fenderfour

I didn't go to Monte Cristo, but I can tell you that we didn't encounter snow until about 4,500'. Kids would have a great time on Del Campo and Gothic. Both had very casual scrambles with no really big steps. The route on Del Campo had some steep snow which is probably in bad shape now. Bare rock and heather would be better than crappy snow. Gothic should still be ok.

Yes, and yes.

I would bet it was someone from the UW climbing club. Being a college student, it was likely the last clean outfit before going to mom's to do laundry.

The Bibler is a really nice bivy unless you are big. It's a real bitch for me to slide in and out of it. Once I'm in, it's golden. If I were to buy a new bivy it would be the Integral Designs Salathe. It has a flap opening instead of a slit like the Bibler. It seems to be made out of the same fabric.

I would like to nominate Del Campo. I was up there on Sunday the pounding sun and you could see forever. The hike is nice, the basin is beautiful and the scrambling entertaining. It's a terrific day trip for more casual climbers.

You're right. I don't suppose that living near the mountain yields any more information. Thanks for clearing that up.

Dammit. I thought you found my ex-girlfriend. I think she's avoiding me...

It all comes down to your comfort level. Most ropes have an impact force of 7-9 kN when tested with an 80 Kg test load. I weigh a bit more than that and would want a bit stronger pro in the rock.

Talk to Mr. Nelson at Pro Mountain Sports in the U-District. He had a set he was climbing with last time I was in. He seemed to like them pretty well.

I like this thread. You have a raft of local climbers advising against climbing the route due to safety concerns and you have some non-locals who are completely disregarding the advice. We really are just trying to hoard the sweetness of the route for ourselves. On a serious note: Fuggedaboudit and jcclimber - Be careful up there. Move fast and be safe.

$15 at Target (Say Tar-jay) Gerber Ridge, 1.4 oz

Neat, but not what I would call full strength at 4-6 kN.

REI cheapo padded gear sling ($15?). On alpine trips I will usually use a 1" shoulder sling. There's less bulk and a little less weight. For aid I use a double sling with no padding. I need to pony up $80 to get a nice bigwall rack...

Update: He didn't schedule me for Thursday, so I emailed him today saying that I can meet after 11:30 on Thurs. He emailed me back saying to meet at 10:30 on Thurs. I emailed him back that I can meet after 11:30 on Thurs. Maybe this is why I have no desire to play the mandatory games with women -- I'm already spent playing games with him. Sounds like a cop-out to me.

I have always clipped past with one biner as you described. There is a way to twist the rope as you are unclipping that will clip the rear part of the rope in as you go by. It would be near impossible to describe without showing you. One way to reduce the sketch factor is to have 2 pieces clipped into the rope at any one time. That means more pro.

That is so horrific and disgusting and awesome, all in one.

O positive makes you ordinary.

Blocked by snow. It's not terribly deep, but you will get stuck if you are driving anything less than a full-on 4x4 with aggressive tires. When I say full on 4x4, I'm not talking about something you would buy at a dealership. In short, sack up and walk the mile. One of these would do the trick:

I scouted road conditions last weekend. The road to Colchuck/Stuart Lake TH is blocked about 1.25 miles from the TH. The trail is pretty good to the Stuart/Colchuck split. The trail continues toward Stuart Lake. The way to Colchuck hasn't seen traffic in a while. The snow aon the way to Colchuck was knee-deep mush on Sunday afternoon. I didn't make it in to check conditions on any routes.

stinky weaselteats - the second best avatar name ever behind thadsboner.

Most cams with machined stops can be placed passively. I would never use them this way unless I had to. But then again, if I had to, I'd hammer a cam in like a bashie if it was going to save life or limb. I would recommend that you read the literature that comes with the cams. The manufacturer knows their product a little better than the average joe.

This is the outing that always pisses everyone off. The whole class will be inhabiting the Icicle Canyon on 4/16 and 4/17. We stay in areas like Mountaineer's Dome, Clamshell Cave, Playground Point, and Madsen's Dome. As a small consolation prize, we stay away from Castle Rock. We had an unpleasant exchange with a gentleman on Mt Erie who intended to teach some young boys how to climb. I'm sure those boys learned a lot that day, including how not to talk to people if you want something from them. I'm not thrilled that we have an outing like this, but it's a necessary evil. Please bear with us.

I think the conversation is about truly frameless pack such as the Wild Things Icesac and the CCW Chernobyl. They have no internal stays, just a bivy pad.

70 liters is a big pack for alpine. If you like a frameless pack check out the Golit Gust or Jam.