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“Doing Business” in the Backcountry
Guide name: ย Colby Brokvist
Hometown:โจย Yosemite, CA
Current Guide Company:ย Southern Yosemite Mountain Guides (SYMG) 13 years
What was your “gateway” activity?โจ (What got you into the outdoors)ย Backpacking in New Hampshireโs White Mountains
Current specialties?โจย Backpacking, Alpinism, Adventure Photography
Favorite places in CA?ย Bowling Ball Beach, Chasm of Doom, Summit of Mt Clark
Memorable trip: Well, the funniest stories that arise from wilderness trips seem to often be related to doing the โbig businessโ in absence of the usual porcelain accessories. A few years ago I was leading a peak-bagging trip for a single client in northern Yosemite. Mostly we were traveling cross-country and camping way off-trail in areas that few people ever venture into. This guy had some serious anxiety about having a good place to poop โ to the point where heโd nervously pre-dig his catholes at each camp and lunch spot. Only then would he set up his tent, eat some food, or attend to other camp tasks. It was always hours later, or even the next day when heโd finally use the hole for its intended purpose, if he ever used it at all.
On the third or fourth evening of the trip we found a nice place to camp and โย true to formย โย he immediately set out to pre-dig his cathole in anticipation of the coming movement โฆ err moment. But this time he excitedly came back from his chosen spot exclaiming that there must have been a big group camped there recently because many holes had already been pre-dug in the โlatrine area.โ
Remember that we were way off the beaten path. Naturally I was curious and so I had him walk me over and, sure enough; there were freshly dug holes all over the meadow he had found. These were small holes, perfectly cored and only about 2.5 inches in diameter. And there were lots of them. I asked the client if he was planning on using one of the holes for his business. โYes, of course. This has saved me a lot of work digging.โ
โWell,โ I said, โJust be careful you donโt get bit on the rear end by the Beldingโs Ground Squirrels who live in those holes.โ
He was going to poop into an underground squirrel colony!
And as funny to me as that was, I think I was more impressed by his confidence in his aimย โย those were small holes!
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ASJ is seeking humorous, outlandish and harrowing stories to be featured in the Guide Storiesย section of our website. These stories are intended to entertain and inspire outdoor readers, and highlight the know-how and preparedness of outdoor guides all across the state. Theyโll offer valuable exposure to the companies who are in the business of taking people outdoors through back links on our site, social media channels and potentially the magazine itself.
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