John Christopher
Nolen planned and
led the Tuesday
Vigorous Hike for
two hiking and
outdoors clubs.
(by David Green)
Nolen planned and
led the Tuesday
Vigorous Hike for
two hiking and
outdoors clubs.
(by David Green)
| John 'Chris' Nolen |
By Patricia Sullivan
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
John Christopher Nolen, 74, a well-known Washington-area hike leader, died Nov. 19 of artery disease, possibly
exaggerated by low blood oxygen, while climbing at 18,300 feet in the Khumbu region of Nepal. He lived in
Carderock Springs.
exaggerated by low blood oxygen, while climbing at 18,300 feet in the Khumbu region of Nepal. He lived in
Carderock Springs.
Mr. Nolen, known as Chris to legions of Potomac Appalachian Trail Club and Sierra Club hikers, was climbing the
19,000-foot Pokalde Peak with the Windhorse Trekking Co. of Kathmandu when he collapsed on a relatively flat
portion of the climb, his hiking partners said. His head struck a rock when he fell, and his colleagues were unable
to revive him.
19,000-foot Pokalde Peak with the Windhorse Trekking Co. of Kathmandu when he collapsed on a relatively flat
portion of the climb, his hiking partners said. His head struck a rock when he fell, and his colleagues were unable
to revive him.
He had a long history as an outdoorsman but was best known recently for the Tuesday Vigorous Hike he planned
and led for the PATC and Sierra Club since 2000. The hikes were 15 to 20 miles long and gained 3,000 to 5,000
feet in elevation.
and led for the PATC and Sierra Club since 2000. The hikes were 15 to 20 miles long and gained 3,000 to 5,000
feet in elevation.
"They were famous for length and elevation gain -- seldom 15 miles and always at least 3,500 elevation gain," said
Carol Christensen, a friend who hiked with him in the United States and who was on the Himalayan hike as well.
"He was an excellent hike leader, not authoritarian. . . . Although he was 74, he was always the fastest hiker in the
group."
Carol Christensen, a friend who hiked with him in the United States and who was on the Himalayan hike as well.
"He was an excellent hike leader, not authoritarian. . . . Although he was 74, he was always the fastest hiker in the
group."
A positive man, Mr. Nolen was "having the time of his life" in Nepal, she said. When his group took a break just before he collapsed, he
took a Global Positioning System reading and noted they were at 18,300 feet, Christensen said. Another friend snapped a photo of him
resting among the rocks, holding a water bottle.
took a Global Positioning System reading and noted they were at 18,300 feet, Christensen said. Another friend snapped a photo of him
resting among the rocks, holding a water bottle.
"He died doing what he loved to do," Christensen said.
Twice a year, Mr. Nolen took week-long backpacking trips to Alaska, the Grand Canyon, the Sierras, Utah and Glacier and Olympic
national parks.
national parks.
Tom Johnson, who led a trip to Costa Rica about five years ago that Mr. Nolen took, said the then-69-year-old easily outdistanced others
and accompanied him to the top of a volcano.
and accompanied him to the top of a volcano.
"Chris was so focused on hiking that whenever he had the opportunity to take an optional hike, he would always choose the longest,
most difficult hike that could be done," Johnson said. "He was lost overnight in a rain forest on that trip. It was pitch black, but he
descended down a stream that turned into a waterfall, then followed the moonlight along the Pacific coast until he found the lodge. He
was a phenomenal hiker."
most difficult hike that could be done," Johnson said. "He was lost overnight in a rain forest on that trip. It was pitch black, but he
descended down a stream that turned into a waterfall, then followed the moonlight along the Pacific coast until he found the lodge. He
was a phenomenal hiker."
A native Washingtonian, Mr. Nolen graduated from Western High School in 1949. At 17, he and two friends canoed Canadian rivers to the
Hudson Bay. He served in the Army in Texas and graduated from Johns Hopkins University, where he taught electricity and magnetism
while working on graduate studies in engineering there.
Hudson Bay. He served in the Army in Texas and graduated from Johns Hopkins University, where he taught electricity and magnetism
while working on graduate studies in engineering there.
Mr. Nolen, an electronics engineer, designed vacuum tube circuits for radar, phased array radar systems and signal processing systems
for a defense contractor before joining the Institute for Defense Analysis in 1965. In 1983, he moved to SAIC, where his work was in
applied research, radar systems design and strategic weapons system analysis. He retired in 1993.
for a defense contractor before joining the Institute for Defense Analysis in 1965. In 1983, he moved to SAIC, where his work was in
applied research, radar systems design and strategic weapons system analysis. He retired in 1993.
He volunteered as a sixth-grade science and outdoor education aide at Robert Frost Middle School in Rockville. He also placed and
checked automatic cameras along the Appalachian Trail as a volunteer field researcher for the Predator Survey Project with the
Smithsonian Institution.
checked automatic cameras along the Appalachian Trail as a volunteer field researcher for the Predator Survey Project with the
Smithsonian Institution.
A son, Sean Nolen, died in 1988.
Survivors include his wife of 56 years, Jo Ann Nolen of Carderock Springs; two children, Michael Nolen of Rockville and Kathleen Nolen of
Los Angeles; and two grandchildren.
Los Angeles; and two grandchildren.