bobinc

I used to have the clown shoe physical evidence hanging from the rafters at my office but eventually had to get rid of it. I used duct tape and 4 mm parachute cord to try and hold it together but relief was only temporary. The left boot failed in the middle of the easy slabs on the way up and the right boot failed during the rappel. Talk about quality control! These were original Koflachs purchased when the NFace went out of business in the UDist years ago. The same thing happened in 2000 on the way down from Bonanza with a different pair of boots. Not as much drama and humiliation, though -- the delamination happened at Holden Lake. So only had to do the flip/flop routine back to Holden.

I've descended the route twice. It's not such a big deal. Jim's description is apt. The easiest way to go wrong is to not descend far enough down the rappel gulley before traversing off to the right. The going is easier down lower. I'm not sure of the overall number of rappels, but I seem to recall 4 or 5 double rope raps (with a 45 or 50 m rope). The closer it seems you are coming to rappelling onto the Boston Glacier, the easier it will be when you traverse. The only other challenge is to be able to identify the right gully to head up to regain the E Ridge. The place you want to come out is a notch which is very obvious from the other side. This is more or less where the scree trail changes into the beginning of the climbing on the E Ridge. It may be so many people have done the E Ridge descent/traverse now that there is a faint trail back up that gully, but if not, you just have to take your best shot at it. If you don't hit the gully, there may be some stuff harder than 4th class to get back onto the ridge. We did the NW FAce of the N Ridge last time around and really enjoyed it. I have seen some recent TRs for the NFace that also sounded good. Also, I suggest trying an alternate route to the Sharkfin Col route. It was re-described recently; don't have the thread reference, but my general advice is to go up a gully about 200' right of the Sharkfin Col and then downclimb or rappel the other side onto the glacier. There may be a moat issue on the other side, but given this is a pretty good snow year, it should still be okay. Send me a PM and I can get you better info on this route. Good luck.

Boated the Wenatchee on Sunday; looked at the clouds rolling over the crest and wondered... Snow Creek Wall looked clear yesterday, though, and temps never got above perhaps 75 F so would have been fine up there.

Amen to the Middle Fork closure. Get out yer mtn bike. And remember: brush is a preserver of wilderness values.

Jim Nelson can order them; 5.10 is notoriously bad at shipping the right order the first time, though. They're probably eating hash newtons at the warehouse.

Chiwawa via Lyman Snowfield. Saw herd of 8 goats near Spider Gap and plenty of smoke from the Chelan fire (which cleared out pretty fast after the early morning).

The Buck is all indoors; it's best to bring a good respirator.

Part of the bike/car/pedestrian problem in Seattle is that we are in a gray area in terms of both rules and politeness. Years ago, when I was a bike messenger in Boston, it quickly became clear that there was a complete absence of rules, and, because of this, no one had any expectation of consideration from other users of the sidewalks and streets. This made for much more exciting riding (which isn't for everyone) and also enabled one to get across town very quickly on a bicycle. The police presence was nonexistent and the continual construction projects made every day a bracing steeplechase. In Seattle, the combination of quasi-bike lanes, jaywalking penalties, and impatient motorists puts everyone in a different state of readiness (mostly to be pissed off at all the other people who aren't following the rules). This makes riding anywhere close to downtown simultaneously boring and dangerous. I find myself alternately angry at cyclists or pedestrians (when in a car), motorists or pedestrians (when on a bike), or motorists and cyclists (when a pedestrian). Regardless of all this, I agree heartily that Ken Schramm is a prick.

I think the N Side of Unicorn looks solid; I was talking about the grim southern route.

Main Peak of Bonanza. Unicorn Peak in the Tatoosh deserves a Dinnerplate Award.

Thanks for the TR. Went up there last summer to recon and got up toward the end of the higher spur of the logging road that heads out of Howard Creek toward the ridge that contains Cinderella. Do you just continue up that way and then traverse left toward Boot Lake? It appears you might have to descend quite a bit from the end of this spur before climbing back up onto the ridge. We also went back down the spur and headed north on the main road to see if that way would go, but it looked more obscure.

Be advised ... the Park Pub had a "makover" and no longer has cheap pints on Tuesdays. Still has lots of taps, though, including Guinness.

The Cascadian is completely snow-covered. The weather has been cold enough that much of the rock near the summit is rimed. The weather is warming up, though, so that could change. The Mtneer Creek approach is annoying, but it gets you up there pretty quickly (3-4 hrs from trailhead to toe of Sherpa/Ice Cliff). We found mostly firn-like snow with some new atop on the False/True summit ridge; you should be ready to deal with this. Two axes are a good idea; if you want more security, take a couple of pickets.

We climbed the Ice Cliff on Stuart in winter conditions: heavy snow, spindrift, high winds. It pretty much opened up just as got above the Cliff, so we decided to head up rather than down. The weather broke around 2 am so the planned bivouac became more pleasant. It's been cold up there for awhile so climbing was pretty straightforward (except for the new snow, high winds, etc). No deaths to report, however. I expect Juan will file a full TR in the days ahead.

Juan -- make sure to take a 70m rope so you're always out of range for Doug's brain teasers.

I've worn my pair almost every day for 2+ yrs. They need a new sole, but I'll bet that will cost at least 1/2 the price of a new pair. Since the uppers are breaking down somewhat, I'll probably just buy the new pair.

We were in that area about ten years ago. I don't recall much difficulty in finding or making it across the 4th class section that has achieved so much notoriety. It is a real improvement over the "down and around" alternative route. We were trying to make it to Challenger but had to settle for Whatcom Peak in deteriorating weather conditions. We high-tailed it back to our campsite (about 1 mile south of the summit of Easy Peak, right on the ridge) and sat out a spectacular electrical storm (with water under the tent, etc.) Next day, we made it all the way to the Hanegan TH in one big push.

Yeah -- this item also has no side pockets or top flap. It's light, all right, but if you are actually planning on carrying anything, you might want to use something else (aka a "pack").

Worst approach: NE Buttress of Goode, especially considering the weather closed in and we didn't get past the toe of the glacier. On the way down, we almost lost an ice tool in one of the slide alder thickets when the tool loop got yanked off a pack and we didn't notice it until several hundred feet lower. We got lucky and found the hammer, at least. Worst descent: Johannesburg. Miserably slow to get from the summit area to the SW ridge (or whatever the std up/down route is), then loose, annoying travel to CJ Col. Finally, you get to dodge rocks down the CJ couloir. This climb (NE Buttress) was 13 hrs up and 13 hrs down.

Censorship isn't the same as editing (or shouldn't be). There's a big difference between the occasional typo and a sentence that is so full of errors that it's hard to figure out what is being said. It's just plain inconsiderate to expect others to decipher a badly done offering.

Yes.... maybe, finally, cc.com is THE PLACE where all grammar and spelling errors will be magically repaired. That's one of the worst parts of internet culture: learning about the generally piss-poor mechanics of all of us who seem to ahve the time to post on these boards.

Homer Art DK Mike

What do you call two guys with no arms and legs hanging over a window? Curt an' Rod

Beckey is 81, according to the usual sources, but depending on your point of view, he is either much older (because of accelerated wear) or younger (because of so many outstanding, "timeless" life experiences) than the chronological age suggests. Marton Litton, the founder of Grand Canyon Dories, and the man David Brower credited for keeping the Bridge Creek and Marble Canyon dams from being built in Grand Canyon, is pushing 85, rowed a dory all the way through at age 80, and has rowed large stretches since then. Westgard Pass (elev ~7200 ft, I think) is on the divide between Owens Valley and Deep Springs Valley. The road up to the Bristlecones and White Mtn Peak takes off from CA Hwy 168 right at the Pass.

That's a good recommendation on the spring skiing. I've done a little in the La Sals. Nothing like climbing up through the red rock, skinning way up there into the thin air, then cruising down with the good, late afternoon desert light...