fatswaller

Wenatchee is a fine place to see small headed large white people.Or is that Whitenatchee.But what about the gym at the airport in East Whitenatchee?That Thai place by Miller Street isn't to bad.

Hard to beat the Assininboine pass route for scenery.Its fairly casual and the miles go by fast.Once past the head wall there is no need for mt. boots or crampons in a dry year.We only belayed a short bit at the upper rock band and ran the rest.Made 4 to 5 raps on the decent. Not to hard a route by Rockies standard in the right conditions.Great peak to bag.

Even thougth I am over the hill, I would recommend the hook creek approach. Its just a matter of finding the best route from yellow jacket tower to hook creek. Once thougth that,it is not bad.It is certainly a quick route out.

I don't remember the section above the pressure chamber as being that difficult.We stepped right and up a crack to exit the chamber.Then traversed left and up a short steep crack to the top. From the belay just below the pressure chamber,we made the top in one pitch.

A few years back,I was working in the bay area.It seemed like Tuolomne was always my area of choice.In my opinion, it is home to some of the finest slab/face routes in the world.Most of the classic's are run out with 1/4" bolts. On more than one occasion,I would be way out from my last piece of pro wondering what I was going to do next.Only to find an old rusty 1/4" hidden in a patch of dark colored rock staring me in the face.Relieved,I would start laughing hysterically.When I would regain my composure I would clip and move on.Some of my favorites were Crescent Arch,The Vision,Shadow of Doubt,Aqua knobby,Needle Spoon,Shit Hooks,Lucky Streaks,and Rosanne.Roseanne on Fairview Dome might be the best,well worth the run out on the upper pitches.Fairview has got to be the finest crag in the country that is easy walking distance from the car.The rock has the most amazing colors and features of any that I have climbed on.

Don't do it pops it ain't healthy. I would be kicked out and booted on my first day. I was better off climbin' with chuckles and the guzzler than those clowns.

I don't remember the line of mashies but I do remember the the trips down to the park and under the bridge when I should of be in class or lunch in 1971.

Steve Ansell,there is a name from the past.He's probably more well known in the music world.Last time I talked to him,he was holding down a viola chair for the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.Quite an accomphished cat.Don't know if he's been climbing lately but I'm sure he's good off the couch.

Last time I climbed there,this charactor named BIlly Bum Trip was hanging out at the boulder.He'd just stand there and babel at us.Use to see him around the U-District.I'm sure he lived next door to the boulder.Any one ever see him around anymore?

Back in the early eighties,we did the first couple pitches of the Town Crier.We were lounging on big honker ledge when I noticed a few small rocks wizzing by.All of a sudden it started raining large rocks.This went on for what seemed like an eternity,maybe a half hour.We pressed up against the wall and tried to be small while screaming at the top of our lungs to who ever to stop.Finally the trundling stopped and we rappelled back to the ground gripped out of our minds.We assumed it was trundlers but could never find out for sure.I have never heard of this happening to any other climbers untill now.I have visited the Index Cell Tower,located above the Town Walls,for jobs recently and have noticed a lot of strange folks in the area.Lots of 4 wheelers,dirt bikers,and yahoos that would have no idea people might be climbing below.

Boy,Im glad I don't have this route on my list.Although there really aren't any technical difficulties on this route.It is really difficult to get a combination of good conditions and weather.The rock fall can be really bad late season and the deep snow and weather can be bad untill at least mid june.We did the route in mid July in 1981,we only roped up for the glacier travel and not the route.We hiked in from Ipsut Creek,a long hike with alot of elevation gain and camped at Curtis ridge.We waited until the afternoon of the next day for the weather to clear and made it to thumb rock that evening.The weather was perfect when we started the next morning.Once above thumb rock we started experiencing rock fall that was as bad as I have ever seen.Huge boulders were rolling down on us from a formation known as the Black Pryamid.These things would be bouncing down the slope straight at us and bounce off at the last second.Gripped,I started running up as fast as I could to get above the Black Pryamid and out of the rock fall.Fortunately we made it to Liberty cap in one piece. We staggered across to Columbia crest and went down the Emmons glacier.We managed to hike back to our car that night but it was along ways back to Ipsut creek.Wished we started at White River instead.With the heavy snow we 've had at the upper elevations,mid-June or July should be good for this year.

I'm surprised no one has mentioned "THE WHITE TOWER" with Lloyd Bridges as the superior nazi climber and Glenn Ford as the good guy american sap.Based on a fictional James Ramsey Ullman book.Its hilarious with the totally serious, fanatical Lloyd bridges saying "To rest is not to conquer".

watching Hogan's hero's re runs to train my German accent to speak with German speaking climbers in the Western Alps.Memorizing quotes from the Eiger Sanction is good also.

I would start with yellow bird and jam session.

I've been wanting to do this for years.I will provide the bolts and hangers.

Next time don't forget the sawed off angles.I would recommend fixing the first pitch and camp at the small ledge on top of the sixth pitch.The first pitch that you have a photo of looks completely different than what I've done.It should follow an a shallow corner with a left traverse to the start of the second pitch,maybe 5.8/5.9. With an 80# haul bag,I would assume you had alot of oil cans for the bivy.The Nose is alot easier than Thin Red Line only alot longer and more hauling.Fortunately for me hauling and jumaring are my best skills.Great photos never the less.Good luck for next year.

I second the goat dome recomendation.One of the best places in the lower Icicle to lead and top rope.

Hey leather,fat daddy's here.Fat Daddy gonna wipe yo ass.

We had planned for 3 days. First day we hiked into Crescent Creek Basin below the West ridge of Mt.Terror. Second day we hiked over the Ottohorn col and climbed the Noth Face of Terror. Third day we hiked out.We arrived at the big log to cross Terror creek at 4:00 pm with plenty of time get back to the car before dark.Unfortunately,we completely missed the Goodell creek trail and 4 hours later found ourselfs still fighting devils club near Goodell Creek.We ended up spending the night out,camped on Goodell Creek.We finally found the trail the next morning and were back at the car in an hour.Helps to be payin' more attention .

why don't you run your mouth and I'll run my business

I recommend Magic Mt.by Cascade Pass via the south slope from Kool Aid lake.Easy day from the Cascade pass parking lot.Ya don't hear to much about Magic these days. The north ridge is also good.Great view.

Good job on that Chuck. Although the index traverse looks cool and is a grade 5, I would never really recommend it.We climbed it in the mid 1980's on the hottest day of the summer in the end of June. We started up the north face and found it to be nothing but a brush pull nearly all the way to the summit.To our surprise there was another party on the north peak summit. They had huge packs,bright colored helmets,and shorts over long johns.Holly shit mountaineers.Two intermediate mountaineer instructors as it turns out.Having never climbed Mt.index before,I asked them if they knew the way down to the middle-north peak notch.They replied by saying they are experts and knew the way from prior ascents while looking at our small packs,shabby clothing,and lack of helmets suspiciously.So I tell them to lead on and we'll follow after we wait and let them get ahead.We end up lounging on the summit for nearly an hour while smoking a huge reefer.We finally decide they are well in front and decend to the north-middle peak notch.After we do a short rap and 5 minutes of down climbing,we catch them and have to wait another half hour for them move across the last few feet to the notch.Keep in mind the notch is a rather remote and exposed place.Unwilling to let us pass,the first mountaineer starts to lead the crux 5.6 pitch out of the notch to the middle summit.After 25' or so he takes a wipper and backs down to the belay.So his buddy decides to take over and after a long while climbs past his partners high point and out of sight.After a few minutes of no movement,all hell breaks loose with scraping,screaming,and yelling,and rock fall echoing down the gully to lake Serene.Finally silence,except for the moaning of the mountaineer instructor above.It turned out,he took a huge wipper and hurt himself.Not wanting to wait behind these clowns any longer,we decide to take the 5.7 variant to the right out of the notch.My partner leads this pitch by doing a tension traverse to the right and up sparsely protected climbing,one of his better leads.We are out of water and need to get to the middle summit snow patch soon.We get back on route where the injured mountaineer is bringing up his partner.As I pass him on my way to the middle summit for snow melt,he informs me that he has re-injured his ribs and will be needing a rescue.He apparently broke his ribs while descending from the Mt.Idex traverse last year and he and his partner were back on the mountain for re-demption. He wants us to stay with him and his partner on his cramped belay for the night saying it was impossible to go any further with night approaching.I ony shake my head in amazement and continue to the middle summitt which we reach after only 15 minutes for much needed snow melt.. The following day we climb the main summit and do one of the more miserable descents I have done in the Cascades.The descent getting back to the lake is a major jungle,often we would hand over hand down tree vines to descend short cliffs.By the time I reached the car my white tee shirt was completely green.It was a stressfull weekend. Meanwhile,my partner calls the sheriff for a rescue of the two mountaineer instructors stranded on the middle summit.The next day a navy helicopter pulls the two mountaineers off the mountain and takes them to a hospital in Everett where they are released and walk away with minor injuries.The most amazing thing is the injured climber wrote up his accident in the North American Accident journal the following year.Its in the 1987 one I believe. Check it out for the real facts.

Its easy walking down the NW Buttress.Once on the north side of Long John Tower,find slings for a short rap.Then walk down easy slopes.Eventually ends at cliffs,go right towards north ridge.Then a two raps off fixed slings will lead to spur that separates Stuart Glacier from snow fields connecting goat pass.Walk down short,easy glacier section to packs at a camp spot below glacier.Ice axes are not required.Although the NW Buttress does not look like an appealing down climb,it really works out well.Recommended.

Approach the N. Ridge by Stuart lake and Mountaineer Creek. Leave your packs just below the Stuart Glacier.Descend to the lower ridge and do the complete ridge packless.Descend and rappel the upper west ridge to notch.Go up and around Long John Tower to the north side of tower and descend the NW Buttress back to the Stuart Glacier.Walk by packs and head home.Piece of cake.

Galaxy is worth doing.Has good position on the upper pitches and the climbing is interesting.Also one of the longer routes on SCW.