jj221

Godspeed on your quest to destroy the spammer. I'm a computer moron. I often have dreams of designing some sort of evil computer virus and unleashing it upon the spammers of the world. Go forth and conquer.

I'm presently using a pair of Trango Captain Hooks. After a winters worth of water ice climbing on the East Coast I can safely vouch for their ability to eat up steep ice. They have a great curve in the shaft for clearing those bothersome bumps and the grip is ultra comfortable. There is an added bonus of having them on sale for $110 per tool on mountain gear's clearance shelf.

Both possibilities seem likely.

It is the Texans and New Mexicans of our group who want to know (as well as being cheap they are too useless to sign-up on your site and ask a question for themselves). Routes for Consideration: West & East Ridge of Forbidden. If conditions look nice skip W & E Ridges and do the NW face of the North Ridge. Sharkfin Tower- whatever it is in the Select guide- the Northwest face seems more enjoyable to me. Sahale Peak for the hikers. Mt. Torment- Northwest Glacier route, I'm dying for this one. North Ridge as an alternate. The Torment-Forbidden Traverse will probably pop on to the agenda. It is possible we may nix all of our plans upon inspection of Mt. Johannesburg and take a crack at the NE Rib western Variation. So as you can see we will be in the Cascade Pass/Boston Basin area. If you have any recommendations for unknown classics for that area I would be happy to hear them.

I will vouch for the long approaches on the Sandia climbs. It has some great trad lines. Halfway in I realized the guidebook was of no use and confined it to the back of the pack- pick a line and go for it. If you take a line on the main mountain you can summit and return to town by the tram (need to purchase ticket), drive back down the back of the mountain in a car you left in the top parking lot or hitchhike home. There are a few free standing spires that make good objectives although you may have to equip raps. If you are into bouldering there is about a billion problems waiting to be developed. If you go in the summer remember that it is a "dry heat".

A group of us will be in the North Cascades this summer. The group includes some of the cheapest people in the world form the SW of the United States. Since they have little to no opportunity to use a mountain axe in their indigenous environment they are reluctant to buy one. They are wondering is there a reliable place for a stranger to rent a mountain axe? The required use time will be about six days. These people are so cheap that even a $5.00 savings makes it worth their pathetic time. P.S. the group will be flying into Seattle.

Looking for the one place on the East Coast that isn't getting doused in rain. I'm sure I'll get plenty of sympathy from all you Pacific North Westers. Spring trips to Seneca and the Whites called on account of rain. If I had a week off I would be headed to Washington and climbing your mountains.

I love tri-cams. They rule for the horizontal placements- which abound out here in Gunk land. Once set I have more confidence in them then any cam as it is their nice flexiable nylon strap being loaded over the edge of the horizontal rather than a SLCD. The first 4 sizes have abundent placement possibility. Beyond that you have to work the tri-cam lovers eye for good placements.

No chimp has ever summited any of the White Mountain Peaks. Can you say the same for the Cascade Peaks? P.S. Please don't say it is because the chimp had discerning taste.

Easy buddy. I live in this Superfund, rat trap state by choice.

Yea Washington is a Son of a Bitch. It never ceases to amaze me how much punishment the mountain can deal out and how willing I am to go back.

EAST COAST CLIMBER SHAME While learning to lead at the Gunks I was working my way up through the grades. I had made it a point to tick every 3 star climb that I was capable of climbing per a grade as I progressed. My partner and I had been planning on a climb called Frog's Head (5.5, 2 pitches). The first time I tried we were under dressed for the frigid weather that moved in over the course of the day. I got about 20 feet into the first lead when my partner said "pull" he couldn't take the cold anymore. Gratefully me and my iceberg hands jumped off the route. That would be the last time I would see that route open for the next 8 months. If you haven't climbed the Gunk's before it is a great place but has a lot of crowds. 3 star classics at a moderate grade are crowd magnates. I estimate that the next 30+ times we went to the climb it was occupied. It happened with such regularity that it became joke with our friends- the climbed was dubbed Eldorado after the lost city gold. I finally had my chance on the morning of 12/15/01. It was cold but we were prepared. The whole of the Gunks was empty. I was approaching the base of the climb only to find a person camped out at the base of my much-coveted climb. As I got a little closer I noticed it wasn't a camper but rather a body. 2 days before somebody dissatisfied with their life decided to end it by jumping off a cliff. There are 500 possible routes on the Trapps escarpment of the Gunks of all the places this kid could have managed to land he touches down at the base of a climb I've been unable to climb 30+ times because of crowds. Needless to say I didn't get to climb the climb that day. 2 hours of body extraction and a 1 1/2 of police reports at the local barracks sucked the climbing wind out of sails that day. I have 4 attempts on the Oh My God Dihedral at Old Rag, Virginia. A combination of weather, partner failure, and getting lost has rebuffed me. Someday.... In a slightly manlier vein I've had the ferocious storms of Mt. Washington kick my ass twice. 80 mph winds, zero visibility and bitter cold will end your day fast.

Ice climbing in the Adirondaks, NY. One of the best seasons in years.

A hard fix. Try model airplane glue like zap a gap and expect nothing. Sunlight will destroy the integerity of plastic so even though the boots aren't getting a lot of use the plastic can still brittle.

Please read the edited post.

I was looking through my Beckey guide last night, dreaming, when I saw a photo of the southwest (? I think) side of Mt. Index and a route called Super Couloir. It looked too good to be true. There is a description for the route as well. Why is it I never hear about this climb? Does it ever come into condition? Is there something nasty I’m missing? MAJOR ERROR: The route I am/was questioning is on the northwest face of the North Peak of Index. It can be viewed on page 227 of your 3rd Edition Beckey guide. The Route is the prominate couloir between the North Face and West Face. At about mid height there is a fork in the couloir with either branch looking possible but hard. Is there any info on this mystry line? P.S. sorry for the wild goose chase.

Modern ice tools will deprive you of those old school boot-ax belays. They also suck for probing snow but are better than nothing. Having said that I use my modern tools for everything I do. But I live on the East Coast where a glacier is only a concept and Mt. Washington is the highest peak you have to heft the extra weight up.

Thanks for the help guys. My Beckey Guides arrived in the mail today- man what a guide. The completeness is astounding.

P.S. I'm new to the board. So far your replys and information have been very helpful.

Alright a little clarification is in order here. We’re a group of East Coaster’s planning a summer trip to the Cascades in order to duck out on the oppressive humidity of the Gunks and sample some of your alpine heaven. There will be three teams of two climbers and two teams of two hikers. One hiking team is a veteran of the Appalachian Trail and the other of a lengthy Continental Divide traverse in Colorado. Each group of hikers has an inexplicable love of hard core bushwhacking and protracted misery so I invited them along. The climbers consist of a veteran of an attempt on the North Face of K2 (to 24,000 ft) and a group who’ve been earning their winter climbing stripes in White Mountains and Adirondacks. We’re all at least 5.8 rock leaders in the Gunks. The plan is flexible but the initial thought was to hike into the Dorado Needle area via Eldorado Creek approach set a camp and start bagging classic climbs in the area. I’m looking for a way to provide entertainment for the hikers while the climbers run off and climb over the course of the week. The hikers are all very handy with a topo and a compass and will probably tell me to shove my hiking recommendations up my ass once they get their hands on a USGS map but…. I want to make certain they can generate some kind of agenda so that they are not stuck with a week of sitting in camp and eating our food while we’re out on the rock. I welcome all questions and suggestions.

I’m planning a trip to the Cascades for next summer. I will be camping/climbing in the McAllister Glacier Area. The group that I’m with will include non-climbers who are more interested in hikes. What is the best guide book for providing hiking information for this area?

McAllister Glacier is near Eldorado Peak.