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There is another saying: "There are old pilots, and there are bold pilots, but there are no old, bold pilots." I'm old, and was never especially bold, so take my advice FWIW; you kids be careful out there.

That is an Awesome looking line! Picture are beautiful. You and your buddy are mighty! You now have more experience than 99% of PNW climbers on technical alpine terrain in the winter.

Great trip report, and thanks for writing it up in such an honest way! That's how you learn. We all did stupid stuff above our heads when we were younger, and those of us still posting made it out alive, but not everybody did. I advise you to do what I did. Take some of that money you are going to spend on new gear and invest it in getting some in-person instruction from a really well qualified guide. Get a little group together and the cost will be reasonable. or at least find an experienced ice climber who is also a good teacher, buy them a case of beer to take you out somewhere nearby and teach you as much as they can. Congrats on the probable FA. So I actually want to congratulate you on the decision to rap the route. I don't know the mountain or the descent options, but just going from the TR info, it appears you didn't also. so in my opinion, that was your best decision of the day and just might have saved your life. if you're not absolutely sure about alternative means of descent, it is ALWAYS better to go back the way you came. Well done. So many climbing accident reports begin with "they decided to seek an easier way down" or "they descended via _______, a route they were not familiar with." You can easily be cliffed out or find yourself in even more of an epic, and once hypothermia sets in, you start making stupid decisions without even realizing it. Others have commented on your rappel techniques. Trying to save 10 bucks by threading your rope through a wire made my shudder. You were lucky to survive that as well. You DO need to spend more time learning and PRACTICING rappelling in a safe environment. You can read great techniques in books but you need to dial that shit in at home before you try it in the field. (it's by far the most dangerous part of climbing as you probably know intellectually). If you haven't read through any of the "American climbing accidents" annuals, I highly recommend it. You can learn a lot from the mistakes others make, and it's a guaranteed injury-free activity, as well as being a pretty compelling read. One last complement- your willingness to keep learning is what will save you. Well done. Lots of people think they're invincible and aren't as self aware as you seem to be. It's great to see.

I appreciate the concern and the gear advice from both of you. I will definitely admit, and tried to make that known that we could have and should have waited to do this. I bit off more than I could chew and definitely acknowledge that. After talking to @JasonGa bit more it appears that there is a good walk off with maybe a few steeper tree rappels off the sub peak between Yak and Nak. I will definitely be looking more into descent options on future routes and planning to stay on established ones for a bit longer. We did back up most of those raps with a screw or picket while I went down as to not blindly trust it but I definitely can acknowledge that this is not ideal and not what we should do everytime. Also been reading "Down" this past week. It has been a great read for me and seeing how we can do better on rappels like this. Also went back into Marc Andres blog and was reading about his solo of Mt Robson (don't worry no desire to solo. I infact do not want to die and appreciate a belay) and noticed how he was tired at the top so dug a pit and crawled in his bivy bag for a bit. That was good insight for me that if you need rest figure out how to get it before going back into the rough terrain and environment. I appreciate your guys feedback. Feedback from people that know a thing or two because they've done a thing or two is much appreciated and remembered when we're in situations trying to figure out what to do I remember words of wisdom from more experienced climbers than myself. I'll pick up a couple more peckers next time I'm at the climbing shop.

This is probably not in the "findable" category, but I once stripped all the junk off a Sk'alp / Petzl 8007, and replaced the heel piece with a crampon part to make a nice light approach binding. See pic. It worked well for what it was, but I gave up skiing in climbing boots long ago...

I haven't climbed Mailbox Peak, nor have I done Glacier Peak in a day or the Bulger List but I did climb some ice in Banks today. Most routes are not in but we found good ice on the Corner Route at MP 9. Left MBI 1 was also in. The cable and H2O2 are trying but not really close. We climbed U1 and U2 at MP 14. Peewee #1, 4, and 5 all looked in. Zenith wasn't even close although it is trying. Most other lines were either non-existent although a few of the brush routes were trying.

@Kyle M I'm offended that you would dare to make climbing recommendations to @Kayleighm or any Eastern Washington alpinist. Unlike their bougie, coddled, and techbro-centric Seattle counterparts, Eastern Washington alpinists are the real deal. Every morning, they wake up and do 10x hill repeats at 5k speed up Ingalls Peak as a warm-up to set the FKT on the Teanaway Traverse. For lunch, they head over to the North Cascades to do a one day push of the High Route using only huaraches and a compass because gear is aid. You think you're hard for doing Glacier Peak in a day? Think again; Eastern Washington alpinists lap Glacier Peak in the dead of winter as they prepare to do their yearly repeat of the Bulger List. Which acts as base-building for their ultimate yearly objective: setting the FKT on Mailbox Peak without the use of supplemental oxygen. All in all, I am flabbergasted that you think you have the mountain expertise or moxie to give guidance to climbers of that profile. Check your cardio privilege, porfavor.

Franklin Falls was good today. Probably on its way out though with the warmth coming.

Columbia Gorge Ice! Post your photos! Mist Falls 1/14/2024 Left a V thread and backup screw 80-90' up. Use at your own risk. Likely will be under a bunch of ice tomorrow. Have fun, be safe! -Kip

Thanks for the history & your efforts. Perhaps thankfully, we didn't see any of your bail pins. I suppose it's rated about the same as other routes on the NW face, however one wants to rate those, but is of a slightly different character & pretty run out on the first pitch. Since then I have seen photos where that pitch looks like hero WI3. I'm surprised that it wasn't done before & I haven't heard of an ascent since. It's a good route with plenty of opportunities for new variations with a summit at the end.