I believe it was during a Gingrich shutdown (at least 25 years ago) that Holmgren and I decided that politics shouldn't get in the way of our recreation. We met in Soledad early, drove one car up to just past the small vineyard beyond the Chalone Vineyards turn and parked there. We walked up the road, found the fence and followed it a mile or so until it hit a ridge. We took the ridge to the High Peaks and had a fine, if lonely, day of climbing. Upon our return to the hillside above the road we discovered that we'd attracted four law enforcement rangers and two cruisers. Holmgren remarked, "Hey, I thought those guys weren't getting paid!" I shrugged. There's no explaining dedication. Anyway, we went into stealth mode and crawled beneath the bushes. Holmgren was the Lone Ranger and I was Tonto. We stayed mostly quiet, except when we giggled. When we got close to the road, we took a last look We were well past both cruisers and all but one ranger. That one was foot-patroling with back toward us. Time to make our break. We ran jingling (carabiners and cams) to the car, jumped in and roared (well, considering the car, puttered) off toward Soledad. No harm, no foul.
