still_climbin

Backup loops are simple, close to foolproof and you only need to use them when they're warranted. They also weigh next to nothing and be used for other purposes.

I happened to meet two ranger types from the State Parks Dept at a Visitors and Convention reception in the Tri Cities yesterday. I asked them about the Peshastin Park closure situation. They told me that all parks are free to access any time of the year. The only things that closes are the roads, parking lots and any facilities. A sheriff deputy has no jurisdiction in keeping anyone out of a park and only has authority at the invititation of the State for vandalism or other crimes. They said that the real issure may be parking on the road or access to the park land through other lands. They suggested talking to the Park Dept. management, contacting the WA State Parks Commission or talking to (forgot her name) the Ranger at the Lake Wenatchee State Park who also is an avid climber.

Trad? One Gri-Gri= 8 binners (Camp Nanos) 1 #3 C4 cam plus a binner Stoppers #1 thru #10 or 4.444 ATCs

Not when they're screaming "Cut my hair! Cut my hair! It hurts like hell! CUT MY HAIR!!!!@&%$#" That's about the way it was.... Then I cut their hair.

Arch, not for you, but for anyone new to the sport that's reading this thread: Since the late 60s I've used as my primary method of rappeling the dulfersitz, caribiner wrap, caribiner brake, Stitch link, figure eight, and now the ATC. I've seen all kinds of ways to make mistakes. For instance on two seperate occations I've had the chore of rescuing a woman with long hair caught in their rappel device. The rescue involved rapping beside them as they literally hung by their hair (very painfully) and cut their hair with a knife to free them. And I've seen worse. The bottom line is that its not which technique you use as much as knowing the technique you select very well and to practice until it becomes reflex. Equally important, use gear that's in the best possible condition and use it right. ALWAYS check knots, buckles, and the correct rope clip into your rap device. It's so unnecessary when someone dies from technique or equipment failure while rappeling. I don't like to lecture but I was very disturbed by the recent totally unnecessary death of Todd Skinner.

Nice climb guys! But I'm not sure what you mean when you say a route needs "cleaning." If you want "clean" go to exit 38 or Vantage, but leave the mountains alone. Al Natural is just fine... part of the game.

Its a shame. The land was freed only to have it shut down when its most needed. Peshastin has always been the bad weather, cool weather place to go. Some of my best times there were in November or March. Shows what the state knows.

Quit my job in June and had more time than expected! SEWS S Arete (Twice) SEWS SW Buttress Lib Bell Beckey Lib Bell Rapple Grapple Ingalls S Face Guye Improbable Traverse Tooth S Face The Thumb (Sandia Mnts) NW Ridge 8 days cragin'

Nice TR and topos. Also a great line.

Way to go! We should all be so lucky.

With my son now living in Albuquerque I took the opportunity to climb with him in the Sandias over the October 14-15 weekend. I was rather surprised at three things: the magnitude of the climbs there, the quality of the granite and the solitude. We started by driving to the main summit of Sandia Mountain (10,678 ft) and decending by trail about 2,000 ft to the base of the Northwest Ridge of The Thumb (Grade III, 5.8 variation), a 10,107 ft peak north of Sandia's main summit. After some brush and moss (sorta N. Cascades) the climb begins with five pitches of mid-fifth class climbing on excellent, solid rock. The rock was clean considering the lack of traffic and was comprised of large crystalled pink granite. Unfortunately, the weather was not cooperating and we had to brace against 40 mph gusts and 40 degree fog. To avoid the wind we stayed off the crest as much as we could and this led us to some entertaining variations to the origional route. After about 600 verticle feet the angle of the ridge lessens and the last 400 feet are mostely fourth class. The decent is fourth class downclimbing to a notch and a scramble back to the trail. The REAL crux is the hike back up 1,000 feet (at 10,000+ ft elevation) to the car after six hours of climbing. We arived at the car just as the sunset lit the fog and clouds surrounding us a bright pink. Then it was racing back to Albuquerque for famous barbecue and beer at Abby's. The next day we tried some less ambitious slab climbing near the base of Sandia Mountain on the outskirts of the city. The setting is very different with the tall firs, pines and aspens replaced by cactus and desert shrub. We hiked 45 minutes up Lower La Cueva Canyon and found delightful, clean granite boulders, slabs and faces about the same scale as you'd find in Icicle Canyon. We did a fun multi-pitch route and retreated to beat an oncomming rain storm. In all, the Sandia Mountain complex is strikingly beautiful and packed with excellent climbs. There is little climbing traffic and huge expanses of excellent rock remain to be explored and developed. If you can imagine fifteen or so Snow Creek Walls staggered along a mountain side...that's Sandia. There are a number of Grade V's and VI's on the North end of the mountain. If you're in the area I recommend you take your gear. The best guide book seems to be "Sandia Rock" by Mick Schein, 2003, although it's not comprehensive. We took standard racks for both climbs and there was water in Lower La Cueva Canyon. You must pay $3.00 at either parking lot we used. Also bring money for Abby's. Pics: The upper 500 feet of The Thumb (Right skyline). The lower 500 ft of the Thumb (Left Skyline) View of 350' "The Pulpit" across the canyon. View of 500' "Yataghan" across the canyon. View of 800' "Torreon" Across the canyon. Me three pitches above the forest. Bryan at a tricky 5.8 move around a roof in a dihedral. Bryan summiting The Thumb in wind and fog. Desert climbing Sunday at 7,500 ft on "Flake and Bake"

I was in Albuquerque climbing in the Sandias and missed it.

Little Richard and his River Dick Band

Oly, you magical guys just keep swingin'. We'll get those electrons before you know it! Keep the faith!

Is it fixed? It frequently seems to take much more time to get through to the server than before.

Thanks for the TR. Where was that last photo taken from?

ROPEGUN....Yeahhhh!

Actually, John, there's nothing like being older than vintage gear of that era and STILL CLIMBIN!

Well, once again you've writen a tolally entertaining TR. Thanks. Could'nt seem to get more than a single thumbnail photo,though. Was there more?

Damn,I'd like to do that crack! Thanks for sharing the pics.

Where were you when you took the pics?

I ran into a guy carrying a paraglider up the approach route in August. His load was HUGE! I can't imagine that they climbed West Face NEWS with a load like that. The two in the posted photo don't appear to have any load the size of the one I saw.

Maybe I'm in a rut but I never tire of TR's on any Dragontail route (cept maybe the walkup). Thanks.

I also agree with Kevbone. Using nuts and hexes when you're learning forces you to learn the rock. After you're proficient with passive you're ready to expand to your own tastes. If you reverse the learning and start with cams, their flexible range will spoil you early and you'll never get on to understanding nuts. Particularly in the alpine, the fact that a handfull of nuts weighs less that a couple cams offers a lot of flexibility, especially if you have to leave an anchor behind. As for favorites, I stick with a single brand of nuts (BD) and hexes (Wild Country-large sizes only). I buy Camp Nanos and BD Neutrinos to save a LOT of weight. I still carry at least one symetric Chouinard mid-size hex restrung with Kevlar, just for good luck. Its surprising how many times it still gets used.

I'm headed there on the 13th to climb with my son who now lives there. He has some multi-pitch mid-range climbs lined up and I'm anxious to see how they stack up with our Northwest craigs.