Chriznitch

yeah

it's an extra made by granite gear. Really light nylon that resembles snakeskin--amazing what these guys come up with

we descended it on Sunday (8/8/04) afternoon and found it straightforward but slushy. It must've had some fresh snow on it that morning but was "well established" by the time we got on it. There were a couple open crevasses that surprised me--somewhat hidden on the sides by the snow pushed over from all the hikers. Also, there is quite a bit of exposed rock/dirt above camp muir. Good luck ==>

now that I've spent about 10 nights in the new bag I must say it's a pretty sweet summer sleeper. Combined with the air-compressor stuff sack it packs down to about the size of a cantalope. Have yet to test in really wet weather, but in the standard snow camping I've done with a tent it seems great so far. It's rated at 15 degrees, and was plenty warm for Rainier and Olympus. The 900 fill down fluffs quick, but it is pricy...

well, that would account for 1 of the 4 parties we camped with. We met 3 guys at Columbia Crest who climbed the Emmons--sounded like it was in great shape

Climb: Mt Rainier-Kautz Glacier Date of Climb: 8/7-8/2004 Trip Report: My buddy Nate and I climbed the Kautz Glacier route from Paradise. We crossed over the Nisqually and climbed up to the Wilson Glacier. This was straightforward and efficient--we were glad that we went this way instead of starting at the lower trailhead. The approach we used avoided the fan. After starting in the rain we quickly climbed above the clouds and into a beautiful day. We camped at about 10500', and there were 4 other parties camped nearby. No running water was found--it was all buried under new snow. The views from camp were pretty good: That night we watched some large ice chunks break off the Kautz ice cliff and realized that we'd better get an early start and move quickly. We left camp a few minutes before 5am, dropped down to the Kautz and climbed through the ice chute leading through the cliffs. The top layers of ice were poor quality and shattered off in sheets, but the understuff held pretty good. We used a running belay here and placed 3 ice screws--the only protection used on the whole trip. After getting through the chutes we climbed up the Kautz, traversing under some more seracs before getting to the summit plateau. This route was direct and simple, but was still long. I'm not sure what happened to the other parties that were with us at camp, but we ended up breaking trail the whole way (ugh!) through the foot of fresh snow on the upper mountain. This was brutal! The summit offered spectacular views with hardly a cloud in the sky. We lingered for a while: Descent was by the DC route--well broken in by the time we got there. Being my first time on the mountain I was amazed at the chaos of Camp Muir but glad to descend this side and get to see some more angles of the mountain. Time: about 7 hours to camp at 10500', 7 hours to the summit, and 5 hours on the descent. Overall it was an excellent trip and great introduction to what the mountain has to offer. Gear Notes: used 3 ice screws & 2nd tool Approach Notes: crossed Nisqually directly below Glacier Vista and followed a waterfall to the Wilson

as far as that mudslide--I'm not sure. Must've been earlier this season, at least before the RASTA STYLEE trip. Sure is pretty burly

here are a couple more pictures from the trip Panic Point and the Snow Dome on the approach: the summit of Panic Point: This is the Snow Dome and camp (marked by arrow) from the summit. This day was obviously hazy from smoke: enjoying the view from Panic Point looking at Mt Tom: from near the Mt Tom summit looking back at the west face of Olympus. The White Glacier is gentle all the way from base to summit. My route to the White Glacier is in red: bright Mt Tom with the valley and stream flowing off the White Glacier:

nice job. In June the register was there in a big heavy metal box with "Mazamas" inscribed on it (just like the one on Mt Olympus, hmmm...this group gets around) Maybe somebody got sick of it?

deja vu:

I solo'd the marathon last summer, early August I believe. Only did the 3 major peaks--screw the anty in "Oregon High". I do agree that the goal is 24 hours--so bivies definitely aren't allowed. I've always felt that the North Sister requires a little bit of luck without snow cover, but that's my opinion. Graham crackers probably would be preferred in some spots! I hit the southeast ridge of NS, backtracked to the south ridge after sunrise summit, crossed over to the north ridge of middle (crampons for 5-10 minutes), up & over & down to the base of the SS. This is where I wussed out. I'd been planning on the North Ridge the whole time, but after talking with a guy on MS I decided to move over to the Northwest Ridge. This was time consuming and more hiking than climbing. I wasn't familiar with the traverse on the North Ridge of SS but was told it was sketchy--still don't know for sure... That walk down the trail on the south side of SS was the longest 6 miles I've ever walked in my life! Luckily my ride waited for me as I was a couple hours late--cheers to our handhelds

I would assume Mt Tom has been climbed as well... suckbm: past Glacier Meadows it is another 4 miles and 3500' to the summit. Most parties do this easily in a day with reasonable packs. The summit pinnacle offers various options: most climb a steep snow pitch and then scramble to the top. I chose to climb all rock--about 220' of 4th class stuff. It was solo'd easily enough, but I did make two 30m raps on the way down. As far as the glaciers go, they seem pretty obvious, but I'm going to take the 5th when it comes to advising solo glacier travel

Climb: Mt Olympus & Mt Tom Date of Climb: 7/24-31/2004 Trip Report: For our big 2004 vacation, my girlfriend Amy and I decided to spend a week in the Olympic Mountains. Aiming for Mt Olympus, we hiked in along the backpacking mecca of the Hoh River trail 18 miles to the base of the mountain. The approach was pretty uneventful, but there was some interesting wildlife on the trail Once reaching the Blue Glacier, we switched from tennies to boots and roped up to work through our way up the crevasses The terrain switched from blue ice down low to snow up higher as we ascended the Snow Dome. This was interesting hauling up full packs but paid off later (UGH!) The icefalls were incredible and we built our camp atop the Snow Dome--our home for 4 nights Our day hikes were interesting. We observed the large mudslide coming off Mt Athena We also visited the summits of Mt Olympus' west peak and Mt Tom, a neighboring peak. I was surprised to read in the register that the last ascent was in 2001--strange being adjacent to the heavily visited Oly. Mt Tom was a straightforward mountain, but required descending the west face the Olympus massif to obtain the White Glacier and the slog up to the summit. So afterward it meant re-ascending Olympus which was a butt-kicker Our rewards for camping up high on the glacier included great views of sunrises, sunsets, the Northern lights, and the "Goat Show"--watching the antics of the local mountain goats inhabiting the area around our camp. We saved our best meal for the last night up there This final night also provided the best sunset of the trip--over the fog-laden valleys leading out to the Pacific It was definitely a great introduction to a special place.

still figuring out the icons--that frowny guy was supposed to be in the report, not on it. On the way back down the mountain it was pretty clear that the roads can connect you to the trail. sometimes you just feel like you're going the wrong way--hence the schwackin

Climb: North Twin-west ridge Date of Climb: 7/22/2004 Trip Report: had a morning meeting in Mt Vernon, so I decided to hit the west ridge in the afternoon. I drove all the way in Blue Mountain road to about mile marker 9 and started bushwacking. I later learned that it is possible to eliminate all or most of the bushwacking to the ridge, but this was my first time--so it had to be difficult right? The ridge was really fun and I descended the north side. I got back to my truck around 9:30pm, and drove out to find the gate was now locked! I was kinda screwed, but really I only had to take a nap and the first dump-truck the next day opened the gate at 4:30am. Good times... Gear Notes: ice ax would've been helpful to glissade snow on north side--still plenty Approach Notes: there's a trail from a skid trail off the highest logging road that leads up the ridge

wow--pretty rough weather to be flying that plane in. Sure was convenient for hiking access and rescue considering it was only a couple hundred feet from the PCT

I was there on the 14th. Check out the Cooper Spur report. This was the shrund crossing then This was the hogback view It was a week ago, but hope that helps

oh yeah--we found some plane parts along the trail up to the ridge. It looked like most of the pieces had already been collected, but there are a few still scattered around...

Climb: Three Fingered Jack-sul de la Jacque Date of Climb: 7/20/2004 Trip Report: had a great climb up 3FJ on Tuesday with my buddies Kevin and Nate. Found the mountain totally empty--just the way we like it. I originally hoped to climb this last fall, but had to wait due to the B&B Complex fire which burned thru the area last summer. It was amazing to see the devastation from this--the fire burned completely around the peak and definitely was hot along the PCT: The weather early on was foggy-ish, and this didn't break until we reached the "Crawl" We roped up and climbed up to the summit. This was straightforward, but exposed and fun I was really impressed with the tiny summit, and the shimmy along it to sit on the highest point. Great views and exposure here--pretty shear drops to the east and west We rapped off the pinnacle and used the plentiful webbing already there. Check out the mini-trees in the background far below By this point it was a perfect day with few clouds--great views of our route on the hike out This is a fun climb and great on a weekday. This was also my last "Oregon High" peak, so cheers!

yes--it is definitely a sketchy place this time of year, with lots of rockfall and very little snow to help out. I was in the area on July 11th, and people were climbing it--lots of people. Here is what the west face looked like then Although the mountain sees lots of ascents during this time of year, it is certainly safer and more scenic in the spring. The double-pointed pinnacle is Prouty Pinnacle, with the left point being the true summit. Most parties come from the south and make a traverse of the snow patch visable under Prouty, but coming from the North it looks like you would have little or no snow once you left the glaciers.

yeah--my buddy hiked up a ways with me. There was a lot of old rope, metal rods, and other stuff up there

Climb: Hood-Cooper Spur Date of Climb: 7/14/2004 Trip Report: I've been wanting to get on this classic, and although the season is progressing fast I decided to give it a shot. I arranged for my buddy Kevin to tag along and drive my truck over to the south side while I solo'd the route. I was most impressed with the northeast views when we got above timberline: The route did look a little thin, and it was obvious that some rock climbing was going to happen. So I began the climb up the crappy snow and ascended one of the rockfall chutes so that a slip would bring me down the spur instead of down to the Elliot. Luckily with some double-kicking and tip-toeing this theory didn't have to be tested. I finally reached the rocks and remained there as long as possible--these are much more trustworthy than the soft snow. For a split second I thought I was in the Sierras: Lower down the rock was surprisingly good and fast. Found some historically significant items along the way: Being able to climb rock for more than 500', The upper rocks were much more scheisty than those lower down. Luckily only a few holds pulled out :? I finished on decent snow and turned around to look back down on the spur: Enjoyed a fast walk down to timberline and found the 'shrund easily hopped over It was amusing to watch a large party belay everyone down this, and I was probably at the truck before they finished. There was minimal rockfall on the CS route, but I saw lots of BIG rocks falling down the North Face route next door. Sunshine was looking pretty good and had way more snow than CS, plus fresh ski tracks. I'm glad I finally got onto this side of the mountain.

hey guys--nice job on JPG. My buddy and I were the 1st summit reg'ers from 2004. We also descended Milk Creek and Russell, although it was apparently in much better shape a few weeks ago. Last year I was almost killed in late July, late in the day on JPG traversing across the dangerous east side under the pinnacles. I prefer to avoid that now...

we climbed the JPG route from Whitewater TH as a day trip on June 25th. The knife edge was a little icy but should be totally melted now. The pinnacle was mixed ice and crap snow--should also be easier now. Made a 30m rap off the summit to avoid downclimbing the crux...