Adirondack Peeks Summer 2024

Phil Corell on the Face of the Slide

to the stream. Dave had boots with lug soles, and I was hiking in Bean boots with rubber bottoms. My soles didn’t offer an edge to place in cracks or footholds, but they did grip well on the open rock surface. Conversation became limited as we searched for cracks and seams in the gran ite surface that we could jam a boot into for traction and safety. We felt that if we had a slip going up, we could catch ourselves, but a slip while downclimbing meant our momentum might not allow us to stop. At one point I heard an object bouncing down into the dike and on toward Avalanche Lake. A loud exple tive was heard as Dave watched his $800 telephoto lens fall toward the water below, its case having come unfas

I know of one local youth group that makes the climb most years under experienced leadership. Ropes are used to belay climbers in difficult sections (tie in the climber and support them in case of a slip). Weather and recent rainfall amounts are considered, and participants are screened for experience and ability. It can be safely done, but how do you educate others to the hazards and advise them of how to prepare? It takes a strong leader and wise person to abort a planned trip at the last minute if conditions deteriorate. Just as climbing the 46 would not cease if the club disbanded, climbing the trap dike by ill prepared individuals, in less-than-ideal conditions, will continue to take place.

tened. We finally did make it to the slide and on to the summit. We were “pumped,” invigo rated, and beaming with pride at what we had accomplished. Sadly, though, I’m not sure we truly realized the mistake we had made or the potential consequences of our actions. How quickly you forget once the threat has passed!

Sadly, I’m not sure we truly realized the mistake we had made or the potential con sequences of our actions. How quickly you forget once the threat has passed!

Now at seventy-eight years of age with many years of varied climbing and trip-leading experience, I re flect on my personal demonstration of the “Foolishness of Youth.” Poor route selection, not researching the correct exit to the slide, and climbing ourselves into a point-of-no return situation could have resulted in dire consequenc es. Not too many years later, an experienced 46er friend was climbing the dike in winter, lost his footing, and slid down to Avalanche Lake. He thankfully lived but had to be evacuated by helicopter having suffered severe injuries. Every few years there is another incident involving a DEC rescue or recovery.

I went on to climb the trap dike three more times. The second time, I stayed in the dike too long and came out on a smaller slide, forcing a 200-yard bushwack through thick scrub to the correct slide. The last two times in 1970 we managed to get it right, but all three attempts were in dry conditions in beautiful weather. It may seem hypocritical to write this article as I was one of those who displayed the “Foolishness of Youth” without paying a consequence, but I learned a valuable lesson that should be shared. With sons and grandsons that climb, I wouldn’t want them to suffer the consequences of poor judgment, which I fortunately avoided.

18 | ADIRONDACK PEEKS