Over the years I have led a number of trips. Some of them became true epics but most fit squarely into the enjoyable spectrum. Being asked to select one above the other is always tough. However one that recently stands out, as a gratifying leadership experience was a climb of Ingalls SW face on November 2, 2002.

This particular climb was positive on many fronts. First, the weather was clear and cold (5 degrees on my car thermometer at the Teanaway road as I drove up) but quickly became spring like by midday. For a late fall climb this was just short of amazing.

Secondly, it stood out because of the way that the group almost immediately gelled. Having the usual slow and fast paced folks, a climb is often a battle of keeping the group together. However, it quickly became apparent that the rest of the party was more interested in keeping together than I was and I quickly found myself relaxing and enjoying the experience.

Of course the trip also was enjoyable because we reached the summit safely and in a fairly good pace. Rock slugs were nowhere to be seen on this trip and we were also pleasantly surprised to find out we had the entire area to ourselves the whole day (other than a lone scrambler on the South Ingalls route).

However, what really made this one stand apart was what happened after the climb was already over and folks had gone home. Email. Almost the very next day email started going between folks as they exchanged pictures and thoughts on the climb. There was also the same warm and happy "sharing" of the adventure that we'd all felt on the climb the weekend before. It was almost like getting two climbs for the price of one.

Sometimes the measuring stick that we use to rate a success or failure is a goal reached. Sometimes you find that the goal reached is just part of the measurement and the anticipated success turns out to be just a part of the much greater experience. This was just such a climb and I definitely hope to measure other adventures with this same yard stick in the future.