Disclaimer
Climbing with Bob is NOT A GUIDE NOR ANY FORM OF INSTRUCTION, but is for your reading enjoyment only. Simply put, you get to read my climbing journal and look at some of my photos . . . nothing more. If you use information from this site for any reason beyond reading enjoyment . . . you do so entirely at your own risk.
Please do not think that just because we have accomplished a climb described on this site, with or without incident, that you can too. Climbers are killed every year . . . I take this really seriously as I have witnessed a fatal fall, walked for days searching for a climber who, to this day, is still missing and experienced my own mishap in Bolivia at 17,000 feet, where help was 4 days walk away. Two fatals and a couple of ounces of blood slowly seeping down through the inside of my right arm was no fun. Climbing is serious business and you are playing for keeps.
Climbing of any difficulty carries a degree of risk and readers, THIS MEANS YOU, assume all risk for your actions. Accidents can happen to both the experienced mountaineer and the foolhardy hiker; therefore, ALL who choose to climb, even with the proper training and while taking into account the constantly changing conditions found in the mountain environment, are risking injury or death. Climbers of all experience levels must select and use the proper gear, assess their physical and mental preparations, find instruction for their shortfalls and act responsibly to ensure their own safety and the safety of the folks they climb with. Do yourself a favor, take this disclaimer for not only what it is but also as yet another suggestion that you make every effort to climb in a manner that ensures your safety and those with and/or around you.
THIS NEXT PART IS NOT JUST BOILERPLATE, I REALLY EXPECT YOU TO READ THIS PARAGRAPH! >>> I disclaim any responsibility for death or injury incurred by any person engaging in climbing or any of the other activities portrayed or described on this site. Use or mis-use of any information taken from this site is at your own risk and no reader should be using the descriptions of our individual experiences as a guide to any climb or associated activity. >>> NOW KEEP READING . . . because here comes the Uniform Commercial Code BOLD print that is written in BOLD print just to get your attention! >>> I MAKE NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, OF ANY KIND, REGARDING THE CONTENTS OF THIS SITE, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ANY WARRANTY REGARDING THE ACCURACY OR RELIABILTY OF ANY INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN. NO IMPLIED WARRANTIES SPECIFICALLY INCLUDES NO WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
You did good and as a reward for reading this far, I'll tell you the story about the photo above . . .
We were climbing Nevado Sunchulli, a warm up climb in the Apolobamba, and we had gotten to a spot on the ridge where it was Class 3 terrain with loose material. I reach up for a hand hold and this 300 pounder comes to meet me. Gravity takes over and I know this is about to be bad so I push off from the falling the rock and as I fall 8 feet onto my back, my arm drags over an edge. The rock and I hit the ground and I use my ice axe to lever the slab off my double plastic boot. I get up and holler to the others that all is well . . . but let me tell you, what an adrenalin rush. I mean a I've got a serious case of the shakes. We climb onto the top of the couloir and the right arm doesn't hang down but seems to have a golf ball size lump in the armpit after only about 20 minutes. G and I take a look at it and I think, well that was a neat stunt . . .
We rope up and go to the summit and then head back down. The armpit now has a really big golf ball sized lump and when we get back to the tent the Bolivian staff is a bit taken aback. I head for my tent with an ice cold Nalgene water bottle and with my arm elevated, I hold the icey bottle on the lump. I did that the rest of the day. The next day the lump is all but gone but the bruise is starting to expand. It got bigger and bigger until the blue made it to within about 3 inches of the wrist. It stopped getting bigger after about four or five days while we climbed Posnansky and then trekked twenty or so miles after that. Gravity was on the side of the bruise.
The blue color started to retreat to the upper arm and by the time I got home it had decreased to about the same as the photo above. My wife really loved it, I mean it made a real good impression as you can imagine . . .