fettster

Thought this program might be of interest to many on this site: Frontline - Storm over Everest, 9-11 PM PBS "As darkness fell on May 10, 1996, a fast moving storm of unimaginable ferocity trapped three climbing teams high on the slopes of Mount Everest. The climbers, exhausted from their summit climb, were soon lost in darkness, in a fierce blizzard, far from the safety of High Camp at 26,000 feet. World-renowned climber and filmmaker David Breashears, who aided the rescue efforts back in 1996, now returns to Everest to tell the fuller story of what really happened on that legendary climb. Through remarkably intimate interviews with the climbers and Sherpas who survived the storm--many who have never spoken before on American television--Breashears sheds new light on the worst climbing tragedy in Mount Everest's history." http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/everest/

Thank you very much for sharing. I'm fearful for how I would've done had I been in the same situation.

This is the latest information I have seen: http://portlandhikers.com/forums/31766/ShowThread.aspx#31766

BTW, best deal I've spotted for Shuksans is $320 at REI, but only for the 167s: http://www.rei.com/product/758770

I haven't been able to find the 174 Shuksan's anywere. Anyone else had luck?

Cool, just gave OMC a call and they said they did get all new equipment for this year. Not sure how the rates compare to MS, but for 2 days: $60 skis+boots/$20 for skins And for 1 day: $40 skis+boots/$15 for skins

In PDX is the Mountain Shop the one and only choice for AT ski gear rentals? Just checking in case there's something closer to me to give a shot. Thanks!

Thanks for the input Dre, appreciate it! Can I ask what you drive for fat skis with those?

Anyone have experience with the Scarpa F1 boots for AT skiing? Are they ideal if I'd be doing more touring than downhill, or better suited for a day of laps in the b/c?

I'll keep my eyes on the Snotel and NOHRSC sights to see how snow depth is doing at trailhead elevation. Thanks for the insight.

I understand the Lake Pamelia trailhead near Mt Jefferson is not plowed, though there is a parking turnout plowed on the Pamelia Road 2246 junction with highway 22. Does anyone know if they are plowing that this season? Also, is any of Whitewater Road 2243 plowed or gated in the winter? Thanks!

For newb newbs like me this upcoming clinic may be a worthwhile stop: http://www.rei.com/stores/store_event_detail.jsp?pid=A750779C0F8643E806AEED9AA39724A3&template_id=30&template_family=webDetail&ignore_cache=1

This is the latest I've found for the Wallowas: http://www.nohrsc.nws.gov/interactive/html/map.html?mode=pan&zoom=&center_x=+-115.96&center_y=+++44.20&ql=station&var=ssm_depth&dy=2007&dm=12&dd=28&dh=12&snap=1&o9=1&o12=1&o13=1&lbl=m&min_x=-122.10041666666&min_y=43.413334019974&max_x=-114.60041666666&max_y=49.038334019973&coord_x=+-115.96&coord_y=+++44.20&zbox_n=46.069584019973526&zbox_s=44.40708401997382&zbox_e=-116.11916666665999&zbox_w=-118.15666666666&metric=0&bgvar=dem&width=600&height=450&nw=600&nh=450&type=0&js=1&uc=0

Wow, hardly looks like a trail. Gonna need a good dumping of snow to bury all that and make it passable this winter. Bummer of a day!

Nice job, certainly a lot funner if you can actually see something when you crest the rim. Is that some green I see in the crater? I can't believe that wearing tennis shoes would be any fun at all. A nice bonus with the tremor huh? It's quite something to experience how the sound is directed up out of the crater.

Nice job getting that done in under 9 hours. You must have cranked right along, especially that long stretch from Snow Lakes. I wish we could've stayed as dry as it looks like you did coming out. On the day we left some fairly nasty sized rocks were getting washed out on the road between Snow and Stuart trailheads. Was the road pretty well cleared up now?

How much prominence do the Nightmare Needles have?

Cool, thanks for the ID! There were a lot of features I didn't know having not been there before. It is nice to see a solid start for winter snow. Now that it's here might as well keep it coming!

Trip: Little Annapurna - North slog Date: 10/1/2007 Trip Report: We had an awesome trip to the Enchantments this last week, the first time any of us in our group of four had been there. Didn't get the hoped-for clear fall conditions, but still made the most of the opportunity. I was surprised how in-your-face Dragontrail Peak and Aasgard Pass were from Colchuck Lake, something I hadn't got a sense of from online pics. Aasgard Pass was about as much fun as advertised carrying a full pack. In fact, the scrambling on the south side of the lake which I hadn't known about ahead of time was a real gem of a time too; a definite advantage in the winter getting to cut straight across the lake. We made it 3/4 of the way up Aasgard Pass Saturday before getting caught by the big system which moved in that night into Sunday. The rocky pass we'd been scrambling on seemed to turn instantly into a heat sucking mass kissing our fingers numb. Out came the gloves and extra layers. The ranger we passed made sure we were prepared and let us on our way. With darkness coming we continued though the upper basin until we hit some patches of larch where we wound up making camped at about 7400 feet with a view down to Crystal Lake and over to McClellan Peak. There was another tent setup in the area which by morning was gone without a trace, no tracks to be found in the new snow. System catches us on the pass Last clearing of the day Camp - first night Sunday was a lovely drag of a day with no views and pretty much snow all day, so we did some exploring from camp down past Inspiration Lake to Perfection Lake. We didn't see signs of anybody. Camp - day 2 Hot bun service on a cold platter Monday things dried up in trade for wind and periodic clearings, good enough to hit Little Anna. Compared to Sunday's wet snow, by Monday it was real powdery and forming drifts across the rocky landscape. We had to be careful about ice when moving along the powder-covered granite boulders while testing for holes between the buried rocks, but there wasn't enough coverage to warrant snowshoes which was good since we didn't have any. The clouds seemed to break over Dragontail and Little Annapurna giving us some fresh white views on the upper Enchantments, over to Prusik Peak and The Temple. On the ascent we did spot a group of five down below passing through the basin towards the lower Enchantments. It didn't look like they had backpacks, but evidently they did fine coming up the pass with the new snow. Crystal Lake from camp viewpoint All the rock up top Anna was starting to get covered with rime ice, and wind gusts from 20-30 mph kept us cautious as we stood on the summit. A few times the clouds cleared enough we could eerily see the finger of rock which protrudes up just south of the summit. What's the name of this outcropping? All in all, even with the snow it was an awesome first trip to the Enchantments and we got enough of a taste to know we need to get back! Gear Notes: Go gaiters! Approach Notes: Wasn't enough snow yet to require snowshoes. Probably recommended by now. Rebar leading down from Lake Viviane was partially iced over, but got by with our trekking poles. Not likely to be okay with just poles much longer.

Nice job and write-up. Interesting to read about this approach and love the West Rib pic!

Sounds like you'd be starting from the Windy Ridge area which is not plowed in the winter. Here's the latest from the USFS site: http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/recreation/current-conditions/msh-recreation-report.shtml "Windy Ridge Recreation Area & Forest Road 99: CLOSED FOR WINTER SUMMER SCHEDULE: The Windy Ridge Viewpoint and other interpretive sites along FR99 are typically open and maintained from mid June through the end of September. Opening can be as late as mid-July during years with a deep or late-melting winter snowpack. Expect views of Spirit Lake, the blown down forest, and the pumice plain. Many hiking trails in the area provide for exploration of the volcanic blast zone. Scheduled interpretive programs are offered daily at Windy Ridge and Meta Lake from late June through Labor Day. Look for the "sandwich" boards at Windy Ridge and Meta Lake for scheduled topics, times and talk locations."

Some similar approach beta off this recent TR: http://www.nwhikers.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=20137

Trip: Sunrise Peak - Dark Divide - Summer trail variation Date: 4/28/2007 Trip Report: Here's a little variety for the South WA Cascades forum. This weekend I hooked up with CC'er Magellan and his buddy Brett to snowshoe up Sunrise Peak in the Gifford-Pinchot NF Dark Divide roadless area. Road 23 was in a fine shape to our spur road turnoff on 2324, but if you've checked the FS web site you've read there's a washout north of the junction with road 90 so it's not possible to get from Randle to Trout Lake that way. Fortunately we didn't have to go that far south. We had to stop several times to clear trees and rocks off the road including a 20 minute stretch where Brett put his lumberjack skills to use to clear a criss-crossing of two trees. I thought the second one was too big to deal with, but he was undeterred and chopped away so that we were able to get to within a quarter mile of the goal "trailhead" when we had to stop for a pile of snow. Actually when we returned for the day we found two sets of tire tracks through the snow after it had softened enough, so I'm guessing they were able to get to the next bend at ~3600 feet before having to park. Ultimately we found there was a constant blanket of snow on the road at about 4000 feet. Setting out on the road for about a quarter mile, we broke off with Alexei leading on an animal trail alongside a clear cut which we followed for a steep 600 feet before cresting on the road which had swung back from the north. From there we quickly gained the ridgeline and followed this generally the rest of the way. It was fun to pass the summer trailhead turnout along the way. Summer trailhead turnout View of ridge headed towards summit Brief teaser view south through the clouds After a cloudy start, the clouds gradually lifted and cleared during our trek offering us some great views. At the same time, the snow got softer and softer and was a real slush fest by the time we were headed down. I should'a brough some of that fruit syrup, snowcones for everyone! The final 200 feet on the south and west face of Sunrise Peak were completely melted out, so we ditched the snowshoes and made a short scramble and hike on up to the summit. Here's some more pics Magellan on lead Sunrise ahead Scramblin' McCoy Peak View back down to approach ridge Dark Mountain (left, in the distance) and Jumbo Peak Brett and Goat Rocks Range Heading back, Spud Hill on the right We noted one mysterious thing on the way back. On a different stretch of the forest road just west of our route we noticed a fresh track of footprints headed towards the summit which had not been there in the morning. We were surprised to have not seen or heard anyone on the day. It made a little more sense when we noticed the tire tracks back by our cars, but I wonder where all they went? Was anyone else from CC up there this weekend? Mystery prints...fellow CC'er? It was definitely a great spring day in the Cascades with a fantastic trio. We need to do something like that again! -Fettster Gear Notes: Axe (and able bodied lumberjack!) Ice axe (I used it very briefly on descent, not really required) Snowshoes Map Approach Notes: Road 2324, follow alongside a clearcut on animal trail headed up, then gain the eastern ridge line and follow the rest of the way

There's some good photos there off the numbered links off the map. Haven't been there myself to see it.

Good job guys. Funny how the body can go through such a change in state so fast.