N.A.

A glacier novice myself, I'm afraid I don't have much as far as real advice. But great book to read, if you've not picked it up already, is Andy Selter's "Glacier Travel and Crevasse Rescue" (I think there's a second edition out now.) I'd really like to head out to a grass field some afternoon and practice his rigs. Outside of the z-pully they get kinda tricky, and I'd like to have a go at them b/f a trip to the field. Any takers?

Went in Friday night by headlamp and bivied at Ingalls Pass. Great night, no wind, and mild temps, but climbers there the night before said the wind was up something fierce. We left camp this (Saturday) morning at around 7:00am. The approach was all snow and had set up perfectly the night before. We were the first on the rock and the climb was grand. Be sure to try the 5.6 crack variant (second pitch). Great pro, little tight for my boots, but otherwise the nicest line on the route. Bring a jacket up with you, though -- you'll want it for the last belay. By the time we left the place was a zoo. No less than 8 rope teams were either on the rock or on the approach as we walked out. Go early, leave early, and enjoy that fab view of Mt Stuart. ------------------ --------- John McDougall Seattle, WA

Went out Sat/Sun (3/17-1/28) and this past weekend (3/24-3/25). Didn't head up the Castle Rock trail, but saw 4-5 cars in the lot. All South-facing rock up Icicle Creek is open. Not all routes are dry, however, so keep your plans flexible. I've got no first-hand knowledge of Snow Creek Wall, tho it looked clear from the road. We climbed Givler's last weekend. Great conditions. This past weekend we climbed on the B.O.B wall, then down on Barney's Rubble. There were 3x the number of people out this past weekend, so I'm afraid the word is out :-)

Having just read Jon's excellent post on how to make your review/input useful , I'd like to make the following mods to my earler remarks: * [sat 3/17] Climbed Gilver's dome. The approach was free of snow. Route was dry, walk-off free of snow and debris. Excellent climb. Snow patches found 200 yds. east at the base of the 5.8 flake (name?). The slab route just east and below the 5.8 flake was still wet from runoff. * [sat 3/24] Climbed B.O.B. wall above Icicle Buttress. The approach trail, (West side walk-off trail) was in good condition and free of snow. All routes on the B.O.B were dry. Although I didn't climb it, the approach slab and pitch leading up to Cocaine Crack looked moist, tho the crack itself looked dry. Additionals: Plenty of snow-free camping at 8-Mile. And the road is indeed unplowed past that point.