Rad

Like certain people at the bar, Thompson looks better from a distance than up close...

Thanks for posting!!!! You said, "The belay ledge had a detatched block I threw two cams in and tried not to weight .." Quick comment from a crusty veteran: feel free to use detached blocks for protection, but it's far safer to sling them as low as possible than put a cam behind them. Cams generate very large outward forces that can lever off a block and cause the anchor to fail and/or dislodge the block onto you and/or your partner. You can use the rope to sling larger blocks and you can also use your body sometimes. You might do some experiments in a steep talus field so you have more knowledge of what works and what does and doesn't work when you get into the alpine. Be creative, consider leaving at least some of the heavy cams at home if you don't expect a lot of clean cracks, and keep climbing and sling more blocks! And thanks for posting!

It's easy to look at glacier images and think area is what counts, but as @dberdinka points out thinning is super important, and often a more reliable indicator. The total mass/volume of a glacier is probably the best measure of its size, so both thickness and coverage area are important. As glaciers melt away area and thickness will change. This may be most obvious at the terminus, but the glacier can be much smaller even if the terminus hasn't shifted much. Seasonal snow variations and melt patterns can make it hard to see the size of the glacier, so it's important to keep that in mind - focus on the ice portions to see the true differences. This past week I finally got to the Bailey traverse in the Olympics, which we did Hoh TH to Hoh TH counter-clockwise. Spectacular. We crossed three glaciers. We did not rope up on either the Blue or Humes glaciers because they are quite thin and crevasses are small and obvious. We did rope up on the Hoh glacier, though even that seemed optional. Hope to get out on other glaciers this summer if I can get the time. Cheers, Rad

Right on! Great to see that you're keeping the fire burning brightly. Rock looks better than some of your past missions. I imagine Fred peppering you with questions so he can write it up for the next CAG, and I imagine you having to shout louder and louder for him to hear it. RIP Fred.

Last year, we had a kerfuffle in the same area - off the glacier but not around onto the ridge crest. Spent almost two hours going up and down choss, looking for a reasonable line. I finally committed to a footless mantle, but a tricam on the rack I was carrying lodged into a crack at my shin and prevented me from pressing it out. I had to reverse, clean the damn cowbell, and do it again. Grrrr. My partner started slightly dehydrated and deteriorated when we went up and over the top. There was only one small snow sliver to melt on the upper mountain - and it was full of worms. We melted, filtered through a shirt, and drank it anyway. Almost tossed it back up again. The next day, my partner was stumbling from dehydration/heat exhaustion in the burn zone as we approached the Park Creek trail. So we loaded all of our gear on my back for the final miles down to the Park Creek campground. Of course, it was littered with deadfall that hadn't been cut yet. Good times! Sounds like you had an excellent Cascades experience.

I hear you, but they are using your tax dollars to repair the road to Cascade Pass TH.

Nice report and pics. Doesn't look like buffoonery. You didn't fall into a crevasse and made it to the top and down safely. Sounds like a win to me!

Love it. Thanks for posting. Your stoke and smile remind me of a certain Canadian climber who caught the climbing bug as a teen and shared some amazing and fun stories here before moving on to higher dimensions. Sigh. Can't wait to see where your path leads.

Very cool. PM sent.

Great outing and report @Alisse!!!

Word is that the M&M/Super Cave wall across the freeway is some of the best rock in WA and the routes are stellar. So step up your game into 11s (Ellen Pea) or 12s (Tiger) and go get some.

I wasn't that psyched on Clean Break. There are basically three interesting pitches, which isn't enough given how long the approach and descent are. FWIW, we approached via Silver Star creek and descended via Burgundy col to bikes we'd stashed by the road.

Thanks for posting. This is a very good report. Those of us who've been to the Pickets can relate to what you've described. It is one of the wildest places I've ever been, and it feels good to be thoroughly humbled there. Adapting your plans to unexpected obstacles is par for the course there. Glad you all came out without serious injury.

Just get into the damn playoffs and break this Disney spell before Cruella comes calling.

It's all fun and games until the Yankees steal your young star, just like they did 20ish years ago. Well, I suppose there was Texas in there somewhere, but I try to ignore all things Texas.

Wow! Nice! Looks like you had incredible weather.

Excellent! Awesome terrain. Thanks for posting. Could you tell how good the rock was on the W Face?

Post-accident threads quickly move from condolences to incident analysis, and I think a signifcant part of that is to identify an error so that the reader can say "Oh, I would never make THAT mistake." This joins the parade of little white lies we tell ourselves to justify the risks of climbing. The reality is that bad things can happen in the mountains no matter how good or careful you are. Sometimes the only error was being there in the first place. Regarding the original post, we don't know the exact conditions at the time of the incident nor the Dr's abilities or risk tolerance, so I don't think we can objectively question his judgment. Part of the beauty of life is that we each get to make our own choices on this journey.

Falling rock, ice or snow can hit a climber and do major damage and/or cause them to fall. I'm very sorry for your loss

@JasonG is our guru

Mixed tapes are a way to communicate on an emotional and intellectual level with friends, girlfriends, others, sharing the stoke, mystery, misery, and more. Still cherish the ones I have in the basement. Still listen to them from time to time.

Fantastic! Congratulations on an excellent adventure. Seems like things went quite smoothly for you all in all. Thanks for posting!

Great shots of a great adventure! Looks like you missed the quintessential wet weather of the Pickets!

My variation on this is 'do what you can while you can'.

CHEAT CODE: ALL CAPS MAKES YOU LOOK SMARTERER! COVFEFE HAS SPOKEN