Forum Index > Trail Talk > Karen Sykes lost on Mt.Rainier?
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bobbi
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bobbi
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PostMon Jun 23, 2014 11:45 am 
Namaste....

bobbi ૐ "Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So…get on your way!" - Oh, the Places You’ll Go! By Dr. Seuss
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crabio
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PostMon Jun 23, 2014 11:46 am 
Rest In Peace Karen

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Sawyer
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Sawyer
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PostMon Jun 23, 2014 12:44 pm 
We learned the tragic news while on the summit of Windy Peak (Pasayten) yesterday. Karen and I searched for and hiked a number of abandoned trails when she was working on her book "Hidden Hikes in Western Washington". She loved the sense of discovery, history, and beauty of those lonely places. For her, they were not forgotten. And for us, Karen will not be forgotten. Karen had silly names for nearly everything, including herself. Cairn, Carrying Spikes, Carrying Sacks and Carin' were just a few. Every email came with a new set of punning names of places, using her wonderful gift of language. Of course, reading her P-I and Pack and Paddle articles were always a joy. Thanks, Karen.

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albrightmd
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PostMon Jun 23, 2014 12:45 pm 
I feel like I have known Karen Sykes forever, even though I never got to meet her in person. I think I read every trip report published in Signpost Magazine from the late 1960s through the early 2000s when the Web became the primary source for trip reports. I can't begin to tell you how many of those reports were written by Karen Sykes, but for many years she was one of the leading contributors to Washington Trails Magazine. Through reading those lively trip reports over those many years I felt like I had gotten to know her well. Her passing is a big loss for the Northwest hiking community.

Mark Albright Research Climatologist Washington State Climatologist (1987-2003) Dept of Atmospheric Sciences University of Washington
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Boots
Gone Kayaking



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Boots
Gone Kayaking
PostMon Jun 23, 2014 1:25 pm 
Thank you for the link Angry Hiker.

"Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. The fearful are caught as often as the bold." -Helen Keller
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Boots
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PostMon Jun 23, 2014 1:28 pm 
Thank you Don. Sincerest condolences on the loss of your friend.

"Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. The fearful are caught as often as the bold." -Helen Keller
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JimK
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PostMon Jun 23, 2014 4:40 pm 
Here is a blast from the past. The author index for contributions to Signpost magazine in 1991. I had 6 trip reports/articles. Joe Buoy from this site was there along with Wally Smith, CEO of REI. Lots of familiar names. Anne Marshall, the creator of Signpost, had 19. Gerry Erickson had 19. Charlie Hickenbottom had 25. Karen had 32 in 12 issues. Signpost was "the" source in those days. Easy to see why Karen became well known.
Signpost Index 1991
Signpost Index 1991
Signpost Index 1991
Signpost Index 1991

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iron
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PostMon Jun 23, 2014 4:44 pm 
karen reached out to me via PM a few years ago. she had some high praise and really kind words. it was one of best compliments i've received as it pertains to hiking and it was completely out of her love for the mountains and wanting to encourage others. we'd all be so lucky to have such an impact in so many lives.

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fourteen410
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PostMon Jun 23, 2014 4:58 pm 
deepest condolences to karen's family, friends, and to her boyfriend who had to report her missing. frown.gif

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kbatku
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PostMon Jun 23, 2014 5:06 pm 
Hypothermia is listed as her cause of death.

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Dave Workman
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PostMon Jun 23, 2014 5:06 pm 
It appears she died from hypothermia.

"The essential American soul is hard, isolate, stoic, and a killer. It has never yet melted." - D.H. Lawrence
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Hikingqueen
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PostMon Jun 23, 2014 5:10 pm 
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forest gnome
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forest gnome
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PostMon Jun 23, 2014 5:12 pm 
it also says no other injuries??? that can't be right,...firewood is everywhere on the lower tree branches...dang it...too early and rude to speculate..I hope we can learn what really happened....and all of us can learn from this tragedy perhaps the accident in n. american book at a later date...

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fourteen410
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PostMon Jun 23, 2014 5:18 pm 
from the seattle times: "UPDATE, 4:52 p.m. | Karen Sykes died of hypothermia with the secondary cause of heart disease, the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s office said this afternoon." perhaps a heart attack?

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Dave Workman
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PostMon Jun 23, 2014 5:19 pm 
forest gnome wrote:
it also says no other injuries??? that can't be right,...firewood is everywhere on the lower tree branches...dang it...too early and rude to speculate..I hope we can learn what really happened....and all of us can learn from this tragedy
Meaning no offense, but what do you mean you hope we can learn "what really happened?" I agree we can all learn from this.
Quote:
from the seattle times: "UPDATE, 4:52 p.m. | Karen Sykes died of hypothermia with the secondary cause of heart disease, the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s office said this afternoon." perhaps a heart attack?
That would show up in an autopsy, wouldn't it?

"The essential American soul is hard, isolate, stoic, and a killer. It has never yet melted." - D.H. Lawrence
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