Tad

Mitts were the way to go Jim. I fussed with all sorts of gloves and finally went to oversized mits. Easy to slip into. You might try a pair of thin glove liners on your hands so when you pull out of the mitts to focus-and-click your hands are a little happier. Happy trails!

Get in shape. Be self sufficient. And be knowledgeable of glacier travel, navigation, rescue and survival through hands-on practice. Don't assume people will be nearby or know how to help you on the upper mountain. Summer is a great time to climb Mt. Rainier. Good luck and enjoy the journey.

Okay. I found it! The review starts here: http://thehowzone.com/how/Jetboil and the page with the tip over vid clip is here: http://thehowzone.com/how/Jetboil/9 pretty cool site too. Check it out.

There was a review and comparison test on the web somwhere. I'll try to post it when I find it again. Even had a vid clip showing what happens when it tips over.

Not familiar with the winter route on St. Helens. Planning a trip this weekend. Anyone have beta on potential/or typical avalanche prone areas? I know, the recent snows have increased the hazards in the Cascades and I have a watch on the usual www sites. Regardless, test pits are a must I'm sure. Any beta would be welcome. Thanks!

Freeclimb9: What's Ullfrotte made of besides wool? Is it at all scratchy when moist? Stretch factor could be a bit of a problem especially when you pay so much for this stuff! > I agree with airmoss about Patagonia accumulating funk. I had an REI top that suprisingly stayed pretty funk-free. > Bellemontagne: Sounds like silver is a good idea, but I wonder if it makes you more of a lightning rod! > Mattp: I'm suprised! How do you change when the conditions are "full-on"? >> SO, has anyone tried LIFA? Or are the signature arm stripes too much for everyone? I know they have a new weave thats supposed to perform better than the older stuff both in wicking and odor control. Thanks for the replies so far. I'd welcome any more before I head to the store soon!

OK, It's time to replace my trashed base layers and wonder if anyone uses LIFA brand and why. It's a brand I've never bought but am curious about its performance and comfort from a "real" user's standpoint, beyond the advertising and sales talk. If you don't use LIFA what brand(s) do you find perform and fit well? Polypropylene, polyester, silk?

Well, T H A N K Y O U "Nobody". Your name clearly gives this post some importance. I'm sure it will impact us all.

I just completed an on-line transaction with this company and was impressed. Although in Denmark, prices were great even when shipping was added! Order place Monday PM and arrived the next Monday AM. UPS tracking # was provided. Will continue to cruise their site.

I also like the slightly faster lens of the Olympus over the slower T4. Sub-compact P&S cameras are a bit more prone to being too light thus sometimes producing blurry results due to camera shake. Disposables are certainly better than nothing if your real camera craps out! One time I had a shutter jam early on during a Rainier climb and didn't get any pics above 10,000' I completly agree about keeping a camera out of your coat in the cold. I read a few articles about condensation damage to lenses as well as cameras if one is not careful. Anyone else play around with black & white film up high? In the end, regardless of your system (be it disposable, P&S, APS, 35mm or larger) a little knowledge about composition goes a long way for picture.

Dbb,You might try attaching a suitable neutral density (ND) filter over the exposure metering eye of your point and shoot. This would trick the camera to expose the film the way you'd like. I know, it sounds like a "chewing gum and shoelace" set up but it would work. As for the Yashica T4, I'm not impressed with the camera. The Zeiss lens is'nt what it's cracked up to be. My Olympus Stylus gives sharper pics! The T4 is on the bulky side for pocket carry and the flip down lens protector is lame. In my humble opinion the Olympus is a better snap shooter over the Yashica. Digitally speaking, I've thought about getting a slide scanner to digitize pics. Yea it's more work and expensive in the long run probably but I'm still not sold on the digital cameras yet.

35mm cameras seem to be the best for compactness and the widest range of film. APS is a nice idea but certainly has its limitations IMHO. I've carried many different cameras into the mountains: an old Kodak Retina IIIc, a bomber Nikon F2 with a 35mm and a 105mm lens; a compact Rollie 35; an old medium format Rollie and lately and old Leica IIIa rangefinder with a "normal" collapsing lens. All reliable mechanical cameras that do well in the cold. But I always take my Olympus Stylus Epic with the fixed f2.8 lens. Without worry I can toss it in the top pocket of my pack or side pocket of my pants and almost always get great results. But I do have to worry about the battery with it. For film I've used Fuji Provia, Velvia and the Sensia with great slide results. I also fool around with black and white film. I've resisted trying digital due to having to worry about batteries. Same goes for a flash (excluding my Olympus Stylus Epic).

I'd like to hear what sort of cameras, lenses, film and gear anyone carries on their climbs (when they choose to haul it). APS? 35mm: SLR, rangefinder? Larger formats? Digital? Lenses? Film: print or slide? What's your bomber system?

How's it go? "...stand on the shoulders of giants...". Design sells.

Great news Mike! Thanks for the post. I hope we see more before spring comes.