted, though not understood, that people are going to climb for its own sake. The central theme is one of testing the self to a greater or lesser extent at whatever level of the game we choose to play at.
Joe Tasker, Everest the Cruel Way page 4

It was in the nature of such objectives, and of us who sought them, that one horizon reached should lead to the next.
Joe Tasker, Savage Arena page 214

I realized more clearly than ever before that climbing mountains was what I wanted to do. The reasons are not easy to define; the closest I can come to explaining them is that it makes me the person I am.
Joe Tasker, Everest the Cruel Way page 16

Once a mountaineer has climbed so high, for the rest of his life he dreams of returning.
Peter Boardman, Sacred Summits page 173

Finally finished off the Omnibus. Surprised at how long it took. Excellent set of books!

Joe Tasker quoting John Barry:



I've taken a few screamers in my life and it's interesting that sometimes it is pure panic and thoughts of dying and other times it's just like this.

Last Friday on Baden-Powell, I popped off of a rock band I was descending and I managed to stay perfectly calm while I waited until I hit snow soft enough to try and arrest. It was amazing how fast the accelaration was when I hit the icy snow.

Thoughts of the kid on the MR doing cartwheels from a glissade on the way down to LBSL also ran thru my head...