PaulB

To me, the Pro Ice is closer to the Super Mountain 9 than the Super Mountain Expert. At first glance the Expert looks bulkier and "clunkier", while the Pro Ice looks more streamlined. I'd probably get the Pro Ice to replace my SM 9's, although I suspect that they're stiffer than the Expert.

Latest from CBC News: Hikers' bodies found in Banff park Last Updated Mon, 05 Jul 2004 21:41:40 BANFF, ALTA. - The bodies of two missing hikers were discovered Monday by wardens in Alberta's Banff National Park. Kevin James and Mike Farrow had been missing since early June. The two men, both in their early 20s, were adventure tourism students at the University College of the Cariboo in Kamloops, British Columbia. They had set out on June 3 to hike up Mount Deltaform near Lake Louise, but were reported overdue. Park officials say it appears bad weather forced the two men to turn back before they reached the summit. The wardens believe they were hit by either rocks or snow on their way down the trail.

MEC members can get a discounted subscription now. There was also a note in the CAJ that gave a discount code for a subscription.

About a month ago, on the way to Skaha, at a Friday night roadblock near Hope: Cop - "You boys had anything to drink tonight?" Shorthouse - "No." Cop - "What's in that cooler?" Shorthouse - "Beer!" Cop - "Alright, have a good night"

I was looking for the same thing last year, and settled on the Garmont Ferratas. They have performed well on easy alpine rock (West Ridge of Pigeon Spire & Blackcomb Buttress) and ice (NW face of Matier). Probably not truely waterproof, and durability is a relative term depending on frequency of use. I expect/hope to get at least 5 years out of them. I think the Ferratas have been discontinued, but the Tower GTX is essentially the same boot. The other contender was the Sportiva Trango Plus, but I prefer leather over synthetics.

When I was there last summer, we met a guy from the Basque region who would hike up from the parking lot every day looking for someone to climb with. He was camping with his dog so he couldn't stay at Applebee or the hut. He joined us on Pigeon Spire and it sounded like he had been able to hook up with other groups as well.

Not at all.... I subscribe to the same school of thought. As a result, I have seven packs of varying sizes and with various features. It's all about mental health!

Got this in an email from Intrawest today. The long rumoured expansion around Flute is finally happening: The big is getting bigger. Whistler Blackcomb introduces 1100 acres of new terrain on Whistler Mountain with the official opening of the long-awaited west side of Whistler, Peak to Creek, and the addition of Flute Bowl, offering a unique in-bounds backcountry experience. The new areas comprise Whistler Mountain's single largest terrain expansion ever.

Here is an example of the end result. I never file the teeth on my picks, so I don't know what started the cracking, but it propagated through about 1/3 of the pick (probably over a couple of seasons) before breaking. A classic example of metal fatigue. It failed as I was 20 feet into the steep pitch on Night'N'Gale. Fortunately, I was seconding... unfortunately my spare pick was 300m below me in the truck.

These days, just about any set of ice tools will be adequate for someone new to the sport. Find a cheap used pair that will let you get out climbing. Borrow different tools whenever you get the chance, and eventually you'll find a pair that just "feel right". If you're lucky they'll be the pair you bought, but more likely you'll be wanting something else after your first or second season.

A couple of my friends once agreed to use three tugs. This proved unwise when one of them was at an awkward crux, trying to clip into a piece he had just placed. With the rope in his teeth, he yarded up for the third time to get enough slack to make the clip, only to hear his partner yell "belay off"! I don't think they used the tug system anymore after that. When climbing with regular partners, you develop a good sense of their movement while climbing and how they handle the rope at belays. While its best to use verbal signals whenever possible (which makes radios a good choice) accumulated experience often tells you what needs to be done.

My Timex Ironman (it's about 10 years old) has a great alarm. It's loud and annoying enough to wake me from all but the deepest sleep.

I have an Altimax and the features I use depends on what I'm doing. In the winter, I use the log book to track my accumulated ascent/descent, number of runs, etc. when ski touring. Hardly ever look at the actual altitude. In the summer when I'm alpine climbing I calibrate the altitude as often as is practical, so that it's accurate if/when I need it, but I hardly ever use the logbook. When I'm camping at a fixed location for more than one night, I use the barometer to track weather changes. I've never used the altitude alarm, and only occasionly make use of the differential altitude or pressure feature. The stopwatch is nice to have but hardly ever gets used... same for the countdown timer. The alarm clock is useful, but the alarm is too quiet. I usually have to set all three alarms 1 minute apart to make sure I hear them.

Cinder Cone history lesson here.

The A80 came out about a month after I bought my A70, I suspect they're pretty similar. I went with the A70 because it had good reviews for picture quality, has lots of manual adjustments and it uses AA batteries. The AA's make it bulkier, but I can use them as backups for my GPS, avi beacon and headlamp. My only complaint with the A70 so far is that it doesn't deal well with high contrast scenes like a lone skier/climber on a snowfield. More experimentation with the manual controls would probably help minimize this.

The truth comes out! He told me he turned around because it was too hot.... no mention of a forgotten water bottle. You have to keep an eye on those donkeys!

I've never been in there at this time of year, but in general I prefer the Cerise Creek approach for everything other than routes on Slalok (Stonecrop Face or West Ridge).

This is exactly what we're planning to do. A 6:30 start sounds just about right. Stinkyclimber, here's a good link showing the alternate to the summer trail.

Thanks for the info everyone. Despite the crappy forecast, this Saturday is the day. Any suggestions for a start time from the Heliotrope trailhead?

I looked at those, but Valhalla's were a size too small and Coast's were a size too big. Otherwise I would have bought 'em.

Does anyone know if the Guide Tennies 5.10 brought back last year are any more durable than the Mt. Masters?

Should work now.

MEC is clearing out Arc'Teryx Khamsin and Serratus Ibex packs. Details here.

What is considered the "shortened" version? When they bypass Iago and go down into Fitzsimmons Creek? Going between the East Col and Singing Pass (via Iago) on each lap, with an exit down the Singing Pass trail or from the Blackcomb-Decker col would be impressive. I expect that you could count on one hand the number of people who've done the Spearhead without using the lifts in recent years.

That rumour was in this Ski Canada story a couple months ago. I'd guess it's Pehota, Chilton or Condon, but I don't know who the hot shots are these days.