GuyPeake

Yep I agree In the end it is all about figuring how to balance your "wants" and "needs" (as said earlier, climbing being a want, not a need) against the "wants" and "needs" of another person. And, presumably, you develop that skill as you advance through the levels and promotions into full adulthood. (Note I said develop, not 'perfect'.) Like a video game, the better you get at it, the further level & responsibility you can reach. Anyway here's how I see it: 1. Growing up. It's all prety much about you. But it's setting you up to tackle: 2. Friendship/Dating. That's when you learn to balance your needs/wants and someone else's at a basic/beginner level. Stakes: low. But it's setting you up to tackle: 3. Marriage. This is when you learn and practice this at the advanced/amateur level. Stakes: moderate to high. Which, in the big picture, is setting you up to tackle: 4. Parenthood. The big leagues, baby. Pro level. Better bring your "A" game. Stakes: huge. The degree and intensity with which you tackle climbing will vary depending on which of the 4 levels you're at. That's true for anything - stamp collecting, soccer, reading mystery novels - but climbing is by far one of the more time-intensive individualist pursuits (hell it takes over a day just to get INTO the pickets) - so it's going to generally be affected more. As it should be.

The "Deadly Bells" indeed. Nice write-up. And good work missing the early-afternoon t-storms, you're right they are quite frequent out there so spending a while on the summit isn't usually even possible!

Us men could be extinct in 100,000 years?!? Scary, especially considering that I STILL won't have gotten around to cleaning the bathrooms.

Glad your experience went well, even if the weather didn't... Not sure what the exact statistical odds are for being snowed out on volcano climbs around here, but I do know personally I'm running at a fairly typical 50 percent, including a '02 storm weekend much like yours on the mighty Hood. Such is the game...

Speaking of which... My mind is wandering... as I recall, the Brothers' south face drainage narrows down, like a "V", to a singluar little gap in the lower rockbands below... the 'keyhole' - you pass right by it on the standard ascent route... (you can kind of make it out on the sketch that mneagle posted, altho' his route goes well above it)... in any case, just imagine all the snowslides that could be coming down off the s.face (even as I write?), huge masses of snow blasting into and thru that little gap in the rock... the mind reels at the forces...

I like the little flourishes of detail - the distant 'Seattle' skyline; Hwy 20, Marblemount, & Diablo Dam; farther out he made a point of including 3 Fingers & Whitehorse, and the Twin Sisters, and Little Tahoma; heck I believe I can even make out the buildings of Stehekin.. All he needs now is Eldorado's 'knife edge' and a bit more definition to the far, far off Olympics.. Amazing to see how many of these 'maps' the guy has cranked out over his lifetime. Good stuff.