Kyle

Forget the sunscreen- pass me that blunt!! I need it now!!

Not a climbing book, but "Endurance" about Shackleton's mother-of-all-epics is an amazing story (I couldn't put it down, & stayed up all night reading it). "My Vertical World", Jerzy Kukuczka's bio. The writing's pretty clunky, but you come away with a load of respect for those hard-core Polish climbers... they're as tough as they come. Recently read "A Cambodian Odyssey", by Haing Ngor, who survived some horrible years against long odds during the Khmer Rouge era. Highly recommended.

If the ozone layer keeps getting depleted at its current rate, we'll all be looking like this before long. Pass me some of that SPF6000...

I used to brew some kick-ass beer myself, and my Scottish ale stood up well next to Grant's. Beware, though, home-brewing is a sure-fire way to pack on some seriously unwanted pounds.

To paraphrase an old gag (Monty Python I think)- "American Beer is like making love in a canoe... it's fucking close to water!"

Boy, talk about a lot of people having a slow day at work My favorite lately is Caffrey's Irish Ale. It's available in cans & is OK, but if you get a chance to quaff it on tap in a London pub... ohhhh baby...

I've read a lot of Ron Judd's columns, and sometimes he's actually quite funny (esp when he goes off on Slade Gorton, aka Skeletor). But maybe he should have left this one alone (I wonder how long it's been since big Ron actually hauled himself up a mountain). Here's a prelim report, posted to rec.climbing by Bill Folk (PS- I'm not Bill, I'm Kyle, and I'm just passing on this report that I found ~6/18 on the rec.climbing newsgroup, where Bill is a frequent contributor. But thanks anyway to those who've sent me PM's wishing me a speedy recovery -K): ------------------------------------------- > I hope he posts an accident report. Will do. Thanks Greg for showing up, and thanks T, Dingus, Jens, Alistair, and everyone else for the support and good wishes. There will indeed be an ANAM report, and on the advice of Dunham Gooding, AAI director, I will be contributing to it. Family and friends have also demanded a written report, and maybe I'll post it here if there is interest. Perhaps no explanation is owed, but I certainly don't mind sharing information. I'll be happy to answer any questions - I'll be sitting around with my feet elevated for the next couple of weeks, so nothing better to do. Short cut to the expensive lesson learned: if you are going to attempt a committing route on a large, complex peak during a period of unsettled weather, you'd better have a good plan on how to get down if the shit hits the fan. Hint: following your boot track back down doesn't qualify. Some of you will say, "no shit". The initial news reports were based on spotty info and contained lots of inaccuracies - I guess that's what happens if you don't talk to the reporters. The short version: after stopping at AAI in Bellingham for current conditions beta, we approached the North Ridge on Thursday afternoon with a clear forecast for Friday and a storm due on Saturday, and bivied at about 5400'. We cached (not "lost") our approach packs/sleeping bags/bivy sacks (no tent), and began the climb at about 4:00 AM Friday (later than planned) with summit packs containing a gortex shell, 2L of water, a bagel, and a Clif bar each, and a space blanket, map, and compass. Near the top the weather deteriorated rapidly as the storm forecast for Saturday appeared a day early, and we decided to descend. We became lost on the descent in high winds, snow, and white out, and dug out a snow cave in a moat to take shelter and consider our options. We spent the next 4 nights in snow caves and crevasses between attempts to descend while snow dumped, wind howled, avalanche conditions reached insane, and visibility remained near zero. We ate snow and melted water in Nalgenes with our body heat, walking the thin line between hypothermia and dehydration. Nights were spent massaging our feet and shivering, until the third day when our feet finally froze. Then it was just shivering, which gets boring pretty fast. On Tuesday the weather abated, and we made a break for it. We began traversing down and to the east through hip-deep fresh snow, intending to intersect the North Ridge and follow it back down, or reach the Coleman Glacier. Visibility again deteriorated, and we continued our traverse. I can't adequately explain how it occurred, but at some point I noticed that our compass seemed to have done a 180, and although the sun was not visible, the brightest part of the sky appeared to be in what we had believed to be the East. The only explanation was that we had traversed around to the South side of the mountain. The only defense I can offer is that by this point we were thoroughly trashed by our ordeal. Shortly thereafter I recognized Railroad Grade. I had taken a glacier mountaineering class with AAI 10 years ago that based at that location, so I knew that it was close to the road, and that there was a reasonable possibility of an AAI group being camped there. So our arrival there was not _completely_ dumb luck. We soon heard voices, and spotted a tent. We walked (not "staggered" or "stumbled") into the camp, and asked if we could have some water, spare food if they had any, and if anyone had a cell phone so we could call our loved ones. We did not ask for a rescue (this in no way implies any lack of gratitude for the one that ensued). There's no way I could adequately express my gratitude to the AAI guides Dylan and Ryder for all they did for us, to the AAI clients who shared their medical expertise, food, clothing, and body heat, to the Bellingham SAR team (and all the other SAR teams that were apparently mobilized), to the Navy team from Whidbey, or the ER team at Skagit hospital to which we were airlifted. I can't begin to thank Dunham Gooding and Sheilagh Brown for all that they've done for us and our families throughout this ordeal. Finally, a great thanks to Dunham, Sheilagh, and AAI Operations manager Paul Rosser for the couple of hours they took from their busy schedules this morning to discuss the event with me, and to offer their advice and insights. I was treated and released with an abraded cornea from flying ice, and mild frostbite to my feet and fingers, but am rapidly on the mend. Anyway, it's good chance to get those Kauks resoled, cams reslung, and let that tendonitis heal a bit. James has more serious frostbite to his feet, but should recover fully. Bill [This message has been edited by Kyle (edited 06-28-2001).]

I'd go back in time & follow Conrad Kain up some old-school Bugs first ascents- he was one bad mofo.

Sometimes all it takes is one good close call to cause you to "lose your nerve" for soloing. I had mine on a bit of easy-looking but very thin early-season ice in NH about 12 years ago. I know it was my own stupid fault for going up on it in the first place- I was itching to try out my new set of Pulsars & felt way too confident in my own abilities. I never lost control, but I had to concentrate very hard to keep cool and work through some totally questionable (& seemingly unreversible) moves, 100' off the deck. It's funny what goes through your mind at such a time, but all I can remember thinking was how pissed-off my fiance and my mother would be if I got myself killed. With that motivation, I pulled the moves, belly-flopped onto the top, and swore off soloing forever. The experience humbled me quite a bit, and made me a more conservative climber in general- I spend a lot more time assessing conditions and I will back off a route early it doesn't seem safe enough.

I've always carried a small knife clipped to my harness. Used to be a mini-SAK, now I carry a tiny Spyderco. I have a short piece of tape wrapped around it to keep the blade closed, with a tab on the end so that I can rip the tape off with my teeth in an emergency, and the Spyderco can be opened easily with the teeth as well. I've never actually HAD to use it in an emergency situation, but then, I've never used the plastic oral airway in my 1st aid kit either. Nice to know it's there, though.

Well, it's not fair to expect those poor kids to drink beer without having some smokes on hand too. Maybe the schools will have the heart to supply them with low-tar cigs, which will better prepare them for the years they'll spend in the bar as adults.

Just about everyone I know has soloed at one time or another, and when you're climbing well and feeling solid, there's nothing on earth like it. Some of my more memorable solos happened out of necessity because I couldn't find a partner on a given day, so I'd just go solo routes. But it seems to be a young man's game... the older I get the more chicken I get, and I shudder now to think of some of the New England ice routes I soloed in my younger & more crazy days. Wouldn't do it now. Buc-buc-bawk!

I think rangers sometimes hand out disinformation deliberately, just to weed out the punters & wannabes. Most serious climbers will politely listen to a ranger's speech, but then go and do what they want anyway, preferring to rely on their own best judgement and knowing that they proceed at their own risk.

There are a lot of us that would like to see a Chuck Pratt slideshow, but it's unlikely now, considering that he died at least a few months ago RIP

It's good to see these lowlifes actually get nabbed once in a while. Beheading's too good for em... I say lash them to a charred trunk along the Snow Creek trail, let the ticks and ants slowly devour them, then hang their dessicated carcass by the parking lot as a warning to the rest. (From http://www.nps.gov/morningreport 01-281 - Point Reyes NS (CA) - Car Clouting Arrest A new seasonal ranger on one of his first training patrols noticed a suspicious person and vehicle at a trailhead parking lot on June 5th. He and his field training officer investigated and discovered that a car had been broken into through a smashed window. A deputy was called to assist in pursuing and apprehending the suspect, who fled the scene in his truck. Subsequent investigation by rangers revealed that the suspect had evidently thrown purses and numerous belongings he had stolen from other vehicles out his window along the road while fleeing. He has been connected with several other car clouting incidents in the area over the last few weeks. Charges have been filed through the county. [Karyl Yeston, DR, PORE, 6/15]

The thread about Bolivia got me thinking about danger while travelling (true story- a buddy of mine had his Bolivian trip ruined a few years ago by bandits that rode into their camp at night, held the climbers at gunpoint while they stole most of their gear & food, then trashed the camp). Not saying Bolivia's all that dangerous... it's probably safer than New Jersey. Anyhoo, I found this interesting site: http://www.comebackalive.com/df/index.htm that's dedicated to the assorted dangers & pitfalls that await tourists & travellers to various parts of the world. A bit morbid in places, but some good reading.

Why carry a knife when you can carry an all-purpose tool like nitroglycerin? Damn, how have I managed to climb all these years without explosives?

Send (especially offensive if combined with Dude)- I might just hurl if I ever again have to hear a crowd of sport-kids yelling "send it! send it now!! duuude!!!!" Hinky- A word we tech-geeks might use to refer to a problematic printer has somehow crossed over into the climbing lexicon. It's lame. Dicey- a good word, but way overused. I climbed with one guy that would say on nearly every move of every lead- "watch me here, this is dicey". After a while it loses its effect. & I agree with "Take"... when you're a full pitch above your partner on Traveller Buttress, and all you can hear is the wind howling past your ears, a distant yell of "Take" sounds an awful lot like "Slack", and could (but I'm not saying did) lead to misunderstanding and unpleasant results.

I hiked up the non-technical east-side route last sat (6/16) to the E summit, via Cathedral Rock Trail/Peggy's Pond. Trails are in decent condition, & it's all snow above Peggy's Pond. Snow up high was a bit soft but mostly OK (we carried crampons but didn't use them). Visibility was spotty above 6000', but I got a brief view down the Daniel Gl- a few open crevasses were obvious, but the glacier looked attractive & generally in good shape.

Will- There will always be someone looking to split hairs on terminology (I mean look at the big argument we just had on what the true meaning of "Alpine Climbing" is), but most of us are stoked to read your TR's & glad you'll share what beta you have with us... at least you're out there doin it. Please keep em coming man...

1)Show up for a supposed day climb with headlamp, spare headlamp, and extra batteries & bulbs for both. 2)Suggest that we leave the rope & rack in the car, since we'll be 3rd-classing the whole thing anyway. 3)Every 30 minutes or so, shout out a reminder that the car keys are in the top pocket of your pack. 4)Wrap a few yards of duct tape around your ski pole, and refer to it as your "first aid kit". I wonder if this thread might have anything to do with the "knives for climbing" post?

I'd call it a "bud-point" ascent...

Man, I could talk about food all day. What's next on the agenda- sleep? clothing? sex? Let's cover all the essentials of mammalian life...

Oh yeah, and homemade venison jerky. I've climbed for years with an Idahoan hunter who always has a bottomless bag of the stuff on hand... man that stuff has gotten us up a lot of routes.

Of course, what tastes good at any given time depends on your situation. I recall reading some years back about a fellow who escaped from commy Russia, and after 3 days of non-stop x-c running without a bite to eat, a kindly peasant woman gave him a pound brick of near-rancid lard. He ate the whole thing in like 3 bites & it was the best chow he'd ever had. Mmm, like the French say, "hunger makes ze best sauce"