Trent

Wow! Good job surviving! I know that I felt the same way once I was off that face!

Awesome pictures as usual! Thanks for the TR; I am entertained and can't wait to strap the skis on again! Kit: No topless women? Must have been a boring day!

Great pictures as usual Jason! Risk management in the backcountry is something that I could be better at.

Awesome trip Tim; thanks for the TR! Living vicariously through your adventures! Need to see a shot of the bike!

Jason: Awesome! I am living vicariously through your TRs! (The locals look inbred!)

J-berg was definitely Dallas' favorite peak. It combined easy access with some of the most challenging terrain the Cascades have to offer. I think that his record of seven summits of the peak will not be surpassed anytime soon. The C-J couloir is definitely a sketch-fest; I had my finger broken by rock-fall there!

Wow!!!!

Much thanks to Jason and Gord for being great partners, and especially Gord for leading the crux when I felt shaky. I think that one of the best things about alpinism is the quality people that you have the opportunity to meet and climb with. This climb reminded me on a real and tactile level the sacrifice and excellent planning and execution demonstrated by Jason, Steph, and Donn, my partners on the fateful climb. Without people of that caliber, I would not be here now.

Great trip report, and nice job on the NE Face! Looks like a fun and rewarding trip! Tell Mason to get his dates correct, though. It is 1986, not 1896!!

Awesome shots as usual Jason! Having seen Gordo mad, you do not want any part of that!

Hopefully no locals ran off with your car keys this time!

Tom: What a cool trip! What's next on the list?

Nice write-up Tom, I now have enough ideas for the summer. Dallas would approve!

Approaching Chianti Tower

Headstone Rock, Joshua Tree NP at sunset

Jason Leading out on Eldorado's West Arete

Brandon: I have some of Dallas Kloke's notes on the Coal Mountain crag if you are interested. Steve

Nice work Tom! Your propensity for suffering abounds! Dallas would be proud; he had seven summits on J-Berg. His TR on the seventh ascent .

More photos, not up to Jason's standards though! For those interested, we saw an alternate approach. Rappel the col between the East Ridge on Eldorado and Dean's Spire to the glacier on the north side of Eldorado. Follow the glacier northwest past the NW Couloir until you are able to climb a dirty chimney to reach the West Arete below the gendarmes. This approach is shorter and will eliminate the lower 1000 feet of the Arete, and will preserve the best climbing around the gendarmes. The climbing to get from the glacier to the arete looked dirty but low fifth class.

Thanks for putting it all together Jason. Definitely one of the more satisfying routes that I have done.

A very tasty bushwack it was. I only thought about pushing the button (the PLB) three or four times.

Damn Gumbies. Even off route here!

Trip: Colchuck Peak - NE Couloir Date: 6/6/2012 Trip Report: STORYLINE: Two gumbies bumble onto the incorrect route without gear. Must consternation, including wringing of hands and rending of garments ensues. Gumbies prevail and finish the route, summit glory attained. All is well. NARRATIVE: Our two super-heroes, Gumb and Gumber, needed something low commitment and fun to climb. Perusing the TRs on CC.com, the NBC on Colchuck Peak was chosen. The pictures were studied closely, and it was decided to leave the rope at home. After parking below the forest pass required sign (Gumb forgot his parking pass), the trail to the Colchuck Lake was beat into submission. Heads down huffing and puffing up the Colchuck Glacier, our brave but myopic protagonists started climbing the obvious couloir. "Let's climb here!" The bergshrund was a bit spicy, but the snow bridge held under Gumber’s prodigious weight. Up and up an ever steepening and narrowing couloir the gumbies climbed. Gumb was thinking, “Stupid camera tilt! Those pictures on CC.com sure looked easier than this!” while Gumber thought, “Man, I am out of shape. This “easy snow couloir” is really kicking by gumby rear! I gotta stop riding that stupid ass Pokey to Krispy Kreme! I need to start walking there instead!” Getting narrower! I am out of shape! They climbed on and on up steeper steps and runnels. Gumb started to curse the sandbaggers on CC.com. They came to a split in the couloir, and went right. The steepening slot ended in a spot of mixed climbing underneath a cornice. Gumb went up to take a look. Not being able to see above it, he backed down. “Curse those knuckle-dragging posters!” he screamed to Gumber. “There were no pictures of this alpine chicanery in the TRs!” He would have flopped down and beat his head against something, but the slope angle precluded this stress relieving measure. Dreading the down-climb, the intrepid bumblers backed down and tried the left-hand split. Low and behold, it went! There were no pictures of this! Where is Pokey when I need him? Topping out east of the summit, Gumber was confused. “All those posers on CC are AFU; this is not the north face! What peak are we on?” he wondered. Gumb was convinced that a worm-hole had opened up in the space-time continuum and transported them either to another dimension or maybe across to another couloir. Upon further investigation, the Mensa candidates discovered that they had climbed the incorrect route! Seeing as how this kind of simple error could never happen to alpine superstars like themselves, blame was laid square on the shoulders of cc.com and the myriad of posters. “They need to make those stupid TRs easier to understand!” Gumb grumbled. “Pokémon! Not our bad!” Gumber seconded. Where am I? Gumbies prevail; summit glory attained! Wanting at least one aspect of the trip to go as planned, the pair traversed over to Dragontail to tick that peak. On the way down, they saw tracks heading up the Triple Couloirs. “I bet they brought their rope!” Gumb pooh-poohed. Finally on route! Can't get lost here! The walk out was uneventful; no route finding errors occurred. Back at the car basking in summit glory and a bit of alcohol induced euphoria, the gumbies did their trademark choreographed high-five hand slap dance. (Don’t ask). “We rock!” Gumb proclaimed. “We rule!” Gumber replied. The route (Not the NBC) Gear Notes: To avoid needing more gear, get on the correct route. Used and wanted two tools, rope and gear not used. Approach Notes: Trail snow free to the lake.

Pictures: The face looked thin, but maybe with some colder weather it could come into condition.

Having participated in this rescue and a few others, both military and civilian, these guys are the best. Professional and competent, they ensured that the outcome would be positive. Much thanks!