Trip Report

The old phrase once bitten, twice as smart was definitely appropriate for this year’s Obsidian climb of Mount Hubris in the Castle Crags State Park in northern California. Last year we were shut out of the climb due to the Mazamas beating us to the start. This year we sent out digital scout Marci Hansen (who is a Mazama) to pinpoint exactly when they were planning to climb. The weekend we chose was safe. We left on Friday late afternoon and arrived in northern California later that night. We woke early Saturday AM to make sure we got to the start of the climb before anyone else did. When we got up to the trailhead and saw several people milling around their car which struck fear in our hearts…Mazamas! But no, it turned out to be another group of four. Still, there was no time to waste, we had to beat them to the start, otherwise we may not be able to climb since the steep rock climb does not have wide ledges or ways where other groups can pass. The bugle sounded and the call went out…”let’s roll!” and off we went. Danni Harris, defying laws of gravity, flew up the trail, while the rest of us labored to keep up. After awhile we realized we actually might die from the approach and so slowed down a bit. We arrived at the start of the climb and were the first ones there! Climbing the five pitches of beautiful granite went flawlessly for the most part. Rope team one leader (aka me) had an incident where one of her pieces of rock protection she had in the crack snagged her other gear and caused her to be momentarily yanked away from the rock. Luckily those below had helmets on since she dropped a few unladylike “curse bombs” while trying to get unstuck. After two rappels the group was all together at the bottom. Brian Hamilton gets special recognition for rappelling carrying two coiled ropes on his back; not easy and not fun, but Brian rocked it like a champ. The victorious team of 6 hit the Black Bear Diner in Shasta City and celebrated with big plates of food.