BRO-TV-Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Nose from Blue Ridge Outdoors on Vimeo.

Mondamin Climbing History

by Robert Danos on January 03

In the mid 60’s, three summer staff members at Camp Mondamin became friends and life long lovers of rock climbing.

Robert John Gillespie, Steve Longenecker, and Bob Watts went on to make history in the progress of rock climbing in the Eastern US and specifically for a now much-loved section of North Carolina’s Looking Glass Rock called “The Nose”.

We are very proud of our small part of this piece of history and you’ll enjoy seeing the “primitive” gear climbers used in those early days when rock climbing was just becoming bart of the outdoor scene and was first introduced to boys at Mondamin and girls at our sister camp, Green Cove.

Most alumni know about our whitewater history, not as much about climbing. Enjoy!

Watch the video above produced by Blue Ridge Outdoors and read their accompanying article, “Looking Back On Looking Glass” here: http://www.blueridgeoutdoors.com/go-outside/looking-back-on-looking-glass/

Camp Mondamin is a traditional and unique summer camp for boys, ages 6 – 17, founded in 1922 and located in Tuxedo, North Carolina.

About Robert Danos

I first came to Mondamin from South Louisiana as a camper in 1979 and spent the next 9 summers here all the way through our Counselor In Training program. While attending Tulane University, I was a counselor each summer and have now been on the year-round staff for over 30 years. Before joining the year-round staff, I spent time both in teaching and child psychology. .

My wife, Susan, spent eight years on staff at our sister camp, Green Cove, and we have two girls and a boy all of whom have attended Green Cove and Mondamin, respectively.

Robert Danos