Forum Index > Trail Talk > RIP Eric Johnson (aka Cartman), peakbagger
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ejain
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Joined: 27 Apr 2009
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ejain
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PostWed Nov 16, 2022 3:52 pm 
Sad to hear. Wish I had known! Went on a dozen or so trips with Eric in 2010-2014. He taught me a lot about not getting killed in the mountains. Please keep us posted about any memorial etc.
Cleveland (2013)
Cleveland (2013)
Round Mountain at White Pass (2013) with Iron and Hotpantz
Round Mountain at White Pass (2013) with Iron and Hotpantz

My Trips

Layback
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dicey
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Joined: 11 May 2004
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Location: giving cornices a wider berth
dicey
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PostWed Nov 16, 2022 6:23 pm 
Sad news frown.gif

I'm not always sure I like being older but being less stupid has advantages. http://www.flickr.com/photos/32121172@N00/sets/
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Roly Poly
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Roly Poly
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PostWed Nov 16, 2022 10:13 pm 
Very sad news. I did several trips with him back in the day. Thanks for letting the community here know.

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Mesahchie Mark
A Lerxst



Joined: 10 May 2005
Posts: 700 | TRs | Pics
Location: In Wonderland
Mesahchie Mark
A Lerxst
PostThu Nov 17, 2022 1:02 pm 
So sorry to hear about this frown.gif What's been said - Eric's knowledge and affection for the mountains - spot on I found myself reviewing his posts yesterday and was surprised to remember his first post was for a group trip we were on to Sourdough Mtn (winter 2007). Eric was such a fixture here I had come to assume he had always been a part of the NWH community. RIP

Cheers, Mesahchie Mark

Layback
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Oyvind Henningsen
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Oyvind Henningsen
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PostThu Nov 17, 2022 6:20 pm 
Met Eric at a MOFA course probably late 90’s. We connected through our love for the mountains and climbed a couple dozen mountains together. Lost touch some years back which saddens me. Met him last on Excelsior a year and a half ago. I am very sad to hear of his passing and my condolences go to family and friends.

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iron
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iron
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PostThu Nov 17, 2022 8:50 pm 
cartman and i climbed 83 peaks together over a 5 year window, which is only behind hotpantz (298), r3h (135), and hollywood (133) in my list of climbing partners. he was certainly passionate about the mountains. r3h and i always refer to him as 'the man', because he was. he definitely had some legendary, memorable stuff in take place in the mountains with us. while not an alpha, and seldom at the physical level of his counterparts, he somehow ground it out to make it to the final destination. once in a while you could even get him to smile on the summit, except for the one time where he declared that he "didn't sign up for this sh##." he was a walking encyclopedia of knowledge stemming from beta gathered from NW hiking legends like fay pullen, the oracle, and stefan. our last trip together was in the canadian rockies, which is ironically where i now live. i had hoped to get out with him just before we left the US, but my week off to do stuff like that was crammed full of other things. r3h and i joked that he probably has the record for the number of summits for a person without a vehicle, but i later realized that this honour probably belongs to dicey. however, cartman didn't have a license, so maybe there's a special sub-category for him to claim as his own. peakbagger says he has 826 summits, some of which were probably even 'solo from camp'. however, that record log ends in 2015, so i bet he was closer to 1000. he probably has the record for most number of new hiking partners as well (see: no license, above). he and i probably had a little falling out post canadian trip after the 11 hour drive home, and i was stubborn so let the relationship die out for a while (and later just overshadowed by house projects and having kids). one of those things in life, i guess, where you know it's not right in the moment, do it anyway, and later regret it without a chance for reconciliation. i've certainly been saddened by the news of his passing since finding out last week. there is something about peakbaggers that lends towards a uniqueness for each person. cartman was quite unique. i don't think i ever, once, called him eric. i was happy that hotpantz and i were able to help him get out on the inspiration traverse. this was a trip he'd longed for. i'm pretty sure eldorado was his favorite mountain of all time.

Gblock72, ozzy, geyer, Layback, RichP, Chief Joseph, Tom  Josh Journey
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hotpantz
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hotpantz
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PostFri Nov 18, 2022 10:16 am 
I also am saddened by the new of Eric's passing. We shared many trips together and he endured much teasing, but his passion for the mountains, his perseverance through tough or long trips, and his endless knowledge made him a good hiking partner. To me he was always kind and encouraging. My favorite trip with him was the inspiration traverse. He had a very palpable excitement that whole trip. I have never seen him so excited, though he still barely smiled smile.gif . He was the most chatty on the descent and talked about how thrilled he was that it all went so well. Here are some of my favorite pictures. Perhaps there's a bit of a smile in a few. You are and will be missed Eric.

ozzy, Layback
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Stefan
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Stefan
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PostFri Nov 18, 2022 12:33 pm 
See you sometime again in the future Eric.

Art is an adventure.
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Layback
Cascades Expatriate



Joined: 16 Mar 2007
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Layback
Cascades Expatriate
PostSun Nov 20, 2022 6:25 am 
I’m really sad to read this. I knew something wasn’t right when I reached out to congratulate him for the Ms making the playoffs and he didn’t return my call. He always called back. I was literally going to call him tomorrow since time had passed to check in on him. I was aware of his health issues and tried to call him when I could to catch up. Did you know he didn’t store people’s numbers in his phone? He just remembered peoples numbers like the old days.
Eric was the very first friend I made when moved to WA back in 2004. He needed a ride to MOFA in Tacoma and the rest was history. He introduced me to this forum and like so many others have said, he introduced me to the idea of peakbagging. We shared many a summit together. My favorite trip with him was the Matier Glacier up in BC; the whole trip had such a good vibe. Keith's Hut was the best.
When my kids came along I slowly transitioned away from weekend warrior climbing to cycling to be around more for my kids and wife and still find time to suffer. But our relationship endured that and I still saw him often enough. Usually it was a trip to the ballpark. We rarely agreed on social and political issues but always found that place of mutual respect for the others opinions and perspective. Eric always saw the best in people. I left WA in 2019 to move back east. I had planned to come back often but COVID put those plans on hold. My first trip back was this last April and Eric insisted that he and I were going for a hike. Despite serious health issues Eric clawed his way to the summit of Little Si 10 steps at a time. It took forever to get to the top but there was no way I was going to complain about that when he was so determined and the summit meant so much to him. I’ll always be grateful for that one last summit.
RIP my friend. I’ll miss you.

sarbar, ozzy, Cam, SeanSullivan86, Bosterson, Chief Joseph, gb, RichP  geyer, awilsondc  the Zachster, Gil
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cascadetraverser
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cascadetraverser
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PostTue Nov 22, 2022 12:47 am 
RIP Cartman

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Mike Collins
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Mike Collins
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PostWed Nov 30, 2022 6:35 pm 
Eric’s friends, Eve Jakubowski and Ed Kenney, have arranged a Celebration of Life gathering for Eric Johnson to be held at the Mountaineers Hall at Magnuson Park next Monday, Dec 5 beginning at 6:00 PM. A slide projector will be available to allow hiker friends to share their memories. Time will be allowed for invitations to eulogize Eric with individual remembrances.

neek, ejain, Bluebird, Roly Poly, Layback
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Bluebird
suffering optional



Joined: 22 Jan 2014
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Bluebird
suffering optional
PostThu Dec 01, 2022 11:43 am 
I'll be there, hope to see some nwhikers there!

neek
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Matt
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Joined: 30 Jan 2007
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Matt
Tea, Earl Grey, Hot
PostFri Dec 02, 2022 12:30 pm 
NWHikers member Eric Johnson (aka Cartman) died of pulmonary hypertension in October. Eric proudly described himself as a “shameless peakbagger,” and he was willing to go out on any trip any time to visit more peaks. Eric's death was the result of a progressive genetic condition that had limited his mountaineering in recent years, but he continued to actively post and advise others. I first met Eric on a Mountaineers scramble of Mt. Pugh in 2003. After that, Eric was a companion on many day trips and longer outings to visit peaks. Eric was especially happy to explore different routes and chain together routes to see a variety of peaks. I posted photos from some of the trips below. There is a memorial service for Eric on Monday, December 5th, at 6pm, at the Seattle Mountaineers clubhouse. Additional details can be found on the PNW Peak Baggers site here
Osceola 2003
Osceola 2003
Amphitheater 2003
Amphitheater 2003
Chelan Sawtooths 2004
Chelan Sawtooths 2004
Chaval 2005
Chaval 2005
Ptarmigan 2005
Ptarmigan 2005
Dumbbell 2006
Dumbbell 2006
Greenwood 2006
Greenwood 2006
Andrews 2006
Andrews 2006
Big Snagtooth 2006
Big Snagtooth 2006
Dark 2006
Dark 2006
Forbidden 2007
Forbidden 2007
Goode 2007
Goode 2007
Logan 2008
Logan 2008
Sherpa 2008
Sherpa 2008
Azurite 2008
Azurite 2008
Stiletto 2008
Stiletto 2008
Florence 2009
Florence 2009
Colchuck 2009
Colchuck 2009
Fool Hen 2010
Fool Hen 2010
Oakes 2010
Oakes 2010
Painted Traverse 2010
Painted Traverse 2010
Magic 2011
Magic 2011
Magic 2011
Magic 2011
Bald 2011
Bald 2011
West Granite 2012
West Granite 2012
Sublime Ridge 2012
Sublime Ridge 2012
Horseman's Pack 2012
Horseman's Pack 2012
Big Chiwaukum 2012
Big Chiwaukum 2012
Dollar Watch 2013
Dollar Watch 2013
Green Mountain 2014
Green Mountain 2014
Sorcery 2014
Sorcery 2014
Portals 2015
Portals 2015
Diptop 2015
Diptop 2015
Cathedral Rock 2015
Cathedral Rock 2015
Osborn 2015
Osborn 2015
Williams Butte 2016
Williams Butte 2016
West Beckler 2016
West Beckler 2016
Needles Range 2017
Needles Range 2017
Nelson Ridge 2019
Nelson Ridge 2019
Elk 2021
Elk 2021

“As beacons mountains burned at evening.” J.R.R. Tolkien

RodF, Brucester, Anne Elk, sarbar, Bosterson, ozzy, silence, Layback, RichP, GeoTom, Nancyann, zimmertr  seawallrunner, geyer  rubywrangler, Josh Journey, SpookyKite89, awilsondc
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zephyr
aka friendly hiker



Joined: 21 Jun 2009
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zephyr
aka friendly hiker
PostFri Dec 02, 2022 12:40 pm 
That's an awesome photo montage, Matt. Such a great tribute to Eric. ~z

Chief Joseph
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Hutch
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Hutch
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PostFri Dec 02, 2022 12:46 pm 
What an incredible collection of memories of a life well-lived. I hope friends and family find comfort in his legacy.

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