Otto

It was a really good slide show last night. I can't believe nobody else has reviewed it here, so here goes. There were wonderful photos and stories of the upper Squire Creek climbs by Chris Greyell. jmclimber and I resolved then and there to get up to Salish Peak this summer. There were background stories about all the Clear Creek crags by David Whitelaw, complete with historical photos. And a trip down memory lane for me with the photos and stories of Slab Daddy. Memorably, I got a chance to meet one of my heros, Don Brooks. I followed his white guidebook around the crags for several years, in the beginning. I showed him his bolt from the original first pitch of Silent Running he placed in 1973. If you're interested, there is a closeup of it over in the Revolver TR in the North Cascades section. It's the Leeper hanger with the little crack from the edge to the bolt hole. We had a laugh over that; he said there were nice SMC hangers available then, but not as cheaply! Whitelaw showed a great photo of Don pulling the initial overlap on that pitch on the FA. Thanks, David and the crew at Marmot Mountain Works, for an informative and enjoyable evening!

A goofy camera angle, an amused afterthought in the midst of a day of constant activity... [video:youtube]

I'm getting ready to go to Bellevue, Marmot Mountain Works, for the pictures and stories about Darrington! If you're a fellow frictioneer, I hope you are, too! Starts at 7:00 tonight!

Off_White, yes that's right, I'd wanted to try that for a long time. The trick is to always pull through enough slack, while on a good stance, to get you up to the next good stance. I was a little disappointed at how much force it took to pull the rope through the Soloist. But on easy friction pitches, there is always a knob or wave to stand on and pull rope with one hand. And yes, it would have been good to leave two chain sections on that anchor. I have them; I'll bring them to Marmot tonight to DavidW's slide show. If you're there, Off, I'll give them to you to send back up! Thanks, hope to see you (all) there! Darrington Rock slide show, Marmot in Bellevue, 7:00 tonight!

hanman, those are good notes, thanks. And of course Thanks for doing the original re-work! I know about Till Broad Daylight; I've been wanting to redo that anchor right above the Great Arch (top of third pitch) for a long time. And it's funny you should mention Magic Bus' second pitch - my partner chucK looked up at that, his turn to lead, and said No way I'm climbing that! (I went back later and climbed it to check it out, you're right, they all need replacing!) When I mentioned this to DavidW, he suggested a route even more in need of some love is Dirt Circus' second pitch. Skeptical of the anchors on that. So, that's my next objective for cleanup. Thanks for the nice comments, all!

mountainsloth, great comments, thanks! Good picture - I remember staying off that wet streak on pitch 4, I believe. Revolver, like many a beauty with an even temperment, has many suitors.

fgw, thanks for the reply. Very cool picture - that must be on the fifth (final) pitch, right? I've only been up through pitch 4. Hopefully, pitch 5 gets dry!

Scrubbing? Do tell! I haven't done the final, fifth pitch yet. Is that where it needs scrubbing, would you say?

You probably already know this if you're working with Matt. But any drilling at Three O'Clock Rock will have to be done by hand drill, as it is in Wilderness... If you're talking trail work, then it's hand tools only above the wooden sign, of course. Big thanks in advance to you guys for doing any fixup work! Three O'Clock Rocks!

Here's a closeup of the original first bolt on the first pitch. I had forgotten to take a snap of it before I pulled it out, so I tapped it back in the hole, without bending it, and shot it. In this photo, the nut sits about an eighth inch above the hanger, but it was tight in situ. Lucky I did this, as we can see more of the crack in this shot than we would have, otherwise. Anyway, it was quite a spooky little potato chip to clip first thing after pulling the initial overlap. By cascadeotto at 2010-06-16

Trip: Three O'Clock Rock - Revolver Date: 6/13/2010 Trip Report: Climb: Revolver, first two pitches Date of Climb: 6/13/2010 Trip Report: I'm in love with Revolver Prologue: In his excellent guide book to Darrington Rock, DavidW calls this route a "rusting relic climb that seemed forgotten". When chucK and I traversed under it to do Penny Lane last month, looking up Revolver gave us the same impression. The first thing we saw looking up was a rusty quarter-incher with a Leeper hanger, then three more above that! The visiting climber might never know the upper pitches had been modernized. The only clue for the climber at the base would be that ONE of the bolts at the first belay anchor, the bottom of pitch 1, was a modern stainless steel fatty. But there were still the other rusty old bolts and chain, and a single rolled aluminum rap ring! It all didn't inspire confidence, and we gladly cruised past... But it got me thinking. Here's a nice looking line, straight up the same beautiful slab of Silent Running and Total Soul, for five pitches. DavidW and Chris G. did some good work to modernize the hardware higher up. If it were modernized all the way down, it could take the population pressure off of those routes on busy summer weekends. This climb needed some (more) Love! So when my partners for Sunday all bailed, for various good reasons, I moved up to do something I've been daydreaming about since falling in love with Revolver. I'd go on up there by myself and make a pass at rebolting the bottom two pitches of the route. Before you laugh and call me a fool, ask yourself: have you never been in love with a rock climb? Climbers on Total Soul. I had no worries about my route being taken... It's forgotten! The gear assembled, almost ready to go up. First up, the base anchor at the top of the "approach pitch". The existing chain didn't even them out, so decided to drill a new hole even with the existing fatty. Next, after climbing up to the first pitch anchor, considering the options. Plenty of chain to work with. Removing the middle bolt. Prybar with custom milled 5/16" slot by Serious Gear, Seattle. Thanks, Charlie, it worked great. Drilled out one, removed one, and left one for history (off photo to the right). Fixed the ropes and rapped down to the first old pro bolt. Interesting line under the bolt hole in the hanger. The new first pro bolt of pitch 1. Should encourage nervous suitors. Moved up to the second old pro bolt. For some reason this one didn't want to pull out. Had to use all the wedge power available. Success at last. The new second pro bolt, with powder-coated Metolius stainless hanger. Jugged up to the third pro bolt. These quarter inch holes were drilling out in about 15 minutes. This hanger is stainless steel, spray painted to take the shine off, which won't last. Finally, the fourth pro bolt on pitch 1. Drilling its replacement. Or taking a break from it... The new fourth bolt on pitch 1. Another spray painted Metolius hanger. The first pitch was complete. Then a more interesting solo up the second pitch, which is a little more run out where there are fewer knobs. This is the anchor that DavidW pointed out needs replacement: a classic Engineers "three in a row". Apparently, this was the anchor of choice for the Ladder Maker Culture. Drilled out two and left the other one for history. Towards the end of the day, around 7:00, with the wind freshening and the temps dropping, I decided to get the two pro bolts on this pitch. The higher one looked to be a 5/16" buttonhead. The thicker bolt got stuck in the quarter-inch slot in my piton "tuning fork", confirming my estimate of the bolt diameter. The new stainless. Now it was about 7:45 and the clouds had gathered completely, no more sun, no blue spots in the sky. I really wanted to go down. Even more, I wanted to finish this. What hangers did I have left? Not a one, I had miscalculated. With the relief of having no decision to make, I jugged back up for the gear. In the enthusiasm of going to meet my paramour, I'd neglected to bring up any food or water up the rope. Aching, thirsty and exhausted, I was glad to rappel. Got down to the pack at 8:00 as a light rain began falling. Epilogue: As there is violence in the final pull with the prybar, there is also sweet devotion to a favorite climb. When I return, I may replace that one last bolt on pitch 2, the next-to-last one. Or, it may be left for history! Gear Notes: Static rope for nice jugging. Soloist.

I was climbing up the slope from Cascade Pass toward Mixup Peak with Marty Sorenson and group. We heard the boom, and saw a strange cloud down South, from the summit of Mixup.

Go ahead, if you like the looks of the Black Gully of Death. Isn't it rated D3... or D4?

There is a downloadable topo in the original TR by DavidW, here: http://cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=905579

Do the Town Crier and Green Drag-on, but leave your new hammer behind...

Tinfoil hats - shiny side up, or shiny side down?

Would someone kindly post a good link.

I used to do Lost Charms a lot, at Static Point, so it must be a favorite. Don't hear people talk about it much - the easiest route at a slab area! Now I like The Pillar, to Granite Jihad even more.

Kletterhund, do those have any markings on them? Thanks for posting the photo, they are cool.

No biggie! I'll bet there are a lot of folks who just prefer to leave all electronics behind when getting Out. Heck, that's probably part of their definition of Out!

Strangely devised survey. There are "carry one..." and three "have used..." but no specific choice for, "Will never bring one because they don't belong in the Wild..." "Other", indeed.

Hey, way to go! I've been wondering when someone else would go up it. Yours is the first subsequent trip I've heard of. It looks like you got an early start. That seems a requirement for doing the DIAD - Daddy In A Day! Do you think you would have been able to make it all the way down to the car if you could get water along the route? There are places to get it... Congrats!

Thanks, Lowell. It looks beautiful.

Another good collection of photos and humor, thanks again! That's one of the best pictures of a goat, ever.

Or one of those I, Anonymous rants in The Stranger