catbirdseat

Climb: Exfoliation Dome-West Buttress Blueberry Hill Date of Climb: 7/30/2005 Trip Report: Arrived at parking area at 7:30 am with friends Erin, Connie and Paul. Within ten minutes along came mattp, MCash, and their friend Dan, set to climb Dark Rhythm. Our party of four, which was pretty inexperienced, went along at a pretty slow pace and settled for topping out at Blueberry Terrace, while mattp went to the summit. We managed to drop a pack somehow on the first pitch, which we recovered, but not one of the water bottles it contained. We'd miss that water later on, as it was a warm day. Erin, got to do her first ever trad leads on pitches 1 and 6. She did a fine job. The climbing was a bit challenging on the third pitch for Paul. He had a leader fall when he greased off a hold on the "pop goes the weasel" move. I saw him fall and was a bit worried for a minute, because I couldn't see where he fell to, but his gear was good and held the fall. He got right back on it. A notable thing was that on the fourth pitch, things seemed different to me. I'd be willing to swear that the huge flake has shifted, because the crack seems quite a bit wider than it had the previous year. When that baby goes, it's going to be spectacular. We rapped down from the left side of the terrace, while they rapped down Jacob's Ladder. Being a party of three they got down a little faster than we. On the third rappel, I had a nasty surprise. I'd forgotton that I'd cut a meter off of my originally 55 m rope. I was now a meter short of reaching the rap station and there was no knot in the end. Fortunately, the other rope was 60 m and it was the one that was through the anchor, so I was able to pay out just that rope and thereby reach the station. Had the knot been on the other side of the anchor, things would have gotten a lot more interesting. By the time we reached our packs we were really parched. Water never tasted so good. Someone from the other party hollered up that they were leaving beers in the pond. We thought they were joking. When we got there there was a carabiner marking the spot and three Black Butte Porters cooling in the water. We had a swim and enjoyed the beer. Thanks so much Matt, Martin, and Dan. We arrived at the car to find the right rear tire going flat, so I got to change it. The jack on that Jeep really sucked, but it worked just well enough. Finished up with dinner at La Hacienda. The one who knocked the pack bought beers all around. Gear Notes: 2-60 meter ropes are strongly recommended, 55 m minimum. Approach Notes: Road is in fine shape.

It's a great, great day for all snafflekind. It's a film of which all snafflehounds can be proud.

Limestone isn't extremely common anywhere in Western Washington. There are a few deposits that were mined near Granite Falls. Those were abandoned in favor of ones found on Whidbey Island, I believe.

Last time I checked, both the pot AND the kettle were black from sitting on the fire and blowing off steam.

Resizing so people can see the whole image.

I used to work with a woman who was "manic" about bubble wrap. She couldn't toss a piece until she'd popped every last bubble. She'd cruise the building looking for discarded bubble wrap.

It totally sounds like someone spiked the punchbowl today. Were you all at the same office party?

Nose floss. What with the scales, it could hurt to pull it backwards.

Natural or man made, it is irrelevant. The point is whether marking a route improves the wilderness experience. In a seldom travelled corridor, it would ruin the experience. In a heavily travelled one, it could improve it by concentrating traffic on one track.

Is this all about padding one's post count? BTW, I'm going to Darrington.

You use chalk, don't you, RuMR? Don't get it on your tie-in knot. It will cause it to automatically untie and you will die.

The idea is to simulate the pressures at the center of a nuclear bomb without having to set off high explosives normally used to detonate the bomb.

In a typical year, how early would you say you have to get on it to climb it before it's too melted out?

The reason chalk is not harmful is because it is just calcium carbonate. It is soluble in dilute acid and weakly soluble in water. Any particles that are not carried out of the lungs with mucous eventually dissolve.

I was at the Trestle area of Exit 38 last night and ran into Tom Hornbein who was climbing with Stim Bullit and his wife. We talked a bit about past climbs including the North Face of Johannesburg. These folks are a total class act. There must have been upwards of twenty people in the area and none of them recognized these two famous characters. I was totally honored and humbled to see these guys still out having fun on the rock.

From you that's high praise!

What about the idea of reserving a shelter at Magnusen? We could cook some food on the barbecue.

I really don't think it matters. The normal force as a percentage of the downward force will always be the same, regardless of whether it is a shock load or a static load.

There is your downside, but it can be remedied through training and education. The nice thing about gyms is that if they get crowded, you can build another gym. The supply can always increase to meet demand. Not so with outdoor crags, unfortunately. It's unfortunate that man-made outdoor crags are so expensive to build.

Here's a really cute tit.

I've heard it said that the US often will refuse to turn over sufficient evidence to other nations to allow them to determine whether there is probable cause for an arrest. It's natural that with our gulag at Guantanamo Bay that they might wish to avoid having their citizens unjustly detained.

I could pick some up for you at Tap Plastics which is right down the street from where I work.

After you have used your shoe laces and camera straps you can then use your jock strap.

A stun gun is all well and good unless the bomber happens to be wearing an explosive vest with an electronic detonator mechanism. Stunning

Does it ever snow on Killimanjaro? I've never seen a photo with fresh snow in it. Makes you wonder where that ice came from.