Michael prepares to haul his equipment up the final pitch of the Touchstone Wall

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I finally made it to the summit.

There was no beautiful summit victory pose, I was very tired and began descending immediately. The descent lasted four hours into the night. Rappelling at night and alone when I was so taxed mentally and physically was almost too much for me, but I finally made it to the safety of level ground.

I realized a couple of things soon after I completed my climb. One: it was one of the most demanding undertakings of my life. I had questioned my sanity several times throughout the long rappel down.

Two: three hours after landing on the ground; I wanted to do a similar climb again.

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