Gaper_Jeffy

Will - Are you referring to Snowdome itself or the crossing of the Eliot glacier via the first bench to get to the base of Snowdome? A lot more people now cross the Eliot to get to the base of the Snowdome then did three years ago. The crossing of the Eliot is pretty crevassed and I think warrants a rope if you are going to walk across it early in the season. Snowdome itself has crevasses, but a lot less than crossing the Eliot and they are in spots where you would expect them.

Did he bring a dog with him for verification?

Discuss.

Here's my speculation. The mistake this party made was this: Instead of staying at home and sitting in front of their computers pontificating on Internet forums like babbling idiots about things they have absolutely no clue about, they actually went climbing. That was their mistake. They should have just stayed at home, sprayed on Internet forums, and criticized others with the benefit of 20-20 hindsight.

OMG - this is one of the most unintentionally hilarious posts I have ever read. Thank you ShiniGami for the humor in light of such a bad situation. You're like Borat for CascadeClimbers.

Here's an interesting Mt Hood story from 1976 that I had never heard before. It involves a party of 3 who spent 13 days in a snow cave on Mt Hood and were almost written off as deceased: Oregonian: Survivor of '76: If we made it, they can too

Anyone check the telemtrys this morning? It went absolutely nuts on the mtn last night. MHM's telemetry shows 2.3"s of liquid precip since 8pm. That equates to 23+"s of snow up high. The temps were very warm, so the precip fell as rain in the parking lots, but up high it would be wet heavy snow. I'm sure the avy danger has to be even more insane then it has been the past few days. http://www.nwac.us/~nwac/products/OSOMHM http://www.nwac.us/~nwac/products/OSOTML My friends tell me when I post excessively about storms (which I always do in a skiing context), I jinix them. I'm hoping I can do so now.

Sorry for the thread drift, but I really want to respond to this as I just spent a bunch of time Googling PLBs and MLUs. No an MLU is not the same as a PLB. The PLB communicates with a networks of satellites and will work anywhere in the world. An MLU sends out a terrestrial signal that can be picked up by an MLU receiver. Googling MLUs, I actually found a post here from PMR Iain describing the differences: The rescue Iain is referring to in January 2003 I believe was a party of Mazamas who not only had a MLU, but had multiple cell phones and GPSes and were on the southside of the mtn where there is cell reception. If the Mazamas were on the northside, they probably wouldn't have been able to use their cell phones to request a rescue, so it would have taken longer before anyone went looking for their MLU signal: http://www.pmru.org/pressroom/headlines/hoodstranded011203.html Again, sorry for the thread drift. It was the Oregonian who brought the MLU subject up.

SS, Can you clarify what you mean by them being a "farce." I am assuming you are speaking of the mountain locator units?? They have been used in the past on the mountain and signals have been picked up from the summit at Timberline Lodge. Here's one story that shows they didn't work when needed from 1997: http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-64622192.html I have no experience with MLUs; I've never rented one, and I can't think of one person I know who does rent them. However, everyone I know has a cell phone.

OregonLive has a story up about how Mountain Locator Units would have helped locate the climbers. What ran thru my mind when I read that was this: if the powers that be would provide decent cell phone coverage to the north and east sides of Mt Hood--like 99% of the US has--that would have provided equivalent, if not more, assistance to rescuers than an MLU. The cell phone is one of the most common electronic devices, so why can't the most climbed glaciated peak in the US get decent cell phone coverage on all sides and on all networks and bands? Someone should go ask the Tmobile spokesman that. Anyhoo, sorry for the slight rant.

Why is it that in 2006 the north and east sides of Mt Hood do not have better cell phone coverage?

This thread needs some porn. This is from the Wyeast on 5/14, a day after your trip. Porn: Nap time: Skied out all the way to HRM. Fun day.

Great photos again. But jesus christ, don't you guys ever have to work? PS: I once tried to make that logo my avatar on TTips but Mitch removed it.

I'm having menstrual pain.

SEATTLE - A man has pleaded guilty to trespassing in connection with a fatal horse-sex case. James Michael Tait, 54, of Enumclaw, was accused of entering a barn without the owner's permission. Tait admitted to officers that he entered a neighboring barn last July with friend Kenneth Pinyan to have sex with a horse, charging papers said. Tait was videotaping the episode when Pinyan suffered internal injuries that led to his death. Tait pleaded guilty Tuesday and was given a one-year suspended sentence, a $300 fine, and ordered to perform eight hours of community service and have no contact with the neighbors. The prosecutor's office said no animal cruelty charges were filed because there was no evidence of injury to the horses. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051201/ap_on_fe_st/wa_bestiality