genepires

try using a bachmann hitch next time.

In the photo, they were already started cleaning it off. Would not be suprising if they get it cleared off by the weekend. It is not like that monster rock fall near newhalem some years back. that was MAJOR.

PM sent on rock shoe.

no jab meant towards the mammut rope. I just thought my wording was implying that I thought mammut ropes were the best for glacier ropes when what I meant was that any double 50m was the best for glacier ropes. I have never owned a mammut rope but I am sure that they are great ropes as most of their stuff is great stuff. they prolly don't want their glacier ropes (or any double/twin line) used as a single for the reason that those ropes are more prone to being cut over an edge. Hence the need for two strands. There are very little cutting edges on a glacier and the forces are considerably less, so you can get away with using it in a single fashion. This is true for all rope manufacturers.

noticed something to consider for single person rescue situation. if the weight is being held by the micro trax, you would not be able to take it off your harness and clip it to the snow anchor. you would have to clip the picket sling to your locker, ease off and hope that you clipped it in a location that you can get yourself out of that locker. If your micro trax locker was clipped directly into the belay loop, this would be even more difficult. that micro trax seems like a very efficient and light piece of gear though. perfect for glacier travel rescue.

I don't want to speak for how keenwash uses microtraxions during simu-blocks, but there was a technique for using tiblocs in simuclimbing. The tibloc is placed on the gear so that when the second person falls, the force is not pulling on the lead climber but right onto the gear. If the first person falls, it becomes a standard simu fall. Maybe he is using the micro in the same way, not on his harness.

not sure what you are using for cord, but the 6mm cord runs at 22g/m and with your lengths it runs into 176grams. they outline most every possible use of their gear but there is a chance that some possible uses are neglected. But they do explicitly write about not using it in a way to shock load the rope. Setting up a z pulley system with a device should not shock load anything. falling on it will which is why you don't see that option discussed. I am curious though how you can ascend a rope with only the micro traxion and a basic ascender. shouldn't you need some kind of cord to attach the basic to a foot?

that is the perfect rope for glacier travel. (the 50m half rope part, not sure if the mammut is the best rope) I assume that it is dry treated. if not, then it is not a good glacier rope. a twin would be fine too. what an interesting way to get a rope. Was your friend uber paranoid?

for a 2 person rope team, I have been using a system that I haven't heard of. Instead of a standard prussik between my harness and the rope, I used a short cordellete to make a single strand munter mule on a locker with a loop on the end to use for the prussik wraps. I wrapped it up with a little bit of cloth tape to keep it from accidentally coming undone while tromping around. If my partner falls in deep into the crevasse, I simply unclip the locker from my belay loop and clip it onto the snow anchor to get the weight off me. when I put in another snow anchor with the equalization between the two, I can release the munter mule and lower the rope till the weight is on the equalized anchor. Is it overkill? probably. But then caring metal ascending gear is probably too. hopefully you never get a chance to see if your setup is any better or worse than standard prussiks in real life.

putting the pulley with rope onto the biner holding the prussik is not that hard. at least when using a standard prussik. may be harder when using a mechanical device for a prussik. standard waist and foot prussik (texas kick system) are already on the rope and ready to go also without the need for more gear. while being nice, the Basic and traxion weight more than cord. Less is more,especially for something as infrequent as a crevasse fall. why is the unit rated to 4kn while the pulley rated to 15kn? Is that the force that the teeth part breaks away from the unit? what force does the teeth of the traxion cut into the rope? (that in itself could be the major downfall of your system) If petzl doesn't explicitly describe the use for this, there must be a good reason.

damn. very very proud. At first thought, I was guessing that angels crest and squamish buttress would be on that list. F that thought, grand wall and 2 burly (for moist people) aid lines.

+1 to going to canadian rockies. much better & reliable ice to climb on. But if you must stay around here, there are tons of winter lines to do. Winter adds a layer of difficulty to everything so just about every valley has a good beginner winter line in it. For example, find any ole peak that is reasonable accessible, and pick the easiest line on it. Voila, you have a good winter route to try. Since you are in seattle, I would suggest you tromp all over the snoq pass area. Try bryant peak, the tooth, hemlock and even the descent route on chair. ( I once saw some of the thickest WA ice ever in that gulley) Guye has tough routes on the south side too. Snoqualmie pk. McClellan butte. Abiel. Silver. Ect. There must be enough routes to do from the alpental parking lot to keep a beginner alpinist busy for a couple years. Just have to get beyond the select guides and look into the beckey guides. Dallas Kloke once published a winter climbing guide to western wa and the premise was that smaller neglected peaks made fine winter objectives. If you can find someone who would print you a copy of that, you would be set up for decades of winter suffering.

nice!

if you are having fun, do it. how about ride the bike to the rock gym and get built all around?

if you finish the total soul or silent running and you got more energy to burn, do a quickish run up the old time classic "the kone" or meander around on the big tree routes. see a recent matt p tr for some photo stoke on this area.

one concern is having enough friction with the small diameter rope. other is resistance to cutting on edges. thin ropes have less resistance. you could use very very skinny ropes but have to be prepared for both of these concerns.

I swear I see lots of old ski tracks in the camp sherman photo. do the climbing rangers still ski on patrol? I thought they stopped doing that due to command decision from upper management.

most glacier routes on rainier should be fine. I would imagine that liberty ridge is way out, unless you are real badass and enjoy rocks hurtling at ya. DC and emmons all summer. descend fisher chimneys for shuksan if you have done that route before. If not, maybe a run up the fisher chimneys is a good idea. it is a fine route and prolly much much better than the price glacier. If you are wanting to do the price because if its inclusion in the 50 classics, well then you may want to rethink that choice. west ridge of forbidden will be snow free unless there is a freak snowstorm while you are on route. even then it will melt off as soon as the sun comes out. as for other routes you may enjoy, tell us what you like. alpine rock, alpine ice, road side, long long approaches, ect, ect

awesome job Clint! going where most all fear to tread. no AK expert but is the phantom wall really just prep for moonflower? phantom wall is badass and certainly done less frequently! is the phantom wall technically easier but more exposed to hazards?

is much of the west ridge like this photo? looks real nice. Is this part past where the stuart glacier coulour connects in?

I can't wear less than my soft shell pants and a tshirt, but I think a headband is in order to stop sweat from getting to my face. there are different types of softshells. I have a real thin pair of arct$$$$$ryx pants that I use in fairly warm conditions. Also, maybe a thin nylon pant which the leg zip off might be a good option. Tank tops too. cheap cotton bandanas are critical for me too in the summer. good luck. maybe you should look into glasses which the side shields come off for when you don't really need them which is most of the time.

the unpleasant answer is that you will have to try the bag and see if it works for you. Some people sleep "hot". Luckily, I can get by with one of those liner bags (50 degree) for most of the non winter times. No way to know till you try and succeed or shiver. the 40 degree bag sounds like a good option though. I have a FF lightweight something bag (non vero) and I like it alot too.

if you can compress the compression sack more than it allows, try a smaller compression sack. if the compartment section won't come out, use a knife and get it out. those things just make packing a pack hard. And to be honest, I am suprised that osprey put one in theirs. a compartment for a sleeping bag is a bad sign. Dans designs used ot have one but it was easy to remove and replace. another question. why have such a warm bag? there are very few places where that bag is needed.

hot damn!

was thinking about the "mowing". is there a hand held tool that can be bought or rent that can do the job? I was jokingly imaging a chainsaw attached to either side of a big truck and laying waste to the small alders and bushes. But maybe walking along the road and holding a chainsaw or better tool to cut it all down. It is only about 5 miles than need the pruning. wait....that would be both sides...10 miles of cutting.