Friedrich

Survey not working. On the 1-7 page, I only selected on column per question, but still got an error. It's not a super well designed survey anyway. It should be more clear which is best 1 or 7. And most surveys use a 1-5 range, with labels aboe each column so people don't get confused. Good luck with your app. As a model for a PERFECT user interface, check out MeteoBlue. It's by far my favorite weather app for climbing. Discovered it in a blog on hiking in the dolomites. Used it all over italy and still here in the states. it's brilliant.

Great trip report, and thanks for writing it up in such an honest way! That's how you learn. We all did stupid stuff above our heads when we were younger, and those of us still posting made it out alive, but not everybody did. I advise you to do what I did. Take some of that money you are going to spend on new gear and invest it in getting some in-person instruction from a really well qualified guide. Get a little group together and the cost will be reasonable. or at least find an experienced ice climber who is also a good teacher, buy them a case of beer to take you out somewhere nearby and teach you as much as they can. Congrats on the probable FA. So I actually want to congratulate you on the decision to rap the route. I don't know the mountain or the descent options, but just going from the TR info, it appears you didn't also. so in my opinion, that was your best decision of the day and just might have saved your life. if you're not absolutely sure about alternative means of descent, it is ALWAYS better to go back the way you came. Well done. So many climbing accident reports begin with "they decided to seek an easier way down" or "they descended via _______, a route they were not familiar with." You can easily be cliffed out or find yourself in even more of an epic, and once hypothermia sets in, you start making stupid decisions without even realizing it. Others have commented on your rappel techniques. Trying to save 10 bucks by threading your rope through a wire made my shudder. You were lucky to survive that as well. You DO need to spend more time learning and PRACTICING rappelling in a safe environment. You can read great techniques in books but you need to dial that shit in at home before you try it in the field. (it's by far the most dangerous part of climbing as you probably know intellectually). If you haven't read through any of the "American climbing accidents" annuals, I highly recommend it. You can learn a lot from the mistakes others make, and it's a guaranteed injury-free activity, as well as being a pretty compelling read. One last complement- your willingness to keep learning is what will save you. Well done. Lots of people think they're invincible and aren't as self aware as you seem to be. It's great to see.

Hey there Rat & Marko, It's 4 years after your post, but I stumbled upon it and want to offer my congratulations. I made 3 or 4 serious attempts on this route from 2013-2015 or so, and chatted with a few other people about it including Jim Nelson. Nobody knew of any serious attempt, let alone a successful ascent. And it's a damn hard mixed climb. I think you can safely assume yours was the FA. The earliest reference is a Mountaineers report quoted in the Becky guide. I actually went down to the Mountaineers Library and looked up the original report at some point. It wasn't helpful. It's certainly been looked at a million times, but on my attempts (and on one summer scouting trip) I never saw any gear or evidence of prior attempts. (besides my own bail pitons) I believe the combination of the remoteness and difficulty of the route, the distraction of all the good skiing to be had, and the fact that you have to walk past several other easier and more enticing lines on the way meant that it was neglected until you made it up there. You didn't rate the climb, but as you know, the route is pretty damn hard, with the angle of the face and the lack of pro being the main problem. If it were more vertical it would actually be less scary. Any fall would be a face-scraping tumbling disaster. One time, the conditions were ideal and there was solid rime ice all along the face, for the right foot and tool, but not enough for a screw. Pro was hard to find. I would be curious how you would rate it. Big props to you both for getting it done. Especially climbing up into that overhanging stuff and finding a way. I never got higher than your 2nd pitch. One up there I concluded it was too scary and beyond my abilities, so I abandoned the project. I doubt your route will see many repeats. Turf Testament was an act of faith. Congratulations on the FA.

Good TR! Glad you made it out OK. Seems like everyone has close calls when they're new to the Alpine game, but your situational awareness and humility saw you through. Well done and congrats on the classic.

Maybe next time. Found partner via PM, Thanks CC.com! Weekend warriors unite!

ps: leaving Seattle 6:30am, return by 3pm or so. I'll drive.

Partner cancelled, I see 3 are viewing this board.. what the heck. I'm running up Guye Peak tomorrow as a warm-up/start to the alpine season. Easy climb, have brought newbies up there before, but it's fun even for crusty old veterans like me. I even have an extra set of gear, if you're not fully equipped PM me ASAP thanks Friedrich

Well done! Love that route. I agree, the crossing is the crux, the rest is just conditioning. DS dragged my ass up there about 15 years ago, on an overnight blast from Seattle. It feels like you have the whole mountain to yourself over there. I seem to recall we elected to rap down to the Yokum and the Sandy, using a snow bollard. Might be quicker than going way down low to find a suitable down-climbing spot. Of course, like anything, it's conditions-dependent.

Officially the overnight parking lot ($15/night) is for lift-ticket-buying clients only, and you need to be in your vehicle overnight. Unofficially there is a possible work-around. I happen to be camping on Saturday night as well, and just got off the phone with Alpental Guest Services. I explained that my friend and I want to ski all day Sat & Sunday, and camp overnight in between, and need to buy an overnight parking pass. The guy on the phone said "no problem, just walk into the guest-services area, tell them you need to buy an RV pass. It's $15/day with a 3-night maximum." I pointed out that we don't have an RV and won't be in the vehicle, and he said "no problem." ProTip: When you go in to buy your pass, make sure you resemble a lift-skier more than an alpinist. Just to minimize nosy questions. As far as I know, if you just leave your car overnight in one of the other lots, without a pass, it will get towed.

Outstanding! If there were a "like" and a "jealous" button on CC.com I would be clicking both.

I need a doppleganger so I can be in two places at once. Got Tix for Banf Mountain Film Fest tonight, had to buy way in advance of course so it was before this was announced. But it looks pretty cool! Have fun

Woah, check out these crazy wild ice formation pics. This is in Antarctica and were taken by a researcher named Tony Travouillon. http://news.yahoo.com/photos/antarctic-waves-slideshow/antarctic-waves-photo-1126234579.html

A quick +1 for AAI. . They have a well-deserved reputation for high quality instruction, and they also go out of their way to support the NW outdoor community. That should count for something. But don't spend too much time deciding. There are a lot of places to get good, AAIRE level 1 Avy instruction, and most people are fans of whoever they learned from. I don't know anyone who can claim to have tried all the various offerings in order to evaluate "the best." The main thing is to get signed up for an AAIRE level 1 course that works for your schedule and location ASAP, since they fill up quickly, or at least the ones on convenient three-day weekends near Seattle do. Then you and your partner can get the benefits of your increased avvy awareness this season. Almost all the places mentioned on this thread are offering their free or donation-based "intro" workshops right about now. It's generally just a slideshow, but it'll give you a chance to learn how much you don't know, and get a taste of what you'd learn in a full level 1 course. AAI is doing a couple of events to benefit NWAC this month in Bellingham and Everett. The Mountaineers will let you attend their intro event as a guest member. Gary Brillill be at Feathered Friends and Marmot next week, and there is also the David Pettigrew Foundation, which is not a comprehensive course, so no substitute for AAIRE level 1, but their "intro/workshops" are outside, and "pay what you can," so a good supplement, if you can snag a spot. Downside to them is they have a 100% skiing focus. That's in keeping with their mission but might not be what you want. Hope this is helpful.

Ok, in all seriousness now. Just go to Marmot in Bellevue and ask for their most experienced boot-fitter, then go over your problem with them. From my own gear-shop-employee experience it sounds like you might have a low-volume foot as well as a small heel. That, coupled with long foot length would cause heel lift unless you can fill that volume space with extra socks, inserts, etc, and lace the arch area extremely tight. If you have a really weird foot and nothing else works, you might try a moldable thermo-fit inner boot in plastics as OlympicMtnBoy suggested, which they can also do at Marmot.