Summer of '69 Syndrome

Climbing trip to Colorado (2012) from Kyle Sumner on Vimeo.

Summer of 2012, I headed west to Colorado. I did the same thing in 2013 and 2014, working for a backpacking guiding outfitter. In 2015, I headed west with my friend Josh. We had so much fun we did it again in 2017 and 2018. (I spent 2016 driving up, down, and around the Appalachians, climbing with anyone who would join me.) In the summer of 2019, I got married. That ruled. It still does. 

But the last few summers have looked different. 

One of the saddest tendencies of our species is the tendency to think that their best days are behind them. We all knew a guy still wearing his lettermen jacket years after graduation at the hometown bar. Maybe it's not the saddest, but it is pathetic. 

Let's call this desire to live in the past "Summer of '69 Syndrome." Named after, of course, Bryan Adams' baby boomer anthem that recounts the youthful bliss of summer. I like recounting those days too. It's fun. But the song repeats the line, "Those were the best days of my life!" Those were the best days of your life? Really? Nostalgia is a powerful drug and marketing strategy but come on, man. Get a life. 

My friend Leah and I worked together in Colorado, taking kids up mountains during some of those previously mentioned summers. We're neighbors now. She works with my wife, and her husband is one of my best friends. I'm at her house 1-2 times a week. We never really talk about "the glory days" because I think we're both in an unspoken agreement that the glory days are right now.

Wilderness Expeditions, Mt. Elbert, 2013

Yes, my summers look different. I sleep in a bed next to my life partner instead of a tent with my belay partner. I make my morning coffee in the kitchen rather than in the back of my truck. But I still use a Moka pot and I still get sweaty doing rad things and exploring beautiful places outside. 

Those trips dirtbagging and climbing around were amazing and I remember them fondly. They undoubtedly helped shape who I am. But instead of holding on to them like some kind of pearl of great price or faded letterman jacket, I try to let that adventurous spirit shape my life in this particular place: pushing myself to do hard things outside, coaching our school's rock climbing team, and exploring the creeks, cliffs, and hollers of the Cumberland Plateau. No, Mr. Adams, these are the best days of my life.

Summer 2022

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