Tuesday, June 18, 2013

The Beartooths, Granite Peak, & Five Nights Of Vertigo


Posted by Chris Bangs








North Face Granite Peak
Some where in my altered state,
sleeping for 5 nights with vertigo,
rationing handfuls of food for days,
I shouted, "THAT'S NOT GRANITE PEAK...!

I might not know where I am,
but I'm not lost,
and that.....
That's not Granite Peak...!"



And really,,,, that's where the story begins and ends.

I rode my bicycle,,,
(again, I know, right?!)

150 miles to the Beartooth Mountains.
Home of Granite Peak, 12,807 ft.
(the highest peak in Montana)

There I was hoping to climb and ski
the Notch Couloir on the north face (!)...


But...
I spent days in the rain.
(Going crazy in my tent)

The bicycle riding sucked!
Getting sprayed
by semi-trucks on the highway.

Pouring water out of my riding boots.
Camping with the wet smell of  myself...
AHHH!!!

Then the vertigo kicked in...!



And I looked like this hoser here...
Strung out on calories,
and looking for a good time.
("Hey babe!
You look like a sexy Mountain!")










The Map

Days earlier I left the map (!) with a friend by accident.
Now I was spinning around with vertigo,
camera in hand,
taking pictures of mountains that I had
no idea about.

Which mountain is this?
Which mountain is that?




Five days later, after being home in Bozeman.
Google Earth is kind enough to tell me,
that was Granite Peak.

I was right there!
If only I would have turned around,
and looked up!


Possible 5 toes, (wolverine?)
Whatever it was, there were multiple tracks playing in the snow.
And an obvious wolf track that I followed for 2 miles.



Schlep broken down completely and stuffed into a small car.



Even a week later, I hate this photo!!!!


Durring the bike ride back to Bozeman,
the vertigo tag teamed me with some heavy hitting virus,
and I  lost control of reality for a few hours.

The sunset came that night
as I lay spun out in my tent.

On day number ten of this strange adventure,
I was faced with
non-stop rain on a busy highway,
fighting the vertigo and this bitch virus,
or,
 the terrible thought of putting Schlep in a car
for 50 miles...

Which is worse?




Climb for a cause!!!!!
Please support ( $$,$$$ )
My Peak Over Poverty
"Seven Summit of Bozeman" project.

Your contributions make this possible...!

Even the smallest donations add up, so
please dip into the weekly beer fund.

2 comments:

  1. nice dude keep bustin... come hell or high water i will ride the couloirs in that first pic of cowen.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wow! That was some awesome photos you have shared here. I have just completed my second level training from a nearby mountaineering school. Hope my next month I will start my hiking session just as you... Really inspiring to me!

    ReplyDelete