Gone from mystery into mystery

It was just in late August that I had the pleasure of getting reacquainted with John, on an exploratory scramble traversing Boundary Peak. It was a perfect day, and his humor and expertise were in full form, as was his evident satisfaction with life and love for his family. I marveled that at 60, John was stronger than I had ever been. John was one of a kind.

John atop the rappel station at the intermediate climbing qualifier.  -- Mark Hallman

Thinking of John

I immediately got a long with John, not despite his crass nature but probably because of it. We instantly bonded over stories from NewEngland and I enjoyed his jokes immensely. There was a point during climbing that I was told I wouldn’t be able to finish because of missing a certain step due to work. John vouched for me saying something to the effect of he would rather climb with me than most others and he trusted me (probably because I laughed at his jokes and didn't get offended easily!). I have so much respect for John so it meant the world to me.

Such an honor to have met him and spend the short amount of time in his presence. He will be missed.

-- Rebecca White

Thank you John

John was more than just a mentor to our daughter Rachel, he was probably the most important person in helping her reach her goal to climb Rainier in 2010. He tirelessly led her and others on scrambles and climbs nearly every weekend in summer 2009, to help them complete their requirements. He chided her when she faltered and made her work all the harder to gain his much sought approval! Not only was he a climb leader on these trips, he often volunteered to pick her up and take her back to our house in North Tacoma, as she was too young to drive. I don't know if she would be a freshman at UW today if it wasn't for his help, as she wrote her application essay about her goal to climb Rainier being realized, and all the help she received from friends and mentors like him along the way. He made it happen and we will be forever grateful to him.

Never did hear enough of his stories....

I only had the chance to go on a couple climbs with John, and neither turned out to be the epic adventures that he seemed to attract. Each time, the day flew by as John filled it with stories and cautionary tales, with the occasional joke tossed in for flavor.
On one of our climbs he told me the reason he liked the basic climbs so much was because he got to see so many new climbers find out what they could really do and see their accomplishment. I don't doubt that for a minute. He seemed to want to help everyone, in his own gruff way, to be better.

The world is poorer now, having lost another good man and a great storyteller.

Go in peace, John.
You will be missed.

John tells it like it is

John had the true Mountaineers spirit. He was generous with his time, helping out with many field trips at the Clubhouse. What I loved about John was that he wouldn't sugar coat things, he would tell it as he saw it. If your knot was wrong, he'd say so and then show you how to fix it.



Our schedules and the weather only lined up for one trip together, a snowshoe/ski trip at Rainier last December. I'll just echo what others have said: John had the best stories. Listening to him tell little anecdotes and off the cuff remarks made the ride up to the mountain fun.

Thanks for the memories, John. We miss you.

A Mountaineer Mentor Who went the Extra Distance

During the spring of 2007 I decided to follow through with my intentions of becoming a Scramble Leader for the Tacoma Mountaineer Branch. I came to the Mountaineers with a few years of trip leading for other organizations already, so I filled out the petition paperwork and sent it in. From what I understand, only one member of the board said, “Maybe he should complete a mentored lead before we give him status,” and that was John Hazelton. I accepted and invited John to be my mentor. He readily agreed and didn’t have any preferences for summits. I chose one that I had my eye on: Mt. Baring.

Our group was a collection of known and unknown participants to me, and the scramble went forward without a hitch. However, we were nearly back to a traversing trail that led to a ridge walk, and John tripped and fell down. He got up, declared, “I think I hurt myself bad,” and limped to a nearby log to take a look. We redistributed his gear, and John hobbled out the remaining mile and 1800ft descent to the trailhead strong, steady and in good spirits. When asked at future mountaineer events he would show his scar and tell us “I wanted to make sure he got the full, leader experience.”

Experienced, available, honest in a sometimes gruff way, helpful, and resourceful, he always had a story to tell from climbing a remote peak, injuring himself on a mentored trip or paying full price for backpack. We will miss you, John Hazelton.

- Justin McClellan