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Kris Stanton
Kris belayed me on my first climb: a shaky attempt at a 5.7 bolted arete at
Smith Rocks. She talked me down gently when I couldn't make a move. From
that first attempt where I arrived on the ground a quivering wreck (and
made us immediately drive home), she has been there for me, encouraging
my dreams and keeping a gentle break on an obsession. She is not deeply into
climbing, but will come along and make the day great under controlled
(read: warm) conditions. She is the greatest wife a man could have.
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Steve Nesland
Steve and I learned technical climbing together in 1998, and have enjoyed
many memorable trips. He lives in Portland and I keep trying to get him
to move up here! We didn't get to climb together lately, and
it was so much fun to join him again in October 2004 for a climb of
Mt. Constance.
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Alex Krawarik
Alex took me on my first multi-pitch rock climb, and my first ice climb.
He has a lifelong love of the mountains, and it has been great to get to
work with him (we work at the same place). He has contributed to knowledge
of the mountains with essays on
his website,
an
ice-climbing guidebook, and
moderation on cascadeclimbers.com.
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Bob Scoverski
Bob is a great sport climber who I've been able to occasionally lure into
the mountains. He and Mardi are great family friends, lately teaching us
more about skiing.
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Jeff Witt
Early on, Jeff taught Steve and I about moving fast and climbing harder.
I'm still trying to apply those lessons today. Jeff is now a mountain guide
based in Wyoming, which is awesome.
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Mat Richter
Mattius is from Germany, but spent a year out here for school. In that time,
he achieved many feats in the mountains. A really inspiring figure, he is
very fun to be around, and seems to guarantee success in any climbing
endeavor. He is now a doctor in Garmisch, thrilling the children he treats
with tales of the mountain climb he made that morning!
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Jake
Jake is one of the most interesting personalities I know, having accumulated
an entire life in Louisiana and Virginia before the mountain bug bit him.
That translates into quirky, amazing stories at the mountain bivy.
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Tom Cormons
Tom and I only did one climb together in 1999 (The East Buttress of Middle
Cathedral Rock). But it was a big one, and we bivied overnight, so I got to
know him. Tom, if you ever come to the northwest, lets go climbing!
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Greg Moo
Greg brings fascinating stories from his pre-retired life in Alaska, and
always encourages a lively political debate. He is a very strong bulldog
in the mountains, having climbed Hauscaran and Denali in the past few
years.
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Jeff Smoot
Jeff found me on the internet when he was creating
"Climbing Washington's
Mountains." He came over with a huge binder of drawings, maps, reports that
he must have taken years to create. His busy life as a father keep him
away from the mountains these days, but a trip with Jeff is always fun.
He has insights from the old days, but still leaves me hiking in his dust.
(It is hard to find a recent picture of Jeff, this is the best I could do!).
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Chris Koziarz
I sure do miss Chris! He moved to Australia in the summer of 2003. He beat
me to a pulp so many times in the mountains that I came to think such
trips were normal. A seasoned climber, his twisted sense of humor
and great strength make him a great partner for the hills. Just going to a
movie with him is hilarious!
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Peter Chapman
I think Peter is the only lifelong resident of Washington I know? He is a
well-rounded, kind and enthusiastic guy, we had some wonderful trips together.
He has his own website
and is climbing up a storm.
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Kim Chapman
Married to Peter, Kim is a brainy bundle of energy, and just as much
fun to be around, although you never know what she'll say! She has a cool
gardening page here.
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Phil Fortier
Phil has a hilarious and much-admired website
here. He has a great
vision of the mountains, and is always dreaming up another way to
express it through video or interesting trip ideas. Although we've only
climbed together twice, I hope one day I can become a backcountry skier
and see with him what makes that so much fun!
(photo by Loren Campbell)
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Josh Williams
I also work with Josh, where he is a
resident genius. Josh grew up in
Portland, and doesn't get into the whole game of climbing an ever-harder
north face. He knows how to enjoy life, and when you are in his radius,
you will too. I have been borrowing his ice axe for a year, but he gets
me back by coming into my office and destroying my slinky.
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Daniel Smith
Dan, like Alex, has taught me a lot about the mountains, pushing my climbing
ability to a higher level with his day-climb philosophy in 2002. Climbing
with him is always fun and irreverent.
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Marek Wencel
Marek has boundless energy for high altitude mountains and taxing snow
slogs. He makes a great borscht, has great stories from his
day job as an airline attendant, and is a skilled photographer. Check it
out: he
climbed Shisha Pangma in 2004!
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Aidan Haley
Aidan and I have had many great
trips together and he always laughs when I get in a bad mood, because he
knows he can easily cheer me up! Now I'm sad because he'll leave the state
for college soon!
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Theron Welch
The things Theron and I did in our pre-mountain life are so similar. For
example, in high school he made a movie with friends called "Fortson Vice,"
and I made one called "Gatesville Vice." We were serious students
of the guitar, happy to spend endless hours learning
Yngwie Malmsteen solos. Since 2003, Theron and I have completed many
"dream climbs" together. He has a great website with his music and
mountain photography here.
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Robert Meshew
Robert is an exceptional climber with a dry wit and a taste for interesting
music. Thanks to him, I've become a fan of The Handsome Family. We always
like climbing with Robert. In addition to seeing the climb to success, he'll
come up with a pithy phrase that becomes an emblem for the trip.
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Mark Pratt
Mark is Robert's regular climbing partner, and he came with us on a trip to the
Bugaboos. Whatever I could barely imagine aiding, Mark could solo in sandals!
Last year he moved to the Bay Area and is working on difficult climbs in
Yosemite during his spare time.
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Carlos Pessoa
Carlos and I work together, and in the last year or so I've gotten to watch
his transformation from occasional hiker to serious hiker and now rock and
mountain climber. Carlos takes pleasure in simple things, and seems to create
a stress-free environment in his radius. It's great to welcome him to the
club!
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Other folks
There is a huge list of people I want to climb with but our paths haven't
crossed yet. In a few years I hope to add my young sons Elijah and Rowan to
this list!
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Copyright ©2005 by Michael Stanton.
No content from this site may be used without permission.
Rock and alpine climbing is dangerous. I'm not responsible for
any messed-up situations you may get yourself into in the mountains.
In fact, the information on this site is for armchair mountaineering only.
