ericb

Here's a TR with some photos of the route to match TTK's description... http://sverdina.com/argonaut/argonaut1.htm Looks like a cool route

Ivan's a biggun fo sho. Seeing you blastin up the trail while I lumbered down with my skis overhead catchin every other tree made me think that while I love skiis for an approach, a nice simple pair of snowshoes might be nice to have in the quiver for certain trips - last weekend being perfect example. I was doin the weight calc and figure I could shave ~ 8 lbs. between the skis and boots for trips when the need for floatation is questionable, and/or I'd like the climbing performance of my mountaineering boots over my ski boots.

TTK...not being argumentative, but if I look at MSR's website the weight difference between the lightening and the Denali at 22inches is only 2 oz.

What's a yosemite draw??? I believe it's a quick draw fashioned from two biners and a single sling that can be extendes, as opposed to a dog-bone

so did you guys do the NE Couloir on Dragontail?

were those your tracks heading to Stuart?

Thats what I thought too! He was bitching about his skies as we passed him on our way out as well. I thought the road up in the morning was great, the way out SUCKED! If you mean his skis, he didn't have any...tvash was on snowshoes. The road out was quick on skis What route did you guys do/attempt?

Jordan...the only view of stuart is the one behind me in the background at the notch, so not sure if a close-up of that aspect would help you. The road was closed, but packed enough for hiking....I had running shoes on.

First the truths.... 1) no floatation necessary until the lake - hiked the road in my tennies, and schepping the skis to the lake was of marginal value due to highly variable wind-affected snow. 2) Yes, I whined....I don't know that I've ever hiked 10 miles in my rando boots, and my pinky toes paid the price 3) Bug certainly has a self depricating sense of humor, but to avoid any confusion, he's fat...that's a fact. That said I was happy to burden his fat ass with the rope, since he hardly noticed it. The pix log bridge on the approach me at the lake skinning the lake the route the crux in the couloir ~ half way up almost there! chilling at the notch north face traverse Lie number one...more to come Met Tvash on the way out...he's much more pleasant in person

So did you not need floatation from the trailhead to the lake?

OMG....I'm actually going to agree with TTK on something...Costa Rica is the shit....we went there for our honeymoon, and liked it so much we went back last year for our "babymoon". Lots to do from adventure to kickin it. Where to stay might be function of the season - the continental divide results in a one coast having a wet season, and one a dry concurrently, and I can't remember which is which in September. Belize is great as well, but far less to offer a non-scuba diver IMO. I also have lots of ideas for you as well as an in-country agent we've used twice with great results. She's a hell of a lot cheaper than a US based agent that essentially subs it out to an in country agent and takes a slice.

that's the first thing I noticed as well If that's the first thing you two noticed, might I recommend you look into testosterone suppliments? oh, the irony

that's the first thing I noticed as well

from a performance standpoint, I think they are identical - except the newer ones may be slung with dyneema vs. nylon. I have a set where slings are all the same color and the anodizing distinguishes between the sizes, and the older ones have colored slings....personally I think it's a little easier to indentify them on you rack by the colored slings, rather than the tricam itself, but honestly, if I'm gripped at all, I'm typically not going for tricams. I know tests have shown that dyneema slings lose ultimate strength over time, so not sure if this would be a concern with the new slings.

You will also get this designation ("lame") for using pickets in my experience

got it...thanks

Kurt - can you define "spicy"

Wow....I felt sorry for you Saturday when you face planted, but now I feel sorry for the snow!

Here's a thought.....Regionally based Pub-club focus groups in Seattle, PDX, Bend, etc. Post the event, you buy beer and food and invite a bunch of us dirt-bags to bring some of our packs and discuss the good, the bad, and the ugly. We could show you what held up and what didn't, the features we like and the ones that were unnecessary. If you've been on this site long, you will realize that a consensus is unlikely, but you'd leave with some good ideas.

Are you sure that's what you meant to say? I would hope that most of the cost will be for materials and labour. Isn't this the business model of Cilogear? There seem to be a lot of supporters for them here. There's always a market for affordable quality gear. Everyone would love a pack that was lighter than air, would last a lifetime, could be adjusted to work in all situations and came for free. What compromises do you have in mind? It's easier to answer more directed questions. Sorry for being difficult but I TA first year physics and am easily frustrated with open questions. Some advice as it relates to Cilogear...one of the reasons he's been relatively successful with the word of mouth model is he stands by his gear. Not every pack comes out perfect, no matter who the manufacturer is, but Graham has a work-order agreement with a Seattle repair shop and will fix things free of charge or replace gear that doesn't perform as expected. I think if you look at the progression of his packs, one thing to take note of is he has replaced ultra light fabrics with more durable fabrics based on field feedback - light is right, but sometimes shaving a couple extra ounces at the expense of durability is not worth it.

I use the .5 camelot a bunch as well...I'd get 0.5 - #2 BD Camelot, and the green and yellow Alien. Also, I think it's well worth it to spend ~ 2$ more per biner for the lighter ones (Trango Superflys or equivalent). You can save 10 - 15 grams per biner and end up shaving a pound off your rack by the time all's said and done.

how long did it take you to get from icicle creek road to the lake on skiis?

Maybe this is what wayne's referring to, but Nelsons Selected climbs in the cascades Volume I and II are really good.

throw in some durkee french fried onions.....change your life