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Jonathan

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Posts posted by Jonathan

    Identifying Cascade peaks from Seattle area

    in Climber's Board

    Posted

    Hi,

     

    Is there a resource out there that identifies Cascade peaks visible from, say, the eastern slope of Capitol Hill?

     

    I can ID Baker, Pilchuck, Sloan, Glacier, Phelps and the peaks of the S. Fork Snoqualmie drainage, et al. I must confess, however, that even after 25 years of traipsing about the Cascades some of those front range lumps are still mysteries to me.

     

    Thanks!

     

    Jonathan Pryce

    Seattle, Wash.

    Great experience w/ MSR re damaged h20 bag . . .

    in The Gear Critic

    Posted

    Hi all,

     

    I dropped and fatally punctured my trusty, algae-encrusted MSR camelbag. Really liked it as it was tougher and lighter for mountain and cycling trips and Golden Gardens BBQs/wine drink ups than some other product that is also named after camels or goats or civets. OK, early morning before tea--icy bag, cold fingers, gravity, sharp rock . . . you get the picture. I mailed MSR, and told them as much and asked how to repair. The next day (whoa! very prompt) they sent a note saying just return the damaged bag, they even provided printable labels. They wrote that they would be concerned about the adhesive I might use (I was thinking something with ShoeGoo and duct tape, actually), and that "we'll take care of you." I expected a charge, seems only fair, was my bumbling afterall. They replaced the bag, no charge! Humorously, the replaced it with a "Dromolite," that features a kind of handle for butterfingers like me.

     

    Free product replacement for something that wasn't their fault and a belly laugh to boot!

     

    Very cool, IMHO.

     

    Jonathan Pryce

    Seattle, Wash.

     

    Second Ascent

    in Local Gear Shops

    Posted · Edited by Jonathan

    Second Ascent rocks! Great selection of new and used climbing stuff and biking gear and service as well. It's a fun store to just hang out in as well. The shop has filled the void left by the demise of The Swallows' Nest and Wilderness Sports. It's the place I look first for what I want.

    Cyclist's joy . . .

    in Spray

    Posted

    To my fellow velophile CCCers . . .

     

    I ride from Ballard to my job in Montlake Terrace 2 or 3 times a week.

     

    Last week I pedaled the 1/2 mile section of the nearly finished first section of the City of Shoreline's Interurban Trail (cityofshoreline.com/cityhall/projects/interurban/index.cfm}. The Hope, the Dream: to shorten my route into work at bit and eliminate a couple of white knuckle sections near Shoreline CC and a HS (buses, harried parents, young drivers) in the same area.

     

    So I pick it up at its southern terminus where Linden Ave N ends at NE 145th. Boldly I proceed . . .

     

    But where will it dump me? Yet another bike path to nowhere useful? Some horrid dead end? A huckleberry patch replete with rabid civets? And will I be able to cross the great divide known as Aurora Ave N? In the damp, predawn gloom I forge on. Lewis, Clark, Shakleton--abide with me. And, woohoo! The path deposits me at NE 155th and Aurora. A crossing bereft of a signal? A chasm of cars separating me and my trusty steed from my Quest To Just Get Across The God Damned Street Already? No . . . Begorah! A well marked crosswalk with a safe place to stand while waiting for the light to change. No puddles even! Now I need to proceed to Meridian Ave N to head N into the wilds of Snohomish County. N 155th is unknown to me--will it prove a cyclist's hell like its cousin to the S, NE 145th? No! Whoa! Hot dang! Bike lanes! OK, narrow and filled with debris, but extant! Nothing my venerable '84 Univega with the 27 inch rims can't handle . . .just sit back and let the bike do all the work. And--no end of good--N 155th intersects Meridian Ave N just as Meridian widens and becomes quite cycle-friendly. I am sped onward into mysterious Snohomish County where Meridian becomes 76th Ave W, a land where the mullet runs wild and proud and free and the Camaro still rules the streets.

     

    O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!

     

    Jonathan Pryce

    Instep crampons--how to affix?

    in The Gear Critic

    Posted

    Golly gee, all the responses! Seriously, thanks!

     

    I'll attempt the drizzling heights of Si and Mailbox with the Stubai insteps and pray they don't pivot off, plunging me into a tree and necessitating an ignominious rescue. smile.gif

     

    Maybe my trusty rusty ol' SMCs may be the way to go, was just looking for a way to save them for when I really want them and extend their life just a wee bit.

     

    Cheers,

     

    Jonathan Pryce

    A few of our favorite schnaffels . . .

    in Spray

    Posted

    Before I go off to brave a family christmas, performing the duties of brother, son and uncle, I offer this photo. It's one of my fav schnaffel encounters, a pine marten near Oval Peak in Oct. of '00.

     

    How about schaffel post fest?

     

    Have a happy, bigdrink.gif

     

    Jonathan Pryce

    291865-schnaffelsmall.jpg.3d7f4598f63d744babfa6e161c3dddf2.jpg

    Alpental winter upvalley travel restricted

    in Access Issues

    Posted

    I agree, just quoting Abbey. His chapter on industrial tourism is sadly prophetic.

     

    At the pass, the FS, ski resort owners, private land owners and users--indusrial and non-industrial, sightseers and tubers alike--need to get together and figure out access issues, esp. for the winter time when parking becomes scarce.

     

    Not a project I'm willing to drive, however.

     

    Jonathan Pryce

    funny movies

    in Spray

    Posted

    Python, of course, but take another look at the old Bob Hope and Bing Crosby road flicks. "Road to Morocco" is my favorite.

     

    Disclaimer! Carefully place your post-modern political correctness on the shelf, as well as your faux off-the-rack coolness on the shelf--they'll be safe there. Watch the road movies alone if you have to! Open a few brews and just enjoy some hammy, silly acting with some great tunes to boot.

     

    Jonathan Pryce

    Number of bicycles

    in Spray

    Posted

    1) '84 Univega Viva Touring

    2) '92 B'stone MB 3

    3) '00 Jamis Quest

     

    Ride 'em all, love 'em all.

     

    Bought 'em all new. Was riding the Univega awhile back when a strong young woman with killer calves and sweet eyes rode up along side me. We're chitchatting, I'm making her laugh and I'm thinking Wow, what a cool dude I am. Then, guilelessly, sincerely, she tells me that me my bike is "way retro cool" and that her father has one just like it--and then she says, I bet you bought yours new, too, that's so cool you're still out there riding.

     

    Well, at least my tires didn't defalte as well!

     

    Jonathan

     

    Opinions on the REI Half-Dome Tent

    in The Gear Critic

    Posted

    It's billed as a three season tent. Has anyone out there experienced its performance in high winds and heavy snows? Spindrift problems? Felt warm and fuzzy about cooking in its vestibule? I may not be able to replace my aging, beloved Biber so easily and am looking for alternatives. Note that I only find myself in extreme conditions a few times a year, but enjoy winter camping. A heavier wallet is preferable over a lighter pack at this point! tongue.gif

    Drills holes near Triad L. outlet

    in North Cascades

    Posted

    Visited Triad Lake this summer, that's near Buck and High Passes.

     

    Camped at the outlet near some of those wonderful large glacier polished boulders and slabs. We noticed some 4 drill holes in the granite in our camp, maybe an inch in diameter and a couple of inches deep.

     

    The question: Why would some drill here for cores like this? Is the rock there that unusual?

     

    The area is not exactly remote but seems still like a loooooooong-arsed way to fly-in or shelp drilling equipment in.

     

    Jonathan

     

     

    Lynnwood REI moving to Alderwood Mall

    in Local Gear Shops

    Posted

    'Tis sad to have witnessed the denmise of REI over the last 20 years. I miss the old Capitol Hill store of, say, 1980 or so. I also miss Dag's, the Dog House, the old Murphy's, the Midget Tavern, the pre-permit days, Mayor Royer, the Swallows' Nest, Belltown before the boom, the Svea 123, etc., etc., etc.

     

    But, sigh, it's the only place I can get Kendall Mint Cake!

     

    Besides if REI didn't exist, we'd have to create it or find some other store "Where real climbers don't shop" to vent our spleen on. wink.gif

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