Norm

quote: Originally posted by AlpineK: Sometimes you have to take your skis off and hike. Sometimes you have to ski through trees. Damn dude that's downright profound

quote: Originally posted by trask: All I have to say is you biker dudes that go agro on strangers in cars and trucks are playin' with fire. Someday some dude will put a cap in your ass for scarin' the shit outta him. Be carefull you guys. There's a lot of seriously disturbed hombres out there these days. So would that be more or less frightening than having 1/2 ton of steel tag you at 40 MPH?

http://www.theonion.com/onion3724/bush_vows_to_remove.htmlNo really he doing this for the environment

Skis transfer your weight out over a larger surface area making it much less likely that you'll punch through. Skis are also capable of bridging smaller crevasses. Roping up on the way up allows you find hazards and mark them for the ski down. If a route is so open that I feel the need for a rope on the way down, I'll likely just bail for the comfort of a cold beer in a warm bar. I also wouldn't say that one should never go onto a glacier unroped. It's a matter of comfort level, knowledge of the area, and current conditions. On a similar note I was up on Silver Star last week and there are a couple of rather large crevasses below the headwall, which have been all but non existent in the past. I'd bet my last beer they will still be open when the highway does this spring.

Sorry, didn’t realize your question was rhetorical.

quote: Originally posted by mattp: The news anchor indicated that it was irresponsible for experienced skiers to be out skiing when the avalanche hazard was rated "considerable." Yes, Freshies can kill, but isn't the hazard rated "considerable" just about any time there is enough new show for powder skiing? Is it wrong to go out and enjoy that new snow? I've had some good runs in deep powder on big open slopes when the hazard was "considerable" or even "high" and backed off some of those same slopes shen it was rated only "moderate." The avalanche forecast does not apply to every slope in the mountains (unless it's just dumped multiple feet and is raining up to 8,000 feet). There are a whole host of localized contributing factors. Wind being a major one. If your wide open slope has features around it to protect it from wind and prevent it from becoming loaded it'll likely be safe to ski, while other wind loaded slopes are too dangerous to look at. As for the folks who got caught, from what I've heard through mutual friends they we're fairly savvy, but even the most experienced people make fatal mistakes which are especially easy to point out in the easy illumination of hindsight. I say raise a couple of beers to them and their's and as always….be careful out there

Yeah, I've seen similar results skiing back there. It’s one of the reasons I tend to head to that area when the forecasted danger’s sketchy, hence my interest. I’ve heard and seen evidence of the steeper chutes running on the North side but never on the South face just above the parking lot. I’m wondering if it was that face or the South facing avalanche slope down the ridge past the radio tower.

I've heard a couple of rumors about a slide on a south facing aspect near heather/skyline ridge yesterday (1/21). Anyone got any beta?

While I whole-hartedly agree that not taking chances and not getting caught is the best defense against avalanches, and that considering avy beacons as a body recovery device is not a bad beginning premise, consider this. If you or your partner is not FUBAR’d by trauma from getting maytagged down the slope and not buried so deep that they’re crushed by the snow, and did manage to keep their mouth from filling with snow, they have about 10 minutes of air. A beacon could make the difference between life and death. Think of them as seatbelts in a car. Just because you’re wearing one doesn’t mean you’re going to survive a heinous wreck, but it does improve your chances. The one mitigating point is that beacons require constant and vigilant practice. Just because you took a course two years ago doesn’t mean you’re good now. You should practice regularly (several times a season and against a clock. Try and get down to less than 5 minutes. All that being said. Make smart choices and don’t get caught

As trite as it may sound and even considering the original poster was whining about the rain; I've got to go with Seattle. Yes you have to commute to the mountains to play but:You can actually find more appealing work than selling soft serve to tourists.Your boss might actually believe you if you tell him/her that you need 5 weeks off to go to Alaska or you’ll quitYou don't have to live next to brain dead redneck troglodytes.You can ski year roundThe coastal snowpack is inherently more stable than the continental snowpack (not that we don’t have periods of extreme avalanche danger, rather that we have more days of moderate avalanche danger.)North Cascades National Park (3 hours)Leavenworth (2.5 hours)Squamish, Whistler, and Lillioet are all reasonable weekend tripsPlenty of good beerThere are single women here As for some of the other posts SLC: That place still feels like a back lot from the set of "The Stepford Wives", and whoever came up with the idea that a 3.2 IPA was ok should be taken out back and beaten Bend: Bachelor’s flat a pancake and you get to huff snowmobile exhaust on most of your tours.

Do you wake up at 5 AM for the alpine start for ice climbing and rock climbing when it is not necessary?I've been known to. (Primarily to avoid crowds) Do you eat healthy foods? Occasionally Do you avoid big macs, whole barns etc?Big Mac's Suck: Red Mill on the other hand Rocks Do you refuse beer in large quantities the night prior to climbing?>6 Probably <6 No Are you a non Smoker yep Do you climb 5.12 or WI5?If I can't gorillia through it, I probably can't climb it, and I spend way too much time on my boards to know what WI5 is, but I'm pretty sure it's above my abilities. Do you wear spandex Only on the bike Are you missing a beer gut?Not since I was about 4 Do you tape your hands to crack climb every time?Nope Do you decline weed?Usually. Pot just makes me want to shut myself up in a room, listen to the Alman Brothers, and play Tetris Do you train for climbing?Have to keep the beer gut from dunlopping over the harness. It's either train or quit drinking beer, and the latter just ain't gonna happen.

The last hootenanny for the NWAC was still going strong when I took off around midnight

I've got enough sense not to even attempt to date women who don't ski tour and alpine climb from the get go, but still it never fails; six months down the road they all start griping about my mantra of only doing in town stuff when the weather's to crappy to get out. So sorry icegirl but any gear I'm not currently using is size XL and covered in ducttape

One month into relationship "I think it's great that you get out all the time. I wish I could get out more" Six months into relationship "I don't care that the weather’s finally clearing. I want to stay in town this weekend" Ten Months; end of relationship "If you want to keep going out with me, you’re going to have to spend a lot less time in the mountains"

This Friday in Freemont

I made the switch from point and shoot to SLR about a year ago, and the quality of my photos went way up. I've found that used older SLR technology works well and is available cheap (body and lens ~$200). I’ve got Nikon 4004 which is a bit clunky heavy but can be set on idiot proof, and a Nikon FG (mostly manual with light meter) which is fairly light and compact even with a 35-70 mm lens. As for taking shots while climbing/ skiing with a manual camera, it’s not that hard you just need to get you shot set up before your subject climbs/skis into the field.

When: January 11th 8pm Where: Fremont Unconventional Center, 160 N Canal St (the old Red Hook cold storage bldg) What: Malted and unmalted beverages, music, friends, dancing, powder grins, gear raffles, thanks and praises $10 donation suggested - all proceeds benefit the NW Avalanche Center

A file works well to sharpen the front ponts I've got the sabertooths and like them for the tele boots, primarily because the bail can be set so the front points extend beyond the toe tab. I've goofed around on vertical ice in them and found them to suffice. They're no good for 3/4 shank leather mountaineering boots (no safety strap). I think the Grivels are a better all-round crampon, but not as well suited for tele boots my $0.02

I learned on an F2 switched to an F1 (F2 died), and then picked up a Tracker, after seeing how fast novices picked up how to use it. Although the Tracker has half the range of the F1, once you've got a signal you're dialed in. I've found in competetive searches people with trackers spend a little more time running around trying to pick up a signal then immeaditly home in to do the fine search, while those with the F1 are still working out thier large grid. One other thing to consider about range: Staying away from large slides is easy; it's the little ones you've realy got to be careful of.

Ortavox Dachstein Mitts. They're ~$30 and toasty. OK so they leave you with about as much didgital dexterity as a seal, but they're cheap and warm. I mostly use them skiing/ mountaineering. I've used them ice climbing and been happy with the results. No need for the shell they are acutally warmer once a layer of rhime forms around the exterior of the glove, although this does make cleaning up after a face plant somewhat tricky.

Assuming the forecast is correct, the cold front moving in tomorrow should do a lot to stabilize the snow pack and calm down the slide paths crossing the highway. (Not to mention produce better skiing conditions) It’s been my experience that the DOT tries to keep highway 20 open into December if the avalanche conditions permit. Two weeks ago there was roughly 6 feet at treeline up by Blue Lake, and the upper bowls looked fairly filled in. Questionable stability kept us lower down in the larches. If the Highway’s open I’ll be there. and for the record...I almost never smoke (just like beer better)Don't care if anyone else doesAnd think that it's rude to light up in a hut with out offering it up and making sure other folks are copecetic with it

As much as I love the NWAC I don't know if I can sit through another movie chock full o' kids ruining their edges sliding along rails while the latest in poser punk pop blares in the background. The only decent part of the TGR flick the NWAC showed last year was Doug Coombs carving graceful turns down a gnarly Chugach face while Sabbath played in the background. Ironically Coombs was also the only skier in the flick to bother with any sluff management.

~3 feet of fresh with face shots up by Blue Lake on Friday (OK so snow only hit my face while deep in the tele turn but hey I'm countin it)

I've had mine for about a year and so far have broken a pole and put two small holes in the wall. The light floor is fine. I'm 6'4" and just barely fit into the XL. The pole broke while I was setting it up in a storm with ~30 mph winds, however, I've ridden out some nasty storms with it set up and never had problems. The corner seams have to be seam sealed or it will leak in a down-pour. The floor material seems to be bomb proof the side walls are much less so. Using the stuff sack to protect it in the pack seems to be a necessity. In general it's a good tent once set up, but you have to baby it in the interm. I bought it because it was cheaper than the Bibler and my Integral Designs bivy sack has never let me down.

The Washington Alpine Clubs Backcountry Travel Course is about 1/3 Avalanche Course. Info at washingtonalpineclub.org. It's also a good way to troll for back country partners and encompasses skiers, snowshoers and knuckle draggers.