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Hank Young '75

2021

Another well-connected out-of-towner is Hank Young, who reports he’s been in touch in recent months/years with Bill Harwood (of course), John Tompkins, and, a few years ahead of us in school, Dickie “Jake” Washburne. He’d be game to see more if anyone is having (plane) engine troubles, as he explains.

“Where to begin? I’m still working. I plan to retire 5/1/22. I’ve got three well-adjusted kids, all doing wonderfully. I have tried to hike as much as possible over the past few years with my youngest, Tom. We had an extraordinary trip in July/August 2019 on the Via Alpina in Germany and Austria (I was with him for 14 of 45 days on the trail). (BTW, I highly recommend; their hut-to-hut system is incredible.) COVID forced us to stay in the U.S. in 2020 so we did a week in September in the San Juans in south-central Colorado instead. 2021 has brought reestablished connections with some old friends from high school, which has been great fun. Collectively, we can remember about half of our high school and college years. We just make up the rest. My wife (Ann) and I are still living in Oklahoma (weird, right?). We’ll leave a light on in case anyone's plane is forced to make a landing for emergency repairs.”

Hank and I went on a brief email/texting jag about now-receding mountain adventures. I impressed him (or did I?) with a photo of me reclining next to Alex Honnold near the summit of Yosemite’s El Capitan in 2015, back before Alex became super-extra-famous for free soloing the thing and also back before the magazine industry semi-collapsed and stopped paying me to do fun stuff. (Alex and I climbed up and down El Cap’s East Ledges, quite adventurous enough for me, but not to be confused with the mountain’s vertical face.)

reported by Joe Hooper '75


 

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