"“I had this moment where I was like, I actually just like camping,” Wilcox says. “I literally went to REI and returned my $700 mountaineering boots and got a car camping stove and a pair of flip-flops.” A few months later, their partner urged them to take a snowshoeing trip in the Columbia River Gorge, and they realized how much they missed the mountains. “I was like, Oh shit. I do think I like this thing,” they remember."
"“The first time I climbed a mountain...I had never been backpacking. I brought a jar of peanut butter and nothing else. We reached the saddle [of South Sister], up above the tree line, [and] I was super tired, thinking, ‘How the heck am I going to get through this?’ I would just count to 50 and force myself to smile. Then I would stop, and I would count to 10 and say every swear word that I could think of, lean on my trekking poles, and then go again.”"
"“My philosophy when I lead climbs or trips: We don't have to go the exact same speed, but you need to be able to see the person in front of you and the person behind you. If you lose the person behind you, that's on you. Slowing down or keep”"
Robin Wilcox nearly quit climbing after a difficult Mount Rainier ascent that included getting temporarily lost in a crevasse field. They briefly shifted to camping, returning mountaineering boots and buying casual gear, until a snowshoeing trip in the Columbia River Gorge rekindled their desire for mountains. Wilcox serves as board president of the Mazamas, a mountaineering nonprofit founded in 1894 that advocates for wilderness protection and organizes trips and courses. Volunteers lead mountaineering outings and teach alpine climbing basics, including multipitch. Wilcox describes early climbs as mentally demanding, using counting, smiling, and swearing to push through fatigue. They emphasize leading with pacing so climbers can maintain visual contact with those ahead and behind, placing responsibility on the leader if the group loses someone.
#mountaineering #wilderness-conservation #alpine-climbing #education-and-training #leadership-and-pacing
Read at Portland Monthly
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