Layton Kor is simply one of the greatest American rock climbers. During the 1960s he climbed everywhere, but particularly left his mark on Colorado’s many climbing areas, the desert towers in Utah, and, of course, in the European Alps and Dolomites. I told him, “Layton, I’ve been following you around my whole climbing career, climbing your routes, following in your footsteps.”
At the end of the road, we packed the climbing gear—ropes, quickdraws, a rack of cams and nuts, and a dozen of Kor’s pitons—while Layton took a head start up the rocky slopes, using trekker poles for balance. Dennis and I divided his gear and put it in our packs. When we reached the base of our objective, a 150-foot-high unclimbed tower that Layton had already attempted three times, we dropped our packs and Layton pointed out the prospective route up the west face.
