Bronco

There's these new fangled "sun hoodies" that are advertised to keep people cool and are kind of a replacement for sunscreen. Always get the matching set with your tech bros, duh!

https://www.opb.org/news/article/grizzly-bear-reintroduction-north-cascades-give-up/ U.S. Secretary of the Interior David L. Bernhardt told a meeting of community members in Omak, Washington, that his agency will not conduct the environmental impact statement needed to move forward with the plan. “The Trump Administration is committed to being a good neighbor, and the people who live and work in north central Washington have made their voices clear that they do not want grizzly bears,” Bernhardt said in a news release. “Grizzly bears are not in danger of extinction, and Interior will continue to build on its conservation successes managing healthy grizzly bear populations across their existing range,” he said. The decision was hailed by U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Washington, who represents the region in Congress. “Homeowners, farmers, ranchers, and small business owners in our rural communities were loud and clear: We do not want grizzly bears in North Central Washington,” Newhouse said. “I have long advocated that local voices must be heard by the federal government on this issue.” The Department of the Interior began planning the environmental review process in 2015 under the Obama administration. The recovery of grizzly bears in the lower 48 states is an amazing success story, the agency said. Most of the efforts have focused on six areas of Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and eastern Washington state. The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem has been the primary focus of grizzly recovery efforts to date, and grizzly populations have increased to about 700 bears there since the animals were listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act in 1975. The environmental group Conservation Northwest was disappointed by the decision, but did not think it was the final word on the bears. “We are still confident they will be restored there,” spokesman Chase Gunnell said. Gunnell said 80% of the people who provided public comments on the bears supported growing the population by bringing grizzlies to the back country in and around North Cascades National Park. Gunnell said it was false that local residents overwhelmingly oppose reintroduction of the bears. “This is not an issue that has just west side support,” Gunnell said, referring to more populous and liberal western Washington. “Public support is strong.” Fewer than 10 grizzlies are thought to live across 9,800 square miles anchored by North Cascades National Park, Conservation Northwest said. Given their isolation from other grizzly populations, the low number of bears, their very slow reproductive rate and other constraints, the North Cascades grizzly bear population is considered the most at-risk bear population in the United States, the environmental group said. Grizzly bears were listed as a threatened species in 1975. They have slowly regained territory and increased in numbers in the ensuing decades, but they still occupy only a small portion of their historical range. An estimated 50,000 bears once roamed the contiguous U.S. Government-sponsored programs led to most being poisoned, shot and trapped by the 1930s.

I think there was a party on it a couple of weeks ago, saw something on a FB group called "climb index".

Sounds like a routine day around Paradise. At some point you have to laugh and hope nobody gets hurt or lost. The tourists come from all over the world to walk in the snow up there.

Just a heads up, there is a temporary traffic light installed on HWY 530 between Arlington and Darrington for some fish passage work. I think it cost me 30 minutes headed East on Thursday night and 45 minutes to an hour coming West last night. Sedro Wooley route to HWY 20 recommended until this project is done. The detour around the rockslide on HWY 20 is pretty insignificant by comparison.

Nice TR Dana. I never get tired of photos of the Norwegian Buttresses. Terrifying and intriguing to think about the routes up there.

Some good news (in these unprecedented and trying times). It looks like they plan to give it to USFS to preserve access. The 11-acre private property includes Alphabet Rock and the Icehouse Boulders, as well as the initial access path to Givler’s Dome and outlier crags on adjacent USFS lands. Together, these granite cliffs and outcrops feature more than 40 historic cracks, slabs, faces, and hueco-filled roofs, ranging in difficulty from 5.7 to 5.13, as well as dozens of challenging boulder problems. The prominent 250-foot Givler’s Crack, Dogleg Crack, and Meat Grinder are just a few classics that have attracted climbers since the 1970s. https://www.accessfund.org/news-and-events/news/access-fund-purchases-climbing-areas-outside-leavenworth-washington

No word yet on NCNP. I may be able to put my hair in a man bun by the time they open it up. They barricaded a lot of the roads at HWY 20.

Some good news: 20200521 Phased Reopening NEWS RELEASE.PDF

I'm in total agreement with vetting partners. When I was still pretty new, I had a brand new partner freak out 2 pitches off the deck at Index. I had lead up to anchor #3 and he was terrified of an undercling traverse under a roof and refused to attempt it. I had no clue what to do. The wind was blowing and of course a train went by while we were trying to communicate which just added more stress to the situation. I had to figure out how to lower him back to anchor #2 and rappel back down to him. Fortunately it was a shorter pitch so he was able to stay tied in to the end of the rope while I rapped over the roof and made a big swing in under the roof and grabbed the anchor. I have a couple of other experiences with new partners that were lucky to get out of without an actual epic. It is challenging when you're new and assume everyone else must be more proficient and capable.

Came across this Youtube channel and found some really interesting stuff. This one in particular caught my attention as I have some older dyneema slings. Surprising how much more quickly the strength degrades compared to nylon (he tests some 30 year old nylon slings in other videos). I know 10kN is still pretty strong but slings are cheap.

Just like Honold! Thanks for posting the TR on a lesser known route!

I have a pair of Salewa Vulture Vertical boots for winter and they fit my wide, high arched foot very nicely. I think Ascent Outdoors has a bunch of Salewas in stock to try on and top notch boot fitters.

One positive of the Corona-19 is we don't have the Mariners to be disappointed about.

So awesome to have an Eiger TR on the site considering how many of us were influenced by the historic ascents!

Here's a link to all of the closures that I've read about: https://www.accessfund.org/news-and-events/news/climbing-area-closures-and-restrictions-due-to-covid-19 Many closures are only though April so you really need to check the specific agency for where you plan to go and what you're allowed to do.

Goes double for you Mister!

Message from Olympic Mountain Rescue I had high hopes of ticking off some climbs this spring and summer but decided to forego technical alpine climbing for the time being. With the crisis overloading our healthcare system, we all really need to be staying well within our skill set and not taking any unnecessary risks. You do not want to be taken to a hospital full of Corvid-19 patients. Stay safe out there.

I agree on the bastards part but I think you just have other priorities with your $ and enjoy crushing the deskjockys like me who have the latest and greatest gear.

Should we start a go fund me for Tim to get a new pack? Great pics, thanks for sharing the stoke!

Really impressive that you and especially Porter were able to keep your wits. After looking at your injury and being 1,000' up an alpine route with a storm coming in, I would be needing a change of underwear.

That's what I'm here for!

Sounds like someone made an attempt on Friday, hope to hear their story some time.

Sounds like PMR reached an agreement similar to how other municipalities are structured: https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/clackamas-county-sheriffs-office-and-portland-mountain-rescue-agreement/283-c16497fb-f1c9-4205-8bbb-5bb11dbf6eae

Here's another interesting case involving an injured Sheriff's deputy suing SAR, another Deputy and contributing to Chouinard's bankruptcy and eventual sale to the employees. Also prompted the label showing how to put on your harness that's now sewn into the harness. https://casetext.com/case/swank-v-duffy-2/?resultsNav=false&PHONE_NUMBER_GROUP=C&NEW_CASE_PAGE=N