marcus

Righteous work...way to find the hidden gems out in cowboy country!!!

What...no skiing this weekend? Nice work old man!!!

Sounds like a grand adventure guys! No flow on the Pencil yet?

With a cloudy forecast on deck, Jeff W and I decided to try our hand at some south-facing Gorge ice today. We climbed the righthand flow on Cape Horn's lower tier. It's about 70m of WI4+ and one of my favorite local ice routes. Another great day out! Two flows down here form regularly into climbable shape and, to my knowledge, both of them have gone unnamed up to this point. I would call this one "Catch of the Day" and the other impressive WI5 further downstream(which didn't really come in this freeze) could go by the name "River's Edge"...sounds to me so much better than "Cape Horn, Lower Tier, Far Right Ice Climb". Any objections? Drove out of the Gorge today in a steady drizzle with warmer weather on deck. But I hope y'all got some good sticks in this week and maybe even ventured off the beaten path a little bit! Cheers, -M PS: Day number 101 of climbing outside this year for Jeff...and counting!

Climbed Doghouse and Shark Attack routes today with Gerard S. Doghouse is a classic, sustained 100ft of WI3 in a beautiful setting with the daunting SA looming overhead. This year SA formed as a hanging dagger making for some wild cowboy antics...good times! V-thread now on DH and we shored up the anchor tat on SA(big tree, climber's R). Gerard on Doghouse with SA in the background and the ol' shoes & butt shot on Shark Attack:

Right on, guys...many good times to be had on the ol' IROC!!! But what's that fancy garbage bag you call a backpack there, Nate?

Strawberry Mountain climbs? High in the 20s, lows in the teens for days now...

As Bill A mentioned, we climbed the classic Thomas-Kearney route 'Gathering Storm' on Wednesday. It is accessed by ascending 'Pumphouse Blues'(45m of Scottish fun) and then hiking up and left for 20min. We replaced the anchor webbing on PB and left V-threads on GS. Bring a change of gloves and dry ropes, but it is well worth the effort! Gathering Storm P1 Pitch 2 Pitch 3

New Route: "The Deer Hunter" WI5 M7 FA December 8, 2009 Bill Amos Marcus Donaldson This formation was previously referred to as #10 'The Chandelier Curtain'(unclimbed) in Tim Olson's Portland Rock rev. ed., p. 117 P1: Mixed climbing up left-facing, overhanging corner to 3-bolt anchor. M7, 7 bolts, 45ft. P2: Move right from anchor onto wild curtain of chandelier ice. WI5, 160ft. Other sightings... Crown Jewel: yes Doghouse: yes Tatras: no Pumphouse Blues: 'Scottish' Lower Mist Falls: yes The Deer Hunter...um, yes! Life Shavings: frozen turf Black Dagger: no Ainsworth Left...almost. Go git er! Starvation Creek(aka Starvin Marvin): no Dodson: ? Pete's Pile: no Salmon Run: no Cape Horn Gullies: yes Cape Horn(lower tier): no(as of Monday) Let the real Gorge Games begin!!!

I was out of screws! ...and here I just thought it was the anchor.

Right arm, duder! Can't wait to git my greasy mitts on a copy...

Question: Is posting about our exploits online another form of self-promotion - or is it just the modern equivalent of sharing our tales around the campfire? I'm still unsure on this one. Receiving gifts or money for climbing certainly can alter one's core experience from one of (self)exploration to one of (external)production. That's a huge paradigm shift for sure...

Nice jorp, WW! FA or not, sounds like a grand day out...

check yr PMs

Thanks for posting the TR Aaron & Dan...I've always wondered about that face.

I picked up a pack from Cilogear this spring and it's been great so far: super lightweight, totally functional in the alpine, and versatile with modular(removable) features. Climbs well too! Graham and co. were very patient and helpful in getting me into just the right pack and I was pretty psyched to support some high-end alpine gear fabrication in PDX...

Call of Duty : Modern Warfare 2

Condolences to all of Jonny, Wade and Micah's family, friends and loved ones. And safe travels to the rescuers still out there working on Micah's recovery.

Nice work Dan & Seth - thanks for the beta!

Trip: MRNP - Nisqually Icefall Date: 5/31/2009 Trip Report: Nate Farr and I simul-climbed through the icefall to the crater rim in 5 hours. We chose to climb the lower difficulties at night to minimize hazards, but heard no rockfall or serac activity during our ascent. Slots were open with sometimes thin but passable bridges. Ice cruxes were ~WI3 with brief steeper+delicate sections. We chose a line just left of center which yielded solutions through all of the major serac bands. This route should still remain climbable for at least a couple of weeks yet and offers a great alternative line to the summit with easy access. Gear Notes: 2 pickets, 1 screw...more recommended if parties plan to pitch out the icefall. Approach Notes: There is a great tent platform(not mine) dug out at Cowlitz Cleaver(9800') for your alpine convenience.

I took this course from WMI and learned as much in 9 days as I did during an 11-week EMT-B course. Highly recommended for any climber or backcountry enthusiast as a baseline proficiency for remote, unsupported patient treatment and stabilization.

Has anyone been up the FR to Bulo yet this spring? Is the road still drifted in and how far did you get?? Thanks!!!

Yahoo! Back in the sand & mud...good on ya, D!!!

Way to go, Joe and Dave!

Right on, rockah...way to represent!!! 8000ft of AK in 72hrs is pretty big britches by any measure...