Ben_Heavner

Hey - do you still have these? I've got a pair that are size 10 shells, 9.5 liners, and are a little too big for me. They're also in great condition, and I'd be very happy to trade if you're still interested. I'm in Seattle. -b

"Senate renames Mount Rainier to Mount Seattle Seahawks" http://www.thenewstribune.com/2014/01/31/3022186/legislature-renames-mount-rainier.html?storylink=twt

Hey Scott - I've got a couple X-15 tools I'm trying to sell for a friend. He's wanting $60 each.

I was just looking at Mark Twight's web page. The boots look like ones on a picture on this page: Check out the third picture in the second row (guy in blue doing a drop knee on ice). The caption says "He used plastic boots made by Trappeur that blended a plastic lower shell with a flexible leather ankle cuff" It might be a clue, anyway.

I'll be returning to the northwest for a week or so around Sept. 18. I know that's pretty late season, but Olympus via the Hoh trail has been on my mind for a long time. Is it even worth the trip out to the mountain that late in the season, or is the Blue Glacier likely to be so broken up to make it impassible? Thanks for any beta!

I'm totally interested, but too much of a drive from Ithaca NY at the moment... good luck, Ryan! I'll join up in a couple years.

It's true, no one said anything about the Cascades exclusively. Looking over i_like_sun's posting history, it seems a safe bet, though. And it's also true that had Dave Johnston, Art Davidson, and Ray Genet had any alcohol with them on their Denali climb, damn near anything would have frozen, but would it have given their throats frostbite if they had tried to chug it before it turned solid? In other words, yes, many alcohols can freeze in some climbing conditions. However, many flask-type-beverages will not freeze at pretty cold temperatures - in such a case, can they cause cold injuries if you drink them? cheers!

Alcohol will freeze on a climbing trip in the Cascades? I suppose it depends on how much alcohol, and how cold. For what it's worth, the summit temp on Rainier is forecast to be about 10 F today. Pure ethanol's freezing point is -175 F. Admittedly, beer (~6% alcohol) will freeze pretty warm (25 F), but I don't think you're putting beer in a flask. Absolut vodka is about 100 proof, so would freeze at -25 F, which is starting to get chilly, I think. I don't know if that's cold enough for cold injuries on contact with your throat, though.

Remember that alcohol won't freeze. There's a rumor that if it's really cold out and you take a big swig, you can get frostbite _inside_ your throat. I dunno if it's ever really happened, though.

Sterling and the AAC are recycling ropes - http://americanalpineclub.org/pages/story/6/34

Heya Clintoris - Just a quick shout out from Anchorage - props on a great first trip up Rainier! Whatever the season, Rainier is a fun mountain, especially when the trip turns out as well as it sounds like yours did. Now get up here and go play in the Chugach! -b

Heya Jedi - You could ship them to me and pick them up here in Anchorage (although whoever you're flying with out of Talkeetna could probably hook you up as someone suggested upthread, too). I'll be out of the country Feb 9 - March 3, but am around this spring other than that. Send me an email if you want. -b

Back off Safely. Thanks for the advice, all. As expected, we had some nice full-on conditions this past weekend. Wind was the biggest issue, but there was snow and cold, too. I've got some uncropped (ie, really big) pictures online at http://www.benheavner.com/climbing/pics/hood/ if you're interested in seeing me and my dad stumbling through the whiteness. I'll get a longer trip report up on rec.climbing in the next couple days, but the short version is we got up above the palmer lifts, then broke a tent pole and decided to head back down, getting to Timberline lodge again shortly after dark after about 7 hours on the move on the mountain. A snow cave is the way to go, but it was some hard digging in the snow/ice when we were digging out a platform for the tent. Dad got a kick out of it, and we both came down safe and sound. It was a fun weekend.

Thanks for the info, all. I've been up Hood 3 times before, so am aware of some of the route finding issues. We'll carry equipment to spend a couple nights on the mountain if need be. We planned this trip a while in advance realizing the weather was a crapshoot (we lost, it looks like), but went for cheap airfare. Should be a good chance to play in some snow, though. I'll let you know how high we get.

Now that the nice high pressure system is forecasted to move out and avalanche conditions are predicted to be picking up this weekend, it looks like my long-planned trip to hood with my dad is going to happen just in time for bad weather. Given that, does anyone have any advice on how to minimize any avalanche danger on the normal palmer lift route on Hood? I think the turtle is the primary area of risk, and the pearly gates are another area of moderate risk. Are there any recommended route variations to minimize avalanche exposure, if we get up there in a potential storm?