hasbeen

I climbed the 200 feet from the trailhead to the Big Four ice caves with my 5 year old and 9 year old. We then pulled hard on some rad boulders at end of the trail and we skated around on the ice at the toe of the snowfield. They were suitably impressed with the sound of a big chunk of ice falling to the floor of one of the caves. I only hope we have one more weekend of good weather becasue I have one more alpine trip planned before the snow flies.

If you've only got two people, try driving/sleeping in two hour shifts. I've found that you get pretty good at falling asleep almost immediately and waking up quickly when your two-hour driving or sleep shift is over. You can keep this up just about around the clock. A buddy of mine and I did it this way when we drove a 25-foot rental truck from Boston to Seattle in just under three days.

I've worn some Schoeller pants on snow and rock I find them to be about the most flexible garment I've ever worn. The are very water repellent, very breathable, are comfortable in a wide range of temps and, contrary to what some say, I have found them to be quite durable/abrasion resistant. I got mine from L.L. Bean and while I am not usually a fan of their stuff (except the venerable Maine Hunting Shoe) I have been very happy with them. They are not so expensive from Bean.

Mr. Blister: If you see a snafflehound wearing an old gray t-shirt, it's mine. I'd really love to get it back if you don't mind rasslin' the bugger. Thanks

I'll do one better than the big hole in the shirt. Those snafflehounds actually STOLE my shirt. I set it out to dry whith a big rock on it and left for the summit. I never saw the shirt again.

Another vote for Eucerin. A doc turned me on to it when I was working out on gym apparatus and climbing a lot, both of which involved a lot of chalk. The stuff works.

I was up on the West Ridge on July 8-9. If that is recent enough, send me a private message and I'll give you any info I can.

"He who climbs and runs away lives to climb another day."

Wopper: We were in to Boston Basin two weekends ago. We went on a Sunday and Monday and had no problem with a permit. There were only (as far as we could tell) three other parties in the basin. Rangers said that they were issuing six per night. We camped at the high camp on the way to Forbidden (approximately 6200 ft.) and we were not on snow. The snow level was right about there, however, so much of the basin is now exposed. Hope that helps.

I just did it last weekend and it was great. So good I would do it again but I can't. Hope you get to go. The glacier was no problem although the schrund was beginning to open up on the right side. The couloir was perfect at about 6:00 a.m. and there was no problem getting off the snow into the 4th class gully to the ridge. What great views all the way up the ridge. If you want any other info, e-mail me at cfeig@cozen.com.

My friend Tim and I went in to give Frostbite Ridge a try last Sunday and Monday. We sure could have picked a better weekend for weather. We stayed at the trailhead on Saturday night. Awoke to drizzle/light rain on Sunday and hemmed and hawed about whether to go or bail right at the trailhead -- we had also set aside the following weekend if the weather did not cooperate. The weather improved slightly so we decided to go for at least a day hike to get some miles in on the trail. Just in case the weather improved (hey, the National Weather Service has been wrong before)we carried everything we would need for the climb. Because we had heard that the snow started at about 3000 we packed our skis. The trail is in very good shape to the turnoff to Kennedy Ridge. There sure isn't any snow on the Kennedy Ridge trail or on the Crest trail until you get to about 5000 so you might want to consider snowshoes as opposed to skis. Carrying the skis over so much dirt was a little tough... At about 5000 we put on skis and had a nice time skiing through the forest. We followed some snowshoe tracks for a ways and turned off on the climbers trail that heads up to theeast side of the Kennedy Glacier. We followed a nice snow-covered ridge to just below the main ridge leading to Kennedy Peak and camped at about 7000. Lots of evidence of slide activity and small sloughs from the snow the prior week but the warm temps last Thursday and Friday had done a good job consolidating the snow. It was quite warm by mid afternoon when we arrived at high camp and travel on the slopes above would have been inadvisable unless the snow was frozen. The weather cleared somewhat on Sunday evening so we set the alarm for 2:00 a.m. and hit the sack. At about 1:30 I was awakened to the sound of some pretty serious precip on the tent wall. I tossed and turned for another half hour until the alarm went off and put on my headlamp to check out the weather. It was snowing pretty hard and quite windy. We had already received about one inch of snow and visibility was pretty poor. We decided to wait for about an hour to see what would happen. At three it was no better -- just more snow. We decided to bag it due to concerns about visibility and the stability of the snow slopes we would have to cross. We went back to bed and packed up camp at about 8:00. We put on our skis and had a pretty enjoyable ski out until we hit the end of the snow. By this time it was raining pretty steadily and our packs felt way too heavy. We turned on the auto pilot and were at the trailhead by 2:00, soaking wet and disappointed. It was a good early season trip, however, and it was a little unusual that we did not see a single other party the entire trip. Guess we'll have to return when the weather looks better.

Anyone been on the trail to Kennedy Hot Springs/Kennedy Ridge and the approach to Frostbite Ridge lately? Any beta appreciated.