shapp

It's not a matter of staying trad, I was just wonder who recently put in the couple new bolts in the last few years that weren't there before and why? These are shiny bolts not placed byManuel Gonzalez Don Williamson when they put that route up several decades ago. There wasn't any bolts there when I first climbed it about 6 years ago.

I cleaned out about 5 nut/TCU placements on Big Tree 1 last year, and probably scrubbed 20 holds on my way up All you need to due is bring up your small brush and nut tool when you climb it, the route will be perpetually mungy unless it sees about 10 times more traffic yearly. Incidently, why do you think "someone" put bolts on the second pitch of Big Tree 1 (left hand rib/slab) a few years ago? O.K. lets say miraculously one could justify adding the bolts, the second question would be why do you think they placed the first bolt out of reach from the first hard move where you actually have a chance of slipping on mungy slab and taking a nasty scrapper down the broken ledges at the top of the first pitch. Why did they add the second bolts when two moves gets you to hand jams? Just wondering. Shapp

Very sorry to here of the fall, but I have climbed Fridays Jinx probably about 10 times. The first pitch is not that fun, but I have always thought the pro placements were more than adequate. I wonder if the small cam was the only piece in? At smith I try to put in a couple pieces right off the bat due to the questionable rock, and especially on the first pitch of Fridays Jinx because of the basicly immediate fall potential (you start up higher on a shelf and traverse out right where it drops off below the belay spot. Also always put in a couple pieces for the belayer at that first belay spot on Friday's Jinx. The second pitch dihedral of Friday's is nice, but the great straight in crack to the left is one of my favorite hand crack pitches at Smith that isn't in the basalt. The hand crack is the crack to the left of the second pitch of Friday's Jinx shown (green line). http://www.summitpost.org/view_object.php?object_id=39256 Shapp

killer pics, going down there in about 1 week, Missunderstanding is about 5.7 for the Index Regular hard person

Hitting moose is also an issue. Be advised that if you are thinking of getting a new rig, if you can buy in the lower 48 and drive up yo will most likely save substantial money on a new pickup or SUV. You need to get your Alaska drivers lisence though so you don't have to pay sales tax in WA or ID. Other gear to have: 5 and 8/9 weith fly rods. Raft w/rowing frame, sea kayak, river kayak, several bottle openers, 12 gauge, 30/30, smoker, vaccum packer, freezer. No need of a shaving razor, bug dope, other dope can be obtained in state.

Going to Get the repeat of Shot in the Dark?

I forgot to mention one really good thing is taxes are pretty low especially compared to Oregon, and also to Washington.

You better like winter for >75% of the year, cragging is harder than in the lower 48 due to lack of roads, housing market is very tight for affordable good houses in town and they are more expensive than what you will find in Vancouver/portland metro, buy a snowblower, most likely your first fill winter will be a major depressor for you when compared to your current location due to light cycle and weather change. Good luck

Move along, these are not the steep solid granite routes in a killer setting that you are looking for. Don't listen to Hanman, you want to go to Exit 38. Yeah Exit 38 is where it is at.

Jim Startup's in Everett is by far the best mechanic for foreign autos around, unfortunately it is about 23 miles north of you.

Not sure of the current or historical name. The only route we know the name of was the Hydrotube at that time (around 1992). I haven't been there since the various guide books have been out. Starting from the hydrotube, facing the rock, you have hydrotube, then a route that veres off the tube to the right up through a steep bulge to an anchor, the next route right of that moves up and right onto a rib then left through a weird scoop to an anchor, then the next route to the right climbs straight up along the right side of the arete (which is the route in the photo, which was I think about 5.10 or so). So what is the name of that?

For Bill (the oldest electronic photo I have on hand), While not that old (only about 14 years) this is at Flagstone, pre Tvedt explosion and before reto-bolting of some classics (i.e. Hydrotube) occured.

While climbing a two pitch route at Perly Gates, Jim Donini free soloed up and was chatting with me at belay on top of pitch one. He told me that on a climbing trip a tick (unknown to him) climbed into his anus and burrowed in, eventially giving him tick paralysis for a while until the doctor diagnosed the problem

"Smith Rocks trad, 1977. Chocks only, no cams, no pitons, no sport routes, few bolts. Safe climbing became popular much later" No offense to roboboy, but westface variation is easily lead with nuts and hexs safely, even today Cheers

The forcast is for sun on thursday, and Right now it is a 30% chance of rain and mostly cloudy on Friday so it should be dry at Mt. Erie. I would like to get up to the crag (erie) around 9 am or so on Friday. Let me know if you want to go. I will be coming up from Everett. Blake, some places around Darrington dry out with one day of afternoon sun. Cheers, Jason

partner(s) found

I agree with Matt 100%, Matts experienc is how I and all of the long term trad partners I have had learned to climb. I have never actually seen anyone learning to lead on toprope. Conversely, nor have I seen any accidents learning the the apparent "old school" way.

The upper pitches on Bender Axon and/or The regular route on Rappel Rock have the largest and most prolific Chicken Heads I have ever seen, grabbed, slung, or placed nuts between (no-pun intended)!

Thanks Lance, Already posted to that forum, emailed Jason and DeAngelo. I know the post here was a longshot. I guess we will be meeting each other in April, I will be down there with Hanman and he said that we might be meeting up with you. Cheers, Shap

This is a long shot, but anybody climbed sidewinder on Global Peak at Red Rocks, NV? if so could you PM me, I am looking for some info. Thanks, Jason

Sorry chuky, been hitting the sauce lately. Sounds like you have climbed the solar slab more than once. So on one trip you decended the big gully to the climbers right all the way down from the top of solar slab to the ground (how was that?), on another trip you must have rapped solar slab then solar slab gully? I climbed Johny Vegas once then rapped the solar slab gully (as there was a huge line up on solar slab). Then another time we jetted up solar slab gully then solar slab and went off the Painted Bowl decent, which was great. Also if you are fast at climbing solar slab and are motivated the Painted Bowl descent would lead you over to a bunch of other climbs of which no one would likely be around to bother you on.

ChuckK, I think you are mistaken, that is the Solar Slab Gully (5.3 depending on who you ask) which is the general start of the entire Solar Slab route (other alternate starts are Johnny Vegas, etc.). The descent gully described in Swain is even farther to the right of the Sular Slab Gully and is apparently nasty.

a 35 minute climb of the entire solar slab = about 40 feet of climbing per minute with no stops, that is smoking, with a short stop that would meen you would have to make a move at least once a second while climbing. Speaking from experience, the super topo guide directions for the descent are very straight forward for the painted bowl descent, which is really the only option besides rapping the route. the gully on the right hand side is probably a bad idea although I haven't been that way.

Hey Timmay, when I say conventional, I mean where you can drive up and launch a regular sized raft with rowing frame/gear, as opposed to hikikng in with a one man IK or alpaca, for example the Illinois River stuff. Cheers,

Timmy, actually depending on the flow and what stretch you are floating it is very gnar, and the remoteness makes it almost top gnar for conventional raft trips in oregon