ivan

don't think i've ever climbed rainier and not felt like it'd hurt me far more than i'd hurt it

light weight tent or tarp and long pants/shirt plus bug net for your head and you'll be fine. bugs weren't bad on my trip that i recall but god knows i've seen them be horrible in the n cascades.

i had no idea el cap was the base of an ancient volcano?

courtesy of those national geographic types

cool graphic - makes it easy to spot where the colleges are

a pulp porn mag's lighter still and oughta keep any red-blooded man warm through a frosty night

from the nps website: Permits to hike to the top of Half Dome are required seven days per week when the cables are up (as called for in the Half Dome Plan in order to protect wilderness character, reduce crowding, protect natural and cultural resources, and improve safety). A maximum of 300 hikers will be allowed (about 225 day hikers and 75 backpackers) each day on the Half Dome Trail beyond the base of the subdome. Like last year, permits will be distributed by lottery via Recreation.gov. We held a single preseason lottery with an application period in March and will hold daily lotteries during the hiking season. Backpackers should apply for Half Dome permits with their wilderness permit. On each preseason lottery application, people can apply for up to six permits (six people) and for up to seven dates. Applications will only be successful if the number of permits requested is available on at least one of the requested dates. If enough permits are available for more than one of the requested dates, permits will be automatically awarded to the highest priority date, as entered by the applicant. Applicants may apply as the trip leader only once per lottery. Multiple applications with the same trip leader will be removed from the lottery. The applicant must specify the name of the trip leader and may specify the name of an alternate. Each person may apply as a trip leader only once per lottery. People applying multiple times as trip leader will have all their lottery applications canceled. Permits will only be valid if the trip leader and/or alternate specified on the permit is part of the group using the permits. The group with trip leader or alternate must be present together at the base of the subdome, where rangers will check for permits. The names of the trip leader and alternate may not be changed once the application is submitted, and their permits are not transferable. Preseason Lottery Two hundred and twenty-five permits for each day were available through a preseason lottery. The application period for this lottery was from March 1, 2013 to March 31, 2013. Applicants will receive an email with lottery results on April 15 (or can get results online or by calling Recreation.gov). We are planning on the Half Dome cables being up May 24, 2013 through October 14, 2013, but these dates could change based on conditions. (You can view graphs that show how many Half Dome permit applications were submitted for each day during the 2012 Half Dome season.) Daily Lottery Approximately 50 permits will be available each day by lottery during the hiking season. These permits will be available based on the estimated rate of under-use and cancellation of permits (the exact number may change through the summer). The daily lotteries will have an application period two days prior to the hiking date with a notification late that night. (So, to hike on Saturday, you would apply on Thursday and receive an email notification of results late on Thursday night. Results will also be available online, or by phone the next morning.) The application period will be from midnight to 1 pm Pacific time. Daily Lottery Success Rate: For mid-June through August, 2012, an average of 86 permits were available each day via the daily lottery. About 21% of lottery applications were successful, on average.Beginning early September, a larger number of permits were available during weekdays (due to fewer initial applications in the spring lottery), providing a much better chance of success. September weekends remained busy with fewer permits available, resulting in a 20-30% success rate. How to Apply for a Permit To apply for a permit, visit Recreation.gov or call 877/444-6777 (call center is open from 7 am to 9 pm Pacific time; online requests can be made any time during a lottery period). Fees Two separate fees are collected. The first fee, which is charged at the time you submit an application, is $4.50 (online) or $6.50 (by phone). This non-refundable fee, which is per application (not per person), is charged by Recreation.gov for the costs of processing your permit application. The second fee is $8 per person and is charged only when you receive a permit. (This fee also applies to wilderness permit holders.) This fee pays for park rangers checking for Half Dome permits and providing Half Dome visitors with hiking and safety information. The $8 fee is fully refundable if you cancel your permit more than two days before the hiking date specified on your permit or if the cables are not up on the date for which your permit is valid. Still have questions? You can call us at 209/372-0826 (Monday-Friday, 9 am to noon and 1 pm to 4:30 pm).

but do i need a permit now to walk down the trail? do you mean up the trail? To half dome? You need a permit for a day hike? was making a joke of course, but yeah, to walk up the trail to the top of half dome requires permits now as i understand since they want to limit traffic on the descent which gets folks killed sometimes - i don't know specifics - i imagine there's an exception for climbers descending

we had no problems doing double raps the whole way but certainly there's a potential for stuckage - i recall being more concerned we'd set off rockfall on each pull, so used my pack as a riot shield

classic layton - and classic summit-fear parsnipittiness short-hand on mine

but do i need a permit now to walk down the trail?

where ARE the snowdens of yesteryear?

That's misleading. Aid climbers get laid so infrequently that gay men actually have more children than big wall climbers. dunno, seem to recall seeing that ammon-character down in the valley w/ a miiiighty fine looking female

i can't hardly remember last week, and it seems a looooong time ago since me n' mike did that thing - what was it of? if a giant hairy rocketship, that was probably me

but...i don't have a phone? perhaps in the future i will own one though, and he has already driven there in the delorean?

looks a mite kewler w/ all that snow on it - did that make the approach any less annoying?

a brother can always hope i've spent 4 early summer's down there now - the first had temps way over a hundred, the 2nd more like the 90s, but the last two have been great - so either it'll be fine 'r fucked

summer break starts next week, june 19 - partner fell through - looking for somebody interested in practically anything - got as much time as you have - el cap, half dome, whatever really. solid drinking n' smoking skills preferred (not to mention being a better free-climber than me), but i'm willing to slum send word and enter into cc.retard tr-history

if you want grandchildren, you might warn him off sport climbing, as gay men, statistically speaking, have few children

christ, i hope kevbone don't see this pic-less tr! not one profane word either, it's like you're not trying!

and yet one of the most basic truths of life is... "when ya gotta go, ya gotta..."

sorry, steve, i only dry-hump my own leg you suprise me a bit on this issue - you told me you're not into politics? why have an opinion on this issue if you don't vote? at any rate, i said sometime in the past, i do think it's crap to replace gear on a route if its founder tells you not to (even if the man is mad as a march-hare)

d-day - b-day plus 16 for me - machines shitting out soil on the road cut - long lines of traffic - sweating in the sun - a book and a beer for the beacon run - trains rumbling - falcons screeching - shade and wind - the island in the grips of the Drowned God - sweet tension released in seconds, the searing heat of summer upon us, the seniors soon to be flown and my professional sun setting

where ARE the snowdens of yesteryear?

why is hitler and where is good?