 |
|
Online FavoritesSpecial Issues
Photo Galleries |
The Hard Way Unbroken Chain Every adventurer knows those magical moments when it all flows—and those wretched times when it won't By Mark Jenkins
Bryan had been uncharacteristically lagging behind. He only passed me once, almost wearily, as I stopped to take some photographs. When he was 200 yards ahead, I yelled for him to turn around. It was windy on the ridge and I had to shout again before he stopped and struck the classic mountaineer's pose, a heroic silhouette against the immense, jagged skyline. After the trip, back home, I found myself studying this snapshot. Odd how we instinctively trust the veracity of a photograph. The sharpness and clarity suggest reliability. A photo, at least on the surface, which is all there is in a photo, appears to tell the truth. Of course, in actuality, a photo reveals only a paper-thin slice of a single moment. It's no more truthful than a bullet before it is fired or a match before it is lit. In the next second, everything could be different. When I caught up with Bryan, he was gingerly backstepping along a knife-edge arête. The exposure was startling: a 2,000-foot drop to either side. Where I stood the rock was still granite, but beyond a crevasselike fissure, the ridge abruptly changed to crumbling volcanic tuff. Bryan was out there trying to keep his balance. With each backward step, the stone disintegrated beneath his feet and gushed down in sick rock slides on both faces. His legs seemed unsure. At one point he pirouetted 180 degrees, wobbled violently, steadied himself like a tightrope walker, then raised his head and looked across at me. I was jolted. There was horror in his eyes, and his bearded face was a gray mask. But I could do nothing. We were unroped. It is unsettling to discover a layer of fragile, unsound rock concealed between deep strata of solid granite, but not uncommon. In the geological life of mountains, all the internal pressures—the constant bending and twisting and subducting—are complex, and under extreme circumstances, weaknesses will inevitably come to the surface. By the time Bryan stepped back onto solid rock, he was badly shaken. I'd never seen him like this before. He was the last person I could imagine losing it. "I don't know what to do," he said. I moved carefully out along the deteriorating ridge, going past where Bryan had turned back. "Well," I yelled into the wind, "there's nothing out here to tie a rope to." Then the rock began collapsing under my feet like a sand castle and I quickly retreated. It was an impasse. Our once-sturdy backbone of granite had suddenly become spineless. We were forced to change plans.
|
   
TODAY'S NEWS UPDATE!
Kelly Slater on His One Track Mind<... In One Track Mind, a film by Chris Malloy, surfing greats sit down to talk about what has ... 
The Spoke Word: New Winter Cycling ...
RAPHA Classic Softshell Jacket, $375 Rapha is quickly establishing itself as the Savile Row ... advertisement
Vacation PackagesMore Travel Deals |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
- Home |
- Travel |
- Gear |
- Bodywork |
- Culture |
- Videos |
- Podcasts |
- Photos |
- Archives |
- Feedback |
- RSS Feeds |
- Subscribe to Outside Magazine |
- Join/Login
Partner Sites:
- Away.com |
- GORP.com |
- Orbitz |
- Cheaptickets |
- ebookers |
- HotelClub.com |
- RatesToGo.com |
- asia-hotels.com |
- Outside's Go
©1994-2008 Mariah Media Inc. All rights reserved.
Reproduction of material from any pages without written permission is strictly prohibited.
Reproduction of material from any pages without written permission is strictly prohibited.