John Frieh

Nice TR! Going south -> north is a little harder IMO but with the road washout you guys didn't have much option. Bachelor Creek is teh suck but I always tell myself at least it isn't the approach to Bear You have 2 Honda Trail 90s!?!?! You should sell me one! Or both! Those are awesome bikes!

:laf: I made a deal with the devil (myself?!?!) that for every cup of coffee I drink I have to do 3 muscle ups consecutively. Seems like a fair trade... Are you zoning it yet?

Nice TR Melissa! Tell the kidlets and Mr rmncwrtr excellent work!

With that kind of fire power you should have just climbed at night and avoided the t storms all together then again whiskey + stumptown = serious toilet time Unless of course I am the devil and then it would be my brew

Awesome website: http://www.simplefit.org/ similar to crossfit but simplified and no equipment necessary give it a try for a couple of weeks and see what you think!

I have all of Justin Timberlake's music including all the remixes.... on vinyl. Cue jokes in 3... 2... 1...

No sarcasm meant but I will say I was confused about what "role" you were shopping for... you said you had a goal "similar to the originator of this thread" which rereading it sounds like a pair of tools that climb both "vertical and alpine ice"... yes? I read that as "climbing ice"... yes? Maybe I'm soapboxing here but when I hear "vertical ice" I think "water ice"... additionally when I hear "alpine ice" I think "water ice in the alpine"... unless luckymike/you is referring to schrunds, crevesses, etc which is "glacial ice" water ice is easier to climb with a lighter tool (aztarex, light wing, etc) as water ice isn't as dense as glacial ice. it will require a tad bit more vigilance with one's swing but still doable. glacial ice is more dense than water ice and will require some big shoulder/excellent swing dynamic to get a good stick with light tools. doable but plan on working harder look at it this way: if your goal is routes with lots of slogging and not a lot of ice a lighter tool will be faster (think liberty ridge, etc etc) as though you will be slower on the ice part (as compared to someone with heavier tools) you will be faster on the slog part (less weight to carry) if your forsee a route that has either more ice or some mixed terrain (think curtis ridge) a tool with a little more headweight and some clearance to save your knuckles would be a wiser choice and faster as you dont have to swing as much to get a good stick if you forsee both of these style routes get a heavier tool and just be in better physical condition (5 pullups, 10 pushups, and 15 air squats for every minute on cc.com perhaps ) hope this helps!

this could be a good opportunity to test out some aliens also! I have a few new hybrids I haven't whipped on yet

Nice dude! What is next on your list? Trying to squeeze anything in before school starts?

shannon's first time outside polka dot tights: oh so pimpin

i will lower it myself using only my teeth so that I can do handstand pushups continuously while lowering it if you guys need a drill, beater ropes, etc etc let me know

Can anyone else vouch for the Aztarex for this role? I've got a similar goal as the originator of this thread. I tried the Quark's this weekend on an outing and liked them. I'm not sure they'd be great for plunging in snow on steep alpine stuff because of the handle shape. A compromise might be the Aztar's, which also have a handle. Any comments out there? The other tool I tried was the Grivel Light. It has a straighter handle/shaft than the Aztar and worked well on the steep ice... not quite as well as the Aztar though. What role is that? Climbing ice? Yes they climb ice. Quarks plunge fine. So do Aztars and Aztarexs. If the snow is too firm/hard to plunge a quark (or any tool with a fang for that matter) that means it is firm enough to use the ice tool in either piolet ancre or piolet panne position. Chouinard Climbing Ice Chapters 3 and 4 for further discussion.

the basics: - east and west is divided by the river - north and south is divided by burnside street keep in mind: - no sales tax... now is the time to buy that new rope, etc etc - buses, trams, light rail, street cars... oh my! mass transit here works... some of it is even free! give it a go! The short list... stuff in the Hawthorne/Belmont neighborhood (aka where you are staying aka walking distance) which is in SE PDX: - stumptown coffee (which you can get in SEA) - I'd pick Aalto Lounge over Horse's Brass any day unless you like the idea of second smoke induced lung cancer - Other SE bars near where you are staying: Sapphire Hotel, Bar of the Gods - Bagdad is okay but at the end of the day it is still a McMenamins which means the beer is so so at best at least compared to what else you can get in town - there is a powells (used books) on Hawthorne but go to the one in NW Other SE PDX: - lots of music shops... - OMSI (bodyworks 3 currently) - drinking: noble rot (if you like wine more than beer), doug fir (at least worth a walk around inside), produce row NE/North PDX: - crossfithel - drinking: rocket (oh so pimpin), amnesia - coffee: albina press, fresh pot, - music millennium NW PDX - lots and lots of records stores (vinyl) along burnside (both sides) - powells (plan on 1/2 a day if you are a reader) - voodoo doughnuts... NyQuil: enough said - ecotrust building: home of patagonia, ecotrust/salmon nation, etc... beautiful beautiful building SW PDX - ride the tram - one of the many farmers market every wed and sun - walk on waterfront (east and west) - circuit bouldering gym (at least walk around... amazing terrain) Do you have access to a car? If so... - columbia gorge - beacon - mt hood

My charming personality and rugged good looks is plenty magical on their own... wouldn't want to over do it Friday is out for you Bill right?

can i bring a newbie for a se corner introduction (no soloing) and then you and i get into trouble?

Nice work guys! Great climb huh? IMO it is on par with N ridge of stuart... just a more wild/remote... It still waits a second ascent! A 7 pitch grade VI! How bad can it be? Those cracks are awesome! Highly recommended!

what time friday night and/or sat morning?

Good chance but every time I have done the black line I didn't see anything to the right... who knows... maybe I need to go back up there and take a look Anyone who likes hand cracks should climb this route!

Nice work Jens and Max. Re: Jim's memory... I remember wishing for bolts when I was leading pitch 2 especially after going for a 15' the day prior on it. I think everyone has shown the route goes with out them but as far as Jim's memory who cares... considering the breadth of Jim's accomplishments I can completely understand not being able to recall each exact detail of every climb. Ratings... Does this sound right? 5.9 5.11+ 5.10+ 5.10+??? 5.8 What did you think the fourth pitch was rated? Did you think the upper thin crack just above the wideness was the crux of that pitch?

Disclaimer: The following post may contain more beta than one might be looking for... if you tend to prefer to figure things out on your own then stop reading here. Additionally keep in mind mileage will vary... one man's choss is another man's 5 star route... basically don't coming crying to me if the belay ledge was @ 40 m not 35 m or the routes wasn't clean enough for you. Approach: No surprise here but as Mt Stuart is a big mountain a number of options exist for getting to the base of the pillar: 1) The FA party climbed the ice cliff glacier route to the upper cirque and from there climbed 3-4 pitches of rock to get to the base of the pillar. Using this approach makes for a "full meal deal" alpine experience (sustained technical ice, snow and rock difficulties in one route... a surprisingly rare combination in the cascades). Depending on one's timing and/or ice climbing ability this could potentially be the crux of the route. 2) The north ridge notch which can be reached either via the north ridge access couloir (west side of the north ridge off the stuart glacier) or via the lower north ridge. Regardless of how you get to the notch from the notch take a general skiers right descent down the east side of the north ridge aiming for the upper ice cliff glacier cirque. Be cognisant the upper slabs of the NE face route hold snow till late season and randomly release with little or no warning especially in the early morning sun. With some skill one should be able to reach the ice cliff glacier without a rap. In late season a healthy moat will form in the upper cirque resulting in a required rappel onto the snow. Regardless of how one reaches the upper cirque it is here where one begins the rock on the lower rock pitches. The lower rock pitches/prepillar pitches: Again... Stuart is a big mountain and a lot of terrain exists in between the base of the pillar and the upper ice cliff cirque. Those who have taken a more direct line from the cirque to the pillar have reported hard wet 5.10 climbing. I can't comment as I have never used this approach... The approach I have always used is look for a ramp system starting climbers left of the pillar near where the upper portion of the ice cliff glacier route begins. This ramp trends climbers left to right and terminates just below the girth pillar proper. This ramp (as far as I can tell) is described in the CAG as the NE face of the false summit (FA Beckey). Beckey calls it 5.6... it felt more like 5.8 to me... again mileage will vary. It is roughly 3-4 pitches from the cirque to the base of the pillar but this will vary depending on the time of season (as the season goes on more snow melts so one has to start further and further from the base of the pillar) and the length of one's rope. These pitches are the loosest/dirtiest of the all the pitches on the route. Additionally they will likely be wet in places. Approach pitches: Looking down the pillar approach pitches. Note some rock debris on the ledges: The girth pillar proper: The girth pillar is ~400' tall. In the 90s the left half fell off/detached. The current consensus is for the most this did not effect the original route. However it appears it did add additional cracks (expando) creating a variation to the original route. Forrest Murphy on the pillar before the left side fell off: Original (zoom in): Red (original FA) Black (variation): The blue X on the topo marks where these photos were taken of this belay ledge (belay ledge circled on topo): Mark Westman (in shorts over polypro!?!?) Photo by Joe Puryear Craig Gyselinck The girth pillar proper continued: Both routes begin at the same point. The first pitch on the pillar is 40 m (mileage will vary) to a small belay ledge. Belay Ledge (top of pitch 1): For pitch 2 and 3 on the pillar: With a 70 meter rope one can reach the top of the right hand side of the pillar following the black line route or the belay ledge (red line route) pictured above. With a 60 meter rope one can reach a semi hanging belay (black line route) below the final bulge or the belay ledge (red line route) pictured above. Top of the pillar to the false summit: Depending on which line you follow (red or black) will determine what route you take to the false summit. The black line will deposit you on the right hand side of the pillar. Traverse right (a small 10' offwidth will make require you to belay) until an easy looking weakness is found that heads more or less straight up to the false summit. Approx 4 pitches to the false summit of 5.6 or less. The red line will deposit you on the left side of the pillar. Same story... head up in the general direction of the false summit. This finish felt a little harder to me than the black line finish however this side didn't have an offwidth. Happily Ever After??? Hope this helps... if I missed something or you have any questions, etc etc shoot me a pm or post here. And go climb this route... one of the best in the cascades. Cheers to Mr Jim Nelson for giving us all just an amazing route!

Does that 50 hours a week include spray time? I bet you're good for 35... maybe 40 of actual work

71k views later... Any chance I could edit the title and/or the first post in this thread?

Hell yes guys! Nice send! Was the route wet/seeping anywhere? Hey JJ: you going to be in the bozone this winter?

Huh... I thought you guys did it before the rockfall. I have some pics at home I can label and upload tonight.

When the left side of the pillar fell off the right side expanded creating this crack system... I talked to Jim at great length about it... his memory is slightly clouded about where the line is for some reason... Because of that I also talked/showed my pics to Joe Puryear and Forrest who both did the pillar prior to the rock fall (the GP was Forrest's first grade V climb ever! HELL YEAH! ) and we were able to determine the line I climbed my first time up the pillar (the famous neutrino trip )/the way you went is a new addition to the pillar... I think I have a photo somewhere I can post taken from the N ridge that shows where both lines are. Again: STRONG work for the onsight free! VERY impressive!