MtnHigh

The heat on those slabs can be intense. Climbed Silent Running late Saturday afternoon. It was warm at the start, but by 4pm the sun hid itself and the climb was great. Attempted to climb Dreamer on Sunday, but bailed after 4 pitches due to being on the wrong line. And by that time (11am) it was an oven up there. My finger tips and feet were burning.

The next time I climb Hood I'm going to do it on roller skates, wear a dress and some jewelry. That way I'm assured first ascentionist status in that category.

Hey Bill, would you include an abstract at the beginning of your posts for us attention deficit types

This is what a forced Winter bivvy looks like 9 hours into it.

A few souls braved the Winter confines of Portland and made it over to the party. Hope everyone made it home OK. Bill doing impersonations Chris just before he passed out Mike grading Russ' Alpistist 16 article submission Zac getting nowhere by flipping Katheryn the bird Paul enjoying the smell of his own fart Butch has his own way to party

That's awesome guys. Can't let Steve keep the Wallows to himself.

man that's a relief. You were getting so stressed out about it that Butch was freakin'

turn right at the McDonalds go for a while turn left at Plaid Pantry Go past the big fir tree Listen for toxicated howling climber follow your nose to the keg

A few generous folks offered to bring snacks, so an assortment of munchies will be available. Thanks much. Help me curb my drinking problem. If the turnout is good and the kegs get polished off I will not be tempted to empty them myself over the weekend.

Sub category submissions Who has the most black toe nails Who has the most missing toe nails

There's gonna be fir-sure a 1/4 keg of Rogue Dead Guy and a second 1/4, but what I have not decided. TG's smallest quantity is a 1/2. Sorry TG lovers and Steve. Any suggestions on the 2nd keg????????

Bring on the home spun choss food. We'll need something to soak up the beer. I suggest keeping your stick clippin', grid boltin', prana viewin', epic Smith adventure slides at home. They might not be well received by hardman Layton-wannabe crowd.

I'm finally in 'the club'. Chris, spread the keg word around your posse. I'm a little late on the communications part.

There are too many reasons to have a keg of beer in the house. Here are a few reasons: Belated and upcoming birthdays to celebrate My physical therapist recomends drinking over other forms of activity Cuse it's what we do in Portland Where: Pete and Mike's When: Thurdays 3/9 The keg will be flowing by 7.

A few weeks ago I exchanged a cheap pair of REI ski poles. One pole would not extend. No questions asked, they credited me the full price. I walked out with a better pair of Leki poles.

Instead of AK we might boat down to Columbia or Brazil to load up on provisions. Or I might use the travel money as entry fees into a Vegas poker tournament. Or I'll throw a party at my house and get everyone drunk. So many options.

This Winter has been tough on me. Broken left leg in Dec, chronic rotator cuff issues, frostbite and an ankle sprain in Feb. I'm getting to old for this shit. Eric and John started the climb Saturday around 2am. Bill and I exited the bivvy cave Sunday around 6:30am. Hence, the 4 of us converged near the top.

Climb: Big Four-Spindrift Coulior Date of Climb: 2/18/2006 Trip Report: The climb We left Portland late Friday evening and started the climb as soon as we arrived at the gated road early Saturday morning. The gate is ~1 1/2 miles from the trailhead. Starlit skies, no wind and frigid temps. Perfect weather. Happy Bill Getting through the lower cliff band is not technical. Stay to the far right. Just some steep treed terrain. Once you gain the lower basin it's a long rising left traverse on rock hard snow. Easy going. The lower third of the route was excellent hard snow bisected by short patches of deep sugar. There is one pitch of WI3 followed by 400' of perfect 50-60 degree neve'. This puts you at what the book claims to be the crux. Lower Third of the route The crux pitch in the middle of the route is a ~100' of 70-90 degree semi-rotten ice. WI4 Xish. Bill place two screws within a foot of each other 40' feet from the belay, the only pro on the pitch. He banged in an iffy pin and a worthless picket 180' from the belay for the anchor. This turned out to be the typical anchor on the route. Following the crux is a long section of deep 40-50 degree sugar. We had enough of the deep sugar crap so ~800 from the top we decided to leave the normal Spindrift route and try a line to the right. After a couple of sketchy leads, one WI5X we knew that daylight was soon to pass. Lucky we found a sheltered bivvy, a small cave created by an over hanging rock with a bush draping over it. The night was 12 hours of sleepless shivering. The cave was cramped, but there was enough room for one person to stand erect, the other hunched and the bottom was big enough for both of us to lay down with our legs sharing the middle. Laying down only made us colder, so we spent most of the night standing, stamping our feet and exercising our ankles to ward off frozen digits. Bill had a pound of horsecock, a block of sharp cheddar and 5 smokes. They made the night bearable. The night in the cave was our second night of no sleep. The Cave The next morning we rapped back down to the Spindrift couloir and finished the proper route. The upper 1/4 of the route offered 400' of 50-60 degree perfect stick neve' which gave way to 400' of shit sugar. The final pitch to get over the corniced ridge was a sphincter clenching xperience. We brought a shovel head to dig our way through it, but we picked out a weakness that had the least amount of over-hanging snow. Eric's pic of the top pitch A team (John and Eric) was on our tails near the top. They caught up to us half way down the NW ridge. They used our raps catching us; they set the raps lower down. The four of us finished the descent together. Thanks much for sharing the raps and the navigation help. The Big Fuss on Big Four I underestimated route. I left instructions with my grandparents that we would call them by noon on Sunday letting them know that we were off the mountain. They called the Snohomish County sheriff's office right at noon. The Sheriff called the Rangers. The Sheriff copper flew over us around 3pm as we were descending the NW ridge. At the time we were rapping in a treed area. The chopper came back 30 minutes later when we were in an open area. They lowered a radio to us. We let them know that all was OK and I asked them to call my family back with word. Waiting for us near the ice caves with a pit fire were the Search and Rescue team. We walked out the trail together. To top off our adventure just a 1/4 mile from the trailhead I slipped on the icy trail. I twisted my ankle. I could not put weight on it. The S&R team hauled my sorry ass to the car. Many thanks. Agian, many thanks to the Search and Rescue folks who waited for us and the Snohomish Sheriff for the chopper check in. The Final Chapter It was now 10pm Sunday, Bill and I had been awake for 64 continuous hours. While driving to Granite Falls I noticed that Bill was driving 20 mph. I said to him, 'hey what's up man?' He was zombied out behind the wheel. I convinced him that it would be safer for me to drive into Everett with a sprained right ankle than him sleeping. At the motel room I was the first to pull off the boots. I had 6 black toes. Bill's toes were black as well. Two days later my toes turned red. This is good. I'll save mine. Bill's are another story. His big toes are still black four days later. Gear Notes: Pickets, screws, and tools Approach Notes: The road is gated 1-1.5 miles from the trailhead.

All is OK for Bill and me. We had to bivvy Saturday night ~600 from the top. Shivvered for 11 hours in a cave. Started climbing again in the morning and topped out Sunday at noon. Around 3pm on the descent the Snohomish County sherrif's chopper flew over, dropping us a radio. We let them know that we were OK and asked them to call my family back. John and Eric, thanks for the team work on the descent. The last rap over the cliffs in the dark was a spicy finish. Many thanks to the Search and Rescue folks who waited for us near the ice caves and to the Snohomish County sherrif's office for checking on us. All very cool folks.

Prior to the Kashmir film benefit Wednesday night we should gather at the Moon and Six Pence. It's just a block away. 2014 NE 42nd Ave

I can't make the pre-party thingy at Lane's but I'll be at the show. See ya all there.

bump

Chris, Thanks for your personal support, the support of CRAG for this worthy cause and beating me to the bump.

Trolling for stupid answers?