One aspect of Royal Robbins’ life that stands out for me is the depth and breadth and the numbers of people whose lives he touched, and more than just touched, but profoundly shaped and guided, not only by his words but by his deeds. The life that he lived, to a high degree, for his own satisfaction, became an example that many others followed. As in climbing, so in Life, he was always a leader.

Royal’s passing has been called, “the end of an era.” However, the traditions and values that he lived were, to some degree, established by others who, like John Muir and John Salathé, went before him. Those ideals will continue to live on, even though changes in attitudes will continue to be layered upon those that he lived and helped to establish. Perhaps it’s like the walls of the Grand Canyon where each rock layer has its own distinctive characteristics, yet each layer is related, to some degree, to eras that came before and after.

Royal’s memorial brought together a small sample of those who knew, loved, and/or were influenced by him. The pictures posted here and elsewhere necessarily represent a small subset of those who came. People’s names are left-to-right in the photos.

Like some others, Lisa and I arrived earlier than the 2:00 p.m. official starting time, but we met other early arrivals and went to have lunch across the street.

After lunch, we went back across the street where others gathered outside the venue. There we had some time to greet old friends and acquaintances, making connections with some that we hadn’t seen in years or even decades.

When the doors to the venue opened, there was some time to further socialize and to view the displays that had been set up, but after a short while we took our seats.

After the formalities, there was more time for socializing.

Later, many people gathered for more socializing, food and drink at Damon Robbins’ nearby restaurant, “Camp 4.”

Later, satiated in many ways, small groups left for continued conversations and their own accommodations and homes.