crazy_t

on the divergent/diversive note, the 70's Lange "It's soft inside" poster. A guy in Aspen has had them printed again, I hadn't seen that in 25-30 years!

Hendrix, no contest at all.

Neptune Mountaineering vote #3. Call them, you'll see. The best gear shop in the US, go in and check out the "museum". As mentioned, Boulder Canyon (shortest drive from Denver, besides Hwy 6 ice btw Golden and I-70), Lincoln Falls, Vail, RMNP of course. Boulder Canyon, Hwy 6 (Clear Creek) and Lincoln Falls are all 5 minute max approaches.

That is solid. Thanks for the pics!

Epic pics!

Boulder has definitely gotten "funnier" in recent years, almost a parody of itself in some ways socially, but the land and the climbing (and the convenience to all that good stuff) is always the epic reality. Living in the "Swiss Chalet" on the cliff in Eldo spoiled me for good. There are still a lot of good people in the area too, but over the years the balance of the vibe/focus shifted from a nature focus to a $ focus, like a lot of other places too. Bummer. And more on Spicoli- he is a climber and a snowboarder!

Sorry, I thought I smelled some indirect CO slandering, which I see a lot here and annoys me. I enjoyed a lot of years living in Boulder, Eldo, CB and Aspen area, have a connection to the land there and miss it. But it's good here too. Slander in general is something I'm not that into, so yeah I agree that the blogger is barking up the wrong tree. Steve House's achievements speak for themselves, and he has by example raised the bar for everyone, along with sharing his techniques/gear/training/mindset which as an ongoing body of work has value and is inspirational, not to mention his climbs which bring it all together and show the truths he has gained through work and experience. I've never met him, but am cheering him on from my small corner. I have met Bruce Miller though, he always seemed pretty rational and his climbing was very solid; I hope things are cool between them by now. It's kind of like Krakauer writing about Everest (to pick an example); it's folly for me or anyone else who was not a direct party in such (or any) events to comment or make judgement upon the players at hand.

in unrelated drift.. I know the real "Spicoli", the model for the movie character. He's a friend of mine, went to high school w/ Cameron Crowe (who wrote the screenplay). He's still a serious character, but now a 50 y.o. father of two in commercial real estate! Still a sick surfer, though and one of the funniest people I have ever met.

what's your point about Colorado?

Thanks guys!

(Weekend of 9-16/17) Wondering if there's new snow up there, if so how high/much. Thanks for your time! I may go up this week, if so I'll post conditions.

Thanks, Paul, just what I was looking for. Do you think backcountry snow is worth messing with, or is it more a groomers-only reality? Regardless, I'll probably go up on your schedule and get back earlier than I had originally hoped, which suits the homefront reality well.

Hey people, has anyone been skiing around the pass the last couple of days? I had kind of ruled out a morning session due to this weeks temps, but wondered if anyone had been up there. I read the Tooth TR 5/16, and would be wanting to be skinning by 6:30 am so I can be back to town late am and beat the warming. Thanks in advance for any info!

http://www.pilgrim-tours.com/forum/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=51 It's like a huge, higher altitude and colder way to camp Muir up there, with less landmarks and no shelter on most of the upper mountain. That's awful news.

With Rainier, a good rule (especially if you don't have much experience) is to go when the forecast is pretty stellar. 3 days high pressure, etc. Of course a lot of people coming from out of town have limited time, leading to more pressure to make something happen even if the weather is shitty. Talk with your group about a classic NW backup plan for bad weather on this side: look into Silver Star as a second option. Weather will be at least 50% better most of the time, and will get you guys on a glacier (albeit w/o much crevasse action) and some alpine terrain, in a beautiful setting. Of course it's always tempting to say "hey, we'll go for Shurman, then see what happens (and sometimes you get a nice clearing up high even when it's shitty below, you never really know)" but if there is a crap forecast, you'll likely suffer and be wet for 3 days then go home. Having a backup like this takes a little of the pressure off, reducing the risk of making bad decisions, and in the case of crap weather on the west side you could be climbing snow and rock in the sun among beautiful peaks. Just a thought; you may have climbed it already during your course. Good luck!

Re: eye issues, the guy I was climbing with hadn't had RK, + was wearing glacier glasses the whole time. I'd heard of it happening before too, but 1st time I had seen it. 13000'. But back to the original post... Less is more, esp. re: weight, and if you have less you tend to use less. But think about your experience, your team's: how much experience do you have navigating on a crevassed glacier in a whiteout, in blowing snow, on a big rounded volcano? Sometimes you just have to hunker down, if it comes to it what would you do? Balance between staying light enough to not blow out your energy preparing for hell to freeze over, yet having a few things that will make the difference in you being able to survive a night out vs. having no options. Like knelson says, you are a group of 4, with a little extra gear between you still light loads but a lot of insurance.

always puts the mind at ease and relaxes the muscles... that is, knowing that you have everything you need for a cozy bivy if needed

I've seen it too, in one eye guy's vision worsened until he couldn't see out of one, and the other was weak. Resolved with descent and time. Later saw that he had ruptured some blood vessels in the one eye.

South Platte (CO) is very tasty.

The above, plus a little extra food, shovel blade and one of those super light Ortovox emergency bivy sacks that can fit 2 people.

A few things: If you can, sleep at the trailhead (Paradise or WR) the night before the climb, and maybe make a hike w/o packs up 1000' and pack down, to aid acclimatization and sleeping. Definitely start very early for Muir/Shurman. Snow will be in much better shape, meaning less energy expended. You will get up to Muir/Shurman sooner, getting you a good spot if that is an issue, and giving you a full day to hydrate and relax. But the big reason for the early start is that you won't be exposed to so much heat. I have seen many times people taken out by the mix of altitude, exertion and heat. Avoid that and go early, and go slow. As far as the diamox, a lot of people feel it's better to not take it. If you are allergic to sulfa drugs, definitely don't take it. Do some research and make your own choice. If you do choose to take it, break the 250mg tabs into 1/4s, which you can either take once before sleep, or 2x a day, in the am and at night. It's generally agreed that you'll get the same acclimatization benefits with the lower dose, with less of the diuretic effects. An additional day at camp is always a good idea. You can also go for a short climb up the route that morning, to aid in acclimatization and to make the start of the next day more known. Have fun!

Thanks!

Does anyone know how far you can get up the road these days (Easton etc approach)?

I'm with this Bill guy. You figure a night out at a (generally) sport-climbing area due to your own error might foster some humility for someone else who was having a tough time. But then, I don't know you and what was going on and wasn't there, so can't really judge you, eh?

from Tatoosh Sunday http://www.cascadeclimbers.com/threadz/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/568587/an/0/page/0#568587