hemp22

Yeah, just to be clear - the climber/filmer aren't trying to say this was a first time gear lead of dracula. Matt has the route dialed and has done it on gear before. He's been working on the same with a few other climbs there (MF reunion, pinhead, etc) - maybe as part of mental training for another project. This is just a great climb, and happened to make for something interesting for Juan to film and work on his video-making. My Hat's off to both of them for being out there and having a good time doing what they enjoy.

an alpine version of the mammut smart? so does it take 2 ropes? that would be excellent

It looks like the same formula & layout that is used on www.snow-forecast.com. I've used snow-forecast.com for the past few winters for skiing, and it has been pretty useful for planning the appropriate days of the week to catch powder fever. For looking at something higher elevation like a ski resort, it seems to be a little better than just going off the NOAA point forecast. But, as with any forecast, it gets less and less accurate the further out you go. And, of course, still check actual conditions before leaving the house, via weather stations, telemetry, radar, etc.

Good on ya for talking to them. At least there's a shred of good news about the ropes. I wonder if the metro survey work would be related to the preparations for the new park. And did the owner mention which conservation group it is? It might be a good idea to talk to the MWPC folks - they probably know all the exact property boundaries, and who owns & manages what. And I'd also like to hold out hope for the possibility that this wasn't a malicious act - possibly some kid without any knowledge of the consequences of cutting the rope. Either way, a sliced rope is scary. I've had people attempt to steal top anchors before, when the rope wasn't up - but at least that's just rude/selfish, and not *normally* life-threatening.

damn, that's some scary stuff. regardless of what has been published, I'd think you should contact the land owner - to let them know what's happened (ropes stolen, rope cut), but also to ensure that climbing is still okay there. A lot of time has passed since the land owner originally gave the blessing for climbing to occur there - don't take it for granted that that is still the case, especially if traffic could increase in a couple years. Just because Olson published it in his description doesn't mean that it is still valid info (it's not like he updated any of the route descriptions or any of that stuff since the original guide).

Thanks for the update - looking forward to the trail-building event at the end of the month. Did the county or audobon society tell you where they're located? i.e. what ledge?

Seriously, can you guys please just keep all this drivel in your Columbia River Gorge forum. It's plenty common for threads to get way off-topic here, but the Access Issues forum should be kept clean so that people can find pertinent information.

Ouch - I just got the email...bummer about that. I was looking forward to climbing out there. maybe this'll be resolved by the end of June for the next one.

I have a couple friends who just decided yesterday that they want to go too. But the REI website says it's all full. I have a hard time believing, though, that 100 people will show up - especially since it's supposed to be raining. Kellie - should waitlisted people call REI to see if they can still try to show up on Sunday, to take the spots of the inevitable no-shows?

No, no. Best by far is this one: [video:youtube]lj-x9ygQEGA

I just got the Metolius Safetech helmet for christmas. (It was a long-overdue replacement of the Edelrid ultralight that I've had for 15+ years). It does have a good design that I think makes it good for a wider range of issues (top impacts, back & side impacts, etc), compared to others. But, I haven't actually climbed in it yet. I'm looking forward to trying it out soon. Impressions so far are that it's certainly not as light as the foam-only options out there, but it feels nice and burly, and the fit adjustment is a lot better than my old edelrid bucket. It's also definitely not a low-profile type helmet - it's big, so I won't have to give up any of the awkward-ness that I've grown so used to. http://www.metoliusclimbing.com/helmet.html

you shouldn't have posted that Joseph - you're just giving the grid-bolting sportos ideas for a much easier and quicker way to clean & prep a new crag... either way, it shows that even well-funded governments like to watch a good trundle every now and then...

Not a banner year for me in terms of climbing, but my first year as a father has been pretty cool. I did manage to get out a couple times in the spring, to complete a couple of "mental projects" locally (i.e. easier climbs that I'd never had the nerve to lead previously, due to sparse/marginal/small gear). Got a couple classic days in at the Leap over the summer. Did a lot more mountain biking. only skied once last winter, but at least it was a perfect powder day in the BC. here's hoping I still remember how to tie in in 2010.

looks like 2 different routes. first is maybe bill's rhythm method deal...then 2nd half of video is cruisin. i think he posts here, maybe he'll clarify

If no one has mentioned these ideas yet: Call the ranger station - they often end up w/ lost and found items Call Red Point - they often end up w/ lost and found items Post on Smithrock.com forums

like others have said - i think you're gonna have to drive a bit to find any long or sustained chimney routes....smith, leavenworth, etc. (ignoring the crown point "adventure" possibility) There are a few routes in the PDX metro area that offer at least a few feet of chimney-esque climbing: right gull, blownout, gandalf's P3, & 1 or 2 at carver...shoot from the hip & superstition (depending on how you do them)

gym grades, are: - extremely subjective - never going to achieve a "consensus" like a permanent climb would. - dependent on a particular climber's strengths & weaknesses - dependent on climber's size, wingspan, etc. - not easily translated into "real world" outdoor situations So, it definitely doesn't surprise me that routesetters would get tired of people bickering about whether something is a hard V3 or an easy V4. This circuit concept may be a good way to partially get around that. Perhaps the next logical step is just to remove all the grades in the gym, and let each climber figure out for himself or herself whether route A or route B is harder for them (rather that have joe-blow gym-employee tell them that B is harder than A) oh, wait, that's already been done...

Did I mention this was 2nd hand information? I wasn't there. But yes, as described to me, it was All of them. I don't know the names of most of them, but I know 'Angle of the dangle' was one of them. the comment was just in general - we didn't talk specific about which routes in particular were stiffer or softer. I agree with you - every little crag has it's own general/average feel for whether grades are soft or stiff, but even within every little crag, there are some than are soft for the crag, and some that are stiff for the crag.

I think the crag you saw has a couple routes posted on mountain project

this seems like it's kind of going downhill already - but back on the original question: I haven't personally lead those climbs, but a friend who has climbed all the 12s there has described them as soft. So, there - I can't help you invalidate your 5.12 redpoints myself, but I can give you ambiguous 2nd-person hearsay for you to make up your own mind about... I've only been on a couple 11s at Ozone, and I'd say my experience there was 50/50. Even some of the 9s and 10s are soft compared to across the river, or up the river (some, but not all). I don't climb there enough to remember the names of the routes, so I can't give more specifics. I guess I'd say that an Ozone climb being graded on par with broughton/beacon would be the exception, not the rule.

This is totally unrelated to via ferrata, but I figured it would be as good a place as any to post it. (and a chance to figure out how to embed vimeo). apologies if this was posted already. Interesting discussion towards the end - about the FA wanting to take out his bolts after a climb was lead on gear (after you get through some of the other "epic" commentary) [video:vimeo]3976756 Link to description & comments (commentary regarding TR rehearsal?)

i don't think there's anything like an instructional video online for that. honestly, the only people that are proficient enough to make a how-to video are the resolers that do it frequently, and would rather have you pay them to do it. but just get a kit and follow the instructions, and you'll do a good enough job. It's not difficult if you just want to get a functional resole - but it would certainly take more experience to be able to make it "pretty". also, years ago there was a pretty detailed post w/ instructions & tips on RC.com (go search...I'm too lazy to find it right now)

i've got a treadmill that you can have for free. we've had it for years, but never used it. I certainly didn't get it for my wife - I'm the one around here who needs it. It's no frills - just a speed adjustment, and manual incline settings. No heart monitor or any of that junk. of course, you have to come to portland to get it...but it's free, so you can save the $$ to get her something nice.

yeah, i'd pretty much agree with pitch 1-4 ratings you show there. P2 seems like the 5.9 section lasts a little longer than P3 - but P2 is also really short. But how are you defining P5? I guess I typically take P4 all the way up to the shoulder notch (60M), so P5 would just be the ridge scramble, which is < 5.7. Is the "normal" way to stop P4 at the little stance after the slabs/bolts?

i've got a video camera... now all you need is to find a sucker to lob off on a lead fall on vertical rock while you're hip-belaying....