Considering today is Valentine’s Day and all, I thought a thread titled “Tell Us About Your First Date” may be of interest. It could be about your actual “first” date as a teenager, or the first date with your present (or former, for that matter) spouse/mate/partner, etc. Maybe it was an adventure, maybe a romantic evening, or maybe it was a complete and total disaster. Anyway, I thought it would be an interesting topic. Here’s my contribution:
In the mid-1980s, I found myself a single Dad raising two small boys by myself. We had great fun together, but I was looking for some adult companionship. At the time I was into all kinds of outdoor adventures like camping, hiking, backpacking, sea kayaking, and rock climbing. There was this nice young woman that worked at the same hospital where I worked who always seemed fun to be around, so I asked her out for a date.
For our first date I took her rock climbing. Why she said yes I’ll never know, but she did and off we went. We hiked from Table Rock out across the Chimneys and then out to near the Amphitheater area of the Linville Gorge (Note: you really should Google “Linville Gorge” to fully understand just how rugged this area is). Oh, by the way, I should mention this was her FIRST time rock climbing.
After a three or so mile hike from Table Rock, to reach the Camel itself you have to go through a decent gully. The decent gully to the Camel is a boulder-strewn crack in a sheer rock face that is just a little less than vertical. To safely get down (then back up on the way out) you have to set ropes. After much effort, we reached the base of the Camel. The Camel is an independent, free-standing rock spire in the Linville Gorge that is a little over 120 feet from base to top at its lowest point. It’s about 50 feet in length and only about 10 feet wide. There are two distinct tops to the single rock formation, which viewed from a distance look like the humps on a camel’s back. Anyway, on with the story.
We roped-up, I gave her a crash course in climbing and belaying, and off we went. I lead the climb, and she followed up on my belay from the top. It was probably a good thing I didn’t fall while leading the climb, but at the time who thinks about little things like that. As she was climbing, she had her first experience with “sewing machine legs” (that involuntary twitching caused be being scared sh*#less). At one point in the climb, she reached a spot where she didn’t think she could go any further. I told her to take her right foot and put it on the rock flake just below her ear. I won’t say here what her reply was, but, eventually, I convinced her to give it a try and she was able to continue on up the rock to the top of the Camel.
The view from the top of this climb is remarkable. You have an unobstructed, panoramic view of the Linville Gorge, while being perched high in the air on what feels like the smallest of area. It’s a great place to be. We had a great time looking around and talking about how much fun and rewarding rock climbing was. Then, from out of my knapsack I pull a bottle of Champagne, a couple apples and some cheese. I figured we needed to celebrate her first time rock climbing. Well, as they say, the rest is history …
Oh, by the way, a year after that first date we were married. We still enjoy getting out and doing crazy things together, although the rock climbing part is now left to just a very fond memory (and often told story).
On the top of The Camel, 1987.
And on Shortoff Mountain on the east rim of the Linville Gorge, 2015.
In the mid-1980s, I found myself a single Dad raising two small boys by myself. We had great fun together, but I was looking for some adult companionship. At the time I was into all kinds of outdoor adventures like camping, hiking, backpacking, sea kayaking, and rock climbing. There was this nice young woman that worked at the same hospital where I worked who always seemed fun to be around, so I asked her out for a date.
For our first date I took her rock climbing. Why she said yes I’ll never know, but she did and off we went. We hiked from Table Rock out across the Chimneys and then out to near the Amphitheater area of the Linville Gorge (Note: you really should Google “Linville Gorge” to fully understand just how rugged this area is). Oh, by the way, I should mention this was her FIRST time rock climbing.
After a three or so mile hike from Table Rock, to reach the Camel itself you have to go through a decent gully. The decent gully to the Camel is a boulder-strewn crack in a sheer rock face that is just a little less than vertical. To safely get down (then back up on the way out) you have to set ropes. After much effort, we reached the base of the Camel. The Camel is an independent, free-standing rock spire in the Linville Gorge that is a little over 120 feet from base to top at its lowest point. It’s about 50 feet in length and only about 10 feet wide. There are two distinct tops to the single rock formation, which viewed from a distance look like the humps on a camel’s back. Anyway, on with the story.
We roped-up, I gave her a crash course in climbing and belaying, and off we went. I lead the climb, and she followed up on my belay from the top. It was probably a good thing I didn’t fall while leading the climb, but at the time who thinks about little things like that. As she was climbing, she had her first experience with “sewing machine legs” (that involuntary twitching caused be being scared sh*#less). At one point in the climb, she reached a spot where she didn’t think she could go any further. I told her to take her right foot and put it on the rock flake just below her ear. I won’t say here what her reply was, but, eventually, I convinced her to give it a try and she was able to continue on up the rock to the top of the Camel.
The view from the top of this climb is remarkable. You have an unobstructed, panoramic view of the Linville Gorge, while being perched high in the air on what feels like the smallest of area. It’s a great place to be. We had a great time looking around and talking about how much fun and rewarding rock climbing was. Then, from out of my knapsack I pull a bottle of Champagne, a couple apples and some cheese. I figured we needed to celebrate her first time rock climbing. Well, as they say, the rest is history …
Oh, by the way, a year after that first date we were married. We still enjoy getting out and doing crazy things together, although the rock climbing part is now left to just a very fond memory (and often told story).
On the top of The Camel, 1987.
And on Shortoff Mountain on the east rim of the Linville Gorge, 2015.
