Tom Kreuser is known in the climbing community for his early 1960s climbing ascents especially for his 1965 ascent of Kreuser's Route on Tom's Thumb. Actually the entire pinnacle formation known as Tom's Thumb in the McDowell mountains is named after Tom Kreuser's thumb.
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A note from Tom to Erik Filsinger 2015,
Notes from Tom's journals: Dear Erik, Wow, I have been on quite a journey the past coupla days. I started thinking of climbing in the McDowells and nothing much came up at first but reminicing led from one thing to another…..how fun to recall stuff that has been hid away for years. I checked on some journal entries, scrounged up some old black and white photos and the brain juices began to take me on a journey of wonderful recollections. Fun. Nothing out of the ordinary but certainly brought back old memories and friends to mind. I thought the entry from my Journal for September 14th, 1964 might amuse you. You need to recall that I had been climbing for a little over a year, the AMC had recently been established and I had turned twenty the month before……. This photo was from the time period ..obviously below the Monk on Camelback. |
Tom Kreuser at Camelback mtn
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As you can see from the entry getting out to the McDowell's in the early days of climbing was a full day affair. And you made sure that you had everything you needed, water, jack , spare tire, shovel. You still need to be prepared today but it is such a pleasure to head off and be there in just a few minutes and with the trailheads - it's a breeze.
My first climb in the McDowells that I remember was with the climbing course that Wally Vegors taught with the help of Doug Black and Bill Forrest. It was taught to members of DARES Desert Alpine Reserve Emergency Services…a civil defense unit that operated out of the AZ National Guard Armory. The new climbers after acquiring climbing skills established the Arizona Mountaineering Club as founding members. The Pinnacle Peak climb was February 2, 1963
My first climb in the McDowells that I remember was with the climbing course that Wally Vegors taught with the help of Doug Black and Bill Forrest. It was taught to members of DARES Desert Alpine Reserve Emergency Services…a civil defense unit that operated out of the AZ National Guard Armory. The new climbers after acquiring climbing skills established the Arizona Mountaineering Club as founding members. The Pinnacle Peak climb was February 2, 1963
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I climbed Pinnacle Peak several times as I recall. Larry Trieber and I were I believe the first to climb the Wedge, the large rock adjacent to climb on Pinnacle Peak. I prussicked a rope thrown over to get to the top , he climbed it. In fact a photo of him "edging" on the rock surface became the cover photo for Dick Aleith's climbing guide that he wrote, drew and published.
Sewrey and I spent a day scrambling in Windy Wocks (Rocks) now surrounded by Troon looking for larger rock routes but we spent the day basically bouldering to our hearts content. Finding that we had over extended our day light and we were on the backside of the mountain from our car. No moon, no flashlight….we negotiated the desert by candle light , using the emergency fire starter candle stub in my backpack. Fun day. I did climb on one of the other large walls with Larry Trieber once…..remember him having to chop out a lot of brush on a diagonial crack that he was leading. It would have been impossible to continue if he hadn't done alot of pruning. The highlight was lightly tip-toeing past some young owl babies (owlets) on the ledge. We each eyed one another suspiciously ...We didn't bother them they didn't bother us. Tom's Thumb was the venture that I pursued the most……first to lead the standard route from the AMC. |
Tom Kreuser and Tom's Thumb pinnacle in the
McDowell mtns. |
I led and put up Kreuser's Route with Don Weaver belaying me. The crux of the climb was about two thirds of the way up when there was a very large bush growing in the crack, I wacked at it, thinking I had pruned it well enough to climb over it. Well, inorder to do this I had to compress it against the wall and from that point on it was me or the bush….it threatened to catapult me off into space….but needless to say I ralled and made it to a safe stance. Tom: 1 ,Bush: zero. Lesson learned…over prune the next bush.
Another long day on Tom's Thumb, left a group of us on an early AMC climb with fading light. No trail in those days, so we wanted to take the "quickest" route off the mountain. Bill Sewrey says, "I looked at a route down earlier. Let's go this way." No one knew of a better route so we followed…..needless to say it was not " a good route." Half of us buddied up with someone else who had a flashlight. Others struggled along. Mid way down the mountain, Larry Fisher, at the top of his lungs yells, "SEWREY! " followed with the a string of explatives that would make a sailor envious. Silence. A quiet but calm voice, Bill says, "Now, now, Larry. Take it slow and easy. It'll be all right." And he was right … we made it down. Sure could have used the now great Tom's Thumb Trail on that trip.
The McDowell's have afforded me with a great number of outings and a grander collection of memories. What the Preserve does is it makes it possible for future climbers and hikers to have a place where they too can congure up their own adventures and memories. So be it.
Another long day on Tom's Thumb, left a group of us on an early AMC climb with fading light. No trail in those days, so we wanted to take the "quickest" route off the mountain. Bill Sewrey says, "I looked at a route down earlier. Let's go this way." No one knew of a better route so we followed…..needless to say it was not " a good route." Half of us buddied up with someone else who had a flashlight. Others struggled along. Mid way down the mountain, Larry Fisher, at the top of his lungs yells, "SEWREY! " followed with the a string of explatives that would make a sailor envious. Silence. A quiet but calm voice, Bill says, "Now, now, Larry. Take it slow and easy. It'll be all right." And he was right … we made it down. Sure could have used the now great Tom's Thumb Trail on that trip.
The McDowell's have afforded me with a great number of outings and a grander collection of memories. What the Preserve does is it makes it possible for future climbers and hikers to have a place where they too can congure up their own adventures and memories. So be it.