JayB

Video Here

Anyone catch Dean's speech after the votes were counted? It was sorta like watching Randy "The Macho Man" Savage give geography lessons while hopped-up on crank. The very definition of Presidential IMO

I set off about a dozen sloughs that ran 2-3" deep and 5-30 meters on the descent from the Castle Col back to the lake, but these would only have been fatal to someone the size of a lawn-gnome. That being said - we decided to bail Sunday morning instead of sticking around to ski the whole day after sizing up the conditions. All of the new snow was sliding off of the refrozen crust below extremely easily, and it seemed to us that several more inches plus wind-loading could generate some legit slides. It was a fun run back to the lake though - some nice steeps that'll be fun to visit in the spring.

I can think of no higher endorsement for science than its rejection by certain classes of people.

We stayed overnight in the castle-saddle in the Tatoosh - and a good 5-6 inches of new snow fell by Sunday morning. Should be pretty good right now.

Eric: Great TR's and photos. You should keep your site up even after you conclude your journey as it'll be a terrific resource for other climbers - not to mention an inspiritation to anyone contemplating an extended road trip like the one that you and Lucie are on.

Overnight ski trip in the Tatizzoosh.

I just ran into this post while searching for other stuff and couldn't stop reading Bronco's account of his climb with Judd. Definititely a classic. Great story - good lesson. Plus I couldn't resist resurrecting one of the thread resurrector's own threads.

Is that water or a pillar coming out of the middle of the upper flow?

Where in the hell are those photos???

Nothing a well-thought out network of trails wouldn't fix.

I think the odds of anyone being caught and prosecuted are extremely low so long as the pics are selected carefully and no one identifies the climbers/the climbers don't identify themselves. Post 'em if you've got 'em I say...

Just bribe by promising people with free copies of the new guide, or better yet with promises to credit them with FAs of non-existent one-pitch lines with approaches so daunting that no one will bother to go for the second ascent. Better still, swear that you'll make the said imaginary lines at least WI6 and use the word "testpiece" a few times in the description and you will be overrun with volunteers to ready to swarm any gulley at your command.

FWIW I rapped by the pin that I think you are talking about on my way down (it had a loop of black webbing on it) and it came out as I was soon as I grabbed the webbing to pull myself in towards the wall and take a look at it. Anyhow - a pair of 60's will enable you to touch down if you rap off of the lowest tree, but take care getting to the said tree as a slip en route to that rap station would be a very bad thing.

Dude: There was a cute waitress at the pizza joint by the Mile-O this Saturday night. Hook up with her and your problem is solved, e.g. you'll only get to see your girlfriend when you leave town and head north to go climbing....

Like mine too. I think they offer one of the best compromises between warmth and dexterity out there. No blown stitching or any other problems to speak of. Sounds like you may have just got a bad pair Paul.

I got kertwanged pretty good by a grapefruit sized hunk of rock that must have fallen off the wall quite a ways above the approach gulley that leads to Salmon Stakes a couple of weeks ago. I think we were about 50 meters below the base of the climb when I got hit. Anyhow - I heard a click that sounded like it was about 10-15 meters away and I glanced up expecting to see a small rock tumbling down the side of the gulley. Instead what I saw was a dark mass rocketing towards my face - just a few feet away. I guess reflexes took over because before I had time to analyze what I was seeing I lowered my head and felt the impact just above my forehead. It felt like someone cracked me over the head with a bat. The impact knocked me off of my feet, had me seeing stars, and left me with a headache that persisted for 3-4 days. Beyond the normal thoughts about how messed-up/dead I would have been if I hadn't been wearing my helmet - I also thought about what the impact would have been like if I had been wearing another style of helmet. It seemed to me that the impact would have been much more severe if the helmet hadn't deflected much of the blow (I have a Petzl Ecrin Roc). I can hardly be certain of this, but I suspect that If I would have been wearing one of those foam deals with a thin plastic skin over the top the rock would have pierced the skin and penetrated into the foam - likely transferring much more momentum to my head in the process. In the end the outcome may have been the same - but I came away from the impact glad to have been wearing a helmet designed to deflect blows from falling rocks rather than absorbing them. Side Note: If you are approaching Salmon Stakes my hunch is that it would be get it over with before the light starts hitting the wall above the approach gulley. It was cold (-10/20C) for the entire day when we were out there - but even the weak winter's sun was enough to let loose a fair amount of rock fall on us. I would hate to be in that thing when it warms up, rains, etc...

Just bought one of these. The combination of one superbright lensed LED for trickier terrain and two regular LED's was definitely a plus on the descent/walk out from Synchro... "The Zenix Headlamp is the first all-LED headlamp to introduce "HyperBright" LED technology. These "HyperBright" LEDs are compact, incredibly energy efficient and provide five times more light than traditional LEDs. Their energy efficiency results in a reduced environmental impact, because battery changes are less frequent and LEDs never need to be replaced. We’ve designed the Zenix Headlamp to generate an intense, focused beam of LED light—a beam that rivals that of lower-wattage xenon bulbs. This lamp incorporates a “lensed” Hyperbright LED that is flanked on each side by a SuperBright LED; a switch allows the user to toggle between the SuperBright LEDs for proximity illumination and the lensed HyperBright LED for beam-throwing light. Unlike xenon bulbs, LEDs never need to be replaced. Waterproof to IPX standards and weighing a mere 90 grams, the Zenix sets a new standard in backcountry hands-free lighting. A great option for the user who wants an energy efficient, beam-projecting headlamp. Approximate burn time of 12-15 hours at full strength, and 140 hours on two SuperBright LEDs. Reengineered battery pack holds 3 AAA batteries." http://www.bdel.com/gear/lightware/zenix.php

I was there. Paco and I were descending Synchronicity along with a couple of other guys from Seattle, and we saw the emergency vehicles pull up across the Canyon while preparing for the rap below the final pitch. We saw a few more vehicles arrive as we continued to rappel, and by the time we were at the base it sounded as though the emergency personel across the canyon were trying to communicate with us although the sound was so distorted it could have been Turkish folk-poetry and we would never have known the difference. Anyhow - the other party from Seattle began the descent a few minutes ahead of us, and we spotted their headlamps in the about 200-300 feet above the river bottom. We made our way to the scene and were relieved to see that the victim was conscious, responsive, and pretty lucid although obviously cold, in pain, and a bit shaken up. His primary injury was a disclocated shoulder, sustained during what he estimated was a 200-300 foot fall initiated on steep snow covered turf just to the right of the gulley he ended up in. One of the other guys from Seattle had WFR + some more advanced training for his job as a guide, so we let him take over and helped out where we could. They eventually stabilized his shoulder enough for us to get him moving - Paco set up an anchor off of a nearby tree and lowered him off of a munter while three of us accompanied him to the base of the gulley. Shortly after arriving at the base of the gulley we met the rescue team - a group of Canadian Para Rescue specialists from the Canadian armed forces who were in the area to conduct some ice-climbing training and just happened to be pass directly past the scene. They attempted to reduce the shoulder in the field but weren't able to, at which point they stabilized the shoulder and assisted him back to the bridge. Kudos to all involved, especially the other guys from Seattle who put their emergency skills to good use - their conduct was definitely a credit to their trade in general and Mountain Madness in particular - and the Canadian Para Rescue guys - very effective and professional. So - thankfully - no major trauma involved, just a matter of escorting a fellow climber back to the road after a nasty tumble in a difficult location.

That was your guide?! Nice work. I still have a copy in my truck that can be used as a reference if needs be.

Something like 4000 political prisoners were executed in the century prior to the revolution. Horrible. At the peak of The Terror the Communists were executing 1000 a day. More horrible. This is in addition to those worked to death or starved for political purposes. I'm surprised to see you dismiss them as two bit.

If you've ever been at the base of route that you'd follow but wouldn't be willing to lead (as I'm sure you have) then you've got your answer.

I did leave out math, physics, and engineering. Other nations made greater contributions without the death toll though. And I don't think that the folks on that message board were directing their criticism towards America's mathematicians or physicists so I remain amused.

JayB- You may want to look at the change in literacy rates in Russia under the communists.(To among the highest in the world, from one of the lowest) Though it neither excuses, nor negates the horrors, they did make substantial change for the better in the lives of their population. Yeah - I would have to agree that those who were not killed by the Communists were more likely to be able to read than their predecessors who lived under the Czars. But show me a nation Europe in which the average literacy rate did not increase during that same interval. Means vs Ends. Anyhow - It's just incredibly amusing for me to see Russians who think that their history - go back as far as you like - puts them in a position to criticize any nation for anything outside of literature and Vodka production - the second of which even the Swedes do far better than they IMO.