GH017576 GoPro Frame

Mammoth Trip, 2022

June 30

Clark Canyon Rock Climb



Jo prepares me to lead belay her.


I experience this as a moment of bonding, almost intimate. She'll see this differently since she does this all the time with all her clients, but it's my first time belaying a stranger, and lead belaying at that. Put differently, she's trusting me to protect her if she slips up (which isn't likely, but anything could happen), and I'm accepting her trust and the consequences. I take that responsibility seriously. -F.