Rad

Cool. Time?

don't worry. most people who climb in the valley have humbling experiences at one point or another. mine was stumbling down the spires gully in the dark with no headlamp after a taxing climb on NE buttress of higher

Nicely said Tvash. What makes Touching the Void such a compelling story is not the accident or the what ifs, but the amazing force of will and determination and cunning to survive when the shit totally hits the fan. It is about digging deeper than you ever thought possible, going on when all seems lost, and then being willing to bare your soul in print for others to gawk over. Sure, see the movie, but definitely read the book. After you finish that go read the tale of the Endurance. THAT is harrowing beyond imagination and it plays out over more than a YEAR.

The guy who invented TNT funds the nobel peace prize.

If it gets too sketchy you can always rappel the cliff band...

Really cool. I'm confused though. The wall has a route but yours is new, right? How many pitches and how hard was each one? Does it end at the cave then? Great pics.

You should post a TR so that others won't think the line is unclimbed and repeat the cycle of choss. I'm curious to see photos even if you didn't like it.

Unless you're there midweek in winter there's likely to be a line of people. The first few pitches weave back and forth before you get to the dike, but it's pretty clear in the Yos Free Climbs book. Anyway, it's worth going back to do someday.

Mt WA has (or used to have) the highest recorded winds anywhere in the US (>200mph). It just takes seconds to freeze parts of yourself in those conditions, or even much milder conditions (50mph plus cold). Don't let the relatively low elevation fool you. People definitely die on that mtn when they make bad decisions.

Snake Dike is fun - easy runout climbing in a great setting. Both times I've done it we've been quite dehydrated by the time we got down and back to the river. I've also descended when the boards were down on the cables. It's pretty scary smooth up there. Put the cable over your leg and its weight increases your friction and makes it feel safer. I did a three day trip to the valley once that involved the approach to Snake Dike by moonlight the night we arrived, climb Snake Dike and back down to the valley the next day, short nap followed by cragging at the Church Bowl in the afternoon, snarf food in the Yos lodge cafeteria, then pre-dawn start to go up NE Buttress of Higher Cathedral the next day, finishing the last pitches by headlamp and having to crab crawl down the spires gully after headlamp batteries died in order to drive to the Bay Area for a job interview on Monday. Twas quite a weekend. It was my partner's first time in the valley! She did great. I've never done Steck Salathe, so I can't comment on training for it, but I was surprised to hear NE Buttress of Higher as a training route. It has lots of crack climbing but only one 'slot' and a chimney up high that's pretty easy. Very doable grade IV provided you don't get off route up high as we did.

Yep. Snow down to low elevations so be prepared for cold conditions if you go alpine.

There's a good concentration of bolted routes at Ozone if you can find it.

Great to see that spirit of exploration.

Lovely. Thanks for the TR. FYI, the annoying wide TR syndrome will go away if you insert returns after each picture. Also, the large boulder visible between the two lakes in your third photo has several excellent moderate (V1-V2ish) bouldering problems. Perhaps hardmen will find more lines.

To avoid the super wide frames put returns before and after pics.

Another way is to upload your photo(s) in the gallery. Then go to the full response screen (or TR) to see the icons above the entry. Click the camera icon. Your gallery will pop up. Click the photo(s) you want. They are inserted. No copying or pasting of locations this way.

Looks cool. My comment is that while texture and features are neat, if they are too large then they tend to dominate and even limit moves in sections of wall. For example, in the UW gym bouldering area we do english (feet allowed on features) and for sections of the wall you almost invariably use certain footholds regardless of what route is set. If the features are small enough or the walls steep enough this may not be too much of a concern. Just my 2 cents. Look forward to checking out your gym someday.

Cool. What can you tell us about your climb? If you'd prefer not to post it here perhaps you could send me a pm. I'd gladly buy you a beer or three to hear the tale.

There's a route at Vantage called MF206ers

Pot kettle black. Pot kettle black.

Thanks Lowell. Very cool. A climber in his element. Stuart N ridge. Sherpa (no route mentioned) Argonaut West Ridge Dtail and Colchuck not mentioned, though inferred by the number of fig bars downed. Did he descend and climb Serpentine or Backbone or scramble the col between the two peaks. This description talks about headaches. Prussik West Ridge. No mention of Snow Creek Wall. Maybe there is a list of peaks and routes somewhere, and I certainly would not diminish this astounding achievement, but it does seem that people's perceptions of this achievement have grown over the years.

Chair can be ascended/descended ropeless via the chimney route in Beckey. Very exposed 4th class, maybe a move of 5th? I've seen parties rap there, but it's pretty solid, unlike the rest of that choss pile

Bummer about your glasses. Life goes on. Kids can be equally ungrateful, but we still have to help them. Thanks for your good work, whether as a volunteer or for your job. Bartell's is having a 50% off sale on all sunglasses. I picked up a number of pairs for $10. If you are willing to take a pair of amber polarized glasses with a semi-decent side block as a consolation send me a pm with your address and I'll mail them. Or go to Bartell's yourself for more selection. I know these are not your beloved glacier glasses but they should be passable until you identify a replacement.

Nope. I don't think so, you could expect me to go help someone, but some Rangers... well can be lazy, but some are good too. OK Josh, we'll connect the dots for you. This thread was started by Mike Gauthier, long-time climbing ranger at Mount Rainier Natl Park, who posted a note about a goofy kid who got lost multiple times and endangered himself and others through his own stupidity. You have threatened to attempt to climb Mt Rainier and multiple data points suggest that you might make decisions just as foolish as the ones made by said goofy kid. Your post above is ironic enough, but the loop would really be complete if you headed up Rainier in your jeans and hoody and needed to be rescued by Mike Gauthier. Please post a TR on that outing.

Thanks. This is the one (not posed) that captured the essence of the experience for me.