CHAIRMAN'S COLUMN John W. Robinson
As the 62-63 desert season draws to a close, perhaps we can indulge in some reminiscences of the past year, a little philosophy, and a peek into the section's future. Thanks to the special efforts of several dedicated section members, the past year has been a fairly successful one for the DPS. The section has continued its tradition of enjoyable, spectacular,, and, for the most part, well-attended trips. Several hard-working members merit special commendation and a sincere vote of thanks from the section. Carrying on a tradition started in the 1950's, BOB GREENAWALT planned, organized, and led several superb bus trips for the section. Bob's job was no easy one, and it is to his credit that the section enjoyed its finest outings of the past season. Credit for arranging our last two congenial annual banquets goes to Chairman-elect TRUDIE HUNT, another hard-working Desert Peaker. These warm gatherings, highlights of the section's social season, will be long remembered by all those who attended. Trudie also led several interesting and enjoyable weekend trips, and organized the scenic Tajo Canyon venture last February. HARRY MELTS is mainly responsible for the continued broadening of our peaks List, which hit 50 this spring. Harry is a desert explorer at heart, and has introduced the section to many fine desert areas. The Newsletter would have been far less interesting without BUD BINGHAM'S cartoons, maps, and articles. Bud has shown real interest in bettering our section's periodical, and has spent much of his own time furthering this purpose. We can thank Vice Chairman WALT WHEELOCK for the section's fine and varied scheduling this past season, not to mention his superb and time-consuming work on the Desert Peaks Guide, out last winter. Although the five mentioned above merit special mention, there have been many other members who also deserve a vote of thanks for their efforts in the section's behalf. Because of the efforts of all of these members, the section's tradition of service to the club has been continued.
With Chairman-elect Trudie at the helm, the section's future looks bright. Basically we are a well-balanced section, offering a greater variety of trips than probably any other group in the Angeles Chapter. Balancing the spectacular Telescope traverse and the Labor Day Dubois-Montgomery-Boundary expedition were such easy trips as Calico Mtn. and Sheephead Peak. Nor are we excessively orientated toward peak bagging -- Tajo Canyon and the upcoming Grand Canyon Traverse are two of the most popular trips on our schedule and involve no peak.
In closing, I have sincerely enjoyed the opportunity of being your chairman this past year and a half (I got caught between by-laws, hence the extended term). It is with sincere pleasure and firm confidence that I hand the reins of office to Trudie Hunt. The section should continue to prosper in her capable hands.