The Ridge of Mange, May 20th, 2006
For a few days we'd been looking forward to the first "sommer" climb. Sure thing - beginning bit by bit, that's might have been the reason,
we tripped over the west base of Low Tatras with imposing Chochulas. All this promised a medium-hard physical performance, a bit of fun, of course a
ravishing panorama (but later) as well as something unpromised (Robo brought us one year's standing stone-brandy, tasted already).
So to the names - from the very first, it was the stable four with inseparable Ivka now and a pair of once-hikers with "no rosy futurewards outlook" - got duly
I hope. Namely, me, Miro The Writing, Krtko The Forgetful, Joko The Fixated, Dudo The Mapmaker, Ivka The Aforesaid and Robo The Boomhead, Veva The Robo´s Half.
All´d been pledged, the bunch was quite clear and the weather punctual but awkward, though, as usual. A short account - as we´d clastered around the bottle of
stone-spirit somewhere in Sekier ghetto, small cold drops falling from the sky began to needle us allusively. Stage two - doomful-looking clouds joined them and
the rain´s endeavour was swelling. Someone said, maybe I did - ...I do bugger this!, as an imprication towards the raingramp. I couldn´t have grasped that -
Krtko engaged and yet it should have been drizzling? Wow, wow, wow - we uttered presently, when Krtko´s as well as mine stock proved true. Till the very end
of our campaign, not another single darn drop went down. Two cars, one better than the other, rattled towards 19°20´ east - 48°53´ north - 1759 metres above
sea level spot, namely Mount Big Chochuža.
About 9:30 it was someone´d lifted tha bar for our privite purpose and were parking the cars on a nettlefield below a chalet called Baba. We launched
our lunge, ha-ha-ha, perhaps I may say it in this way in the beginning of the season, in the direction of Hiadež saddle (see the photo).
A deep sorry towners of Brezno since at that time, we were clueless, I was chiefly, as for where´s the spot you reside actually, obviously our first
visit of that saddle. Me, Miro The writing along with Ivka The Twice-aforesaid broke off in our advance followed firmly by Robo and Veva.
The trion Joko-Dudo-Krtko controlled the rear gate.
After a time which, again, hadn´t correlated with those of signposts, we reached the crest
above terribly dense zone of dwarf pine - so what, we enjoyed last snow fields (hi! Maco). Here it began what it is about from 95% at least - 360°
view of hills, ridges, vales and hamlets. Casting the stares in any direction you simply had it! Joko put in - "damn it! one couldn´t count that!"
(those hills and hummocks) and I - "Switzerland is no match for this!" (I´ve never been there as yet, ha-ha-ha). And so a few logically expected whiles
ensued - we bundled up in everything we´d got ´cause a "Mangy" wind was blowing, rather squealing, we ate up all we´d brought, Robo had the cheek to have a
nap, Dudo and I designed a bike-trek for the next day from 17 of hundreds of metres of height (done) and afterwards we all plunked (see the snap)
on to the north-northwest side above the most elongated village in Slovakia, Liptovská Lúna (12 km of length)
, feasting our eyes on the genility of Big Rosutec
(some 40 km far like the crow flies), haughtiness of High Tatras (next to 55 km) and on the whole of north-west width from border mounts Pilsko
and Babia hora to hungarian craps, Boróny and Mátra over a hundred of thousands of metres faraway. Simply such a beauty that I wonder Veva didn´t
fall down from the crest then. After having digested not very and Veva had got the beauty overmuch, Krtko finished a giga memory card and Joko
had no more crack on his tongue, Robo woken up at last, Dudo daydreamt his dozen dreams, I "mis"named all the hummocks around and Ivka´s blowing down
was deadly imminent, we turned downwards chilled to the marrow and blown through and through. In what other way? than straight down to the Low Chochuža,
crosswise, first, the snow fields,
then the dwarf pine belt, forest, lastly, forest and once more across forest which resulted in a distance´s short cut, time protraction and muscular
fever except Veva - what a fireball she is!!! "Kritof" must plainly have been...