What, this thread has set five hours without comment? Well, let me address that shortfall ...

Was just browsing my copy of Mountaineering: Freedom of the Hills. While I did not come across definitions of mountaineering, climbing or hiking, it's quite obvious from just browsing the general language in the text that mountaineering is the business of getting to the top of a summit. There's no quibbling over whether it's "climbed," "hiked" or "walked" (which term is actually used as one way to reach the summit of a mountain).

--mark d.

sarah.simon wrote:Climbing is what I do in the mountains, how I recharge my batteries every weekend, when I'm out in the high peaks and not letting anyone else define my hobby for me.

Nine pages of people showing their feelings? Is that a first on SP's forum pages ???

I've had people who like to take pictures of natural objects call it a "hobby."

For me, it's a way to keep in shape, and I particularly don't see why we need other people

around to define our hobbies for us, because that's just hot air bouncing off of mountains.

lcarreau wrote:Nine pages of people showing their feelings? Is that a first on SP's forum pages ???

Yet another DRY line that makes me see RED. I think I'd rather see a fellow sasquatch again.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/climbing

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hike

Climbing is what any reporter in Denver calls getting out of the chair and moving.

Good point, D,

I'm pretty upset that the recent death of a local climbing guide was so misreported. So many questions arose to those who understand climbing. How must the family feel? How do friends react to the bad information? Does the press have ANY sort of conscience?

It blows me away that people buy into this crap.

If I reach the summit of a mountian or high point I say I climbed it. Some mountains are real climbs, and many are more hiking, or a combination of both. But if it's a summit it is easier to just say I climbed it. Mountianeering is both hiking and climbing, depends on how a person looks at it i guess.

A famouse French alpinist (I don't remenber which one) said that "alpinism starts when you need to twist your ankles to walk straight". I guess that could set the (lower) limit between "climbing" and "walking".

mconnell wrote:

thoth wrote:

Gary Schenk wrote:If at some point you're higher than when you started, you climbed.

Semantic silliness.

which is the point of this entire thread...

All the focus on words makes this topic sound pretty silly. But other social communities do the same thing. So a group can split into factions. For example programmers split into Java, DB, Linux, etc each with its own special activities and jargon. Another example, music lovers split into rock, industrial rock, hip hop, country, etc

As humans, we love to classify. We do it because it helps us to focus our own activities and values.

Personally, I understand the semantics, I get the point, and I do it sometimes.

But I play in the Rocky Mountains. The terrain is so varied here, I can do every one of those climb-related activities during the course of a single outing. When I get home, I feel good about the total experience, not just the 20 feet between some rock and another hard place.
I claim this because I might take along a variety of gear: for example, crampons, gaiters, hiking pole, approach shoes, camp stove, GPS -- and use them all.

You might think I'm trying to show how I'm inter-disciplinary. But I think I'm having fun.

Right now, I consider it climbing if it is class 4-5, or you are on a glacier with any crevasses, or if you are using protection. If you need to place protection, it's a climb.

Of course, my views will change in a year. I am still relatively new to the world of "climbing".

-Mark

Mark Straub wrote:Right now, I consider it climbing if it is class 4-5, or you are on a glacier with any crevasses, or if you are using protection. If you need to place protection, it's a climb.

Of course, my views will change in a year. I am still relatively new to the world of "climbing".

-Mark

I think a lot of the definition comes down to comfort in the terrain. A friend who has done a lot of CO peak-bagging up to (CO) class 4 definitely considered this "climbing". It's the (CA) easy class 3 (or maybe hard class 2) chute from Sam Mack meadow up to the Palisade Basin:



My brother from the east coast, who's hiked a lot but never been on a long talus slog, definitely considered Mt. Aggassiz (class 2) to be climbing:

I call everything



Llama Trekking !

TheOrglingLlama wrote:I call everything



Llama Trekking !

"MROOF"

MikeTX wrote:if you're just into hiking you don't have to worry about all that silly narcisistic FA drama BS.

No, you just have to endure the endless discussion about whether summit registers are important historical documents or ugly trash.

Bob Burd wrote:

MikeTX wrote:if you're just into hiking you don't have to worry about all that silly narcisistic FA drama BS.

No, you just have to endure the endless discussion about whether summit registers are important historical documents or ugly trash.

good one.