curtveld

Bump with price drop. Tons of good climbing left in these pups!

Well done! We owe you a !

One of the few great all-around shoes available – performs well for edging, slab and thin cracks, with the thin, flat toe profile. Light use on this pair, uppers and original soles are still in good shape (photos below). Size is Euro 46/US 12. They fit me a bit tight for all-day use, so went with the next size up. I’m normally a US 12 – 12.5. Asking $40 + shipping if needed. I’m in Bellingham, but up and down I5 to Olympia occasionally. Contact me at ‘curtveld at comcast dot net’

Maybe, but my guess is theres a radicalized tulip farmer at the bottom of this...

Scarpa Technos are a great all-around shoe for narrow feet. I've never bought 5.10s because they seem generally wider than the euro brands - namely Sportiva and Scarpa.

Actually he should be posting some kudos on this TR

I get the sense you put together an imaginative solo adventure off the beaten track. Always good hear about such things! Would be curious to get a little more of the story on specifically what you did and how it went, though. More likely to keep the peanut gallery at bay, too...

Some good ideas (and some goofy ones) here

Beautiful country for sure! The second photo looks familiar - I think I took a nap on that same bedrock platform a few decades back....on a balmy summer morning...

caught the tail of the high pressure this time.

Trip: Spring Mountain - Other Side of the Tracks Date: 4/26/2013 Trip Report: Prime season has arrived at Spring Mountain! Yesterday Joe and I made a run up one of Washington’s less traveled classics: The Other Side of the Tracks, III 5.10b. Lots of beta on access, pitches and gear is available here . A pit stop at our favorite little mill town in the Alps To access the start, there’s a snow patch that requires a few easy steps in rock shoes. The first few holds were buried in muck from the winter runoff, but there are wire brushes and a broom stashed for your convenience in a little cave left of the start. So civilized! Pitch 1 – Don’t let the moss scare you, the holds are clean and dry! Pitch 2 – The Goods – the gorgeous 5.7-ish slab. Coming up the enduro-slopers on Pitch 3 Joe made it look like 5.9 – for me, more like 10c. The snow patch at the start is visible below in the shade. There is much less snow around the crag than last year. Though not as steep, Pitches 4 & 5 were also dry and engaging. Anyone that can climb bolted 5.9 will find plenty of good shorter routes to do at Spring. The other full-length routes – Erocktica and Romantica - also clock in at around 10b and have some unique features. The solitude up there is nice but we need help to keep the moss from reclaiming this amazing chunk of rock! Gear Notes: 15 draws plus singles of cams to 2" Approach Notes: See link in first paragraph. Roads and trail are good as ever

Looks like a great project and a fine moderate for the ages - thanks Dave and Bill! This aspect is a little troubling: Wonder if the ice fall hazard will clear up more quickly if we get a mild spring

That's kind of my thinking too. Shouldn't be too tough finding partners among employees or around Camp 4 most any day of the summer. If you strike out, maybe teach yourself to solo aid? The back country travel in Tuolumne is beautiful and super easy. Must be tons of great hiking/scrambling loops. Tenaya Peak is supposed to be a fun moderate. Conness W. Ridge is awesome - something like 12 miles from the trailhead, so much longer from the Valley

Dayum, good for you! Plenty of needles on the bolts I reckon. I know it has rained and snowed up there since, but I'm guessing the rock melts/dries quickly in this weather. Sounds like some post-holing is to be expected getting up to 3OC Rock.

I don't spend alot of time analyzing fine points of gear, mainly because most of the pro I acquired in the 80s and 90s is still working fine. Lessons: * Wild Country makes durable/light nuts and cams that are under-appreciated (under-marketed?) in the US * Sling rack for trad/multipitch: 2x48", 8x24", 4x12". The 12"-ers are fine on bolts and better on nuts than the dog-bone style. The 24"s can be shortened by doubling or tripling up. * Don't waste your money on the ultra-thin slings, which are less durable and don't save much weight anyway. * Use your savings to buy nice wire-gate biners which will be well appreciated on long approaches. Tiny biners are not fun.

Starting to feel like D-town season is approaching! Anybody been scouting up the Clear Creek road? Road conditions? Snow? Paging Mr. Hanman...

Yeah, you suck! I'm with Shapp, the last thing you want to do in peak RR season is head for a mega-classic, unless you want a social experience. Hiking into an obscure climb is way better - the desert hiking is cool and most climbs are pretty good. Black Dagger is a good bet. Also, Coltrane is a really nice climb way up Oak Creek. Two 5.9 slab moves off the ground, then 500 feet of clean mid-fifth slab.

Welcome Greg - replied via PM (i.e. personal message).

Not clear from your post if you have much experience being in the mountains. If not, there is a whole world of stuff you will need to learn to be safe and comfortable in alpine or alpine rock: - Snow and glacier travel - Back-country camping - Mountain weather Lots of resources to learn this stuff, including books, courses, guide services and even the search function for this website!

A great trip to travel light on. We took summer bags with bivy sacks. Puffy and gloves essential though. That approach is a GRUNT - 4k of up that starts around 8.5. But it's highly varied (pine forest, mega-boulder fields, exposed ledges, water washed slabs, etc.) and nearly brush free.

Only downside is the Mountaineers Route descent will be melted out to an endless scree gully. No worse than many Cascade peaks though. Be sure and do Mt Russell too, while you're in the neighborhood.

Nice website! I'm excited to see all the work you're doing to promote Erie, which is really under-appreciated. Plus it might increase the climber/tick ratio. Sent you a PM also, Jim.

Outstanding! The mountains of my youth, much prettier in the winter. Is that a ski track on the South Sister or am I squinting too hard? - traversing upward right to left toward the rim Shasta is looking awfully dry.

OMG those Red Rock shots are soooo tantilizing! And this is the season to avoid the line-ups for Zebra-Zion, eh?

Looking back, it was another great mixed-bag year. I’ll give my top 5 awards to my partners: 1. Brandon – On a gorgeous Saturday in Febraury, he invited me to Erie, even though he already had a partner 2. Joe – For catching my whip off the Javelin, though I easily outweigh him by 70 lbs 3. JasonG – For master-minding an assault on Infinite Bliss - all I had to do was show up and lead the better-protected pitches. 4. Peter – After a 15-year hiatus, picking me up at the SLC Airport for a great first trip to the Winds. 5. Casey – Probably the most enthusiastic first-timer I’ve taken to 3 Oclock Rock Equally deserving: MattP for epic belays at Spring, Tyson for finding the best swimming lake in the N. Cascades, and of course Andy, for another lifetime-achievement award. Hoping 2013 will offer more promiscuity!