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Interviews |
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| Cindy Tolle:
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 | About Cindy Tolle |
| As a mountain guide and an environmental chemist, Cindy Tolle travels all over the world. One month she will be trekking through Nepal. Next she will be working for the government in Indonesia training people in mapping techniques. Tolle uses technology, particularly satellite technology, to assess environmental issues. Recently she was in Peru evaluating agricultural techniques to determine what crops would be more profitable for people to raise. Once a year she goes to Africa for the Smithsonian Museum to work at archaeological digs, determining what the ancient environment was like. She is also an avid mountain climber and guides every summer in the Grand Tetons in Wyoming. |
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| The Interview |
GCD: How did you discover climbing?
CT: The key summer was when I was 12 years old. I was going off on a hike in the mountains of Colorado and decided to take my little brother with me, who was six at the time. I carried him practically the whole way, but when we got about 200 feet from the top of the mountain he got scared. I made him sit down and wait while I climbed to the top. When we got back to the cabin, we were an hour late and my father had called the Search and Rescue Team. I couldn’t understand why he was so upset. I thought I was prepared for anything on the mountain. I had rain gear and plenty of food. I was big into the Girl Scouts. My dad said it was time for me to take climbing lessons.
I took lessons and I loved it. I went to college in Colorado when I was 16 and hooked up with an outing club, and that summer after my freshman year I came to South Dakota, where I live now, to climb. I waited tables at night and climbed in the day. Some of my favorite climbing in the world is here at a place called the Needles. These are a series of rock spires where you do “face climbing” -- very exposed and very scary. I was really afraid of heights which is pretty ironic for a climber, but I actually think a lot of people are. The best cure is to just keep doing it and sometimes don’t look down.
GCD: Why is it about climbing that you enjoy so much?
CT: Climbing gives you absolute confidence and a real sense of accomplishment. I think girls get so much more out of it than boys do. I also really enjoy sharing the experience with other people. You really have to trust who you are climbing with.
GCD: How does your scientific work relate to your climbing?
CT: When I am climbing I am using the skills I learned as a scientist--principles of physics to understand moves on the rock, and chemistry when it comes to clothing, materials and weather. I am trying to understand the vegetation and the geology, as well as the culture of a place. I try to understand where I am on many levels. I could make my living as a guide but I love the balance of science and climbing.
GCD: Any advice for girls who like to rock climb?
CT: We need more women mountain guides! Whatever is interesting to you, get into it! |
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