ryland_moore

Drive to the TH, self-register for a permit to camp at the lake (get there early - busy weekend and you may not get a permit) set up camp. Leave early in the morning and hike to the top. Findmesh the day off with a swim in the lake. If you can't get a permit to camp, then do it in a single push from the TH. Enjoy!

I'll second that. Sometimes in late, late season it can be tricky getting down from Camp Curtis to the Emmons, which is traditionally how you get into Camp Sherman. You can also go over the Prow when the snow is really melted out, but even on this crumbly rock for a 100 ft. is a lot less crumbly rock then you will encounter on the DC and not that much more difficult a scramble. Last year, a serious drought year, the rangers did recommend that you climb up and over the prowe to get into Sherman, but I just read a trip report from last weekend, then going from Camp Curtis onto the Emmons and up to Sherman was straight forward. I guess your friends will do what they want, but if I had a choice I would definitely choose the Emmons over the DC anyday. It is the same difficulty if not easier this time of year due to the lack of exposed rock that does not exist on the Emmons, but does all over the DC (Cleaver), for aesthetics as the Emmons is the largest glacier in the lower 48 and is just awsome to have so close to home, and there are less people to share the route with, which also may make the route a lot safer as you won;t have to worry about other parties knocking down some huge volcanic rocks on top of you like you do ascending the DC/Cleaver. The final benefit is the position of the Emmons. You will see the sun as soon as it starts to rise since you are on that side of the mountain. If on the DC, you won't see it for a while. I truly believe that there is a benefit when motivation is lacking at 4:30 am, it is cold, and you are tired at 13k'. But when you see the sun, it almost gives you your second wind for some reason. Just my experience after doing Emmons, DC, and Ingraham Direct, although I love Ingraham as well. Just avoid DC at all costs now, especially later in the season when the rock on the cleaver has had a chane to loosen up during the summer sun. My two cents, but I'll take glacier ice and an aesthetic line over choss, loose rock and hords of people any day.

Or just go cvlimb the Emmons which is a better route IMHO, and you never have any choss to deal with the entire route.........Awesome to dlimb in August as well with a lot less traffic than the DC. I climbed it this time last year and had the whole mountain to ourselves except one party of two from NC.

Great job guys! Sounds like a nice outing. No rushing it and get to enjoy the scenery. Question> You did not camp At Sherman, right? How was it getting down onto the Emmons from Camp Curtis? Or did you climb up and over the prow down into Sherman?

Octavius, is that local pay phone still in Marblemount where you can make a local call to Seattle or did they remove it? Like I said, I have verizon and I've never had good reception along highway 20. i did get reception in Marblemount though then not until Sedro Wooley.

You were the fat ass talking about Hawaii up on Hood weren't you?! Or are you just another Mountie? People that know me would say I am laid back about most stuff except cell phones anywhere in the bc (although Hood is far from being in the bc.....). Sorry to jump on you PaulO. I just thought it was weird that you had advice on cell phone coverage from so many peaks...... as for accepting a job while on Denali, it was mine for the taking, had nothing to do with my attitude, and was lucrative. What happened was I actually turned the job down while boarding the plane in Seattle, had second thoughts, and tried calling back. As life usually does, it worked out and I ended up in Portland rather than SLC. All for the better. I would ask another question though and that is does anyone find reliability for emergencies with other forms of communication such as CB? Anyone ever used a long-range talk-about in emergency situations and had it actually work? I have heard rumors that even when a cell phone does not have coverage, that a 911 call shouldstill get through. Is this really true? Anyone ever tried it?

Are you asking in case of emergency purposes? If so, then maybe carrying a long-range talkabout, CB radio, or sat phone would be more reliable. I have Verizon, but never had to use it in the backcountry for an emergency, so I don't know what the coverage is like. I did try to make a call out while at 11k on Denali to tell a guy I wanted to accept a job so they didn't give it away, but since I got very little reception, they gave the job away....... Dannible, what emergency did you have on Black peak? I say this becasue two years ago, I was up on Hood and we saw this older overweight guy yapping on his phone having a conversation for 30 minutes about an upcoming trip to Hawaii, talking so that everyone else could hear him. My buddy got so fed up with him, he knocked the phone out of the guys hand and tried to kick it down the Cooper Spur. It didn't go off, but the guy got the message. I think I'll take up this sort of mentalityl if I see folks doing this unless for emergency purposes too! If all you want is good cell phone coverage to call your non-climbing buddies waking from a drunken stupor the night before to show how cool you are then 1) You are not that cool, 2) Climbing peaks like Black peak or mt. hood is not hard, nor technical so there is nothing o brag about in the first place, and 3) if you are so insecure that you need to receive kudos from people who know nothing about climbing so that you can make yourself feeol better, go get help, don't ruin my experience on the summit......... Sorry for the rant..........

I'd say, it depends Chuck. I would probably want poons if I descended Sherpa gl. instead of heading down Cascadian. Don't need poons for the approach on complete N. Ridge though. I've also seen people without poons on the regular approach, but they usually had an ice axe or at least a whippet. I have also seen people with no poons and no axe using talus rock in case they fell, but I wouldn't rec. that. Heard stories of people slipping and going for long rides....

Go buy the Southwest Oregon climbing guide. There are plenty of routes that aren't included, but that is the best way. You can also research past discussions about the area on here. Directions are too difficult to give, so read what the book states. great climbs on sandstone with routes that are fairly easy for the grade. If you climb .11a you should be able to climb .11b or .11c there.

Even if you do not have sinking line, and aren't planning on fishing with it a lot, don't go out and buy another spool just for sinking line, but you can get tip attachments, or if you reallu don't care, just buy some flies (assuming you don't tie your own yet) that have barbell or bizmuth heads that will sink. Since fish are cruising in lakes, I usually try to spot them or if they are rising, but not what you are throwing at them, use a woolybugger or other streamer and cast right after they rise. It will usually do the trick. Just let the streamer sink a little longer. I don't think the lake are "fly-fishing only" but single hooks and artificial flies. You could still use a spinner if you removed the treble hook and replaced it with a single (barbless if releasing) as both barbs and spinning gear is aid......

That gear looks totally stolen, like right out of a climbing parking lot! The biners are still racked up with nuts singly with biners still on the harness and there is tons of chalk dust all over the gear. Plus there is still tape on the biners marking ownership. If a climber was going to pawn his own stuff, he would probably clean it up a bit to bring a higher price, I would think. Didn't some guys have gear stolen from Exit 38 recently?

It may be worth bringing the ice tools and playing around on Elliot Glacier though as I am sure the glacier will be dry by then and could climb ice in the creavsses. That's about it for this time of year though.

I use them with my scarpa leathers for waterfall ice and use them for glacier climbs with my Koflach Artis Expes without any problems at all. I've never had any problems with vibration. Maybe it is the style of boot. They are the crampomatic style and even worked really well over my overboots on Denali. Before my trip, I just attached them to my boots and overboot and left them on there for a week before my trip and it worked really well. These are the best crampons I've ever had. I do use the antibot plates for glacier climbs and never had a problem of them balling up.

Send a pm to Dr. Flash Amazing. He's got the goods.....

I looked at the route from Lost Lake last weekend and it was looking thin, but go take a look see anyway!

Yeah, what everyone else said. Plark42, if you are complaining then either your gf wants you home more often at which point you should ditch her, or sack up b/c that really isn't that far to drive. When I lived in Eugene three years ago, I would drive every weekend up to the N. Cascades leaving Friday after work and getting to the TH at midnight, climbing all day Saturday and SUnday and usually getting back to Eugene at midnight on Monday in time to start the workday monday morning. I was driving up there so much in a Chevy Silvarado that I sold the truck and bought a Subaru so I could afford the gas to keep heading up there every weekend. If you really enjoy climbing like most of us, the drive is insignificant and you won't remember the drive but the climb itself. You will find a way to get up into the hills. I also takeissue with there being no climbing in Tennessee. There is actually more rock climbing around Chatanooga and where I went to college at Sewanee (University of the South) than any major city in the Pacific NW. Granted it is all steep sandstone and not alpine. Think T-Wall, Foster Falls, Buzzard Point, Sunset, Suck Creek Canyon, and other further objectives (more than 1 hr) like Looking Glass and Obed River Gorge. There are eight climbing areas within 1 hr. of Chataboogie! And there were several winters while I was in school that we actually climbed ice on campus with more regularity than I can say for the Columbia Gorge. We had about 80 est. routes on campus both sport and trad and over 29 miles of sandstone bluff (the campus perimeter on top of the Plateau) of unexplored and undocumented first ascents. Pretty cool place to send your kids if they love rock! Sorry for the digression.....

Yes, Steve lives in Bend, at least when he is not out on his next adventure......

Nice work Pete! Somebody had to finally go do the thing! Now that you knopw the route, are we taking boards in next year in June? Looks like a beautiful trip in the alpine regardless of summits or boards.

It depends. Some countries are o.k. while others are not. If it is a resort area that is really touristy, you have a better chance. If you are looking fo some remote area, better plan on living there of hiring caretakers. In Costa Rica, I looked at some property and found out some interesting information like thegovt. owns all beachfront property and will only lease the land. No clear title was given to land, and squatters rights still existed. Many landowners who lived on the properties would clear cut their haciendas just to make it easier to monitor and protect themselvesf rom squatters living on their land. Iwould stay away unless you plan on living there. I would also hire a local attorney to do all the paperwork for you.

well, I guess we know who's going to wear the pants in that family!!!! Congrats Dad!

Here's another thread started by oine of the guys helping out with the rescue web page

Slog, glad to hear that you and your party are o.k., albeit a bit traumatized. Way to help out and do anything you could. I am sure the rescue guys appreciate any help they can get. Now, following Ivan's post on the other thread, this is not intended to armchair quarterback anything, nor is it disrespectful to any of the injured, but why were people roped up at all in those conditions? You talked about how icy it was, so why would anyone stay ropedup down through the pearly gates, your team included, without zippering the thing up with pickets? Did anyone learn from the accident a few years back under the same scenario and under the same conditions about this same time of year? EITHER TAKE OFF THE ROPE OR SET PRO on the South Side of Hood! There is no gray area with this, it is either one or the other. Anything else will simply lead to what we have seen here. There are no crevasses to worry about this time of year. The bergschrund is obvious, but could still stay roped up until past it. Other than that, it seems like this accident could have been a lot worse if the other climbers had been taken out instead of staying arrested. It also could have been a lot better where yopu would have only had one person injured if they were not roped together instead of three. You did mention a picket you observed when the climbers were falling. Did the pickert pull? Or did it just come out of someone's pack? WHy carry a picket if you don't intend to use it? I apologize if this comes off as uncaring for the injured, but a few more details would help. There are plenty of accidents that are unpreventable and can be chalked up to dumb luck in the mountains. This accident is clearly not one of those instances and could have easily been prevented.....

Good luck on finding Black Ice Couloir in shape. it has been melting out for the last several years. Call Teton mountain Guides or Exum and see if anyone has done it. You would still have to summit via another route, since Black Ice only gets you to the Upper saddle. There is a great variation of the owen_Spalding route just before the belly crawl that is a nice 5.9 crack in a psuedo chimney. It is pretty short, but way nicer than the belly crawl option. If you aren't finding any ice, you can always go into the ice caves in Idaho!!!

Oh, you are wrong Alpinfox. I just received con irmartion from a little birdy that there is someone who is giving specific gear info. on this thread who has never set foot on this route. That is bs by the way and I will back up Snaffle on his earlier comment. If yo've never climbed a rou.te before, then you are out of your element, Donny. So STFU....You have no basis....

Snaffle, I know of at least 6 people who have posted so far above (including myself) who have climbed it at least once. Sorry Harry, I don't know you so not sure if you climbed it or not. W. Ridge is almost as populated as Sahale peak in the Summer. Wouldn't go so far as to call it the Mt. Hood of the N. Cascades like Sahale, but I would say that undertaking W. Ridge is a pretty common occurance even for newbies, as it is one of the easiest climbs in the range.