Thinker

I went to an occupational therapist today as my ortho doc thought I'd gain some benefit from learning about stretching and warming up my fore arms and fingers before climbing...getting old sucks! Got the ususal stretches I expected: 1, arm straight, fingertips pointing up, pull fingertips back toward my arm. 2, arm straight, fingertips pointed out, pull fingers back toward elbow, pullin on the back side of my fingers. All very well and good. She recommended warming up the forearm muscles with a hot water bottle or heatpack for 10 minutes before stretching before climbing...good enough. What really surprised me was finding out that the ring finger on my dominant hand was the weakest finger out of the 9 I have left. We stuck some 'therapy putty' on the table and pulled each finger through it individually with only the finger tips bent. When I got to that finger I was amazed...no strength. She said it could be due to a frayed or strained tendon. Guess I'll be taking it a bit easy on that finger for awhile. She noted that if I hear or feel a pop on my forearm and that finger won't close when I make a fist it's time for surgery....yuk. Seems to be a fairly common injury called 'jersey finger'. Any experience with that? Anyone else have a weak finger? Anybody had the tendon snap and surgery to repair it?

I don't really care about the Canada vs USA aspect, but I would like to see this whole thing aired out and investigated by the authorities. Speaking from experience, I know how often these things get swept under the carpet in small towns, esp if the kid(s) of a prominent citizen is involved. However, I'd love to see this group nailed if they did what's been reported. It's quite brazen to do so much damage and create so much fear right in the middle of a quiet little community like Squamish...this kind of thing grows like a cancer. go get 'em K5N.

So were they camping IN the campground, or at one of the pullouts along Loggers Lane?

I camped out on the Spit at Squamish this last weekend and had a few nagging doubts about feeling that exposed in a place where kids obviously party from time to time. While everything went off without a hitch, I think I'll be a bit more hesitant about camping there in the future, or at least camp with a larger group when I can. I don't know what to make of Shannon's experience. I do look forward to seeing more of the details confirmed and hearing what RCMP has to say about it, if anything.

I'd vote for TLG if her running mate were Muffy.

Celtic Bayou at 520 and W Lk Sam Pkwy Becks, if you don't mind a little cig smoke. Claimjumpers, if you want some cheap eats and don't mind the suburbanites.

funny stuff!

more fun from the nps morning report: Yellowstone National Park (ID,MT,WY) Driver Hits Bison, Then Drives Into River Rangers from the Madison Subdistrict investigated a report of a vehicle submerged in the Madison River early on the morning of June 14th. They found the car in the river and the occupants nearby, wet and under the influence of alcohol. One was also injured. They determined that the driver had hit a bison weighing about 2,200 pounds, causing significant damage to the car (including the loss of the windshield). They attempted to drive to Old Faithful but ended up driving into the river. The driver was taken to a hospital outside the park by NPS EMS personnel; the passenger was arrested. The bison suffered serious and possibly lethal injuries. A major operation was undertaken to recover the car from the river. Both the driver and passenger face numerous charges, including DUI, giving rangers false information, unsafe operation, destruction of wildlife, and, possibly, misappropriation of the vehicle. The case remains under investigation. The prosecutor plans on seeking significant restitution for damage to or destruction of wildlife and other costs associated with the incident. Supervisory ranger Curt Dimmick is the primary investigator. [submitted by Brian Smith, Supervisory Special Agent] Acadia National Park (ME) Rescue from Otter Cliffs On the afternoon of June 3rd, climber Doug Shilo, 19, of Wolfburg, New Hampshire, sustained a crushed ankle/leg injury and laceration to the top of his head after falling between 20 and 30 feet to an ocean side ledge at Otter Cliffs. Shilo was being top-roped on a popular route called "A Dare By the Sea" when he fell. This pulled the belayer from his stance, causing him to let go of the rope and drop Shilo to the ledge below. Shilo was placed in a litter by several rangers who rappelled the 60 feet to his location. He was then taken into a waiting Coast Guard vessel, which helped transport him to Mt. Desert Hospital in Bar Harbor. [submitted by David A. Smith]

Lake Mead National Recreation Area (AZ,NV) Heat Exposure Claims Lives Of Two Hikers On the afternoon of June 18th, hikers in Gold Strike Canyon came upon a naked, hysterical, incoherent man swinging on a tree and noted that his clothing and shoes were lying just below him on the trail. They continued down the trail, where they came across a second unresponsive naked man lying face down on the ground. The hikers turned around and attempted to make contact with the first man, but he would not respond to them. They left him a bottle of water and started to hike out to get help. They came across two hikers and asked them to go get help so that they could return to assist the man who was still alive. When they returned in about 30 to 45 minutes, the man had passed away. The park received a call for help at 3 p.m. Rescuers arrived on scene 45 minutes later. Both men were pronounced dead at the scene, with each displaying obvious signs of heat exposure. Initial investigation revealed that they were not prepared for the desert conditions. Gold Strike Canyon is a steep, rugged desert canyon with temperatures in excess of 110 degrees. Metro Search and Rescue and the Hoover Dam Police assisted the NPS with this incident. Their deaths are the 17th and 18th fatalities to occur in the park of the year. [submitted by Mary Hinson, District Ranger, Boulder District]

Well this one has a photo...

no thanks on the gaiters, I'm pretty fat on them now....picked up a 'like new' $15 pair of BigCrocs at a garage sale. good luck trying to make up your mind on the harness, OCD boy! jus kiddin'

that would be pretty easy to fix/modify if that were your only concern....

Giant Sea Creature Baffles Chilean Scientists Tue Jul 1, 3:05 PM ET Add Science - Reuters SANTIAGO, Chile (Reuters) - Chilean scientists were baffled on Tuesday by a huge, gelatinous sea creature found washed up on the southern Pacific coast and were seeking international help identifying the mystery specimen. The dead creature was mistaken for a beached whale when first reported about a week ago, but experts who went to see it said the 40-foot-long mass of decomposing lumpy gray flesh apparently was an invertebrate. "We'd never before seen such a strange specimen, We don't know if it might be a giant squid that is missing some of its parts or maybe it's a new species," said Elsa Cabrera, a marine biologist and director of the Center for Cetacean Conservation in Santiago. Photographs showed a round leathery substance like a mammoth jelly fish, about as long as a school bus. Giant squid live at a depth of 9,500 feet and only rise to the surface when they die. Specimens have been known to be as long as 60 feet. There was speculation that the mass might be a whale skin, but Cabrera said it was too big and did not have the right texture or smell. Cabrera said she was contacting Chilean and international organizations in the hope that they could help shed some light on the find. The Chilean Navy first spotted the mystery specimen along with another large mass, but the other dead animal turned out to be a dead humpback whale. ********************* TRASK!!!.............................

Amen, brother! Paradise is as good a place as any for a beginner to start in a fun, beautiful, and safe environment.

Our driver in SLC said the city had rounded up many of the homeless people there prior to the olympics and gave them a one way bus ticket to Las Vegas. If you work it right, you may be able to get the same deal.

One thing is for sure, it will change the face and personality of the town of Squamish forever. No doubt there will be some major restaurant, condo, and hotel development there, and an increased amount of tourism in the future. You can bet that campgrounds won't be part of the development for winter olympics.

One thing to watch out for is the shady politics in bed with the commercial interests. In Salt Lake City a developer at one of the ski areas (Park City, I think) did a land swap with the FS or BLM. Developer got prime acreage at the ski area in exchange for much lower quality/value land. Some people there were/are pretty outraged about it.

I believe they are called 'Mounties' and are typically ridiculed on this site for doing so. Funny you should mention that, as it's exactly what this is (not with the Mounties, though.)

Drinking when we are not thirsty and making love at all seasons, madam: that is all there is to distinguish us from other animals. Pierre-Augustin de Beaumarchais

Tobacco, coffee, alcohol, hashish, prussic acid, strychnine, are weak dilutions; the surest poison is time. Ralph Waldo Emerson

bring em on in honor of pub club. here's a starter: I have taken more good from alcohol than alcohol has taken from me. --- Sir Winston Churchill

I'm likely going to be in the area and wouldn't mind hooking up for a climb or two on Sat or Sun. I'm just starting back on rock after a bout with some tendonitus and would prefer slab routes or some 5.easy cracks.

You can never conquer the mountain. You can only conquer yourself. ---Jim Whittaker Nobody climbs mountains for scientific reasons. Science is used to raise money for the expeditions, but you really climb for the hell of it. ---Sir Edmund Hillary

Wherever I climb I am followed by a dog called "Ego". Friedrich Nietzsche