michaeljosephnozel

By keeping your extremities warmer, you keep your core warmer, which translates to better rest. (I use the term "rest," because I find it rather difficult to do any better than rest--but, hell, good rest is still preferable to bad rest). It is amazing how far the hat, gloves, and down booties will go. It also depends on how long you plan to stop. If you are planning for (8) hours, you need more insulation. If, however, you plan to stop for only (2) hours on a summer alpine climb, you can leave some heavy stuff at home. Put on all the clothing you have in your pack; roll out your pad inside your bivy sack; jump in quickly before your body cools off too much. With hat, gloves, and down booties it is quite tolerable for a few hours.

Climbed into a vehicle (does that count?); drove to Seaside, Oregon; watched my girlfriend finish Hood to Coast. Spectacular weather, I might add. . . . This coming weekend? Tieton, Index, or Washington Pass! (We'll make the call tomorrow night).

I currently have a pair of Nepal Tops, which have been fantastic boots, but have taken a beating the past several years. I have considered Nepal Extremes from time to time, but have always decided against that enormous price tag. Enter. . . Barrabes! "Holy smokes, I might be able to afford these babies, after all." $238 US, plus approximately $35 shipping, (plus the potential for import duties--not absolutely sure how some people receive a bill and others do not, but hoping it flies under the radar). Before placing an order, however, I would appreciate input from any of you who have knowledge of the boot. What do you think about them? How is the warmth vs. double plastic? Are they difficult to dry out? How does the fit compare to the Nepal Top (would sure hate to have to return the wrong size to the "convenient Spain location"). Anything I may have forgotten? Thanks in advance. . . .

Very true, mattp, these goats are QUITE aggressive for the salt in urine. At the top of Outer Space, I took a piss, and this goat seemed to be irked about it. He started moving toward us (we were reasonably concerned about the 800' drop off behind us), but as we moved aside, his interest remained on my piss. At first I thought he was unsettled by my "marking" of his territory, but later recalled it was the salt he was after. He kept about a 25-30' buffer prior to my urinating, but got VERY close afterwards. Still, it was an entertaining phenomenon that we met him at the base, and the top.

Having a mountain goat greet you at the base of Snow Creek Wall; then again at the top. (In the summertime, while they are "shedding," it is fairly easy to differentiate them by unique hairless areas).

I know that I cannot be the only one who started climbing at the UW practice rock. I remember thinking, "Damn, everybody around here sure is good." Overhearing their weekend adventures kept me coming back, even though my climbing sucked. Eventually (years after graduating, that is), I had the opportunity to learn glacier travel/basic mountaineering; then climbed Mt. Hood. Shortly thereafter, I set a goal to climb all the Cascade volcanoes. Since some of them required rock climbing, I re-awakened my early days at the practice rock (only this time I had some mentors). Mountaineering fed into rock climbing; rock climbing fed into ice climbing; rock and ice climbing fed back into mountaineering. Funny how that works. . . . And now climbing is a very central part of my life.

Gentlemen, I guess I should consider myself one of the lucky ones. My girlfriend (of 18 years) loves to cycle and climb. And by "climb" I mean reasonably hard trad--she, herself, leads gear to 10b. And I'm pretty damn certain she could reel off the names of a half dozen offwidths that she has actually enjoyed. In addition to trad, she enjoys ice and easier alpine. (Granted, she draws the line at technical alpine routes, but she does not cast a leering glance at my mountaineering forays). When she walks through the door, I'll have to give her a big hug. . . cheesy as it may sound. . . .

Am I truly alone in my appreciation of the blues? Say it isn't so. . . a partial list (to which I am partial): Clarence Brown Jimmy Dawkins Peter Green Buddy Guy John Lee Hooker Albert King B B King John Mayall Otis Rush Jimmy Witherspoon and lest we forget: Van Morrison Rolling Stones Pink Floyd Tangerine Dream Frank Zappa Bruce Cockburn Country Joe & The Fish Allman Brothers and our dearly departed Jerry Garcia

Dru: Once again, thank you for the beta. Weather permitting, we may make the drive up on the weekend of the 18th, to take a closer look. If it looks good, we'll give it a go. And if we do, I'll give you the report.

Dru, and wotan of ballard: Thank you for the replies--was a bit concerned, especially in this low snow year. (Fears confirmed. . . unfortunately). Do either of you know about conditions for North Face of Dalton Dome/traverse to Garibaldi summit?

I am interested in doing the South Arete of Atwell/traverse to Garibaldi summit as soon as weather window opens. Does anyone have information on current conditions? Would be much appreciated. . . .