scheissami

Who did the poster this year? The design work is rad...

I had a jones fracture of my left foot (5th metatarsal along the outside of the foot) playing soccer a couple of years ago. Needed to be pinned because they have a high rate of non-union if not surgically fixed. Now I have a shiny piece of titanium in my left foot. I wasn't able to bear weight for 6 weeks, and it took me about three months before I could really push myself physically (running, hiking, climbing). Find an exercise that doesn't stress the bones too much (maybe swimming in your case?) and go after it as soon as you're cleared by your orthopedist. Good luck, by the way.

From the link: "You should contact your Petzl distributor to obtain return instructions and to indicate which Petzl crampon model you would like in exchange. He will process the exchange procedure of your crampons as soon as possible at no charge." This seems pretty decent of Petzl....

There are two places to get fresh water on the approach (from springs....we didn't treat this and so far I haven't had any GI explosions). The one lower down is to the left of the trail near the Platforms, where the park is currently doing some campsite maintenance. Just below the saddle, to climber's left there's a small creek fed by a hose (!)...this should be clean water as well. There's no water on the route, but if you tank up at the saddle you'll be fine. Have fun!

Trip: Grand Teton National Park - Various Date: 7/30/2007 Trip Report: A week or so ago (7/22-8/2) I was fortunate enough to join some friends on their annual trip to the Tetons. We were visiting Andy, a climbing ranger my buddies had met in college and had been visiting for about thirteen years. This was my first time to the park, and I was stoked. I made the drive out with Tasha and Danielle uneventfully. The day after our arrival was the annual "Whiskey Tasting" at Andy's cabin; the blind taste test selected Cragganmore as the favorite. The location of the cabin was pretty sweet, with views of Teewinot directly above and a rad swimming hole in Cottonwood Creek about 50 yards away. As the full crew trickled in over a few days (me, Tasha, Trevor, Quinn, Matty here for climbing, Danielle and Amanda for other activities) the weather remained less than stellar. Rather than intermittent afternoon showers, we experienced more persistent rainstorms. Since climbing wasn't really an option, we spent a few days backpacking, hiking, cycling, swimming, and (gasp!) sport climbing at some local crags. We were all looking forward to the weather clearing.... The locale was amazing, with sweet alpine canyons to explore; South Fork Cascade Canyon NOAA forecasted a high pressure system moving through, so we planned a day in the mountains. The crew I was with had together climbed most every major peak in the park, though not everybody had climbed all of the "classic" routes. We chose the Durrance Ridge on Symmetry Spire for our first outing (II 5.6 10,560'). Tasha, Trevor, Quinn and I headed across Jenny Lake on the boat shuttle just after 7am. A hour or two later and we were nearing the base of the route. A few pics of the formation: Symmetry Spire is the leftmost formation Durrance Ridge is the right skyline in the foreground Trevor and Quinn roped up and headed out. Trevor just off the deck gaining the initial ridge line: Tasha and I followed soon after. She took first lead, and we climbed maybe ~75m with a bit of simul-climbing. Here's a shot looking down route at the top of p2: About 500' up there's a short, steeper wall with a fun crack leading to easy climbing further up the ridge. At this point our fortunes began to change. Because the route faces mostly southeast, we weren't able to see weather systems rolling in until they were above us; our bluebird day rapidly became overcast as the expected afternoon thundershowers moved in earlier than expected (before noon). As I reached the top of p4 maybe 700' up, I got caught in pissing rain and hail (luckily no lightning). After everyone got together, we made the decision to bail and rap off. Of course, as we headed down the weather cleared and we rapped into a sunshine-filled valley. We left a few pieces of gear behind for two double-rope rappels and some downclimbing. It was raining again on the hike out. The next evening we packed up and hiked up to the Meadows, a large boulder field strewn out below the Grand Teton. We woke at 2 AM and were underway at just about 3 o'clock. Tasha and Matty (our crew's ropeguns) were planning to do the Lower Exum Ridge and maybe do the Complete Exum; Trevor, Quinn and I were planning on the Upper Exum Ridge (II 5.4 13,770') which they had done multiple times before. We made the saddle just before 5 AM and began the scramble to Wall Street by light from the full moon. Wall Street, just before sunrise We roped up here, with Trevor tied into the middle. I got the first lead, did the step across and the Golden Staircase, then began cruising up the ridgeline. Looking down towards the top of the Golden Staircase The climbing was easy but fun, with spectacular views. Quinn and I swapped leads simulclimbing whenever our miniature rack ran out. This mountain and route are exeptionally popular with guided parties and we passed and got passed by a few groups: Brief clusterfuck halfway up the route Quinn had the final block leading up to the summit, and did a variation climbing "The Horse" which led to a sharp ridge-crest, rather than block ledges to the summit. We climbed the 1500' route in four pitches and about 3 1/2 hours. The exposed crest of the Horse: We enjoyed a quick lunch on the summit, mostly by ourselves and then headed down. Two single-rope rappels and a bunch of down climbing led us down to the Upper Saddle where we met up with Tasha and Matty. They gushed about the Lower Exum for a while but decided not to go for the Complete Exum and we all headed down together. The Exum Ridge starts from Wall Street more than halfway up the main face in this picture (traversing in from the left) and then nearly follows the right skyline to the summit. Again, because of an iffy forecast, we bagged our alpine climbing plans for the next day and headed out. Another day of sport climbing with Tasha and my week was up and it was time to head home Sunset over Teewinot Parting shot of the Grand and Teewinot leaving the park I had an amazing time and am looking forward to next year. The park seems to hold unlimited potential, with big alpine routes as well as stiff "alpine cragging." The weather was suboptimal this year, but usually you can bag a route every day if you're motivated and fit (I was the former, not so much the latter). The climber's Hostel is supposed to be pretty nice and is affordable if you want to stay in the Park, rather than with all of the Tourons in Jackson Hell. Approach Notes: Caffeine was crucial and we all brought our favorite gear (I'm sure you can appreciate this shot, John) Sorry for the verbal assault and mindless chatter....still stoked from the trip. If you haven't been--go! Gear Notes: Small rack unless you're a hardman and want to climb real rock routes Whiskey Stumptown

Check out the English Premier League. English fans will boo their own team if a player dives....I agree diving totally sucks but isn't as common in some of the leagues (English, German, and, amazingly, US). The English game has softened somewhat, but is still the most physical of the fitba leagues; stuff that would be a foul in pretty much any other league is frequently just waved on by the ref. Starts up again August 11th!

Climbed it via the West Face variation about a month ago and no problems with the bolt ladder then....not sure if this helps.

There's a multipitch (four pithces?) bolted arete route climbing out of the river just to the north of the Chief....I can't remember the exact location. It's called Star Trek, I think. It was pretty fantastic, with an exceptional setting (i.e. you can't see or hear the highway to the east). The grade is 5.9, I think, but most of the climb is 5.6 with just the one cruxy move on the final pitch. I really enjoyed it, though I would agree that the best climbing seems to be trad. Cheers and have fun!

Sweet--thanks for the recs. Now if only I could stay stoked about carrying heavy shit for no reason...

Any recommendations for some 3rd/4th class scrambles near Portland that are doable as daytrips (besides Hood and St. Helens....)? I'm looking to get some mileage in for training but would prefer not to hike around Forest Park with a heavy pack.... Cheers

Check yer PMs.

Planning to head to Smith early this week, too--check yer PMs. -erik

I could do Wednesday

Is the camalot the new style, or old?

Uhhh...I wish

We got to about 1/2 mile away from the TH before our not-so-offroad vehicle started having problems (driving a Prius). I think with an SUV or other 4WD vehicle you'd have no problems. The road was clear until we got within the last mile and started seeing acuumulation of only one inch of snow. The road is in great condition up to the last section, which the Idaho Climbing Guide says is only 0.8 miles; I suppose you could hike it from there.

Monday was pretty much more of the same...wish the weather window had come in a few days earlier. We hadn't been up by Priest Lake before, so we figured we'd drive up and hike around the trailhead. At least Mak enjoyed himself in the snow...

Oops! Planning to go Monday--I think the forecast is cooler than Sat/Sun but less likely to storm. If you head out on Sunday post something; if it's a no-go we can change our plans (up for cragging near Spokane if your plans get shut down).

Don't forget the manpris and the Austrian three rope special Hopefully the weather is better this Memorial weekend than the last two years. Cheers

I'm planning to head there this weekend if the weather cooperates. I'll let you know after then...

What time you gentlemen heading out there?

Since this was in the newbies forum, I figured this would be the appropriate place to ask... Anybody got any suggestions for places around Portland to practice placing pins? It seems for a lot of the "mixed" winter/spring routes that they really oughta be part of the standard rack (knifeblades and LAs, right?). Most of the climbing I do is at crags, and I've had no practice nailing. I'd like to practice before I'm 30' runout facing a tiny seam.... Any ideas?

Thanks, John Now all I need is time off work!

Nice work....those are some mighty fine pics--pretty sweet to get the second party perspective. Gotta love the Alpine Bavarian; instead of cheeseburgers you should check out some delish authentic Kraut food at Uli's Keller in the center of town. Yum! How long do you think the route conditions will hold up? I've not been to Stuart yet and haven't been following the area's weather, but if it's as warm as elsewhere I suspect stuff will start crumbling soon.

Which Lucky Lab?