DanielHarro

Trip: Sphinx - Lowe Date: 11/9/2007 Trip Report: Elisif and I (Team Harro) had five days off together so and we both wanted to get some first season ice climbing in. Looking at conditions and talking to people it looked like the Sphinx was in fat, but other stuff in Hyalite and surrounding area was wet and still in the forming states. We decided to give it a go and see what we could scrap up. The fist day Elisif and I drove to Cameron Montana to the start of the Sphinx. We arrived at the trailhead around 330am after stopping in Butte to pack our gear in the lighted parking lot of a gas station so we got a few small hours of sleep in the car before heading out at 630am. We reached to helmet saddle at 930am where we met another party from Missoula that were going to attempt the Lowe Direct route, so headed for the long traverse, and the other team headed down to the base of their climb. We summated at 500pm right when the sun was going down, got back to the car around 900pm making it car to car in 14.5 hours. It was a really fun trip with super good ice!! The following pics are in order from the start to finish… What gear to bring, what gear to leave??? Rope burn from CrossFit that is going to feel nice in you ice boots... First view of the Sphinx (south face) Me at the Helmet saddle getting ready to head up the West ridge. Elisif heading up the West ridge. Firt views of the ice and the long traverse. Traverse...hmmm... More traverse..... Getting closer... . Pitch #2 Elisif on Lead Up and Up... almost to the summit... So close to the top, oh the darkness... Going down More down.. The rest of the decent was in the dark, pretty chill we just follow the easiest way down back to the saddle where we stashed some gear. Gear Notes: No need for any rock pro. 70m rope, a hand full of screws and start nice and early if possible... Bring you shoes for the approch and save you feet. Approach Notes: Get the Winter Dance book and you are set!!

Looking at getting up to eldorado maybe tomorrow, just curious which approch you did, how may miles it is and about how long it takes. Thanks for the help, I am at work and I dont have my nelson book... thanks!! Daniel Harro

yeah I have some of that, seems to thick and does not bunch up as easily as the thinner military webbing...

Looking for 1/2 inch military webbing in the pdx area, looked at both rei and JI Joes any help would be great, need to make some umbillicals...

picks can break much easier than you think in cold weather, zero and below... and whats up with the rubber scrunchy thing??

I will take 1 10cm and 2 16cm.

JoJo- Thanks for all of your hard work and all the time you have put into keeping Hyalite (local ice crag for us PNW kids) open!!

Spantiks are great!!! They fit my foot well, good in the cold weather...

JOJO- thanks for the update, it seems like everytime I am in the canyon their are over 20 plus machines up the canyon twards twin falls, mostly people just our ridding and other getting some BC skiing in. Are these people not going to be allowed as well?? is this a new rule or is this the first year that it will be enforced.

I have the MH EV2 and seems to be a good tent, even for the taller folks. I also have the BD firstlightfor the fast trips.

I have the MH EV2 and seems to be a good tent, even for the taller folks. I also have the BD firstlightfor the fast trips.

why are snow machines not allowed past trail heads??

I saw this on Black Diamonds web page today... Black Diamond (Bozeman) A New Plan for Hyalite Canyon Emily Stifler The Montana ice climbers were gripped: the Gallatin National Forest’s 2007 travel plan called for closing and gating the access road to Hyalite Canyon’s world-class ice climbing. The new plan was a drastic 180 from the previous draft, which proposed plowing the road to the trailhead. Would ice climbers lose access to their favorite backyard alpine playground? With leadership from the Southwestern Montana Climbing Coalition (SMCC) board and the Access Fund, dedicated local climbers pooled their resources and put their heads down. They had to work this out. Hyalite has arguably the best access to high-quality vertical ice in the lower 48. Over the following three months, a group of climbers, led by SMCC board members Joe Josephson and Bill Dockins, met with multiple user groups including backcountry skiers, local and federal government representatives, environmentalists and advocates of motorized access. Together, they developed a coalition, and have since met with Rebecca Heath, the regional Forest Supervisor. Heath, who had previously been hard-set in her plan of gating the road, agreed to work with this coalition on a seasonal basis to determine when the road will be closed. As a result of these recent efforts, the Forest Service proposed a new plan that acknowledges the unique non-motorized recreational assets of Hyalite and allows the community to be directly involved in the creation of a management plan for the road during the winter season. This latest proposal includes a long-term goal of plowing at least ten out of the 12 miles of the Hyalite road and will explore designation of Hyalite Canyon as a Public or National Recreation Area. Currently, the SMCC is organizing the coalition to work with the Forest Service on development of road standards. “Things are moving forward,” says Bill Dockins, SMCC board member. The statute of limitations for filing petitions for judicial review of the travel management plan allows several years to work toward improved access for climbers so “as long productive discussions aimed at solving the access issues are ongoing, and as long as the Forest Service is working with us in good faith, we won’t file the appeal,” Dockins says. He says climbers would like to get a plan in place before November of 2007. This process of keeping and improving access to ice climbing in Hyalite is dependent on the support of the climbing community, both in the Bozeman area and nationally. Road improvement, plowing and recreational status, and administrative and legal work will all depend on political and financial backing. Local fundraisers, outdoor stores and national companies have all helped fund the process so far. The Access Fund and the Gallatin County and Bozeman City Commissions have provided leadership and facilitated communication and negotiation. By working together with diverse local and national user groups on Hyalite Canyon access, SMCC is also setting a great example for how communities of the modern West can develop uncommon alliances to achieve common goals. To find out more about Hyalite Canyon, Montana, go to www.hyalitecanyon.com. Emily Stifler What can you do to keep Hyalite Canyon accessible to ice climbers? Write your Congressmen asking for support of the Montana delegation and the efforts of their constituency to provide funding to keep the road open in winter. Visit the League of Conservation Voters’ website at www.lcv.org to find the best way to contact your elected representatives. Emily Stifler is a writer, climber and ski patroller based in Bozeman, Montana. Her articles have been in a variety of publications, including Rock and Ice, Powder and Alpinist. This year she climbed her first El Cap route and got her first cubicle as an intern at Rock and Ice.

I dont really know too much about it, its just what I was told / heard. I guess it makes sense with lubication and such.

lubricant decreases friction between the fibers and thus decreases heat when the rope is loaded reducing the possability for weakening fibers...

I took a high angle rescue class at work from a guy who test different systems, ropes, hardgoods and soft goods and he said that he soked a rope in various downy like softeners and then drop tested the ropes and in his test / tests showed that there was no streangth loss.

I heard that washing your climbing rope and adding Downy or any fabric softener is a good thing, gives that rope some added lubricant. Any thoughts?

Very inspiring, thanks for the post Mark...

Rainer for next year?....

Solid

try the MSR Dromedary bags, they are tuff!!

Ask Mr. Frieh, hahahah

pm sent on C4 #6 and aiders

Post deleted by DanielHarro

aliens are the goods, as long as they dont fail on you