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Climbing isn't forever, unless it is......

In other words, unless you plan to climb with suicidal abandon, you're going to need some kind of plan for when you're too broken or just plain too old to climb anymore.

My advice would be to knock out school as fast as you can, snag a job with flexible-enough hours to be a weekend warrior, get yourself a halfway respectable resume... then take a gap-year or five.

Definitely don't have kids until you're done with serious climbing. Kids fucking ruin you.

Doesn't sound like medicine or climbing is your dream. Sounds like you're studying too hard. Find out what your dream is and then go for it. Do what makes you happy.

For me, I like to keep work work and hobbies hobbies. Don't mix the two or something has to give...

There is supposed to be a shortage of family doctors now and in the future, so you are in a field where you can write your own ticket once you finish med school, residency, and get a little experience. Take some months off between your first couple of jobs to travel. Then find a position that allows sufficient time off to enjoy your outdoor hobbies. Good luck!

I have a dozen friends who are nurses. They make good money, live in kick ass places (Bend, Or, Leavenworth, Wa, Bellingham, Wa, Bishop, Ca), climb a crap load, take several months off each year to travel, have no student debt, and incredible career flexibility. Having been a patient more often than most people, I can say that doctors suck and nurses rule. You only need a two year, community college degree and you can always go back for more education should you want to.

ExcitableBoy wrote:I can say that doctors suck and nurses rule.

Come on- really?!?

Some doctors suck, that's true, but the same goes for a-hole elitists, nurses, bankers, lawyers, etc. etc.

I believe most people are good, no matter what walk of life they choose. And yes, I am biased towards drs I gave 10 of the best years of my life to become one after undergrad. Believe me, I didn't do it for the $. I'm still glad I did it.

Woodie

Wow, thank you all so much for the responses! I definitely have a lot to think about, but considering I'm only 18, I'd say I don't have to decide right away

I think for now I'll continue to try to do my best in school, and try to get out and hike/climb as much as possible. Davis has multiple clubs like the Climbing club, Outdoor Adventures, and a Wilderness Medicine club that I plan on becoming very involved with (and already have a little bit).

I will always be very passionate about climbing, and if one day I feel like that is so strong that I can't make it work with another career, I'll go for it. I'm studying to be a neurologist right now (NOT a surgeon), so maybe I'll just end up going for a medical profession that's a little easier and can give me more spare time.
I'm not sure how many professions go along with "wilderness medicine" but I am very interested in that. Anybody know what I could do with it? I've looked into emergency rescue also (so I could save people on mountains and stuff), but don't know much about it.

Regarding wilderness medicine (including high altitude work) you might look up Dr Peter Hackett from Telluride. He's pretty well known in those circles.

Best wishes whatever you decide.

Woodie

Lots of good advice. Can't believe us doctors got called out by Excitable Boy! As Woodie says, plenty of good and bad docs, just like there are good and bad nurses, and good and bad patients. I have been obsessed with climbing mountains since I was a teenager and am now 44. My philosophy on going to medical school was that it would allow me to live just about anywhere that people live (lots of my friends in the oil industry for instance are stuck in Texas) and that it would provide enough income to travel. No doubt that I did not have a lot of time to travel or climb in medical school or residency but I had a chance to spend a summer doing altitude research and spent a month backpacking in New Zealand in medical school. After residency, I think most doctors who are not self employed have about as much time off as anyone else. I think if your goal is to be an elite climber, you probably have to do it full time but most everyone else has some other type of job. I have met plenty of guides over the years- several of them do ski patrolling in the winter, some do some construction jobs, one helped rig zip lines. A few guides manage to guide year round by doing ice climbing. But keep in mind that guiding can have a lot of monotony- you mind find yourself climbing up and down the same route on Mount Rainier all summer. Good luck

wargowsky wrote:quit school, sell 90% of your stuff, and live out of your car or a tent. get a seasonal job, work for a few months while climbing, quit job, climb/travel full time for a few months, repeat.

If I may add....

Learn to enjoy scarfing and eating out of garbage dumpsters.

Climb now while you're young. You can always go back to school later when you're older, but it's a lot harder to climb like a 19-year old when you're 54.

Just do it. Be a climbing bum.

Post this question on the SuperTopo talk forum which has a lot's of posts by full-time climbers & outdoor folks. More than a few of them managed to finish higher education as well as pursue their climbing & outdoor dreams.
Good luck !

Shit --- wish I could start out at 18 again. I would have read more books.

Hey Brianna,

First let me tall I've graduated quite some time ago and I still ask myself the questions you just asked.

What I may be able to contribute is this though (and some people already said it), instead of thinking about getting a great job that allows you to climb eventually, do the other way around, climb a lot and get a job that simply gets you the money to survive.

And since you're a woman (such as myself but me being older) I can advise that having a "standard" relationship and eventually kids will surely get in the way of your plans, now or later, if they're long term.

In the end, you don't really need as much money as it looks you need to climb a lot, or year around. You need to get rid of things that are unnecessary, and the independence and freedom you get from it has been the greatest achievement in my life. Eventually you will run into people that respect and accompany you in that lifestyle.

Whenever this issue comes up I always remember this quote from Mark Twight in Kiss or Kill: "(...) and I don't own property. I spend my disposable income on compact discs, camera gear, and climbing mountains. I was a "no future" kid, and I hope it comes true because I don't plan ahead for fishing holidays on Social Security. The future will be what it is whether you have insurance or not."

I think Daria solved this problem.