My Mountain Diary

 Recited by Astronaut Jeffrey Hoffman
  prior to re-entry of the Space Shuttle - Discovery 
  April 1985


         You cannot stay on the summit forever.
         You have to come down again.
         So why bother in the first place?
         Just this -
         What is above knows what is below -
         But what is below does not know what is above.
         One climbs, 
         One sees, 
         One descends, 
         One sees no longer.
         But, One has Seen.
         There is an art of conducting oneself 
         in the lower regions by the memory 
         of what One saw higher up.
         When One can no longer see, 
         One can at least still Know.



Submitted by T. Ron Davis - Redmond, WA   USA
rond@questar.com

So why a Mountain Diary? First of all I obviously want to preserve a record of my climbs and experiences, but I would also hope that my experiences might in some way inspire others to venture out into the hills. The benefits are many; increased health, peaceful beautiful surroundings, far far away from the hustle and bustle of the city. Get out there and enjoy it .... but be sensible and safe.

That leads to my next point. I am not a daredevil climber. I am essentially scared of heights (honest). As such, I like to research my trips well in advance and to be aware of any nasty ridge walks that just might scare the living daylights out of me. The mountains that I will be writing about should be within most peoples reach, assuming a reasonable level of fitness. Almost of my climbs to date have been accomplished with my two young children, David and Jane (aged 12 and 10 at the time of writing). I think that says it all.

With that in mind, I will aim to include several photographs of my climbs showing what I consider to be the key points of the climb and informing you of any dangers on the way. I am no expert, these photographs will not be the glossy type you see in magazines, but they will be true to life. I hope they will help you to decide if this climb is the one for you. Enough said... you can now either follow my experiences year for year or go directly to the climb of your choice. Best wishes .... William Ironside.

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