Scouting, Volume 38, Number 6, June-July 1950 Page: 32
40 p. : ill. ; 28 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Photo, M. Ritger
What!! Mountain climbing on
the lower Virginia Peninsula?
"Why, the land there is flatter
and lower than a pancake in a
submarine!" reports Advisor O.
K. Goodwin of Explorer Post
341, Hilton Village, Va., but he
did take his Post mountain
climbing, and the photo above
is proof. The "mountain" is the
bank of the York River, com-
posed of fossilized shell deposits
of forgotten ages.
RIGHT: The climbing equipment
of the rock climber. It includes
three varieties of the piton, a
hammer, rope, and carabiners.
I AN MIGH
All eyes are centered on the huge peak rising
against the sky. Maps and climbing guides
are consulted. Routes and alternate routes are
chosen. Everyone voices a hope for fair weather
and the tingle of excitement runs through each
Explorer as he looks up at the jagged peak he
hopes to conquer. Campfire is over soon after sun-
down, for tomorrow is the big day.
Tomorrow is the day of your Post's first attempt
at mountain climbing.
At three in the morning the Post rolls out of
warm sleeping bags into the still cold air of night.
Hot coffee and warm breakfast disappear fast, and
everyone bundles into warm clothes, eager to get
going. Flickering flashlights pick out the path to the
base of the climb. ,
After a snack in the first warm sunshine, clothes
are shed and bulky articles left behind. Ropes are
checked and pitons distributed.
"Ready?" you ask.
"Ready!" comes everyone's reply.
Then up you go! "Friction pitches"— rocks where
shoes will grip safely — are soon passed, and you
come to real climbing with ropes. "Gulp," you
think, "this looks tough." But soon you're on your
way up, and it's "Shucks, there wasn't anything
to it," and almost convince yourself.
As the climbers make their way up the face of
the cliff, early apprehension gives way to exhilara-
tion, and catcalls and yodels resound from the
rocky face. No one gets tired, for each must wait
until the climber ahead has finished the 'pitch' and
yelled "on belay." Each wait also means the oppor-
tunity to take in still more mountain scenery from
a sunny ledge — until a jerk on the rope and the
cry "ready for test" jolts you out of your dream
and you turn again to the mountain.
Then — it's almost suddenly — the peak has
shifted from overhead to underfoot. You are on
top! The summit! Out with register, lunch, maps,
and cameras. One hour is all too short, but you
must start down. Backing into the air on the
'rappel' is a thrill never to be forgotten. And down
you go — scrambling, 'glissading,' and 'talis walk-
ing,' and finally you are quenching your thirst at
the stream at the base of the mountain.
That night there is no campfire, for every Ex-
plorer is asleep, drugged by the rugged fun of
conquering nature.
But you still lie awake and find yourself wonder-
ing how you came there in the first place? Just
when did this gang of yours suddenly blossom out
as mountaineers?
32
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Boy Scouts of America. Scouting, Volume 38, Number 6, June-July 1950, periodical, June 1950; New York, New York. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth313165/m1/34/: accessed April 24, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Boy Scouts of America National Scouting Museum.