Libby Sauter

Date of Birth:
Oct 8, 1984

Hometown:
La$ Vega$

What is your primary means of adventure, AKA what gets you most psyched?
Big long remote rock routes! And medical work in developing countries!

Invent your dream adventure by combining five places, disciplines, pitches, peaks, environments, etc. and stacking them together into a combination. Why did you pick each part?
Speaking generally ‐ Start by flying into a country I’ve never been too (1), participate in either a pediatric heart surgery workshop or cataract surgery camp with amazing friends from around the world (2), relax after a successful few weeks of nursing/medical work with beers and delicious food with said friends (3), head out from the hospital to untapped mountain ranges where mysterious and gorgeous alpine granite awaits exploration, experiencing local villages and people along the way (4) and finally climb an impressively vertical, tall, and crack‐laden (but still bomber!) formation with giggling partners! (5) I like the balance that comes with mixing work and play and the beauty of trying hard both mentally and physically.

Describe 5 climbs, trips, or moments that have defined you as a mountain athlete:

1. Top roping at Nature Camp in 6th grade. It was incredibly freeing and wonderful. A lifetime habit was born!
2. Bailing on the last (crux) pitch of the 5 pitch 5.9 Super Slide in Yosemite as a gumby. It was then that I decided I wanted to really commit and learn how to climb so as to not be so easily intimidated.
3. Climbing the Nose for the first time ever, leading all the pitches in under 15 hours and realizing how much I can do with determination and caffeine. It was my 4th time up El Cap.
4. Breaking my leg when a boulder slid down a steep gully, taking me with it over a drop. Note to self ‐ You are not invincible and the mountains are not static.
5. Finally summiting El Hermano in remote Northern Patagonia (FA Cenizas a Cenizas ca 4’000 ft, 5.11R A3) after years of planning and friends lost to the hills. Not every step is a step forward and that is ok. “Onwards and upwards” isn’t always linear.

Describe your most memorable night in the mountains:
It’s not a night of danger or real discomfort. It was the epitome of what I want out of climbing ‐ On a fun link up day in Yosemite with my friend Niels, we made our way up to the base of Snake Dike on Half Dome after climbing the East Buttress of El Capitan. The evening sun was causing the Sierra peaks to burn with the flames of alpenglow as we laughed and picked late summer alpine flowers. We ran the trail to fast Latin guitar music as the evening fell deeper. At the base of the route we watched the sun set behind El Capitan and took off up the route with only chalk bags and head lamps. Laying on top of Half Dome, counting shooting stars with one of my best friends with miles of trail and moderate climbing behind us (and still ahead of us), it was climbing at its best. Fun, ridiculous, physically challenging and shared with a dear friend.

What has scared or intimidated you as a mountain athlete?
THE DARK. I hate the dark. Alpine starts. Getting benighted. I get so stressed out if the dark includes woods. But I suck it up because I love big long days. Go figure.. :)

What would your adventure partners be most surprised to learn about you from before the time when they met you?
My anxiety about the dark is usually a pretty big shocker to my partners!

What are your top 5 all‐time favorite pieces of CAMP equipment?

1. Photon wire gate biner
2. Xenon 4 trekking poles
3. Universal Piton
4. Daisychain Twist
5. Speed Helmet

Why are you a CAMP athlete?
The gear matches my favorite style of climbing ‐ Fast and light while going big. But also the people. Those behind CAMP USA make the company even more awesome than the products alone. Quality products matched up with caring folks that love the mountains as much as the rest of us! Win win!

Tick List

It meant a lot to me when I climbed:

1. The Nose of El Cap with Mayan Smith Gobat in 4:43. Five years of projecting paid off!
2. Cenizas a Cenizas, my biggest and baddest FA. ca 4,000 feet, 5.11‐R A3
3. The Nose and Lurking Fear in under 22 hours. It truly highlighted my progress over the years.
4. Desert Shield 5.11 C3 in Zion. A solid reminder there is always more to learn.
5. When I hiked Mt. Charleston (16 miles, 11,916’) with my mother and getting to share a very hard earned summit with her.

The adventure, route or race I had to train the hardest for was:
Speed climbing the Nose. 5 years and 14 attempts.

The adventure, route or race that wrecked me the most was:
My first big link up: El Cap and Half Dome. I slept for 16 hours straight after that.

I most want an all‐expenses‐paid trip to:
The Karakorum.

My short list of climbing or adventure goals this year:

1. Medical work with the Himalayan Cataract Project and the Novick Cardiac Alliance
2. Sierra Ridge traversing
3. Bigger, faster, harder routes on El Cap with some rad lady friends.