ryland_moore

Jason and I will be the two short guys with chalk on our hands (chalk is aid!). Anna, I will bring your hat to you!

Alo, skis are included in those weights, which for my alpine boards was about another 10 lbs. I skimped more than Norm I think on the clothes, cause I only brought 1 change of underwear (thank god for Gold Bond on the Nutes!) and one cahnge of polypro, 2 pairs of socks and 2 liner socks. The rest was standard fair for a weekend on Rainier, except adding the down jacket and Chugach pants.

The loads were pretty heavy, and we probably could have gotten by with less, but we planned on being there for 28 days and figured that if we were already doing it expedition style vs. alpine style, then we might as well bring everything but the kitchen sink (the Megamid was plush and many folks were envious). We did cache some gear lower down that we decided we didn't need, but we figured that as long as we were spending all this damn money to get there, I'd rather only have to go up the route once then have to come back because we didn't have enough food/crap to weather out a storm. Although we ended up only spending half the time we had planned for, it was comforting knowing that we could settle in and weather out any storm at 14k if need be. Many people suggest just bringing along a couple cartons of smokes and some choice goodies to barter with and you can find a lot of food that way. However, we were offered very little food from other teams descending as it was a little earlier in the season. May be quite different in June though. I did meet one guy that went in super-light with friends and they summitted in 8 days (BC to BC!) but he works for Colby Coombs and has done the route many times. IMHO, for a first timer up there, I suggest being as self-sufficient as possible and taking the crap. You may only have to haul the shit to the 7,800' camp and can decide whether or not to cache something just about anywhere along the route. Yes, it can be a slog, and you don't feel like you are really climbing until high up, but it was still the hardest slog I've ever done and the views are well worth it. It's a big mountain no matter how you look at it and although technically not difficult, the West Buttress is the hardest physical climb I've done to date. Norm may also have had more weight than me. Norm's an animal! I think I had around 120lbs. when I left KIA which is pretty standard from speaking with the pilots for the time we planned to be out (mostly food weight). Plus I was carrying 2 pairs of boots (totally unneccessary), but was hoping to yo-yo up at 14k. We ended up not bringing skis up there as I tweaked my knee going back to 10,200 to pick up a cache. I was having fun skiing down and caught my tip and the binding didn't release. Skiing down was fun early on when the snow conditions were prime. But when we came down all the way, the snow sucked and I was poling hard to go down ski hill - the snow was so grabby! I skied from 11k to 7,800' unroped and having AT boots was nice, but definately could have just used a Silveretta 500/plastic boot combo with no problem. Also, if you do want to ski steeper stuff higher up, just bring AT or tele boots with Thermoflex liners in them. The route is never too steep that you can't summit in your ski boots as PeteA did.

Skip the Exum Ridge and do the Petzholdt Ridge just to the right. A lot less traffic and much more enjoyable climbing! As for other classics on the Grand, another suggestion is the North Ridge (5.7) or the East Ridge (5.7). If looking for ice, check out the Black Ice couloir on the East side and leads up to the top of the Upper saddle (does not go to the summit). As for other classics in the area, check out the CMC route on Mt. Moran. East Butt of Middle is a classic line but there are some tough pitches ( I think one 5.10 old skool that is way hard and I pulled on gear to get up). As for long multi-pitch, Death Canyon is awesome with tons of climbs. I have climbed Caveat Emptor and The Snaz, thanks to rope guns, and both are awesome, though I had more trouble with the Snaz b/c it is off-width even though it is a 5.9 and Caveat is a 5.10. You can do tons of routes, a couple a day from the Grasslands and tick off stuff on Cloudveil, Middle, South, and Nez Perce. Have a blast and watch out for those afternoon thunderheads - they like to produce some serious lightening!

I bet she is packin' heat so watch yourself there Greg! I'll buy a ticket to watch and will give a detailed TR after the dust settles! My odds are on Kitten.....

Jason and I are going climbing tonight, but were planning on grabbing a beer afterwards. You name the place and we'll be there after dark.

Hey Erik, ya didn't reach 6,000 yesterday. What up? SLACKER!

On Denali, I was regularly filling up a 32 oz. bottle, but one of our teamates, Norm was actaully filling up a 2 liter bottle! Holly bladder!

The best way to not feel bad at "altitude" in the lower 48 is to get in better shape. Yeah, you may feel some slight AMS symptoms at 10-12k, but it is not like you are moving there. You cannot acclimate to the elevation in such a short period of time. Since you are having a little trouble with the altitude, I'd reccommend going up to the trailhead late on Friday night and sleeping at a few thousand feet, then going up to high camp, on Saturday and summitting on Sunday. Or you could spend two nights at high camp, which is more than enough. 12,000' is not very high, and like others have said in this post, there are documented cases of pulmonary edema and thelike at these elevations, but they are very rare. Train a little harder, pace yourself (ie. move slower), add a little presssure breathing, and drink a ton of fluids. Why go to Muir if you are trying to climb Adams, just go to Adams instead! If you are still sucking wind and feeling like crap, then I would suggest a little more time in the gym. Best of luck!

Happy Birthday Dude! May you knock off a few on the tic list this summer and may sexy ladies drool over your every move!

Yeah, we need to restart our summer pub-clubs (which also involved climbing at the columns before hand). Anyone interested? I am!

Dave, I was not putting you down or your work. You have done some amazing things around this area and I thank you for your hard work, volunteer time, and committment to maintain good relations with land managers at places like the Callahans. I am just making an observation from climbing in areas like Mind Planet. I have not been down to the Callahans since the ratings were changed (at least not knowingly) and was only going off the ratings in Orton's book that was published back in 2001. I am referring to the climbs Eclectic Classic, Mind Games, and Backwards Evolution. Rated at 5.10a-5.11a, I still feel these are over rated and should be down graded a few letters. Ratings are all personal however, and since you put up the routes, it is your choice as to its grade. I have not climbed in most of the areas at the Callahans, and hope to get on a bunch more areas down there this summer. Keep up the hard work, take these posts as voices who can provide direction and insight into a part of the climbing community and what we would like to see. If I see you down there, I'll introduce myself and can discuss more on the topic. Again, never intended to sound like I was attacking you, and keep up the hard work. These opinions may cause you to think a little harder whether an extra bolt is justified or not. As for personal definitions of an overbolted line, if I can clip more than one bolt from any given stance, and there are no dangers below me (ie. a buldge or ledge) then the route is overbolted. Best of luck with your endeavors.

Damned double post!!!

Better known as "jorts"

Kahiltna Base camp Mullet Siting! After a successful summit bid on Denali, Team Rednecks On Ice celebrated in fine style, drinking bourbon, blasting Sabath, and hitting on women around Kahiltna International. Asked how their climb was, Pete Alderson of team Rednecks On Ice replied, "Fuckin' A, man." mullet

Is this the same guy whom your other male friends said was hot?

No one has even brought up the Callahans area, which, from my perspective has been overbolted and and overgraded. Pretty amazing when you can Z-clip up a route multiple times on a 5.11 that anywhere else is a 5.10 or 5.9. The Callahans does have a lot to offer and there is a lot of community and climber support down there, but I go there with the knowledge that this is what I will find and can choose to skip bolts when I want to. Not a put down to the Callahans, just an observation. The routes are way overbolted and ratings are inflated, whether the grade was based off an onsight or not. My two cents.

I have done it from Eugene to Eugene in two LONG days and was exhausted coming back, but it is possible.

The Kentucky Waterfall was even observed at Denali Basecamp on the Kahiltna two weeks ago! Check out the pic! (Anyone know how to post an attachment? It keeps telling me I put it in the wrong directory)

Wopper, why don't you try getting off the couch during the winter and climbing Casaval Ridge. Then maybe you wouldn't call it chossaval. Would you climb Gib Ledges in Late May during a low snow year? Can't really say that you should expect much more as it is classified as a winter or early spring climb. As for ski descents, check out Hotlum-Bolum area on the other side. Less people and excellent terrain.

There has been a lot of contravery over this area as it was opened in 2001. Skiers can ride the tram up to the top, traverse through a gate and be out of bounds in no time. A lot of critics were woried that it would cause the number of rescues to skyrocket and put too much stress on the volunteer rescue crew. So far, this is the first gumby case I've heard about in this area, and being from Tahoe, those guys should have known better......

Go to Backcountry Gear. They are an online retailer too, but they are all climbers who run a small shop off 2nd and Madison in Eugene. I'd say McKenzie Outfitters as a back-up but they are closing up shop and moving into the Heron Building on 6th Ave in Dowtown. Go to Backcountry Gear and they will hook you up. Support the local climbing shop. Good dudes, and they also support CC.com!

Pretty amazing memorial for her too. In a town of 500 residents, there were over 600 people there. A potluck, stories of her in the Itierod, how she started the two babes and a bird "McKenzie Air Taxi" service and completed with a rep. from each air taxi service flying over in formation with one plane breaking off and flying alone into the distance. God, I love Talkeetna. They also have a bumper sticker there that says Talkeetna, AK. A quaint little drinking town with a climbing problem.

It was really wonderful to finally put some faces with Avatars and meet everyone in person. Our group placed 3 out of our 5 team members on the summit, and although some may consider this climb a walk-up with the masses (which I can attest it is not) it was one of the greatest experiences in mky life. The views are undescribable, the people we met along the way were amazing (except for ze German coming down the fixed lines from 16,200 to 15,500) and the mountain stands alone in a sea of hundreds on NorthCascades ranges with thousands of routes and potential first ascents. The Alaska Range is truly a remarkable place that I will always hold close. It was also good to celebrate with Erden, Cory, and Eddie on the summit and continue the celebration to basecamp, to Talkeetna, to the West Rib, to the Fairview, and finally making it to The Teepee at 4am where we proceeded to close up shop and our evening of debauchery at 5am. Now that is a Pub Club! Almost 12 hours of continuous drinking! Pictures, I am sure, will soon rear their ugly heads, and all I have to say is thank god I don't plan on running for office (Biff Bowen either). Looking forward to seeing you in the mountains this summer.

I always thought the size listed on the Artc Expes and other Koflachs were Euro sizes. At least that is what the label says on the back of my boot (9.5 EURO) Which is equivelent to a 10.5 boot.