Turtle Man. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.
Turtle Dave* climbing the west side of Mount Whitney near the end of the John Muir Trail.
There are several stories behind this photograph. One is specific to this man and this place, and another relates more generally to people like him that I have encountered in the backcountry over the years. The specific story: “Turtle Dave” (or was it “Turtle Don?*”) was his trail name on the John Muir Trail when we encountered him. He was soloing the JMT, and on this day he was going to reach the summit of Mount Whitney. I was part of a group of experienced backpackers who had come all the way across the Sierra from the west side to get here, and we felt like a pretty tough group… until we met him. He wasn’t fast, but he seemed as at ease in the backcountry as anyone I’ve ever met.
Perhaps because of this photograph, and perhaps because I’m considering some trips into the backcountry, and perhaps because I’m no longer a child (well, not in most ways) I’ve been thinking about a string of similar “mature” backpackers I’ve met over the years. Decades ago as Patty and I embarked on our first long backpacking trip we camped near “Sig,” an “older woman” (at least a decade younger than my age today!) who starting her solo of the JMT. On another trip out of Tuolumne Meadows I spoke with a 75-year-old fellow who was starting out on the JMT all alone. If you meet one of these folks on the trail, I urge you to stop and chat a bit — there’s a good chance that the conversation will be memorable.
* Update: My local research department (a.k.a. Patty) found some web references to “Turtle Don” and his adventure. I’ll leave this post with the current title, but it is good to know the right name for this guy!
G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.
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Dan, thank you for the memory! I remember him on that amazing trip.
We were all really impressed with him. (My memory is that he liked to talk. A lot. :-) )
And that was quite a trip — among my top few in the Sierra. Besides the really great group of fellow hikers, the frosting on the cake was getting one of my favorite photographs. Do you know which one it was? (Hint: We stopped at a lake at the top of a climb. I spent a half hour or so photographing and the group was getting a bit impatient. I packed up and moved on, following everyone else who left ahead of me… only to stop a couple of switchbacks above the lake when I was stopped in my tracks by a particular view of the lake and had to stop again!)
Dan
No matter how long folks like him hang in there, the life they live continues to be vibrant. We’re increasingly at the mercy of fate as we get older, but it is encouraging to run into folks like him and the others I mention in the post.
Dan
That’s wonderful! I bet they live to be 100, since they have such an active healthy lifestyle and get a ton of vitamin D!