plexus

Let me know what you end up doing and what's worth while. Heading down to Yosemite/Touloume in a week and a half. Have fun.

Being a newspaper reporter I can honestly tell you guys, when it comes to climbing, media doesn't have a friggin' clue. They mess up facts, lot of times call them "hikers". Reporters are lazy, they will take things for face value without checking it up. This isn't jut with climbing scenarios, this is with all avenues. Do yourself a favor, never talk with a reporter (unless its me of course ), 9 times out of 10 you will be misquoted. This is of course a generalization, but there are very few competent reporters out there and rule of thumb is, radio is worst, TV is a close second and newspapers are the best of a sad bunch.

Lambone, If you had wands, would you have felt confident to try to get off the mountain? Now to the important question you didn't answer..... What flavor Cliff bars were they?

Curious if there is snow up there on the approach or am I going to be scree skiing back down? Also which would you do and why, Big Kangaroo and Melted Tower or standard route on Kangaroo Temple?

Welcome back!! And you thought the mountain was dangerous, be careful of the E. Coli from the burger !! Seriously, glad the three of you are better than worst, and you have not reached gaper status for being able to only get "911" thru on the cell. Just get back on the horse this weekend Cheers !!

Bouldered at Mount Erie on Sunday and today. Not a drop fell from the sky either day. Gotta love the rain shadow of the San Juans .

Not died but just cowered away with my tail inbetween my legs and a carabiner left for a lower off as I received encouragement, "You can do that. IT doesn't look that hard." Only to find out halfway up that the friggin 5.11 is way beyond my range. Cheers

Dyno, Going to go back to developing sandbagged routes at Glacier and Bat Caves or are you solely bouldering now?

Climbed into a praying position with my toilet after bout of food poisoning. NEED TO LOSE WEIGHT FAST?! IT's the latest craze! Food Poisoning!! Lose 5 pound in one day! Trim your tummy line and strengthen your abs!! Call now and we'll add completely free of charge a fever, clod sweats and one hell of a headache too!!

Thanks and enjoy your vacation. Beware of Snafflehound-toting grizzlies

Dru, Where's the best place to get pitons for a good price up north of the giant fence? I thought the rock climbing store in Squamish had some good prices, better than anything I've found down here. How about MEC? Need some LA and KB for my alpine rack. Gracias por tu ayuda

quote: Originally posted by Dru: Right on lets chip, drill and glue them into national sport climbing prominence!! Isn't that what t hey are already trying to do down at Exit 32 and Exit 38? Darin, where is the world's softest sandstone? I thought that Chuckanut Sandstone was the stuff that they use to make Casa Que Pasa tortillas ? Bham boulderers can keep their Larabee. I'd rather take a drive to some real rock.

On Mt Baker Hwy, the other Italian restuarant, with the good pizza, is more west of Glacier, near Demming. The bad, do not, I repeat do not eat at the drive-in burgerstand in Concrete . Buffalo Run and the Ice Cream caboose in Marblemount are better options.

Hahaha. Actually you forgot to capitalize the 'M' on Mountaineer!

The prefered route is the NE ridge, 150 feet of loose down below but real nice climbing above. Route is snow free but the snowpatch leading up to the ridge is more like 45 degrees than the 30 degrees that is written, with a nasty collision of rocks eminent if you slide. Can be down car to car but more enjoyable as overnighter, then you can through in Corteo Peak on your first day on the south route (class 3 exposed) and then do Black Peak the next day. Enjoy.

Asked about them before...don't bother...aparently they are crappy-ass Chuckanut sandstone shiite.

After hearing about my friend's trip on the South Twin on Sunday night, I decided that T and I needed to do some unfinished business on the southern end of the Twin Sisters Range. Last May we pulled up 50 feet in elevation and 250 short of te summit due to my getting frostbite toes, lack of daylight and seriously deteriorating weather (we couldn't see the summit rocks anymore). Made our way up the road at 1 p.m. got to the creek that a year ago, I fell through the snowbridge and tweaked my knee (it was 2 months before it stopped hurting). Made way up brush, using game trails that were favored by bears (plenty of scat, tree markings). Up easy ridge and got to the boulder field and saddle between Last and Step Sister. Climbed two small towers in he saddle, traversed over, climbed solid face (Class 3-5.4) for one rope length. Topping out is tough due to bunch of loose crap. Next pitch is Class 3 up to a slopping shelf that is the garbage dump for the mountain, piles of loose shit and dirt all over the place . At this point you are just to the south of Cupid Tower. Head up twin cracks to arete on to summit blocks (80 feet, 5.6). For those not familiar with the range, the rock is absolutely wonderful and like many of the other peaks (Cinderella, Nancy, Barbara) in the range, you can make many different variations. The final summit pyramid had at least four different Class 5 routes on it, including a beautiful overhanging hand crack. Also the West face, which is a good spring climb with Class 4 and up to 60 degree snow, is merely a Class 2-3 walk-up on heather and boulders now. We used that for our decent, a few snowpatches remaining. The only down part were the mosquitos were enormous and couldn't drink enough of our blood. That and we left some gear at the beginning of the climb. So we had to traverse over and I had to climb up the boulderfield once more. Only animal encounter was a grouse that chased after us hissing (probably protecting a nest). Plenty of bear and cougar scat and elk hoofprints. Last May T and I had a huge black bear run from us and climb a tree. Amazing to see this huge beast climb better and faster than me !! Go check out the Twin Sisters Range when you can. It's my fourth trip into there and I always am treated by some great rock.

First mountain (at least that I count, because hiking up the Sandias in NM just doesn't count) would be Denny Peak sans ice ax on steep slope. And then traversed over and became one of the millions to gaze at the vista from the summit of Das Toof

Lowell, did you happen to take a look at Gunsight Notch by any chance? Thanks for the info.

As long as you stay away from the exhilarating faces of that classic line known to many as "Das Toof" on Monday

Ragged Ridge at least Kitling and New Morning Peaks, Blackbeard, Fisher, and Larabee

Anything beginning with "Peak" and followed by a number.

Just got back and that drive back jut lulls you into a stupor. Anyways on to the improtant stuff. New Morning Peak is the eastern most peak on Ragged Ridge. At a modest altitude of 7,230 feet, I thought it would be the perfect little thimble to take my friend up for his first mountain. After all in the Green Beckey Bible, it reads that the peak is "a hike from the west side". Unfortunately getting to the west side isn't a hike, or more pointedly, it is hike with a bushwack. Anyways went up to Easy Pass (nice snow, could use crampons early in day to save your calves), the peak is to the north of the pass. Go upslope on alternating snow, scree and heather, 600 feet to the ridge crest (which I limped up because I forot to put moleskin on, friggin blister). The first part of the traverse to the peak is "merely a hike" until a small col in the ridge (BTW, my friend is at the starting point at this point, too tired to continue on). Drop down to the col and cross steep snow and scramble back up to the ridge crest. Stay just below and to the east of the ridge for your best travel. After the col, the terrain takes on a Class 4 character. While the exposure is not bad, the rock quality is. Fortunately there is solid rock where you would want it most. Keep going along the crest until it meets up with a redish, scree bowl. Get back on the ridge proper to the final shoulder below the west face. That is where I turned around as the winds picked up and I was getting pelted with snow and sleet. The face looks to be Class 4 to low 5th. Fun little traverse but I would have felt a little better with a rope and some slings to toss around some of the ridge spires on the traverse after the col. The northwest and north sides looked like Class 3-4. On the way back was greeted by a couple of marmots. Nice to see those big little buggers again, a true sign of summer. Hope everybody else had a good holiday. Cheers

Nice Edward Abbey quote

Hold on here...Off White, you just made a rational, reasonable post. Aren't those prohibited from this newsboard . Actually you made good points. Why bother categorizing everything? I would say a majority of climbers climb both (even though many won't admit to clipping bolts). I used to be a staunch anit-bolter but after spending five months in Mexico, where 95% of the climbing is either bolted or bouldering, I learned to appreciate the "sport" aspect more. It is a different animal but not completely...maybe a subspecies. I think there is a place for both as long as people have a respect for the wilderness and the aesthetics of the line. Just my op on a very slow night at work.