Greg Clark as a small dot on the face of El Capitan M A R C H / A P R I L 2 0 1 3 45 It started last June when Greg Clark called his Dad, Jim, to inform him that he intended to climb El Capitan in the Yosemite Valley in October. Since El Capitan is the Mecca for wall climbers and Greg and his father used to climb together, Jim eagerly signed on as a support member. They also talked about the “support group” being the family, hiking up Half Dome while Greg was climbing El Cap. It was decided after some phone calls that the “Support Group” would consist of Greg’s wife, Barbara Elorriaga-Clark; their trainer, Chad Weller; his stepmother, Lynn Clark; his brother and sister, Kevin Clark and Christy Monaghan; and of course, his father, Jim. That phone call started one of the best family experiences the Clarks have ever had, they said, as this was to be the first time that all three siblings had ever gone on a trip together. Once the plan was finalized and details were worked out, the hard part began—training. Greg and Barbara got straight to work out in Miami with their friend and trainer Chad. They did beach workouts, gym circuits, and a ton of grip strengthening exercises for Greg, to prepare for the massive 3,000 foot climb he was going to come up against as he took on “The Nose” of El Capitan. Meanwhile, back on the west coast, Jim and Christy began weekly hikes in Napa up the Westwood Hills as well as Skyline Park. Training paid off as everyone involved gained an increase in strength and stamina. Climb day came on October 2, 2012. The group woke up at the crack of dawn in order to make the thirteen hour climb, mostly in daylight, although they did come prepared with headlamps and a lot of water. That morning they stopped by a lookout point on the way to the trailhead to see how Greg was progressing. At this point Greg had already been on El Capitan for a day and night and expected at least one more night on the rock before he summited. It was awe-inspiring seeing the enormity of the mountain’s silhouette in the twilight and the tiny glowing pinpoints of light representing the climbers traversing its face in the moonlight. It took an hour to get to the trailhead from their camp at Crane Flat. Everybody was excited and enthusiastic for what they thought would be an eleven to twelve hour hike roundtrip. They took the Mist Trail up over Vernal and Nevada Falls, through the meadow near the upper Merced River to the second half of the climb, the switchbacks. They climbed what seemed like never-ending oversized stairs to get to this section, which was extremely difficult. Lynn, who hadn’t done any conditioning, turned around in between the two falls about three hours into the hike, which was very commendable. Continuing on, the rest of the group started up the switchbacks. This is where the conditioning paid off, as the switchbacks seemed to be never ending. Occasionally they would catch glimpses of Half Dome, but it didn’t seem to be getting any closer. As they continued, numerous challenges arose, as the group wanted to stay together, but it became apparent that they were all on different fitness levels. After everybody took turns encouraging each other, the group split. Kevin, Barbara, and Chad went on ahead, as Jim and Christy continued on at their own pace but refused to give up. The first group summited around 3:00 pm and the views from the top were breathtaking. It was a very deserving sight as the last thousand feet of the hike is done by hanging onto cables as you climb up the side of the dome. While the first group rested on top, the second group of Jim and Christy reached the base of the dome, where the ranger waits and collects your hiking permits. Making it to that point is a huge accomplishment; what’s worse, though, is you’re still only halfway there because you still have to go back down! It was unanimous that the return trip down was much more difficult than the way up. The pressure on the knees is immense, not to mention fatigue has more than set in at this point. Either way, the whole family stuck together and showed incredible willpower to finish the hike around 8:00 pm. That night they all sat around the campfire reliving their experiences, still on a natural high. The next day Greg summited El Capitan, fulfilling his lifelong goal. This was absolutely the most pivotal moment for the family as a whole. I can’t think of a better way to connect, being away from the demands of life and working toward a common goal. In the end it was a great test of character for a family yearning for a challenge and the opportunity to be together. Part of the crew: (left to right) Lynn, Barbara, Kevin, Greg, Christy and Jim
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