Fromage

What do folks think about Olympia? And I don't mean because I already know I like that Olympia. I'm talking about the capital of our fine state. Anyone lived there? What are your impressions? How would you describe it as a place for a climber/paddler to live? Pros? Cons? How does it compare to Seattle?

To divert the discussion ever further from your original question... Have you considered a Lowe Alpine Attack? They come in three volumes (40, 50, 60 liter) and are a pretty good value. I have a 50 and can offer the following critique: Pros- 1. pretty darn cheap (~$179?) 2. light without being flimsy 3. three frame options that you can change yourself (a) two aluminum stays and foam pad (b) foam pad (it is comfy to sleep on, too) © nothing 4. removable hip belt 5. tool holsters actually work 6. simple, no frivolous features 7. more comfy than any Dana or Archaeopteryx pack I have ever worn 8. works reasonably well when climbing with it Cons- 1. lid is kinda small 2. long bivy sleeve makes reaching into the bottom of the pack a drag 3. if not packed well lid hits the back of your head Otherwise, for the price it is a sweet pack. Second Ascent had a few of these the last time I was there.

Ha ha, at NOLS we call that the "Chastity Pole." Keeps the smelly hairy guy from accidentally rolling over to snuggle up with the smelly hairy girl in the middle of the night. A couple summers back I spent 34 straight nights in a Mountain Hard-On Kiva (similar to a Mid, bigger with pentagonal floorplan) in early winter conditions in Wyoming's Wind Rivers. It was great the way it reduced the overall group gear weight, and we solved the pole problem by pitching it with the pole at a slight angle so the floor space was asymmetrically distributed. The shelter did okay in moderate snowstorms, but didn't do so great when it became snow loaded. But if you get enough people in there the place heats up like and oven and dries your gear out, it's great. I would definitely use one again if I wasn't going somewhere bug-infested. Having the space is a luxury I enjoyed.

Flipped though the latest REI catalog that came in the mail. Here are my top picks. Anyone else feel an uncontrollable urge to rush out and buy this stuff? 1. " Schwag Pocket " I suppose you could put your weed in it, but it's just a dumb hanging organizer for your tent. 2. Titanium mug, $32, 2.4oz 3. Portable hand crank blender, $70 4. Folding cooler on wheels $33 5. Rolla-Roaster Folding Barbecue Fork $30 This one is my personal favorite. 6. Folding Camp Sink, $20. Now you CAN bring the kitchen sink 7. Backpack on Wheels, $140.

I have had two pairs of supafeet and each has lasted over 3 years. They are not so good for cushioning, but for support they are great. My first pair has been relegated from my mountain boots to my dress shoes. It's nice to have a little mountain funk along with me when dates aren't going so well. More importantly, what are you doing giving your money to LCD?

You know what goes really well with those? CHEESE!!!!

Skip, that is indeed the one. They have them for free right now at Feathered Friends. The only catch is that you have to buy a fancy Mammut rope, then you get the device zip-tied to the rope at no extra charge. The folks at the shop said that it would be a little while until they started selling them separately from the ropes (something about availability...) but it looks like your link will get you one swiftly. If you pick one up please post a review. I am looking for something to replace my Reverso with, and the Matrix is a leading candidate, along with the B-52. The only problem is you can't drink the Matrix.

Check out the new Mammut device. Looks pretty smooth.

I just recycle the ones I find. Hard to beat that price.

Don't forget to spend an afternoon at the U-Fish in the Teanaway River Valley on your way in. A case of PBR and you're all set.

Lost my wallet somewhere between Snow Creek trailhead and Pearly Gates crag on Saturday. It is red. I'm mostly concerned about getting my French Alpine Club membership card back, as well as my first aid certs and DL, don't care much about the rest. Please send a PM if you came across it. There were only two other groups up at the crag that day, so maybe there is a chance.

The land managment agency that enacted the fee is the WA State Parks. The upper parking lot with the "weight loss closet" is part of Ollallie/Iron Horse State Park. The fee collection actually began last year. A bunch of state parks that didn't previously have parking fees suddenly started charging them, including the Peshastin Pinnacles. So if you want to go scare yourself on the sandcastles, you have to pay for that privilege, too. You do not have to pay at the lower lot by Change Creek. You do not have to pay at the Far Side. Since the State Patrol is not part of the State Parks agency, I doubt you will see any of them in the area, unless they are on their way to the firing range. The fees go to park maintenance, which basically means sucking out the contents of the parking lot toilet periodically and putting up the portable toilets along the trestle. The popular solution these days is to park along the road at the bottom of the gravel road leading up to the parking lot. On a sunny weekend day the roadway will be lined with cars. It adds a couple minutes to the approach, but is clearly a superior choice for some people who would rather not pay. Don't get your hopes up for law enforcement in the parking areas. There is a thread somewhere on this board discussing plans for organizing climbers to help apprehend the Exit 38 Bandit, so you might want to look into that.

Some more un-scientific anecdotal evidence to pollute the discussion: Descending the Bosses Ridge on the relatively crevasse-free summit block of Mont Blanc, I was the downhill member of a 2-climber rope team. My partner and I had about 10 feet of rope between us, he had a couple coils of slack in one hand locked down with a dead coil or whatever you call that tight, final coil in this technique. I caught a crampon on a gaiter and launched myself headfirst into Italy, but because of the tension in the rope my partner was able to react so quickly that I never hit the snow. He literally stopped my fall with one hand. I had such little time to generate momentum that he hauled my tubby ass in with no difficulty. My partner had learned this technique from some Chamonix guides. Apparently this is a widely-used method in the Alps to travel on uncrevassed, steep snow. It relies on a high degree of competence by the uphill climber, but its effectiveness became clear to me. The very next day two American climbers fell in exactly the same spot and tumbled 700m to their deaths in Italy. They were separated by much more rope. Sample size of 1 does not constitute compelling evidence, but I thought it was worth sharing.

Tube Pick: Australian for core sample of yer leg.

I used to work near Asheville. If I hadn't moved to Seattle I would have stayed there. Tips for stuff to do in Asheville: Eat at Salsa's, an excellent Caribbean restaurant right downtown. Their food is SO GOOD!!! Another place worth visiting is Barlee's, a brewpub with giant calzones and, uh, 20(?) beers on tap. Damn good. I recommend Looking Glass, as well. Spent a lot of time there, the routes are spectacular. My climbing mentor still lives in Asheville. The guy is 60+ years old and still putting up new routes! He put up The Nose on LGR in 1966. Pretty cool guy. Email him (Steve Longenecker) and tell him Jimbo from Falling Creek sent you. He may not have the time to rope up with you, but he knows the area and the scene like nobody else, so he can at least give you some good current suggestions. His address is sfl(at)ioa(dot)com Have fun!

I keep a notebook for a climbing log. It stays at home and I write in it when I return. I keep notes on where I went, when, what route, with who, which gear was used (track rope use), and a 1-2 page description of the outing. Makes a good reference.

dmuja, a couple thoughts on your questions: People rope up unprotected for a number of reasons, but at NOLS we teach the technique in the context of a progression of team management on steep terrain. There are, in the NOLS world of climbing, points on a continuum of safety. Think of a graph where the x-axis is "security" and the y-axis is "speed," and there is a somewhat negative correlation: the more securely you travel, the slower you go. The safety techniques we teach for travel on snow, in order of increasing security/decreasing speed, are, generally: 1. Feet. Stay on your feet. Then you don't fall. 2. Self arrest. If your feet fail you, then you stop yourself quickly. 3. Self-belay (plant the shaft of your axe uphill) to reduce the likelihood of falling. Typically used on 35-55 degree snow with low consequences. 4. Team arrest. Team ropes up with the strongest/most experienced climber uphill, team progresses with good spacing between members and rope constantly taut between members. If any climber falls (other than the leader) they have little chance to build up momentum in their fall. Used on steeper snow with moderate consequences and on crevassed terrain. 5. Running belay. Roped team ascends with intermediate protection. Used on steep terrain with high consequences. 6. Pitch it out. Leader climbs a pitch placing protection (or not) and belays rest of team on toprope anchor. Used on ice and 5th class rock or terrain with severe consequences. The NOLS philosophy is to encourage climbers to develop the judgment to know when it is appropriate to use which technique, or combination of techniques. We are pretty vigilant about the key to making a team arrest work: the taut rope and the good line of ascent. If you are going to rope up, the rope becomes a hazard if there is extension between climbers, the climbers are improperly spaced, or the leader cannot self-arrest. Obviously there is a lot of variation in how well team rope travel is done. Some climbers employ it effectively and others don't. When properly used, the team arrest can work quite well. But ultimately the climbers must make a decision about how secure they want to be versus how fast they want to go, and that varies enormously depending on a number of factors. On my NOLS courses I sometimes feel comfortable ascending steep snow unroped when I am confident that my students have strong technique: I trust their feet and they have demonstrated an ability to self-arrest. On one course I had a student who couldn't cross a parking lot without falling on his face, so I always used slower but more secure travel techniques when he was with me. Sure enough he would fall, and the instructors came to predict his falls well enough that we anticipated exactly where we should place protection to keep this kid from going very far. So whether or not you want to tie in is up to you. You know your abilities best, and if you know your partners' abilities then you can hopefully make an accurate assessment of your team's need to rope up. Everyone has different levels of risk they are willing to accept. Sometimes roping up can pose more of a risk than soloing, but at other times you might be thankful for a team arrest. Just don't assume that traveling roped and unprotected is always a bad idea. It is merely one possible mode of ascent that has its applications and can improve safety if done correctly.

You don't want to know. It's crude, but hey, it's French.

If there are no telepheriques or huts where you can buy half-bottles of Bourguignon then I'm not interested.

Sure. It's called acclimatization. You can even get it without a prescription. I commend your attention to page 456 of Mountaineering: Freedom of the Hills, 7th edition, available at fine gear shops and bookstores everywhere.

Herr Slothrop is speaking an obscure climbing dialect that has not been extensively studied. Fortunately I have read the latest academic journal articles on the subject and I can translate. P'tit Loup is French, in which I was once fluent. It is a contraction meaning "little wolf." LCD is a usage that has grown in popularity among a primitive tribe of climbers. Derived from the mathematical term "Lowest Common Denominator" it is an alternative name for the outdoor retail behemoth we have all come to love. To put it all together: "If you so desire, you may visit Recreational Equipment, Inc., and practice swinging the Little Wolf ice tool." Next week we will examine the etymological origins of the terms "jing," "vache," and "proviculinimous."

Ice Line for sure. The sheaths are woven with single pic construction, which makes the rope somewhat more water resistant than double pic weave like the Cobras (think microfiber nylon vs cordura). After six seasons of use my ice lines still stay reasonably dry and are not that fuzzy.

Here is my solution for keeping down bags dry: Eat lots of cheese and chocolate with dinner. With a calorie bomb meal in the tank your body will produce enough heat to dry your bag from the inside out. Obviously this approach only works if you have a high metabolism. Just because you bring the bivy sack doesn't mean you have to use it.

I have a pair of 8.1 ice lines, a 10.3, and have used Cobras in the past. Love them all. Occasionally get a little kinky, but have had no troubles lowering (ATC, gri gri, reverso). For their thickness, or lack thereof, the ice lines have been a really durable set of ropes. Same with the 10.3. I would definitely buy Beals again.

Don Serl, you have this man quaking in fear of his job.