Rainier_Wolfscastle

I think you can just buy the whippet shaft and a seperate lower section from BD. No need to buy another set of poles.

I have been very satisfied with every MEC garment I have purchased. The quality is good, the prices are decent, and the designs are functional without un-needed frills. The only thing I don't like is the zipper pull on their jackets are on the other side (like a womens jacket). Not a big deal, just takes a little getting used too.

My .02: The second door available on the I-tent improves ventilation signficantly. Cracking both doors allows air to flow right thru, thereby minimizing condensation. Not sure if ID offers this on their models.

Old Navy has some nice stuff. Trendy, yet affordable.

If you know how to walk a long way and use an ice axe, you shouldn't need a guide.

I used a Sony Cybershot DSC-75. I'm no photographer, but this thing seems to take good pictures anyway.

For anyone who is interested, here are some digipics of my Cirque of the Towers climbing trip a few weeks ago. http://home1.gte.net/4mkempt/cirque2002.htm FYI: These pics are pretty big and will take a while to download if you are using a dial-up connection

I think only 7.6mm twin rope is called Ice floss. I found a 8mm rope to be nice for glacier travel or simul-climbing on low 5th class stuff. Upside: LIGHT (less than 3lbs for 8mm X 30m), less rope drag, less impact force on shallow or weak gear placements which can make the difference in a placement holding or pulling out. Downside: 8mm is stretchy, you will fall further before stopping than a single rope and prehaps hit something or get flipped upside down with the longer fall. Edge cut resistance is poor, but this risk can be minimized by placing gear so the rope can't "saw" on a sharp edge in a fall. Prussiking a 8mm rope can be tough if you prussik material is close in diameter (6mm or 7mm). 5mm seems to work OK for me.

Does the Princeton LED use those conductive foam strips for battery connections like their previous Vortex series lamps? Those strips compress after a while and loose contact with the batteries. Needless to say, the headlamp left me in the dark many times. I switched to Putzl after the second bad Princeton lamp.

I saw a BD guy using these Last winter at Ouray. They looked pretty cool. I think this is BD's answer to the Quark. The aluminum shaft has more bend than the cobra, but a little less than the Quark. The head and pick is the same as cobra. The grip is a little smaller. Not sure about the aluminum shaft for me. I like the dampened swing feel of carbon fiber.

I have a pair and like them alot. I also have wide feet, and 5.10 ascents fit well in the toes and heel. I found sportiva to be loose in the heel with a tight fit in the toes. Ascents fit about the same as moccasyms (my personal favorite). The only bad thing about the ascents is the heel hooking ability. The funky padded design in the back doesn't hook that well in my opinion. Otherwise, they are great all around shoe. FYI:, some 5.10's shoe shapes are totally diffent, I bought a pair of 5.10 "rock socks" on ebay in my usual 5.10 size and couldn't even get them on. They were subtaintly narrower.

how about http://www.telemark-pyrenees.com/e_index.htm They have sportiva

That's encouraging. I don't think I will tell my partners about walking 2 additional miles yet. They are already going to go limp over using Isput instead of White River. We do have a 4wd truck if that makes a difference on the road? I think we are going to descend the Emmons. I had also toyed with downclimbing the LR if the snow conditions allow. That's out if there is alot of ice. I have read of others doing this, and it would save a long traverse back from the Emmons. I'm open to other suggestions? quote: Originally posted by robertm: Rainier, be prepared to hoof it up the carbon river road for 2+ additional miles. Here is what the mora web site says: OPEN all year, but check road conditions first. Currently open to Chenuis Falls only. Two mile walk from road closure to campground. Carbon River Road is subject to flooding. High clearance vehicle recommended. I would leave the skis. Are you planning on descending the emmons and going back across the winthrop?

Looks like the White River road will be closed for our planned Liberty Ridge attempt next weekend. We are going to use Isput creek approach instead. Can anyone give any specific beta on this approach? We are wondering if it is worth it to bring approach skis? It looks like we would have to carry them from the 2k trailhead to the 4k snowline. Is it worth it, or should we just walk the whole way? I have always preferred using skis on glaciers but I understand the carbon is pretty jumbled up and it may not be efficient? How about snow shoes? As a backcounty skier I am imbarrased to use these, but will take if they work better for the this approach. Thanks for any help. Mike.

quote: Originally posted by freeclimb9: Why do you have two tents? The VE-25 can be pitched with just the poles and fly, and that weighs in about the same as the megamid (yet is free-standing, roomier, and better in wind). We're not taking both. The debate is which one to take. My buddies VE-25 is an older version. Are you sure you can set it up with no inner tent?

In a effort to save weight, we are considering using a BD megamid on Rainier's Liberty Ridge. Our other option is a VE-25, which is about 3 times heavier. Has anyone used a megamid for such a purpose? I have used it lower on a glacier and it worked fine, but I am not sure how it will stand up higher on the mountain. Also, is the snow typically deep enough at thumb rock to dig the floor out for a megamid? Thanks for any replies. Mike.

While your buddy is out taking a piss, deflate his thermarest and rub the valve on your butthole.

Going to try a 6 pitch free climb that has all hanging belays. Wondering if a fabric butt bag or hauling a plywood belay seat would be better? The butt bag seems better as it folds up into pocket, but I've also heard they are not much more comfortable than hanging in a harness? Any suggestions? Thanks, Mike.

Yeah, sorry for confusion. This is assuming you have a upward pull directional piece already below anchor that could be used to feed the rope back up into the reverso.

Thanks for the replies. The original idea behind the 30m is to save weight on long approach. Doubled rope is a good technique to keep second climber close, but defeats the original purpose of saving weight. Rapping is not really an option on this route once you are 1/3 the way up anyway, since the route is 1500 feet long and there is no fixed gear. Someone asked what the route was. It's the North Arete on Ellingwood Peak. It's on e of the NA 50 classics. Fun route.

I am just curious what length rope other climbers are using for simul-climbing. I was considering using a 30m line on long easy lines that have a walk off. I did a 1500 ft long 5.6 in the Winds last year with a 50m rope, and wanted to trim the weight since it is a 16 mile walk to get there. Obviously, you can't rap as far if you had to retreat, but once I was a third of the way up the route, I wouldn't have enough gear to retreat on a 50m rope anyway. Any thoughts? My wife was also complaining about the distance between us on the 50m rope. She wanted to be within complaining distance at all times. Maybe I will stick with the 50m.

If the reverso didn't completely lock by itself while belaying from above, I'd just add a directional biner before the anchor to induce a zig-zag in the rope. Forcing the rope to do a 180 around a biner a few feet away from the reverso. This will add alot of friction. Small downside: If your second(s) are climbing fast, you will get a workout pulling the ropes up with the added friction. Another option, you could also just hang on to the brake like an atc, but that will make rope manangement harder.

I've used this technique on rock many times with 8.5mm ropes. I have found it to work well. Any fall was immediately stopped with the self locking action of the reverso. I have not tried it on ice climbs though. In this case, it does seem logical that a wet skinny rope will provide less friction. Guess you just have to add additional friction with brake hand or other method. As far as the rope being cut over a sharp edge, I find this situation only to be a serious threat to the leader, who may fall over a sharp edge, but since the leader always leads with two lines, that's not as much a problem. I suppose it is possible to severe a single line while TR'ing, but it would probably require the follower to take a long swinging fall over a sharp edge. Of course, a fall of this type could be avoided by the leader protecting the route in manner to avoid the second from taking a pendiluim swing fall. The biggest problem I have seen with the reverso, is lowering someone who is hanging on the rope. It can be done, but not easily. I only use this technique on easier ground to save time for a three climbers.

My wife fell while simul-climbing a 5.7. I was leading and she was seconding. With a 8.5 rope and a wandering route, I hardly noticed the weight of her on me. She was actually hanging under a small overhang. It was interesting how much weight was taken of the leader by surface friction and running through protection over the 200 ft rope length. This could have been nasty if the route was steeper/with smaller holds, but then I would probably not be simul-climbing anyway.

Climbing mag had a review of large alpine packs within the last year. Sorry, can't remember the issue number. I do remember that the cheapest pack actually was the best one reviewed. It was called the Serratus Superlight. Arcteryx Khasmin 62 got high marks too.