todd

email me at the above address. im flying into oslo on december 21 and just found out today that some of my norwegian friends are pretty psyched on climbing. and they have a car... come on out and join us. ive only climbed in norway in the summer (ie never been waterfall climbing there) so i dont really have any set objectives. i hear rjukan and hemsdal are nice, and i hear the falls in rjukan are very well-formed at the moment, although perhaps a bit brittle because of the recent cold snap. other than that, im planning on just wingin it - always works.

if anyone is rich, spontaneous, and feeling like spending the holidays ice climbing in norway email me ASAP at toddmiller75@hotmail.com and we can meet up and go climbing. im in france again till may, then back to b-ham. been to chamonix enough lately, southern alps ice is not quite in yet, and hear the conditions are pretty good in rjukan, etc. cant get anyone around here to go so i thought id try you all. so lets go - email me and we'll go climb some ice in norway. nice - see you there!

1 pair grivel light machines w/picks adze/hammer $250 o.b.o. 1 pair black diamond cobras w/picks 2 hammers $350 o.b.o. im in bellingham till 9/17. email at toddmiller75@hotmail.com

youre not the eric johnson i climbed with in chamonix are you? from south carolina? if so, email me at toddmiller75@hotmail.com cheers, todd

is the road to cheam peak drivable? if there is more than one, im talking about the one that goes towards spoon lake. cheers.

you probably have a point there dru. i was with one of my norwegian partners and some of his swedish friends and i asked them what they thought of goran. they all started laughing and i asked why. "hmmm, you see, he is not very well liked" the other one pipes in, "yah, he ees an asshole and full of sheeet" these guys were good people and decent climbers, so i figure they must have had some good reasons for saying that...

really?! when?

in all seriousness, could someone explain to me what the hell is going on? people seem pretty pissed about bolts. its been a few years - what areas, other than vantage, are so blatantly over-bolted?

there is a fancy new boot from montrail (yes montrail) coming out one of these days. its sold as a set with the crampon. the crampon has some three point attachment system (toe and heel of course, and one in the midsole) that makes the boots stiff for climbing, and comfortable for approaches without the crampon on. they claim it has some funky lacing system that gives a glove-like fit AND promotes good circulation. havent used em yet - seen em and read all about em - they look pretty nice, and have definitely had some thought put into them. guess we'll have to wait for them to hit the market and then see...

DRU, is there a guidebook with this peak in it? im moving up there and the only BC guide i have is alpine select...need ideas. cheers.

thanks to everyone for your replies - especially dave - if we ever happen to cross paths, youve earned a pint or two... but thanks to everyone again - lots of good information.

yup, already checked that out - doesnt say much. but thanks just the same.

sorry to single you guys out, but ive been trying to get info on mt sir. sandford and figured you guys would be the ones who might know about it. i tried a post titled "mt. sir sandford" and didnt get any responses. i have an old american alpine club "guide to the columbia mountains" and its description of the approach is kind of vague. do either of you (or anyone else) know if there is a newer guidebook available or have any experiences/tips that you could share? cheers.

marcus engley, ive tried the nikwax wash-in dry treatment once on an ice trip in the canadian rockies. i dont think it was worth the effort. it does help a little, but after a few rappels, you start to notice this white residue on your gloves, and the rope quickly becomes just as absorbent as it was before.

"If you cant find something to live for, you'd best find something to die for." -2PAC

ive never had any problems with the rangers at j-tree. we've even done things they couldve ticketed us for (sleeping in our cars where we shouldnt be when the camps were all full, my buddy got caught running around with his dog off the leash, etc.) and they just gave us a little speech and moved along. every ranger ive dealt with at j-tree has been cool - but im sure there are exceptions, as there are if you catch anyone on a bad day.

call me eurotrash, but id wait for an opportunity when it was possible then pass them without asking (if they were going as slow as you say they were). id ask them if they minded as soon as i passed them. i wouldnt be a dick about it, id just smile and try to act modest and act like its an everyday occurrence. its kinda like those friends who grab a fry, eat it, then ask "can i have a fry?" how can you say no at that point?

anyone been on mt. sir sanford? what route did you take, what do you have to say about it? did you hike in - how was that? thanks in advance!

ok ok, it all makes sense now. i thought people were joking about "stonewabbit" and you recommended that site so i could check out the name. what time of year did you take that photo?

strange name for a peak - first they name stadiums ___.com, now mountains....

so what are these peaks called? thanks.

if visiting a friend, just work it so that you can sleep on his couch - rent aint cheap. everyone is full of bad things to say about boulder, but after spending some time there and seeing how much good climbing is within 10 minutes from town you might start to see the appeal. im sure youve heard it all - boulder is a bunch of trustafarians, posers, and pinko assholes. well, there are definitely higher than average numbers of those sorts of people, but there are also higher than average numbers of people who are really psyched, positive, and who get out a lot. eldo, lumpy, rmnp are all sweet - but dont overlook the flatirons - some very cool routes on really unique formations. good luck!

yeah, i was actually thinking about that over lunch (the carrying extra gear thing). you have a point there. but i still think most folks would find a one day round trip climb, especially their first time up there, to be a bit much. whatever - we must be bored - i should go do some actual work...

right, sure, and im sure it can be done in even less! but i bet most folks will want to do it in two days - 1 up, next summit and back down. are you actually suggesting that AJ should try to do it in a day? i dont know AJ, make your own decision, but car-summit-car in a day would be a long one and kinda pointless unless youre going for some speed record. its a beautiful place and youll enjoy being up there - leave your stopwatch at home.

hmmm...i did the NE arete on wedge in mid august and found the conditions to be ideal. the route was outstanding, and i definitely recommend it. the glacier couldve been in better shape but it wasnt a big problem. the alpine select book gives the route as going up the glacier and joining the arete high up. but that way it seems youre missing 2/3 of the arete, and the schrund wouldve been a bitch to cross when we were there. alpine select also mentions an "alternative" - to go to the col and climb the arete in its entirety. that is what i did and i dont know why anyone would do otherwise - it was so aesthetic and is only 3rd class scrambling with maybe a couple meters of 4th class scrambling that leads directly to that beautiful snow arete. anyway, an excellent route, and you only need two days to do it. enjoy!