chris

Glacier Creek Road is closed about a half-mile upstream of the bridge for the foreseeable future. The north side of Mt Baker (Heliotrope Ridge, Colman Glacier, the North Ridge) are now 5.5 miles further away from the car.

Hi all, Last week BCA announced a voluntary recall of the Tracker 4 in two production batches. Follow this link to read it straight from them: LINK. Cheers, Chris

I know it's not climbing-related, but I thought that those of you from Bellingham, Seattle, Tacoma or Portland might have use of it. It's an awesome commuter and urban riding helmet. I have a Bern Brentwood 1.0 bike helmet, size large, in excellent condition. Since I moved out to the Olympic Peninsula I don't use it any longer, but it has plenty of life left. Shoot me a message and I'll be happy to send photos. The 2.0 version of this helmet is available online for between $70-$110, so make an offer. Please consider how you'd like to have this shipped, or consider meeting me in Bellingham on 12 June. Cheers, Chris

The Edelrid Madillo Helmet is the perfect alpine tool: lightweight but solid, and folding up and flattens into the perfect packable package. Unfortunately, the geometry of the helmet makes it too tight from forehead to the back of my head. I wore it for a handful of days this spring. So I'd suggest that anyone who wears Large helmets not consider buying this. Rather, this helmet would be ideal for anyone with a small/medium sized head. Shoot me a message and I'll happily send you photos. Online, I see it for sale for $90-$120. Make an offer! I do ask that you include $10 for shipping or be prepared to meet me in Bellingham on 12 June for a hand-off (I live out on the Olympic Peninsula). Cheers, Chris *Its cool to come back to Cascade Climbers after years and see it still here!

Hi all, My first beacon in 1998 was a Pieps 457 Opti. Ironically, I'm pretty sure I sold it here on cc.com! I'm hoping someone may have one they're willing to part with, so I can have one to demo in my avalanche classes and have displayed in my office. I'm not concerned with the condition of the case, and while ideally its functioning even that isn't required - I'm pretty sure I now know people who can fix an old analog beacon. I can guarantee it won't be used in any life-saving application, just for demonstration and nostalgia purposes. If you do - feel free to email me directly: chris@simmonsmountain.works for the fastest reply.

The old growth trail that Gene refers to is the last third, when the trail leaves the old road bed and begins to ascend to the rock. It's time to stop thinking of the old logging road as a road - its not passible by any sort of wheeled conveyance, a single-track trail runs along it, and yes, there are stands of Himalayan blackberry in several spots where conditions are ripe (see what I got in there? ). The last few years we have been hacking them back. If anyone has a battery-powered hedge trimmer, I'd be stoked to borrow it for a few weeks instead of buying one just for this project. Email me at chris@simmonsmountain.works if you can help me out!

No, its way to overgrown for bikes. Plus, the culverts were also pulled, and the resulting gullies are the crux of the hike!

The 3/8" bolts were definitely the victim of mixed metals - the bolts weren't stainless steel but the hangers were. This actually accelerates corrosion. I had several actually shear off when I tried to back them out. Because of the amount of rain we get here, WARP issues full stainless to help get the longest life out of our hardware. Only Online was retro'ed, and I would still describe it as a heady-lead. The remainder of the routes were only rebolted, and there's no plans to do further retro work. It's a !@#$-ton of work to go back and forth, and I don't intend to do any more bolting than absolutely necessary!

Hi folks, its been ages since I posted here last. I want to share an update with y'all about Static Point. Thanks to the hard work started by Mark Hanna, and wrapped up by me, the Online Sector at Static Point is completely rebolted. And at the request of the FA team, Online in particular has been retrobolted to make it a little less R. Don't worry, it's still exciting! Also, a rappel line has been added from Tombstone Ledge to the ground, roughly following the line of Epitaph. So it's possible to climb to the top of the sector and rappel with a single 60m rope. All the beta and topos can be found on my website. I do ask if you copy the topos, please consider making a donation in the sidebar to help me pay for the tools, gas and time I've taken to head out there, almost weekly, this summer. And a special shout out should be made to thank the ASCA and WARP for providing the hardware and the training to get the job done right. I'll be moving on to The Pillar Sector next summer and the trail will always need work. It's a magical place - where battery-powered drills were first used (on lead!) in Washington state. Check it out! LINK to beta and topos: https://bit.ly/36ioSwQ

Yes, I think 9kn/2000lbs is adequate for rock and alpine anchors, so I use 6mm as well. I'd buy some off of you, but I got a spool of my own last fall.

She died rappelling off of the end of a rope, somewhere on the West Ridge, and her body was found in a 30' deep "crevasse", which was likely a moat or glide crack. Here's the link: LINK

After a cannister is empty, I'll leave it on a stove with the valve opened up to a make sure, then puncture it with an ice axe (either in the field or at home). Then I can crush it down with a rock or hammer - when its obviously crushed like this it can be recycled as scrap metal, I was told. There are plenty of old stories from the 1980's of the rubber-sealed cannisters leaking in between uses and second-hand cannisters being sold with water injected instead of gas to bring up their weight.

Found on Tuesday, 23 May. If you can describe the phone, when you lost it and where you think you lost it, then lets get it back to you! Unfortunately I don't have a charging cable for this model and the battery's dead, so I can't just turn it on and try to find anything out. Working on that.

The American Avalanche Association is the over-arching organization that has set the standards for avalanche education. Both the AIARE 1 and the NSP 1 meet those standards. If you ski primarily backcountry, take the AIARE course. If you are active in your NSP or spend 50/50 in bounds, then take the NSP course.

ACR and PLB also send a signal to a cubicle - only it's normally someone in a military uniform, who then notifies the local SAR resources. I think there is a real advantage to two-way communication - being able to tell SAR exactly what resources I may need will generate a faster response then a blanket call out for any help. Also, being able to tell everyone that its not an emergency when I'm running late is a benefit too. The latest In Reach also offers a month-to-month plan or a slightly cheaper subscription rate. I've been thinking of using the inReach so that I can adjsut my plan as needed throughout the year. The best tool might be the SPOT/Global Star phone...

An altimeter watch is a key piece of equipment. Providing its used correctly. It must be checked and adjusted at known elevation points to remain consistent and relevant.

It seems to be a mathematical analysis regarding memory-material not currently applied in ropes. I didn't see any mention to diameter or lengths, nor did it consider how the hypothetical rope would handle or even coil up. I wasn't able to find any immediate practical application - anyone else? Its interesting, it seems like we're reaching the practical limit of diameters - any smaller and tube devices are going to be useless.

Not true, according to my cousin-in-law, a US Border Patrol agent. Trucks crossing in both directions across either the Mexican or the Canadian border are still required to have: 1. Commercial invoice 2. Bill of lading 3. Any documentation evidencing compliance for restrictions or non-tariff requirements (not everything is free of tariff just because of NAFTA) 4. Proof of country of origin and country of export 5. Documentation guaranteeing payment if declared value is determined to be less than the actual value For the Canada/US border, the documentation can be solely in English. For the Mexico/US border, it must be in English and Spanish.

This one time, coming off of Ham and Eggs Couloir on the Moose's Tooth in the Ruth Gorge... That was a good time.

The First Rule of Crevasse Rescue is don't fall in a crevasse. Which means good route finding on glaciers, which takes practice. More practice than what you can get in two days. If you're attending this course to be a good rope team partner, but not a leader, than the two-day course may be adequate. What you really get in a six day course is a lot of time moving on glacier, watching other people lead, and begin to build that experience that will make you a better route-finder. I agree with Gene, if you can afford the time and cost, you will get a lot more value in the six-day course than the two-day rescue course. More "bang for the buck". Feel free to message me if you want to talk about this some more.

No worries! Responded to your message too.

Sorry for the delay in posting, but I've been a bit sick and uninspired to look at a computer. On Sunday I found a single climbing skin on the skintrack/exit track from Source Lake. Really of little value as a single, but tremendously valuable to create a pair - describe to me and you can come get it from my house in Seattle! Owner found!

Sorry for the delay in posting, but I've been a bit sick and uninspired to look at a computer. On Sunday I found a single climbing skin on the skintrack/exit track from Source Lake. Really of little value as a single, but tremendously valuable to create a pair - describe to me and you can come get it from my house in Seattle! Owner found!

If I understand DanO's original question and conditions, then I use the Brooks Range Mountaineering Ultralite Guide Tarp. You can string it up like a tarp, or it is Velcro lined on three sides for a two person bivy. If you add velcro to the fourth side, then you can also use it as a bothy shelter by opening the long side (I've comfortably fit three people seated inside this way). I keep it stuffed in a slightly larger sack than what it comes with, making it easy to stuff and sit in the bottom of the pack. Its durable, brightly colored (I've used it as an identification panel for an approaching rescue helicopter), and only weighs 350gm.

Outdoor Research makes one too.