olyclimber

blogs = personal platforms (look at me!) facebook = your own echo chamber of friends (other than the groups there I guess, but only people who have signed up for FB and joined that group) cc.com (and others) = actual communities that include people you don't know i think people do blogs because they want to total control over their shiz. that is understandable, especially in cases like Steph Abegg who puts tons of work into what she does. however, if you want to interact (and meet new people) nothing beats a community website full of people with similar interests who you may not have actually met. or a site full of trolls and curmudgeons.

does navel gazing count as exploring?

I wish I was going to be around to see people really exploring space, but I suppose it is going to be long and boring trips unless they develop faster travel. [video:youtube]S6R3MiAv9ac

thats some wandering Ivan!

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Damn! Someone could retire on selling the Sky Valley Rock alone! Sorry man, will keep an eye out.

it looks fixed to me now! I was looking at the TR earlier and they were f'd up then, but it is fixed now. Thanks and great TR! Already helped out one person I know with the conditions report! What is the story with the miner's booty there?

Trip: Mt Pershing - Route #7 Date: 7/16/2016 Trip Report: In a union of Olympic mountain aficionados, Saturday OlympicMtnBoy (Stewart) and I climbed Pershing. We saw a bear crossing the rode in the morning when we were driving up the NF 2401 above Jefferson Lake...very cool to see, it was a pretty big one. It has be a long time since I've seen a bear in the Olys. Got to the way trail some time around 8ish after leaving West Seattle and driving down around via Olympia, etc. Stashed some beer in the creek and headed up, following a way trail and some flagging. As noted by others, the flagging is a bit confusing. I tried to get us off route by following some yellow possibly pink flagging up to out into the slide area, but we soon resolved it just by looking around and realizing quickly that we needed to head to the northwest, so we back tracked a bit and headed up the hill. I think I'm in pretty good shape, but Stewart had me trying to keep up. It was an awesome challenge, and I almost did. We passed a really cool old tree on the way up, it looked way, way older than anything else we saw up there other than rocks, and it had seen some shit. We followed some orange flagging up and when it ran out we looked across and saw the infamous "vegetated slabs" that lead up to the upper basin below the peak at about 4300 ft. After this you get to tromp up a beautiful meadow till you reach the basin where we found a goat checking us out and warming himself on a rock. The whole way up the view of Washington to the southeast are awesome, there a couple really cool waterfalls that come off it. Once you hit the upper basin then Jefferson really pops to the northeast. We headed up to the gully/knotch just to the north of the easy looking one, and this proved to be a great spot to enter on a short rock climbing section (probably not more than 15 or 20 feet) and we were on the ridge line. We followed the ridge line to the summit, and I have to say it was one of the more enjoyable scrambles I've had to the summit of an Olympic peak. At one point there is an awesome short hands traverse. Some cool little ledge walks and we were on the summit. Given the forecast we felt like we really lucked out. You could see Washington and Ellinor and the traverse between them right across the valley. To the west the Lincoln and the Sawteeth and Cruiser popped in and out of the clouds. Skokomish and Stone never really came out to play, but you could clearly see where they were. We could see Lena Peak to the north, but the other peaks like Bretherton, the Brothers, etc were all pretty much obscured. To the east, the Sound and the city were all under the sea of clouds. It is yet another amazing and special position in the mountains that I've been lucky enough to visit this year. The summit log here is broken up into dates, and we enjoyed perusing the oldest one. Here are the first few pages: Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 6 was a favorite. We headed back down to the car and the beer, and I got to ride the Southworth ferry home for I think the 7 or 8th weekend in a row. My Oly brother Stewart was awesome to hang with in the hills (as many of you already know) and Pershing is definitely an enjoyable and worthy day out. Gear Notes: Ice axe was nice for the short but soon to be melted out section of snow just below the ridgeline. Approach Notes: flagging. i think the orange was the best, but really just read the guide book text and follow that, because some of the flagging will lead you up to the lake instead. and there is a way trail that comes and goes, but is there for much of approach.

I definitely like both Strava and Gaia after using them both for a little while. Strava for keeping tracks and the KOH stuff when road biking. I actually have a Suunto right now so it goes Movescount>Strava. Gaia for downloading maps and finding location in the mtns using my phone (got a water proof case for it and an external battery pack to ensure it lasts). Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

Regardless of who says what (and people love to talk), the bar has been raised. If someone thinks they can do better, then go do it. Congrats Blake! For this and your new book.

I'm set for this weekend. But still want to do this hike through this summer. Have a great weekend, happy adventures. [video:youtube]6y2LHlZRVrQ

Wow the Tooth seems tougher to climb then when I was up there last! And to think all this is just off I90! Just kidding....AWESOME photos...thank you for sharing!

Hahaha so might I. http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?lat=47.4059&lon=-123.1393#.V4co85MrLpg weather isn't the best in the olys though. have you climbed pershing?

My handlers recommend I wear my helmet all the time. Cool pictures, looks like a nice time up there!

Hey anyone interested in hiking the loop going Colchuck >Prusik Pass> Rat Creek >Toketie Lake>rejoin the Snow Lake trail and out this weekend? I've never been to those lakes. Would nice also to have someone to shuttle cars with if possible. Would be just a one day trip, though I would drive up the night before and be ready to go early.

I'll third that. Enjoyed reading that book. I probably have it lying about if anyone is interested.

http://www.sportiva.com/products/footwear/mountain/baruntse indeed, 50!

No pics? Flat tire because of the rough road?

this is definitely not terrible. looks like a fine adventure. so awesome that that piece of land was waiting for just you.

Hahahaha thats awesome. Doing Bowron Lakes for a honeymoon like my wife and I did is nothing compared to this!

Wow, awesome pictures! Beautiful, thank you. And those are some legit conga lines. Congrats on the climb and on the weather too. Very cool.

I believe he achieved this through frequenting a pub.

nice UI update on the Waynes World blog! Looking good man.

I'd say if possible get with your brother and just climb as much as possible. Not sure where you live, but if possible and job permits, move to somewhere with mountains to climb! Climb lesser peaks than your targets. By all means go with a guide to get some training, but also get Freedom of the Hills and go over all that stuff. You'll find that just by getting out you'll start to dial in your systems and gear, finding what make sense for you. That will also get you into shape. Depending on what routes you do you're either mainly just going to need to be in good cardio shape and know how to pull each other out of a crevasse...or if your goal is more technical, well, you'll have more to learn. Also, I would (especially for cold weather gear for Alaska, etc) check the used gear sales forum here. A lot of people dream big of climbing in Alaska (Denali, etc) and buy $$$ gear, only to use it only once or sometime not at all, and they unload it for pennies on the dollar. If you only use it once in your life time, sometimes doesn't make sense to have a -20 sleeping bag. If you need something custom, I bet Feathered Friends here in Seattle could sew something up for you. http://featheredfriends.com/ Can't help you on your huge feet! Oh, and make sure your baddass Ranger brother carries more of the gear