Rad
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Posts posted by Rad
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Is this going to happen tomorrow? The weather looks great.
Where are y'all going to meet/climb?
I can get away early and have space if anyone in Seattle needs a ride.
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This winter my wife and I had an amazing, if outrageously pricey, day in the mountains: heliskiing in the Whistler area backcountry (boarding, actually).
That day I met Chris, an avalanche assessment expert who audits heliskiing companies all over the world, from Alaska to Patagonia to the Swiss alps, to New Zealand.
He flies and skis with the guides and watches/evaluates their avalanche safety/rescue skills. The day I met him he flew/rode with us for three runs. Now that's the guy I want watching my back in the backcountry.
I bet he doesn't make much money, but the benefits
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Wear your oxford and khakis, go to a tall building, ascend via stairs, descend by elevator to save your knees some hardship.
Similarly, carry a lot of water up a hike (Si, Granite etc) and then dump it at the top.
There is a great set of about 270 stairs just east of the interstate off the LakeView Exit in Seattle.Yep. Actually, that's a local favorite of mine because I live nearby. It got even longer now that there's a "park" under I5 that connects up with East Lake. It can be crowded.
There are actually long staircases sprinkled around Seattle. Poke around for others.
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Did you clip the trango stopper I got stuck near the top of pitch two? been there about a year now, and pretty welded-in as of February.
Didn't see any fixed gear. Someone must've snagged it.
I've taken 2 girls on this exact same route, but was unable to convince my girlfriend to skip class and climb it. Contrary to my suggestions she sometimes studies while at school.They both enjoyed it though, defintely a great afternoon out. Next time add on pitch 3 - Springboard variation.
Thought about that last pitch variation but decided to spend our time in other ways
. Also, I didn't see the start of it and didn't scratch it onto my receipt/topo.Here's the prefect date climb in 20 easy steps:Gene Pires has a story like this that ends in a ring!
Yep, dates with your wife count, maybe double. Too many guys stop dating their wives.Amen. Everyone wins.
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A 12 step program:
1 = Approach via tulips on a sunny day with no crowds (see photos below - sorry, left the camera in the car for 2-12.)
2 = Draw the topo and approach map on the back of a receipt from the Erie store because the guide is sold out (Apparently Dallas is planning to print another 500 copies in June or so, and this time the page numbers will appear in the route index).
3 = Eat a picnic lunch of PBnJ overlooking the lake behind the Erie store. Watch an osprey dive for fish while an immature eagle chases it to steal the fish.
4 = Hike up the trail to the base of ZigZag (5.7?, Snag wall) without getting lost.
5 = Climb the pro-eating open book to the first ledge.
6 = Avoid the so-called zigzag (left off the ledge, up, and back right to the P1 anchor) by climbing fun moves over a flexing flake straight up off the small ledge. It holds.
7 = Luxuriate at the monster bolt anchor while your date cruises the dihedral and flake with no problems removing gear. Enjoy the 180 degree views of lakes, Whidbey Island, the San Juans, and the Puget Sound. Bask in the sunshine together - not too hot, not too cold - while several eagles and hawks float right in front of you on a light breeze.
8 = Scamper up the second pitch with fun moves up the undulating wall. This pitch eats stoppers. Find two bomber nut placements in the last 15 feet of steep crack - good thing because you already placed all your cams down lower. Two harrier jets cruise by in formation, and a trick plane zips past the cliff face like a Blue Angels victory pass.
9 = Repeat step 7 while your date cruises P2. Elect to rap the route rather than get lost in the pricker bushes and cliffed out on the descent.
10 = Make good use of a private moment on a grassy ledge in the afternoon sunshine. Any locals with spotting scopes down there?
11 = Pick up ice cream bars at the Erie store for the drive home.
12 = Cruise to Seattle between 5 and 6pm with NO TRAFFIC!!! Pick the kids up at daycare less than five minutes late.
OK. My date was my wife. It still counts as a date, right?
Approach notes: Tulips, as noted. The trail to Zigzag, as drawn in the old mounties guidebook, is idiot-proof.
Gear notes: Standard rack was fine. Rapped with one 60m rope just fine down good anchors.
Tulips are at their peak now. See 'em soon!
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A lot of routes mentioned above involve a good bit of glacier travel, which I thought you wanted to avoid.
Two routes with minimal glacier travel:
Sahale Arm on Sahale - arguably the best views/effort in the range. It has a tiny glacier near the top and some 4th/easy 5th rock.
The Sharkfin should be in good shape that time of year too. It has a little glacier travel on the Quien Sabe, but it's more mellow than some of the other glaciers above (e.g. Sloan). Spectacular views as well.
Enjoy!
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Are you pining for long summer days in the meadows or planning them?
I remember great adventures on these:
Inverted Staircase on Fairview.
Eichorn Pinnacle (w/direct 5.10 variation).
Phobos on the Phobos/Deimos wall.
Cathedral Peak by full moon.
Even the oft-crowded trade-routes kicks ass:
Regular Route on Fairview.
West Crack on Daff Dome.
Still on my hit list:
Hoodwink.
Third Pillar.
Lucky Streaks.
Oz.
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STFU! Pinnacles rocks! In the spring it is green and gorgeous. It's also got a ton of fun, clean routes. However, placing trad pro there is an art (like Gunks routes or Vantage cracks) so stick to bolted lines. Oh yeah, and bring small diameter biners for the spinner star drive 'bolts' you may find, otherwise you may find yourself slinging them.
In the valley, I agree with others you may be cold. However, the falls will be roaring and it will be gorgeous. Others have suggested some good routes. My two cents is to look for warm and sunny routes:
As you originally suggested, Manure Pile Buttress is your best bet for multiple moderate trad routes close together. It's not the valley's finest (note the name). People often race on the seven or so lower pitch variations to the Nutcracker before the bottlenecks higher up.
Churchbowl area is a good suggestion. I really liked Revival (10a fingers to hand).
Braile Book, and Higher Cathedral (I assume y'all mean Northeast Buttress when you say regular route - "Perhaps the best grade IV in the valley") are North-facing and the descent may well be icy/snowy at the top. That said, they are great routes. If you're going to hike that far up the gully go do the Regular Route on higher Cathedral Spire. That would blow their little minds.
Snake Dike will be cold and there won't be cables to descend.
If you want a great, moderate face route go do Crest Jewel (10a) on North Dome. This is best done by hiking in from the top but you can also do it after blitzing the Royal Arches. The North Dome gully is not as bad as people tell you, just avoid doing it in the dark.
Aside: Yosemite moderate face routes typically have long run-outs. Be prepared. (e.g. many Snake Dike easy pitches (5.3 - 5.4) have only one bolt in the middle of a 150 foot pitch. One Crest Jewel 5.8 pitch has 4 bolts in 160 feet).
Have a great trip! I wish someone had taken me to Pinnacles and Yosemite as a teenager. I was living in New Jersey then...
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Guess I should try it. How were the 10c to the right of that '12' and the 10a to 10d on the far right end of the wall?
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-lots of rating errors in that photo.
but it's all fun!
Can you elaborate? I'm curious about the 10s.
I thought the 5.9s were all about right.
Cheers,
Rad
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Lord Vader
in Spray
Got him 3 times in a row:
lichen (closest was fungus)
mistletoe (never got close)
uranium (he got to plutonium).
I then tried uranium again, after teaching him. He got it on #22, after guessing plutonium on #18 and Einsteinium on #20.
At least he learns from his mistakes. That's more than most people can say...
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Painting of the woman holding a baby on the left?
Madonna (and child)
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Blind Melon is the watermelon with sunglasses.
Seal is on the poster.
Twisted Sister could be the acrobats or the kissing, entwined girls rear left.
Screaming Trees back center.
Men Without Hats (?) up on the roof.
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Most climbers in the NW are white because most people in the NW are white.
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Cute. Here's a start:
B52s
Rolling Stones
Sex Pistols
Alice in Chains
Radiohead
Men at Work
The Eagles
Queen
Prince
Matchbox twenty
Smashing Pumpkins
Madonna
Guns and Roses
Led Zeppelin
Nine Inch Nails
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Sing to the tune of Janis Joplin's Mercedes Benz:
Oh Lord, won’t you find me a big fat old bolt?
My friends all clip sport routes I must be a dolt.
I've put pro in flared pin scars with tipped out old Friends.
If I don't find some pro soon I'll soon meet my end.
Oh Lord, won’t you find me a crack that don’t hurt?
I’m clawing my way up this one full of dirt.
My fingers are bleedin’ and I tore my new shirt.
So Lord, won’t you find me a crack that don't hurt.
Oh Lord won't you find me some holds for my feet?
I'm sketchin' on slabs like a dog that's in heat.
My calves are on fire and there's no where to stand.
So please find a jug for my foot or my hand.
Oh Lord, won't you show me a sign I'm on route.
My belayer's got frostbite cuz he dropped his left boot.
The sunset is coming and the topo is lost,
So Lord, won't you help us to the top of this choss?
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Caves, wetas, glow worms, oh my!
Get into some caves while you're there.
There are tourist trap caves, including Aranui and black water rafting, but you can ask locals to show you around some more pristine caves.
'Tis a beautiful country to explore.
Have fun!
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Beat my drum shoulders in taut, sunny rhythms,
Sing with the butterfly wind in my hair
Until the music stops, the dancers fly apart,
And all the chairs have been folded.
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David Byrne wrote:
Everyone is trying to get to the bar.
The name of the bar, the bar is called heaven.
The band in heaven plays my favorite song.
They play it once again, they play it all night long.
Heaven is a place where nothing ever happens.
Heaven is a place where nothing ever happens.
There is a party, everyone is there.
Everyone will leave at exactly the same time.
Its hard to imagine that nothing at all
Could be so exciting, and so much fun.
Heaven is a place where nothing ever happens.
Heaven is a place where nothing ever happens.
When this kiss is over it will start again.
It will not be any different, it will be exactly the same.
It’s hard to imagine that nothing at all
Could be so exciting, could be so much fun.
Heaven is a place where nothing every happens.
Heaven is a place where nothing every happens.
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I wonder how fast a cam is going when it's fallen 60m?
distance fallen = 60m = A(t)(t)/2 where a = 9.8m/sec2, t = seconds falling.
solving, t = 3.5 seconds.
v = a(t) where v is velocity
ergo v = 34.3 m/sec or about 100 feet per second. Fast.
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Cute.
So if you rappel 60m then your cam could fall from 60m to 120m. Would you use trust it again if it hit something toward the end of that fall?
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There are lots of interesting things in this thread. It seems many people have thought about how to manage the risks of climbing.
I think people should be remembered for how they lived, not how they died. I hope all those whose lives were touched by Carl Skoog are richer for it.
My view of risks and dying has changed over time. When I was a teenager, I thought it would be cool to die in a blaze of glory someday. In a way, Jimi Hendrix was a god to me, and his brief, intense, passionate life was inspiring. Then my father was diagnosed with cancer.
My view of death was re-formed during the four year roller-coaster battle that culminated with my father’s death when I was 20. In that time we cried together, talked about a lot of things, and came to know each other better than we had before his illness.
We talked about different kinds of deaths. Despite the pain and suffering of cancer and its treatments, my dad felt lucky to have the time he did. In any abrupt, unanticipated death, there are a lot of loose ends that cause pain: things left unsaid or unresolved that cause pain, commitments made by the deceased that encumber the living, not to mention financial and legal matters. My dad was able to tie up those loose ends before he passed away.
We thought we were ready for his passing, but we were not. We all felt a terrible emptiness for some time afterward. That was a long ago, but I came away with some things that continue to define my world view. The most important pieces fall into three points:
-I believe the most important thing in life is love, including that with friends and family. Cultivate it and you will be rich. Everything else is secondary. Tell people you love them while you can because you can’t do it after you’re gone.
-My father and I both believe that there is no afterlife. This is it. Don’t delay in pursuing your dreams. You might not be around or able to pursue them if you wait too long.
-I want to leave the world a little more beautiful, in one way or another, than when I found it. I have been fortunate in my opportunities in life and feel an obligation to pursue a career that allows me to give something back.
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I took up climbing after my father died, in large part because I grew up in New Jersey and didn't find climbing until I went to college in California. I have always taken risks of one sort or another in life, and climbing is no exception, but I have never been reckless.
Now that have a wife and two great kids, I have a lot of reasons to stay healthy and stick around for a years to come. I find friendships and relationships keep getting better with time.
I still climb and I still take risks. I feel that to some degree reward, in all forms, is a function of risk. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. That said, I try hard not to put all my chips on a single roll of the dice. I want to be around to take my kids climbing someday.
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Life is what you make it, each day precious.
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Eggcellent!
Exit 38 Wed. after work
in Climbing Partners
Posted
Sounds great! See you there.