miller

Did my confirmation email prompt this? Thanks for sharing though - all I had were rumors from the 'hamsters.

Yo, A question for those of you who have spent more time in this area than I have: It is forecasted to be about 60 degrees in Oakley, ID this weekend - will it be too cold for the City?

Nice dawg!!!

First and foremost, talk to a doctor about this. But I did take Malaria drugs there - however it was about 10 years ago and I don't remember if the doc prescribed them for that region specifically or if they were prescribed for other areas I was visiting on the trip. I would imagine that different drugs have different side effects, but whatever it was that I took didn't really bother me at all - increased susceptibility to sunburn was the only thing I noticed.

I guess I see both sides to this issue. And I'd have to say that I'm in favor of having the short anchor there. If for no other reason, it gives people a place to start. For example, Japanese Gardens became overgrown, and was recently recleaned. But the guys who are sending it now will eventually move on, and it'll grow mossy again, because relative newcomers to Index won't have enough pitches like P1 short to keep them coming back. If these "lesser" options are available to "lesser" climbers, they're far more likely to eventually progress to doing the entire route. True, there are a few other decent options at Index, but not many. With the elimination of this option, the 5.10 and under crowd just lost quite a large percentage of what is available for an after work cragging session at Index(i.e. the LTW). I'd rather have routes like this available than have people get bored with doing Toxic Shock and Godzilla all the time and deciding to go to Exit 38 instead... I agree with those who say the anchors are in the middle of the pitch and don't necessarily belong there - there is no arguing with that. But I think they have created a nice option for getting people new to Index psyched on the place and keeping them coming back.

Hey Trang, Still interested? I have tomorrow (Wed) off. -Todd

CBS, I'm not sure about the Snow Creek Wall features, but sometimes xenoliths and other intrusions that form dikes, knobs, etc. are more durable and weather more slowly than the surrounding granite. I've been told that that is how a lot of the dikes and knobs on the Tahoe area granite came to be. This may or may not be the case at SCW - I'm far from an expert geologist. -Todd

Wanna climb some rocks? Leavenworth might be dry...

I've been through several WFR's, including WMI, and most recently with Remote Medical. Remote Medical is solid and you'll get your money's worth.

Since this is one of my favorite climbs, I went out last week and answered my own question. I didn't see any loose bombs anywhere - even climbed a little bit above the clippy anchors into the trees to look around and didn't see anything teetering. Just an FYI in case you were wondering as well. It's good to go as far as I could tell. But that block EXACTLY where I used to rack up/hang out would have stung a little bit - sheesh!

Yo, Has anyone been on Thin Fingers since the recent rockfall? I couldn't really see anything threatening there the other day, but was wondering if there are some teetering blocks somewhere that I can't see that would warrant staying away? Thanks!

Both are great - but I recently started using C3's and I love 'em. Check 'em out.

Sounds like a few people were thinking about it - did anyone get out there recently and clear off the ledge, etc? Still too sketchy to climb Thin Fingers?

Figger Eight has the worst taste in music of anyone I know. I like the guy - he's the man - but how much Jack Johnson and Dave Matthews can one guy listen to? "Four Tet" is good - lots 'o other good stuff too... Actually, I have a ton of suggestions but the real reason I just HAD to post was because Figger Eight, Mr. Jack Johnson, was actually giving out advice about music.

Does this climb stay dry in the rain? Thanks!

To try to answer some questions: Yeah, they cover black Aliens through yellow Aliens. I really wish BD would make one that covers red Aliens too - they stopped one size too small. What do I like about them? They're bomber - and they fit in places even Aliens won't fit, and fit well. I'm still getting used to reaching for them - but more than once already I've had a yellow Alien in pretty shallow (2 or 2.5 lobes) and then remembered my yellow C3, put it in the same spot, and it was completely bomber. One thing I was initially concerned about was the stiffness of the stem. But that hasn't really been an issue. In shops, I was grabbing them in the middle of the stem (as if the cam had been placed vertically) and saying "whoa, these things are as stiff as Metolius cams". But they're not. When the head is actually loaded, that funky-shaped stem kinda twists down and they're actually pretty flexible. The triggers are stiff, and they haven't let up. But I think that tension could be what helps them to stay put. I guess it could be an issue in rare cases, but for me, I haven't even noticed it yet when actually placing them on a pitch. Having said that, I don't lead 5.12 and up cracks either - in my 5.11-and-under world, I haven't been at the point where I've been so pumped/insecure that I thought the stiff trigger would be a show stopper for me.

I wasn't sure, had my doubts, loved my Aliens...but I finally gave 'em a try - and dang, these things rock! A bit spendy (the only downside) but probably my new favorite small cams.

Thanks for the work! Climbed it a few days ago - great finger crack - too bad it doesn't keep going. Very easy to TR. Big tree at the top about 30 seconds from the main trail. I found the guidebook directions to be somewhat misleading: From near the base of waterfall at Upper Wall (right where the trail ends) there is a trail heading off to the left (left when looking downhill). It becomes fairly well-defined pretty quickly. In about a minute or two, it goes downhill and right underneath a small crag in the forest. Look for a tree on the right with a cairn at the base (of course the cairn may or may not be there). If you find yourself beneath the small crag on the trail, you went too far. From the tree, walk down through ferns and mossy rocks (not bushwhacking) and right to the base of the crag about a minute off of the main trail - the clean, beautiful finger crack is obvious. Pretty soft 11a IMHO - but harder than Squamish 10b. If you're unsure - short cruxes, good pro, clean falls. Good fun. Top is still a bit grungy but if you got through the bottom then you wont have a problem. Too bad it is considered unethical to bulldoze/napalm all of the trees and shizzle at the top of the route, 'cause that is why this thing will never stay clean =)

I've only hung out with Kurt at various social functions, but I think he is a superb guy and I am very upset by his accident. Great idea with the Paypal account - I'm in and I'm sure others will be too. Get well Kurt! -Todd

Good! I put them there on that root system that you downclimb about a week ago. I figured you would return for them since they were such stylin' shades =) -Todd

Sorry, I just don't feel OK with sharing his name, etc. If he decides to make it public, that is his decision to make, not mine. Hope you understand

Bummer. Just found out it was a buddy of mine. And for those who don't know him, he is definitely not "some sporto" or gumby or whatever...(not that I think anyone implied that he was - just for the record). Super strong, experienced, level-headed guy (and a hell of a nice guy to boot)and it is scary to think of accidents like this happening to people like him. I guess thats why they're called accidents... Apparently his injuries are not life threatening.

...hey Evan, I forgot to mention that you can rap that route with one 60m rope (you mentioned double rope raps in your original post).

Don't throw your ropes at all when others are below. Just lower the ends down hand over hand. Nobody gets bombed, and your ropes won't end up in a granny knot. Also be aware of when you pull your ropes - them suckers can hurt! But a little communication with the other party usually solves that one. You may have to wait a little, they may have to wait a little - but the sooner you're out of each others way, the better for everyone, so base your decisions as to who is going to wait accordingly. Clustered belays/rappels happen on routes like that - just try to be accomodating whether you're the descending party or the ascending party, and pay extra attention when unclipping from the anchors and when others unclip from the anchor - don't unclip them and don't let them unclip you. It can happen when people are tired and uncomfortable and every single locker at the station happens to be a shiny gold Petzl Attache, for example. Also, if you're the ascending party and can see that others ahead will be rapping down before you top out, be considerate (among other things) and dont set your anchor off of the bottom chain links. This will just further the cluster. Word. Happy climbing!

http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=189883&f=0&b=0 Poop a loop.