Paul attaches my pack to the bunny strap. Up another twenty feet, let
the grand traverse begin. Good feet for the first hundred feet. I
edge across slowly. I'm way behind, but the brain is stuck in low
gear. "How far do I have to go?" "Further." The blank spot ahead
troubles me. The sun is shining. Snowflakes patter around me. The
bottom of the canyon is black. I don't really want to be there, but
I sure as hell don't want to be here. I move across to the blank
spot. Thinking too hard about the wrong things. Ping!! My left
foot is off. My right is pretty far to the side, but holds.
Concentrate. I start into the blank spot. Feet up high, sticking
well, not as bad as I imagined. Fifty feet goes reasonably quickly.
Well, as tortoises go, anyway. "How far do I have to
go?" "Farther." "HOW F@#&ING FAR??" "Uh, at least around the next
bend in the canyon." I see some chockstones well below me. They
look inviting, but no. My arms are shot. Chimneying with feet on
the right wall, and squirming hips and shoulders on the left.
Everything hurts. On and on. CRACK!!! Everything my back is on has
just given way, about an inch. Loose flake no more, held in place
only by me. "Rockfall coming." I ease to the side. Off it goes,
clattering to the canyon floor in a pile of dust. "Quit altering the
route." Yeah, thanks Tom. Another fifty feet. "OK, once you're
over that loose flake, you can start down." Over the flake, down a
few moves. "What's it like under that bulge?" "Good foothold."
Down a bit, stretch the left foot onto it. Crunch. Top couple
inches turn to sand. Guess I'm the first to use that one. Ditch the
pack, fifteen feet to the floor. Into the tight part. Knees hurt
like hell, elbows, back - what doesn't? Paul comes over to help.
Offers his shoulders to stand on, but I don't want to. Guess I'm
thinking about how mine feel. I squirm on down. I'm sitting on his
helmet. "Uh, well, I guess just collapse." Like he had any choice.
Terra firma again. I sit. My right tricep wants to cramp. "Resting
again?" with a smile. "Blow me. That sucked."
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