Off_Route

Yes, yer DEET is still good, even after all these years: In fact, the familiar REI-branded summer fragrance is sometimes still found in bottles actually delivered in 1960s vintage cases of US Army surplus goods, and it's still as good as ever! Did you know you can mix up your DEET with REI-brand coconut oil to make your own high-performance speed-climber body lube? It's slick! Call your REI sales specialists, and have them send a special gift-wrapped case to that special partner of yours... They will be glad to include a complementary REI credit card application, just to show you really care. REI Jungle Juice: For the magical animal in both of you. mC

Since the the topic of snow on the Mtn has already been breeched here, and I 'spose that craggers to the north side of the river get good views of the Mtn on the south side... Is there still a schrund or cornice atop the "obvious gulley" that goes up to the summit ridge on the main peak of Index? Thinking 'bout walking up there over the 4th; would be maybe taking kids, some bottle rockets, and marshmellows for a red-white-and-blue camping trip on top. However, objective hazard of ice fall in the gulley would be unacceptable... BTW, Miss N: Camping spots are a-plenty once well away from and above the town and crowds below. (Especially when there's any of that icckkky snow stuff on the ground!) -- Little Burd.

Terminal Velocity: 614 MPH. Exposure: 102,800 Feet. Joseph Kittinger, 1960 August 16.

'Scuse me while I belch... Hoo-yeah! Now, do I understand correctly that if I ride my bike out toward Glacier Peak this weekend, boys driving by from around Darrington will be pitchin' cans of beer my way? Now, I will admit that would be generous of them, but are they really all that fucking stupid? After all, bouncing those cans off the highway just wastes a lot of beer and makes what is left all foamy and hard to drink.

IMO: Custom fitted in Seattle, 3,000 to 4,500 cu in. McHale Alpine Packs

You may do well with a "handline" of 8mm perlon, 30 meters long. As already mentioned, a thin, static rope like this can be shorter than 30 meters and still be plenty useful for giving you a way to help a newbie scrambler discover self-confidence while negotiating exposed terrain. But with a full 30 meters, you can double it over a horn or through a runner and have enough rope for a dulfersitz rappel that will let you get back down a forty-foot off-route pitch. Getting stuck is bad. Getting back down is good. By the way, as an additional length consideration, if that "handline" is long enough, it can be used with a regular climbing rope to provide for full-length rappels. mC

Whattsa Walmart? Is Walmart like Ballard? Can I get something to eat at Walmart? Does Walmart have those deep-fried hydrogenated lard sticks like that gasoline deli in Darrington? Yep, definitely like those lard sticks, definitely got a warranty. Yeah, definitely gotta go to Walmart.

Yep...after climbing up and over by way of North Chute, and turning toward the summit block, I followed a route that narrowed to an exposed, sloping ledge marked by a pin with a couple runners on it. I had no rope and was solo anyway, but thought "a confident alpine rock climber would probably not need a belay here." Then I backed off. Choosing the alternate crossing-over by way of Terrible Traverse proved successful, but it was very late into a long season and most of the remaining ice could be bypassed on rock. Bivied on top. Returned by way of South Chute. A glorius hike. Heard said: ... bring bivy gear, and you will bivy... ... bring rope gear, and you will belay... mC

Green Eggs and Ham

<a href="http://www.ancilnance.com/html/picket19large.htm">Green Eggs and Ham</a>

Yep, it's when I'm close to traffic that is going a lot faster that I feel most vulnerable; if the speed differential is great, the potential for catastrophic energy transfer is also great, as suggested previously in this thread. For that matter, my hair stands up just a little more if I'm going much faster than the traffic too. Same difference. As the practicality of bike riding in Seattle goes, increased crowding of cars seems to be actually favorable! I note an increasing proliferation of tracks where a half-way capable rider on a road bike can often keep pace traffic, or close to it. Also, bike lanes and sidewalk access provide alternatives that work well, especially if the biker maintains a generous consideration for both pedestrians and drivers, regardless of who may or may not have the legal right of way. On my present commute, I've found Aurora (of all the places) to be a favorable stretch. There is a lot of room, and with traffic the way it is these days, a bicylist can often keep a speed common to the flow. I feel comfortable, most of the time, riding a bike around here. In my view, it's folks that are cooped up and watching from a perspective of inexperience or naivete that are suffering from most of the freaked-out perceptions.

Sadly true, few such stories go 'round spoken by the victims. Still, there are plenty of third-person accounts to clarify that being roped up can getcha dead, sometimes more often than not. Rope is good. False sense of security is bad.

...and require a "Wide Load" sign be posted on all the 5-by-5's that seem to populate those groups...not that that would stop 'em from flailing around like drunken tourists on a trampoline all the while...

Regarding the wisdom in choosing alternate routes, or different routes altogether, all points are well taken. For anybody wanting a ride off the city streets, taking a ferry to the Kitsap does provide a good alternative. The trip from Bainbridge to Kingston is a good clip, and it's easy to connect Edmonds to Seattle. The only steep hill 'tween to two ferry ports on the other side is one in proximity to Miller Bay, or somewhere like that, basically off the main way. It's not one to climb with most legs and most road bike gearing, but it is short. Really. Also agreed, the BG is dangerous course laden with moving and unpredictable human obstacles. Fact is, 15mph is still a fair clip, and it's not the first time BG riders have been compelled to slow to a stop for attentive cops as well as inattentive pedestrians. Still, given the perception of being on a bike trail free from surveillance, I'm one inclined to open it up when nobody else is around, and then opt to slow rather than stop at the backstreet and driveway stop signs. But with the news about yet another BG crackdown, I'll be one to continue wearing a helmet, while riding the BG like the urban speed trap it is. Snell-approved is good. The BG is good. Moving traffic violations are bad.

DS, Thanx for the heads up. Last week, when adding the LFP leg of the BG to a mid-day ride, I found few other people out there. Thus, my bike generally visited speeds under 15mph only when blowing through the stop signs. I suppose the same trip tomorrow might be the target of radar guns and a dragnet of bicycle cops. Ouch! mC

Routes & Rocks in the Mt. Challenger Quadrangle by R. W. Tabor, D. F. Crowder

A proper evaluation of the comparative dynamisstitcity of belay devices may compell the nurdy nerd to consider multiple variables... Today I saw a huge stack boxes, presumably full of donuts, hover through the doorway of the new shop on Aurora North. Fall factor one, fall factor two, fall factor Krispy Kreme... That reminded me... I was thinking about swapping out the old ATC... Now this, FWIW-- Quantitative data on the braking force required to stop a fall with various braking devices on fat and skinny ropes: "The Trango Pyramid required 24.7 pounds of force for a 10.7mm rope and 36.9 for an 8.4mm rope. The ATC required 22.3 and 36.7 pounds of force... ...test calculated that the Petzl Reverso required 25.9 pounds of force for a 10.7mm rope and a whopping 46.5 for a single 8.4mm rope... ...the B52 required 19.2 pounds of force for a 10.7mm rope and only 23.2 for an 8.4mm rope." http://www.traditionalmountaineering.org/FAQ_Belay_device.htm -mC-

http://www.mchalepacks.com/

Off the main route, from the base, you can bust a scramble over the ridge towards Shastina. Once yer crossing over, everything lays out into a a cool ascending traverse all the way to the saddle 'tween Shastina and Shasta. As it was, the glacier going up to the circus on the big one was a slog, but with substantial exposure over a couple big, partly hidden crevasses. Coming back down the dog route, the biggest hazard was the many bodies all decked out in fluffy parkas and GoreTex and laying down in the way. Much nicer by way of Shastina. For whatever its worth.

Lots of cool high routes in the Olympics where one can suffer the joys of going long off route over choss three on the alpine high and bush thrash in the valley low--way to get away and be dazed by a yellow bloom anchored to the grey by solitary roots...here dazed by the crossing, by the schrund, by the snout, by the last effluvial torrent of a glacier melting into an expanse of green where there was absolutely nobody.

2003.04.26 Deception and Mystery I've connected a climb over Mystery with a route taken up the West side of Deception. When I did this, it began with a late start up the Constance Pass trail and an arrival at SunnyBrook meadows by flashlight. Unsure where to get out the bivy bag, I simply stopped when the altimeter read 5500' and I was standing by a little pond. At first light, Gunsight Pass made a beautiful target, and instead of ascending north to get on the Delmonte Ridge, I went ahead and took a chance at traversing directly over to the gap. Even though I recall taking a real butt plunge at first, the traverse proved to be an expeditious approach over a series of benches and open woody areas that linked up conveniently by way of short scrambles culminating at the highly visible gully that provides the final ascent into the Gunsight Pass. Time-wise, the pass proved to be a halfway mark from the Constance Pass trail at Sunnybrook to the summit of Mystery-- I took a rest break to eat before the pass, and after the pass I spent time flailing around with nervous route finding decisions on the ridge. Overall, what I found was a class 3 route up the west side from Gunsight Pass, and through the upper part of Delmonte Ridge. This was accomplished by making a sharp right at the pass and ascending predictable shale until forced to contour north through pinnacles on the ridge. Once or twice I found the wrong obvious gully, correctly decided I was off route, and backed away from exposure that was creeping me out. Still, this flailing around eventually got me through to the upper east summit block, from where the summit was readily attained. From the summit, given a break in the clouds (or a clear day), much of the first leg of the exit from Mystery that crosses over by a west route of Deception may viewed, down to the glacial draw below mystery, beyond which the route is concealed in the canyon through which runs Deception creek. Looking east from the upper slopes of Mystery, one may observe the saddle located between the headwaters of the Dosewallips on one side and headwaters of the Dungeness on the other. Hauling ass in the general direction of the saddle proved both fun and expedient. From the saddle, the draw below the stagnant Mystery Glacier was easily obtained by crossing over scree, rock, and glacier ice. The glacier was entirely dry, but was easily crossable in key areas with crampons on. The draw below the glacier proved an impressive place to visit-- there is an enormous terminal moraine piled up here, in the vicinity of which takes one on a hike over a meandering expanse of delicate ground covered with mosses, sedge, and meandering streams. Consistent with the effort required to get here, or leave here for that matter, I observed no trace of prior human visitation. Anyway, once into the Deception Basin, the route followed goes down through a mile of obstacles while desending the canyon of Deception Creek. The scramble down this headwater canyon is knarrly; it's the sort of ground where a short rapell now and then might save the traveller from knock-the-wind-out-you tumbles of the kind where one knows gratitude for being spared injury. Alternatively, one may simply flail in earnest, and with good fortune take no tumble at all. Either way, I've little doubt why Deception Basin, despite its awesome beauty, goes rarely visited. On this leg of the trip, when exiting to the valley floor from either of three directions, the general target is the confluence of the two upper forks of Deception Creek-- easily identified on the ground as well as on maps as the place where one fork goes NE to Deception Basin and the other fork goes SE to Gunsight Pass. Where this landmark in the woods is reached one can look around and observe cedar trees heavily clawed by bears. If benighted, this would be a good place to stop, rather than stumbling through the woods. Given enough daylight to get anywhere, I'd continue going. By going north from the vicinity of this confluence, the main route up the west side of Deception is readily intercepted. The last time I walked out of this area, I skipped doing Deception, but descended through here during an exit from Deception on another occasion. Both times, I came straggling out of the woods onto the Dosewallips trail around Cub creek. For what it's worth, going over Mystery took about 24 hours car to car while coming in by way of the Constance Pass trail and then making an exit that intersected the west route of Deception on the way out. At that pace, which proved exhausting, it would take an additional day to include an ascent of Deception.