kurthicks

i was up mountaineer creek this afternoon while coming back from Colchuck Lake. there is ice everywhere. don't listen to gapers tell you otherwise. some of it is rotten and other stuff is blue. also, there were a lot of climbs just upstream from the Snow Creek Wall parking area on the right hand side of the road. i don't have the guide handy for names though. i've got a photo of some ice that looks like the cover of How to Ice Climb. i'll post them tomorrow, unless i go climbing. the stream sounded like it would be tough to cross.

yea, give up the details. we can include it in the "guide" when others submit stuff... tell your friends to do the same.

so what's everybody doing this weekend considering the weather is so suck?

it also helps to distinguish between static and dynamic ropes. if both were measured in mm, it could lead to people leading with statics.

timmy, are you humping you dawg in that photo?

timmy, what you going to the strawberries for? when? take photos of any ice you see, man. i can probably swing some time away, but i bet that's a long drive from Pullman. pm me.

i was trying for that a few weeks ago in the Oregon Ice thread. not a lot came in. i've got some more trolling e-mails out at the moment for more beta and climbs. perhaps wayne1112 could help us out with the I-Rock stuff. Vert's got stuff from the Strawberries, Terminal Gravity must have stuff from the Wallowas, and i bet skyclimb's got some of Da Ice Hose from last year. anyways, here's one of some ice (a few pitches, i'd guess) on the NE side of N. Sister in December (it's a photo of a photo, no scanner), there was visible ice from 5 miles away on Middle too... oh,and the ladies in pink.

you drivin? last i looked, it was a)full and b) about 1100 miles from Spokane. that's a ton of driving. i have to be back tuesday morning for class. alternately, banff is only about 350 miles... i think it's calling me.

TG, how's the ice coming along down there? you could convince me to come down for this three day weekend if it's good. otherwise it's Banff... the weather looks as timmay said...oh, so ghey

i've never actually toured there, but i was a ranger there this past summer. it really depends on how many trees burned and have fallen. some of it was pretty thick beforehand. i'd approach from the Santiam Pass area via Square Lake and the PCT trail -- it's by Hoodoo. there could also be some stuff in the Canyon Creek Meadow area, but access is an issue (via Jack Lake RD.). either way, it could be worth exploring, but i can't guarantee anything. it has the potential to be a great snow camping weekend with some turns, IMO

another thing...the pain in your arch could be increased by having tense tendons/muscles/ligaments in the bottom of your foot. take those golf balls and roll them under your arches for a few minutes a few times a day (lightly at first) and stretch your tendons and muscles. it should help a bit.

south of tfj might be better now since it burned this summer.

i'm taking a WFR course right now and today we talked about frostnip/bite. i had a similar experience from Hyalite earlier this season...once the fingers warmed up, the outer layer was hard and white (like a calous) it then peeled in about a week later and the underlying tissue was super sensitive. this is defined as first degree frostbite. it works like burns actually, with 2nd degree getting blisters and such once it thaws. third degree are when it turns black, mummifies and falls off

take and post some photos when you go...

no way man. i think there is way too much volume pouring out of that one for it to ever form up. perhaps something could come in on the sides of it, but it would be dead vertical on shitty basalt. on the other side, there are some other climbs in the area which have been pretty climbable...but bulletproof. it's about -2 in Pullman right now.

i'm in for some 7 devils action too. winter access to that area is a bitch unless you've got a 'bile or the desire to ski a long long ways uphill...

too bad you're going this week, i'm stuck in WFR training until next Monday or i'd be in too. don't take all the freshiez, leave some for me.

my nose hair froze today as i was wandering outside. it's -5 here now.

take lots of photos and post 'em...perhaps it will continue to inspire the notion of an Oregon ice guide.

my goal is to do anything that will make me a more complete climber. yea, it will involve working out, but the is staying. it includes getting into aid climbing, becoming faster on the sharp end, skiing harder, falling further, gym training, bouldering, reading, being tent bound, more 1000 mile driving weekends, less bitching, long approaches, and graduating and having more time to climb... And, of course, spending more time in the muir hut

i drove through the gorge yesterday. It sucked. but there IS ice forming. lots of it...but the key word is forming. there are some potential mixed climbs in the park just west of Ainsworth St. Pk. i remember some more climbs pretty far east too, those were better formed. i'd post photos, but my digi cam cable is 2 states away. oh yea, the falls that spills from Crown Point was outlined and starting to fill in. i did not see any ice that was blue though. maybe if it stays cold for the next few days.

dear santa, All i wanted for christmas was some lift served freshiez. but after waiting for a few hours for you to arrive, i decided that maybe Santa doesn't exist. So i did what any reasonable, but depressed, person would do. I headed to Tumalo and hit 10" of fresh pow pow. i got to test out my christmas gift to myself--a new AT setup. It was my first day on skis in 6 years, so i fell a lot, but it anyways. too bad you missed it...

i'm guessing you have, but have you used ellipticals before? whenever i use one my lower back just kills me. they also kill my hamstrings. maybe it's just me, but i prefer being outdoors. it's cheaper too.

i'm down with dishin out (or takin) face shotz too. i'll be there dressed like a skier, but on a snowboard. timmy, did you get me what we talked about at Pub Club? PM me if you must.

i think they're pretty close to right about the steepness. we did the variation that they talk about and it was about 50 degrees. the glacier is only about 35-40 above the schrund. i'd suggest going early in the season, cuz there were discontinuous patches of snow below the glacier. skiing to Green Lakes would have sucked. i'd go just after the road opens...