Trip Report

The climb up the Cosmic Wall of Mount Hubris was truly cosmic in that not only was the solid granite, the amazing team and the weather out of this world, but we had a couple experiences that made it quite remarkable. We arrived Saturday evening at the mostly deserted Castle Crags State Park in Northern California and set up camp to get a few hours of sleep. We woke up at o-dark-thirty and hiked up the approximately 3 mile trail with over 2,000 ft elevation gain to the start of the climb. Team one consisted of Maryanne Reiter (leader), Kellie Green and Hayden Banks while team two consisted of Danni Harris (leader), Kana Moll and Meg McNabb. Both teams had an enjoyable and at times challenging time reaching the summit; especially climbing the last pitch which we affectionately call the “Stegosaurus” due to the jaggy ridge. All but Danni Harris had rappelled and were on the ground as Danni rappelled down and was just above near where we were she said she heard singing. At first we couldn’t hear it and assumed she was hallucinating (it had been a long day), but then we listened and indeed there was choral singing. Turns out there was a large group on top of a nearby rock formation who had hiked to the top and were singing. Then, on our hike out we had stopped and started talking to a couple young men who also had stopped on the trail. They had been hiking around the area and carried a long object. When I asked about it the young man said it was a didgeridoo and began to play it for us. A great climb, singing in a beautiful setting and a didgeridoo serenade on the trail…a truly cosmic experience.