Chad_A

I should state (I forgot to mention) that I would be willing to pay fees; the guide part is what gets me...oh, and only 80 routes, well, that's not exactly great either.

That's what I mean. When I sent my letter, I suggested working with the climbing community to set regulations that might benefit the area a bit more. I would think that setting such strict regulations would cut the tourism drastically, and that is a major source (if not the main source) of income to the city of Huaraz. I can see the closure of some areas might be necessary to limit the impact of use, but the requirement of a guide, well, that'll keep me home.

Cool- I imagine by technical terrain, it'd have to be hard, frontpointing type of action. It sounds like it'll be fine to wear a bit loose on 50 degree, good step-kickin' terrain.

Directly from the American Alpine Club website: "Action is still needed to help reverse new regulations that would dramatically alter the climbing experience in the Cordillera Blanca of Peru. The UIAA recently approved a motion introduced by AAC President Mark Richey: “The UIAA strongly encourages that the PNH [Huascaran National Park] and INRENA [Peru’s interior department] work cooperatively with their Peruvian Mountaineering Federations and those of other countries with an interest in the park to establish and adopt policies and use regulations regarding climbing and trekking within the PNH that are fair and beneficial to both local and visiting climbers, environmental concerns and the local guiding agencies as well.” If the new regulations are implemented as written, climbers will only be able to access the most popular peaks and routes (an estimated 80 of the 600 or so known routes within the park), must climb with a local mountain guide (at a ratio of one guide per two clients), and will not be able to visit the park between December and March. To voice your concerns, email Leoncio Alvarez Vasquez (Mr. Alvarez) at lalvarez@inrena.gob.pe. Please copy any emails to Mr. Alvarez’s assistant at jbarrios@inrena.gob.pe and to the head of protected areas, Carlos Salinas, at csalinas@inrena.gob.pe. Though communication in Spanish is ideal, any language will work. See a copy of Mark Richey’s letter to the Peruvian authorities at http://www.americanalpineclub.org/docs/R...ez--9-2005.doc. A background article on Huascaran National Park regulations by AAC member Jim Bartle is posted at www.americanalpineclub.org/docs/2004_Winter_AAN.pdf." I've sent an email to them all; if anyone else wants to, please do. I'd like to see another solution, rather than having it regulated to death. Thanks for helping out.

Thanks, Dru. What do you think about the Rideout area? Probably about the same...thin, and needs more time?

Well, I'll be damned. A whole 'nother way to walk, for a whole 'nother type of boot. Go figure! Thanks, John, I'll have to continue with experimentation. By the way, if the heel isn't locked in tight, is it okay for it to slip a bit? I suppose it wouldn't hurt as much, because it'd be the inner boot slipping inside the outer boot, instead of my actual heel slipping inside the boot...

Good call, that's about right...although, I suck at ice ratings

Well, on closeout, I just picked up a pair of Scarpa Alphas, non-thermomoldable style. Historically, I've had a hard time wearing any plastics around the shop (shin bang, etc), so the fact that I was able to wear these up to Illumination Saddle on Hood today was a complete victory. Still, my heels hurt a lot, and it took me a while to dial in the lacing correctly. The Upper ankle of the boot is much stiffer than my comfortable leather boots; it causes a levering effect ( ankle flexes forward, comes up against the front of the ankle support at the top lace area, and levers the heel/achilles area back into the heel of the boot= heel pain). Note that, fortunately, the sizing of the boots are appropriate, and the heel doesn't slip up at all. I'm considering the Intuition liners for the future...maybe the velcro doesn't need to be tight at all? The Intuitions don't have anything fastening the top of the liner. So, what should I expect? Will the upper boot break in at all, and flex easier? Or will I have to run the laces looser on the upper boot, and risk less lateral ankle support because of it? One thing that I did find is it helped the ankle flex if I didn't overtighten the velcro tab at the top of the inner boot. I'm happy to hear input, but please spray elsewhere. Thanks in advance, and happy holidays to y'all.

I'd been watching conditions, but fell off the wagon with staying on top of things this past week. Anyone know if they got any of the brunt of these storms that just went through? I'd like to make a trip up there this winter (sooner, or later). Thanks for any info

Bump. I'm going if at all possible. It's nice to hear about the bipartisanship, and about the congressman actually hiking the Timberline trail. 75,000 new acres of protected land and 15 more miles of protected waterways sound good. That's assuming we have the money to protect it? Discuss. Thanks for posting that, Winter!

Thanks for that...what kind of stretching routine did you do, and for what length of time (for each stretch?)

Damn, so it's confirmed... I am getting old. There! Now I officially have reasons to be falling apart! Ha!

Never ruptured one, but my right achilles started acting up after a year of trouble free hiking and running. Strangely enough, on uphill terrain, it's fine. It's the downhill that causes a strong, dull ache that shoots through the achilles area. I'm wondering of a bone spur has formed that pinches the the achilles when the toes are pointed downward? Anybody else had any experience with this? This whole thing makes me nervous; I understand that the achilles doesn't give a whole lot of warning before it snaps. By the way, there's no swelling, redness, or malformation of the tendon.

Haha, good point Nah, you're probably just like me...need to stop investing in expensive microbrew, and start eating more Ramen. That'll get ya there quicker. Cheers!

Go back to the gym, rat.

Nice, Alan! Good to see you got out. Hopefully, I'll be able to put in some painful learning time this year, and I'll be able to do some turns with you sometime

bigwalling- I understand that family can be weird. I've come to figure out that it's probably because I don't spend much time with them, and I don't have much in common with them, anymore. At any rate, I was bummed this year when my g/f flew home to be with her family on Thanksgiving. Then, I got called into work, to dialyze a patient in an ICU. All the sudden, things weren't so bad for me. I went home after that, smiled at my empty house, and had a brew...at least I have my health

That's the most extreme form of training I've heard. Imagine, trying to stay amped up to that. I'd end up putting down the pack, and eating a bag of peanut M&Ms.

Wow- very cool. I just screwed around with that Pandora website- I typed in PJ Harvey, and it suggested Pretty Girls Make Graves. Very cool...this could entertain for hours

D'oh! That's the one that David said we should've checked out

I met Rodney for coffee this a.m.; he handed me off a CD of the pics, so here's some of them that summed it up. His camera did much better than mine; thanks to him for taking some shots for us. It's nice to see it from another perspective. Here's Oleg, across the 'schrund, working his way to the ice pitch that we did just a few hundred feet left of where the Left Couloir usually starts. Note to the viewer: it was much sketchier than it looked, since we didn't know if that huge block of snow would remain attached to the rock: A nice view of the 70 degree ice that he lead: Thin ice The belay gathering at a ledge: Me, finishing up the last of the ice leading: Dave, running away with it... Myself, with the Spur below. This is where we split a bit; Rod and I diverted right, back into the left couloir; Dave and Oleg stayed straight up to continue on the Left side of the NF/right side of Cooper Spur. Here's the Left Couloir. Dave and Oleg over a bit from us: Oh, by the way, anyone who says that Quarks don't plunge, here's proof that they do. Me near the Summit; Rod already on top. Oleg and David a minute from the summit. Rapping off the south side- yeah, that's right. I'll take a rap any day, over downclimbing a missing step of snow/ice. Dan Smith is much more a hardman than I And, the obligatory sunset shot on the way down. Thanks to Rodney S. for the photo documentation. Out of respect for him, I didn't post his summit self portrait, but I will if he asks me to

Funny you should say...yesterday, while going through the bargain bin at US Outdoor Store, I found an old Spectre. Heavy and the older style, but at ninteen bucks, hell, I'll take it. Next time, it'll be useful on a route like this one, if I run into conditions like this again. Regarding the belays- usually we were able to get in a couple screws, and back them up with our tools. Not bomber, but not awful either. I never had one that I thought, "Christ, man, don't fall."

Mike, well, 6 screws each, per rope team. Mostly shorties, and even a few of them got dinged bottoming out on rock...

Good job, Dan! Glad you finally got it done. Sorry- meant to contact you, but by the time I was at my cell, it was too late. Cheers!

Thanks for posting that, Oleg. I had a good time. I never thought that it'd stay so chilly up there, all day long. That's the benefits of a north facing route, for ya. Here's a goofy shot of me, with the crew, getting ready to drop onto the Eliot. Here's the same shot of David and Oleg high on the finish to Cooper Spur; my favorite shot.