tanstaafl

I hope you got some rad bouldering in at Shelter Rock. You must be getting close to 100 with the Smoots by now; how many do you have left?

fantastic, thanks Jon! And thanks for all the years of public service, I well know that I have no idea what it takes to keep a site like this running.

Are there any plans to bring back the old trip report tool, where you could sort by type of report (alpine/cragging/etc.), geographic location, user, etc.? That was great and super useful. Right now all you can do in the trip report search is to insert a key word, so I'm having some issues drilling down to what I really want. Also in my most recent search, a number of the links that said they were for the route I wanted weren't even to trip reports, but to old threads in spray or the climber's board. It was interesting, but not what I was looking for.

Not sure how much traffic these routes get these days, though the boulders in the forest have been scrubbed clean clean clean. Climbed Romantica on Saturday; it was a little scruffy but at least as clean as Training Day. Most everything on the left side looked pretty damn mossy though (from the ground at least) as compared to TEN years ago, which was apparently the last time I was there. If you go, consider bringing a wire brush and tidying up a little.

I climbed 50 peaks the year I was 50 years old, and a couple of times I just went ahead and signed registers 33/50 because why not?

Um, it *can* be that expensive in Seattle, for sure, but a cursory look at Craigslist will turn up a number of houses in north Seattle (Greenwood/Maple Leaf/etc.) renting for $2000 or less right now. If you're willing to live with one or more others, obviously you could pay quite a bit less. I've lived in Seattle since 1991, in eight different apartments/houses, alone or with only one roommate/housemate, and until two years ago never paid more than $600/month in rent. My current rent is more than that, but still WAY under the prices being quoted in this thread. There are always deals.

no worries, it's hardly a time-critical question!

So I just read through this thread and would like to confirm I correct in assuming there's no way to browse a user's old gallery, right?

Oh, I remember the climb itself clearly enough -- I was with Jens who was so comfortable soloing that by the time I decided I wouldn't mind a belay for a ropelength or two, he was 200 feet above me and I had our 30-m rope. Fortunately I didn't want it so bad I was afraid to move or anything. And he was all about going to Columbia Crest and I couldn't have cared less, so I laid on my pack in the sun while he scampered up there and like for you, it was weirdly calm -- I didn't even need a puffy. But as far as dates and so forth? Not so much.

Damn, you guys have impressive memories. I had to go look it up to even remember what *year* I climbed Liberty Ridge, and I have no idea how many other parties there were, though about six sounds about right.

ha -- hope that's not someone's real number!

well look at you answering my question before I even asked it! maybe you can monetize that skill.

I will say that one of the most diverting parts of the day, aside from the pleasure of actually being able to climb a multipitch route for the first time since 2017, was listening to Rat periodically scream "WEASEL!" whilst on route, not to mention on the descent and while driving home. Rad, I'm assuming the "double rack to 3 inches plus a #4" for Revelation is correct? While I appreciated the extra training in my Training Day by carrying that rack up and down the route, I don't need to repeat the experience.

ouch, that must have been an unpleasant surprise; glad you were unhurt. Though to be fair, you also need to test rock in the alpine to be sure it's going to stay attached once you pull on it.....I certainly found some yesterday that was less than solid.

Kurt, thanks for your work on the guidebook! It's a nice addition to the library. And thanks for the note about the old bolt; I was wondering about that. For what my opinion is worth (i.e., not much) I can pull on tree branches as well as I can on a rope, and they're natural to the environment and don't decay in the elements. Does that route actually get guided? Just curious.

It's a good NW sampler route -- some clean slab, some not-so-clean slab, a couple of pitches of dirt weaseling through brush and pine needles and lichen, a wet traverse (easily aided), a start that's completely obvious when you can see but hard to find when it's totally socked in and misty -- all the good stuff. Certainly no routefinding difficulties, the most likely thing is you'll accidentally skip a bolt through just overlooking it. It was a good day to do it, as the morning fog didn't burn off until we were halfway up the route. It would be *hot* up there on a super sunny warm day.

Just did this yesterday—yes, pitch 6 goes with a 60 m rope. If you didn't like the brush on pitch 7, good thing you didn't climb to the top of the route! We also placed very few pieces—a red tricam, a couple of TCUs, and a #3 Camalot. Maybe the "double rack to 3 inches" was a cut and paste error from the Revelation Peak route description.

God isn't that the truth. Nice work on the climb!

I totally wear my DAS parka to work when it's really cold; I get colder standing around for an hour-plus waiting for a bus in Seattle's periodic snow events while dressed in office wear than I ever have ice climbing. And I used to wear my outdoor jackets to work all the time -- from my late 20s until my mid 40s, I didn't own any jackets that weren't outdoor jackets. Finally around age 43 I bought a nice wool peacoat and I felt so adult. Spotted in the elevator at one union square a few months ago: woman in stiletto heels, hose, pencil skirt, nice silk blouse, and a ratty old fleece jacket. Now that's Seattle.

RIP indeed. I still miss them. Also Swallows Nest. The thing about all the stores you mention -- they're predominantly clothing, which is where I understand the profits are. And very popular with people who never leave pavement.

Taming? hahahaha. Rather, I think our mutual affection for the phrase "do whatever you want -- you will anyway" is the key to making our household run smoothly.

Whether it was sterile with no soul or not, Hannah-Pandora was still working there as of a few months ago at least, and the other salespeople I engaged with there in the past few years clearly got out and knew their stuff, as opposed to the salesperson at REI who didn't know what I was talking about when I asked about accessory cord. I'm sad to see a shop that actually stocked gear instead of just clothing disappear. One recent example: unlike REI or Feathered Friends, Ascent actually had BD ice picks in stock in March, so my husband was able to buy them here instead of ordering them online. I suppose having historical equipment decorating the shop was nice, but what I like about Ascent was that if I needed gear, I could actually generally *find* it there, which has certainly not been true of REI for a long time. And while I too was bummed that the secondhand stuff disappeared, I don't see how anyone could make rent selling secondhand stuff on Ballard Ave—at least not to cheapo dirtbag climbers instead of hipsters willing to pay a premium for "vintage" tchotkes.

nope, apparently all it takes to fix an issue is to ask you why it's happening! Do you offer this kind of service in other areas of life as well? Cause that could come in handy. Why is my front derailleur not working?

Hey gents -- If I sign in to cc.com but then click any link to move to another page or view (for example if I decide to view "activity" or "forums" after I post this) I get automatically signed out. what's up with that? Or is it just set to log you out if you're inactive for a certain period of time?

Nice work gentlemen, way to keep those knees oiled up and mobile. Also, I'm having the last of your leftover post-climb pizza for lunch, so thanks Marko!