Ryan

I'm looking at doing the Ptarmigan Ridge on Rainier this coming May- who all has been on this route? Experiences and beta would be much appreciated, from what I understand the route doesn't see much traffic. Thanks!

I use Metolius Cam Lube for alot of my stuff..works great!

I started climbing 2 years ago, and have really been doing nothing else since then...this summer I have climbed probably every day- all types as well- sport, trad, bouldering, alpine climbing. I really don't know why I keep doing it, but it seems like it's the only thing that keeps me sane. If I haven't climbed for a couple days I get really on edge, it's like I have to go climbing in order to survive. And when I'm climbing I feel great (even if I'm climbing terribly or we're on a bad route)- so in short, I am addicted to climbing for reasons unknown. I suppose it's better than a drug addiction...

The MIOX water purifier is a cool little gadget, but I think I'll wait a couple years until they get some of the bugs worked out...who knows, maybe they did a good job with it the first year??? Another thing that really caught my attention was the new Trango gri-gri style belay device...half as big as the Petzl Gri-Gri, half the weight...sick! Petzl also came out with the "Reversino," a belay device that specializes in usage with twin ropes- so ropes from about 7.5mm to 8.2mm...sweet! Mountain Hardwear also had an amazing new single wall four season tent that weighed in at about four pounds...this thing is fucking nice. Arcteryx, as usual, was the shit...such nice stuff. La Sportiva had the Testarossa- sick shoe, tested it on the climbing wall....Five Ten has a new Anasazi slipper, kind of cool- did away with the Anasazi Mesa, and now has the Anasazi Southwest...cool shoe for sure. Grivel had some cool packs, and their ice axe leashes were fuckin' sweet! BitterSweet (a bouldering company out of Logan, UT) had some cool crashpads, and some new chalkbags...all cool stuff...overall I thought the show was fun, it's always fun running into all the sponsored climbers as well...

I have a pair of Garmont Pinnacle boots- they're great for summer mountaineering and heavy duty backpacking use...and they're crampon compatible, with a toe and heel bail...I used them on snow in the Tetons back in May, and they performed very well- I'd recommend them for sure!

Has anyone been up to the Tahoma Glacier on Rainier in the past couple weeks- what condition is it in? We will be attempting the Tahoma in early August- any info is appreciated!