Kit

Ooh... nice. Any chance for pictures? Did the folks who went to Cutthroat stay overnight?

Yes sir yes sir I have I have... posted one trip report. And now I'm up to TWELVE posts! Yes! That's still over 8% trip reports. A respectable ratio getting worse at the moment. But seriously... doesn't my idea make sense? It could only serve to increase the quality of content in the posts, and reduce (but not eliminate, no one wants that) the senseless babble. IS there anyone who uses this site regularly but makes a conscious effort to minimize their babble, or maximize the redeeming quality of their posts? Will he/she please weigh in?

Now here's a suggestion that would turn cccom on its head: Remove the tally of posts next to everyone's avatar. Tell me if I'm wrong, but a lot of the nonsense filler on this site is just lame effort to increase "rank" by having lots of posts (thousands upon thousands? I mean, c'mon folks). How about tallying legitimate Trip Reports? Yeah, I know, that won't work. Perhaps... once a member makes 100 posts w/o a TR, they can ONLY post in Spray, until they finally post a TR? I'm sure I'm not alone when I say I get tired of reading the same old flames from people who aren't really adding any content to the site. Yeah, I can feel the flames already... I know this will never happen since so many who support the site are the ones I'm referring to. Anyway, what does everyone think?

Sounds good Waz... when the time comes we'll have to compare schedules

Climb: Wallowas - Aneroid Basin- Date of Climb: 2/18/2006 Trip Report: Let's see if I can make all of this come together, being my first TR and all.... And yes, its not really the Cascades but I've seen more WestSiders there than locals! We headed out Saturday morning and on the way to Enterprise the Subaru dash thermometer went down to minus 13F... we were wondering if this was going to be a bad idea. We ran into a guide from Wing Ski who informed us that there were 10 folks staying at the Aneroid Lake cabins... which was good news since we didn't have to break trail and there was still plenty of fresh snow to be had. Also ran into a couple from Portland who were camping in a tent at the meadow below Aneroid Lake... they had a couple of VERY cold nights and another guy from the Seattle area bailed on a Aneroid summit bid presumably because of the cold But we opted for the snocave which kept us cozy all three nights Managed to find great snow on all the north and east faces with good stability (RB4), but still worried about wind-loaded areas, never saw anything but sluff tho. Monday we decided to make a Grand Tour summiting Aneroid Mountain (9702'), skiing down, skiing the north face of Dollar Ridge, and then skiing the east facing slope opposite from Town Hill (not sure the name of this hill). All in all it was a great trip! I'm hoping to get back in there soon; this was my second trip in there and it only gets better the more familiar I am with it. Any Moscow/Pullman folks want to go... I could probably be coerced into another trip!!! Gear Notes: Down everything. Anything to stay warm. Approach Notes: We skinned up right from the car and on the way out we skied to within 1/4 mile of the car before we had to carry the skis due to thin coverage in the thick trees.

I'm thinking there are some absurdly swift ascents. How long has it taken you? I'm assuming Ulrich's is the fastest route (when in condition)? I did the southeast route a few years ago and, being a mere mortal, it was a very long day and I remember being pretty worked afterward... I'm thinking about trudging up there again with some friends and I'm curious to see how much better (or worse!) I'll feel this time around. By the way, should I bother to bring the crampons this time?

Ok to set the record straight it is the Pelican 1010 case that I was thinking of that is so compact and still fits the Pentax Optio 500 series. I am guessing that it would be a fit for the Canon S500 series or similar compact camera.

The only place I've seen that stocks the Pelican and Otterboxes is REI, and they are very unpredictable about what models/sizes they keep on hand. I have seen both the models I mentioned in the Spokane REI store at one time or another. The only other place to look would be rafting/kayaking outfitter stores, since they tend to stock dryboxes from time to time. The REI links are: Otterbox 8000 Pelican 1020 Pelican 1010 NRS has them too Pelican Micro Cases at NRS Otterbox 8000 at NRS I might be wrong on the Model # of the Pelican that fits the Pentax 550 so good... I thought it was the 1020 but now I am second guessing myself and thinking perhaps it was a 1010... I will call my friend who has one and find out which one it is and post again.

Not too sound too much like a salesman, but IMO the only way to protect your digicam in the mtns is to put it in a Pelican Case or an Otterbox. My fav is the Pelican Micro #1020, because it is so small. I know a Pentax Optio 550 fits in there and I think the Canon S500 would too. If your camera is a bit too bulky for the #1020, you might need to go with the bulkier Otterbox 8000, which fits my Canon A80 w/xtra batteries like a glove. Several of my coworkers on a hotshot fire crew use these boxes and they all like them. They are *nearly* unbreakable. They protect from all water, dust, and impact. FYI, I recently broke the hinge of my Otterbox 8000 (while it was open) and they are replacing it for free. Find them at: www.pelican.com www.otterbox.com

Thanks MikeG and jlag. I easily drove my Subaru to the trailhead on Thursday the 17th. Then Sat. night (19th) it snowed about 5 inches or so up there. PhilomathSloth and I headed up early Sunday and were still able to drive the Subaru to the trailhead albeit with chains. There were about five cars at the trailhead - folks who had stayed overnight. We skinned up to timberline just south of Soap Creek and got spooked by the snow on the open slopes so we only got a few turns in. The new snow was heavy/slabby and whoompfing and our Rutchblock failed easily. On the way out Sunday night there was another new truck at the trailhead and we encountered traffic on the road on the way down including a family who decided to camp ON the road. All the traffic up there is keeping a good track in the road so access should be good until the Big Dump finally comes! Cheers

Well, the PR folks at REI are on the ball with this one. I wrote that letter yesterday evening, and got a response this morning at 10:00am. Here it is... take it as you will.

I wrote a letter to REI today. Other members should do the same. It is OUR store, after all. A co-op. Here's my letter: