Blake

I'm all for Hexes, but I think the above is due more to cam/nut popularity than anything else.

The height at the peaks, as suggested for ideal pitching by BD is 52" so I'd guess the 44" would be the dip in between the peaks. IF your support poles are only 44", it will be too low. FWIW I like my betalight, but you need to remember to collect a couple sticks i you don't have poles already that you will use.

So I think that it's cheating to tranquilize the bear. Climb the line as-is or back off, don't "bring it down to your level."

I've only got experience with the WC curved hexes, but I really like mine and place them on just about every route I do. I even had my previously reluctant partner using them routinely by the end of last weekend. They are way cheaper than cams as well, especially if you must leave a piece behind.

Get a set of used but still useable WC curved hexes, then a set of nuts (whatever catches your fancy, they all work). I'd suggest 24" runners as well, as you can triple them up "alpine draw" style into 8" quickdraws, but they work for real climbing as well. Throw in a few cams in the common sizes, and hit the rock.

Looks like a fancy Hawaian Windshirt... nice!

Looks like that bear has a tranq dart sticking out of it.

Climb: SEWS, Liberty Bell, and Le Petit Cheval-SW Buttress, Rapple Grapple, and Spontaneity Arete Date of Climb: 5/29/2005 Trip Report: Washington Pass Goodness I hooked up with MEC for a weekend of Alpine rock in the unseasonably snow-free Washington Pass area. We were originally going to do a few climbs on the Liberty Bell group one day, Spontaneity Arete (Kangaroo ridge) one day, and a Burgundy/Paisano link-up monday, but work obligations arose and cut our trip a day short. SEWS - SW Buttress I really enjoyed this climb, although I didn't lead either of the two wide crack pitches. We started just to the left of a prominent two-topped larch tree, and went straight up to the offwidth crack, it worked much better than traversing in from the right. Blue skies and high temps had us climbing and summit-lounging in T-shirts for most of the afternoon. After rapping down the gulley and retreiving our snaffle- chewed gear, we walked over to the Concord-LB gulley. Luckily the gulley was deserted on the way up, except for one scruffy old white-haired climber famous in the area. We decided to try the "Rapple Grapple" route as something more challenging than the Beckey Route. Having little knowledge of the route other than it's proximity to the Becky Route, we were able to follow obvious cracks systems. I'd definitely give this route a look if you are in the gulley already, and the Beckey Route is in use or you are looking for something a bit different. Sunday we climbed the fairly new "Spontaneity Arete" route on the N. end of Kangaroo Ridge. (below Burgundy Col) The trail leading to the base of the route is easy to follow, and whoever used about 400 yards worth of neon flagging tape to designate an obvious path through the wilderness can come find me to get it back, as long its before the next garbage pick up. The route has three really fun pitches, a good deal of 4th/low 5th, and would be a great way to introduce someone to alpine climbing or trad leading. Many of the crack systems eat up passive pro, and are solid hand/finger sizes. Highlights include a fun exposed headwall pitch and a nice 5.7 layback crack on the last pitch. If anyone has a nice picture of the North end of Kangaroo from the area, let me know. We bootied two Nalgenes, three carabiners, and a spectra sling over the weekend. The oddest part of the weekend was a hardcore cyclist that Billygoat and I saw on Hwy 20 while leaving Mt. Erie Friday, MEC and and I saw FRiday evening east of Mt. Vernon, and then MEC and I saw again Sunday afternoon as he had just crested Washington Pass. Gear Notes: Big Cams for the SW Buttress, other than that, a standard alpine rack. Ice Axe and crampons are not needed, and it looks like you wouldn't need them to get to Burgundy either. Approach Notes: The approach to the Liberty Bell climbs is snow free most of the way. Gulleys and scree directly below spires have a foot or two of soft snow.

#4 Orange Robot Cam (#3 Camalot size)stuck behind flake at a ledge near the top of a single pitch trad line @ ERie. Location, "mid mountain." As of friday it had an oval biner with it as well. Enjoy the search

JW ?

I meant more "with the current conditions" not in general, but I appreciate the input regardless. All I know of Rapple GRapple I stole from the NC mountain guides page "While often overlooked due to the popularity of its nieghbor, the Beckey Route, this climb offers some of the best quality moderate climbing on Liberty Bell. Often combinged with an ascent of the Beckey Route, or used as an option to avoid the crowds, this route provides 3-4 pitches of sustained 5.7 finger and hand crack climbing. While almost half of all ascents of Liberty Bell take place on the Beckey Route, this climb (only 100 feet away) is rarely done and has become a favorite among our guides."

Can anyone out there give me a heads up on the approach to this route on Lib. Bell? All I know is that it starts near the Beckey route. P.S. Am I crazy for thinking that N. Face of Burgundy and/or Paisano will be a realistic day trip this weekend?

Always so helpful.

Thread Creap: Is 4th class, 5.0, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3 basically all the same? I never even see pitches listed below 5.4, and I don't think I could really tell the difference.

How did you rap off of ZigZag? IF you go over to the Snag Buttress and rap straight down (following Snag Buttress Direct) I was bouncing to create enough rope stretch to touch the ground with a 60m rope. Do you know a better way down from that area?

The smoke bluffs don't require double rope raps. I thought diedre was fun, but not as amazing as people make it out to be. Some generic slabs, and 3 fairly short pitches of solid finger/hand sized cracks. You wont need anything more than a set of nuts, and a few .75"-1.5" cams/tricams/hexes. It shouldn't take very long, and I'd also suggest starting at maybe 6pm or so. Make sure you know how to get there and how to get off the top of the Apron. A headlamp would be wise but probably not needed.

dude, it's in your email now

I'm claiming "Trask"

Agreed, a good deal of new snow about 5 days ago on the top few thousand feet.

see PMs

see PMs

My guess would be not to bring them. South of Fireweed especially, the area is fairly open and I would imagine it's been exposed to a good deal of sun on a low snowpack.

Bellingham

Check out the 6th post down on this antique thread: http://www.cascadeclimbers.com/threadz/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/9579/page/0/fpart/3/vc/1 Dru was called out for having 1100 posts! That's ancient, now over 75 people have that many. I wonder if 5 years from now people will be looking back and recounting the past days when he had only 25K 10K milestone: http://www.cascadeclimbers.com/threadz/s...true#Post181445 Spray King, or lazy Canuck with too much free time?

Here's the "ultimate draw" setup: 2 light wiregates, a 24" mammut 8mm runner, and 2 dental/orthodontist rubberbands. Double up the rubber bands around the ends of the draw next to the biner, so each carabiner will have one loop of the sling permanently attached. Then you can triple the slings alpine-draw style and you instantly have sport-climbing sized draws. Keep them racked as short draws, and quickly lengthen them without worrying about re-clipping any loops of webbing. In order for the stiff/sewn part of the runner not to have to bend over a carabiner, make sure that one of the biners is attached next to the black sheath. The dental rubber bands seem durable, and ridicuously cheap. Easy to pop off once you take out the carbiner. This setup would ideally use WC heliums or some other keynose carabiner, but that's a lot more $$ than on-sale superflys.