Paul Brickett's
Simian Outing Society Archives
The S.O.S. started in the 1960s at U.
of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, as a non-organization of climbers and
other adventurers. For details, see http://simianoutingsociety.org/.
Here's my original membership card from 1969.
(No, it's not a photo ID.) Membership
cards existed only because they were required by the intramural
sports department for borrowing their camping equipment. The
S.O.S. had no elected leaders or dues.
The most frequent trips were to Indiana's Portland
Arch for rockclimbing, which was banned by the Nature Conservancy
in the early '70's. The most popular weekend destination was
Devil's Lake, WI.
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Recent Simian Activity
Just in from Boise
Yesterday a package arrived from Boise, ID with some potatoes and a DVD
of old Simian super 8 movies which Jeannie Hemphill sent me and which I
said I would try to post. Here's what I have managed so far:
Also, click on one of the images below for the video, "Simian Ski Trip
(probably January, 1970), by Jeannie Hemphill, edited by Paul Brickett
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Click on this image for tiny version
(2.8 MB).
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Click on this image for small version
(6.8 MB; link to other site).
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Back to the Simian
epicenter!
Reunion on May 10th, 2004 in Champaign-Urbana. Paul (and
Christina) visit Chuck Cooper (and wife Janet) and Harry and Kathy Zanotti
at their home in Urbana. Click on picture for enlargement.
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| Harry the host slaving over a hot grill. |
Jan, Chuck, Kathy, Harry, Paul, and Christina in Casa Zannoti.
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Deck setting in backyard. |
Proposed
2004 Simian Expedition to Fremont Peak in Wyoming's Wind River range.
Click on image below for route information. See official S.O.S. website.
Excerpts from Climbing and Hiking in the
Wind River Mountains by Joe Kelsey, San Francisco: Sierra Club Books, 1980, presented for Simians considering the Fremont expedition
who are unfamiliar with, or have forgotten, the details associated with climbing
Fremont Peak. Please pay special attention to the history section,
as Mark Wilson will be administering a quiz to potential participants.
Not responsible for typing errors, or changes since publication
of the original guidebook. The particular copy I found at the San
Jose CA public library, like many current Simians, had spent a lot of
years on the shelf.
November 22, 2003. Simian Cheryl Hiltibran and husband David
Richman are in the Bay area from Minnesota. Coincidentally,
both Cheryl and Christina work in adult education and training, while
both David and Paul have the same taste in jackets.
Paul Brickett encounters John Conley in Arlington, VA, September
23, 2003. Photo was taken in front of the Yeti Cafe and Ice Cream
Parlor, which seemed an appropriate meeting spot for Simians. Due
to national security concerns, no further information may be disclosed
concerning this meeting.
Another Simian mini-reunion with Jeannie Hemphill May 31 in San Jose´.
Christina and Cody on the left of the picture also attended.
Read all about Jeannie's trip on her web
site.
Jeannie and I also met Simian Mark Wilson at San Juan
Bautista mission.
Mark had been in the area refighting the Civil War.
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Mark had been in Fremont California doing Civil War reenactment,
although this picture was taken during a visit to L.A.
According to "Virtual History" the Battle of Fremont
was the major turning point in the conflict between Northern
and Southern California during the Civil War. A division of cavalry
from Los Angeles was preparing to invade the San Francisco Bay area
and was approaching Fremont. Vastly outnumbered, a battalion
from Marin county came up with the desperate ploy to dig numerous
pits in the path of the southerners and to fill them with hot water.
Being unfamiliar with water holes, the horses from the south
floundered, leaving their riders helpless without their mounts, and
the Northerners were victorious. Since then, Northern Californians
often relive their victory by visiting sunken pools of hot water, while
Southern California has frequently attempted to disarm the North of
its water supplies.
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Mark and Jeannie and their vehicles. (Jeannie is getting
a few of her extra bumper stickers to give to Mark.)
Simian mini-reunion, January 22, 2003, San Jose´,
CA. Jeannie Hemphill and Paul Brickett. See
Jeannie's description on her web site.
Classic Simian Antics
Finally! The complete pictorial account of
the Simian Assault on the Third Flatiron, January, 1970.
Just click on the thumbnail.
Yankee Boy Basin, 1970 (3-D anaglyph; click to enlarge).
This was made from single slides John Conley
and I each took independently on the Feb., 1970 Mt. Sneffles
trip. See Peter Z.'s original trip description in the S.O.S.
Banana Peel. (Use the red /cyan
viewer from your old Sport's Illustrated 2000 swimsuit issue to
experience 3-D effect. The enlarged image is best viewed at
1280x1024 resolution, so you might need to buy a new computer.)
Primary Statement
of Simian Philosophy, 1969. (Click to enlarge.)
| Unfortunately, the
promised follow-up article never appeared, due to budget
constraints. (Original
document recently restored.) |
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Gratuitous Links
No modern web site is complete without this section.
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Wild West History Tours: "Let us take you back in
time to relive a part of the wild west with guided tours
through the historic landscapes of Western America." Approved
by the NRA and Philip Morris. All tours are conducted
by historical geographer, naturalist and adventurer Mark Wilson,
Ph.D.
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Jeannie Hemphill teaches yoga in Boise, Idaho. Needs
to work-up a yoga logo, though.
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Recommended yoga studio in downtown
San Jose. Irene A. Smith, Ph.D., owner and head instructor.
Nice logo.
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I can't count the number of times people
have asked me where they can get authentic reproductions of
14th-century Polish Armor.
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jan
morgan tucker, multimedia artist (note lowercase
name) and official Samoyed supplier for this site, had nothing
else to do with it's contents. Could do with less caffeine.
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This space for rent.
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Primarily conservation group which also has hiking and
backpacking trips, including desert peaks. For example, see Kingston
Range Backpack for link.
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