I did an overnight backpacking trip to Deckers Lake near Leadville on the weekend of June 6th and 7th. It's a nice little lake tucked into the southeast corner of the Holy Cross Wilderness a couple of miles south of Tennessee Pass.

My trip was plagued by equipment issues. Light meter acting weird, Readyload holder ruined a sheet of film, film bag destroyed 5 more sheets, cable release seized.

Could it get any worse?

Hell, yes...

Two shots into its life, my brand-spanking-new Shen Hao PTB 4x5 did a face plant on the rocks. Ouch! The impact knocked a chunk of wood out of the rear of the base plate and left the focus knob hanging loose. I couldn't find the piece of wood but I found one screw - just enough to make a field repair. My Swiss Army knife did a number on the screw head but it held together.