billbob
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Posts posted by billbob
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Eliot Glacier Friday Oct 9
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The MH Trango is a good tent and very capable of withstanding typical winter weather conditions found in the PNW, provided of course that it is correctly set up with it's proper internal and external guy lines. I know one dumbass (not me, no way !) who failed to rig his Trango 3 correctly only to watch it quickly shred in 70 mph winds. Lucky for me, the great people at MH replaced the poles and fly under "warranty".
I'm over 6'6" and often find it a curse to be so vertically challenged. One becomes simply used to sleeves too short, airplanes claustrophobic, and tents exceedingly cramped. Long storms make for short tempers even under the best of shelters, there's never enough room for 3 people in a 3-man tent.
You should already know that bigger mountains tend to have more severe storms. For example last year on Mt Hood we saw (NWAC weather data from Top of Mile-Timberline) maximum winds of 130 mph at 7,000' elev. For 12 hours that day the recorded wind speed was greater than 100 mph. There were 7 days in 2009 where wind speed at the station exceeded 100 mph. Two years prior, in 2007 there were 22 hours of 100 mph+ average wind speed over a 4 day period. Consider that the automated weather station was only a little over half way up the mountain.
IMHO you would be foolish to rely on a tarp for a primary winter shelter if your travels go above timberline. Your entire trip can be so much more fun if you aren't freezing to death in the process.
In the interest of full disclosure, I finally broke into my piggybank last week and bought a new Hilleberg Saivo tent, a very solid alpine tent costing waaay too much money. It has a bit more room (not weight) compared to the Trango and hopefully provides greater security/safety/legroom on those dark and stormy winter nights. Just don't forget to set up the guy lines.
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PDX Ice Fest ===>
Portland Rock Gym, 5 - 11 PM Sat. Be there.
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FYI - Called the Hood River Forest Service asking if the road up to Cloud Cap might open this year, my new buddy said yup, prolly in about a week
So looking forward to this, many thanks to the hard-working folks at the Hood River FS.
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Wayne's the Black Spider Man. Pretty sure Kevin Russell did it, too, right after climbing Yocum Ridge. John Scurlock recently took some incredible high res arial pics of the BS area. Both summer and winter seasons. The best will be published in a new book as soon as possible, meaning prolly next spring.
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I wish the larger size existed in all my extremities!
US Outdoor store (in PDX) has the new Baruntse, still in boxes tho. Available for fondling next week.
Sportiva won't receive the size 49 & 50 from Italy until November, apparently getting a lot of interest from others well blessed with large appendages.
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Sportiva says the Baruntse goes to size 50, and I really need something longer than my Nepals... so tired of black toenails :-(
But will a size 50 double boot actually give more room than a size 48 leather?
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I have experienced 18 broken bones, 9 orthopedic surgeries including a "minor" amputation, and around 15 ER visits (most from motorcycle and bicycle wrecks), not to mention the metal body parts and countless hours of painful therapy. I don't ride any more, preferring a monster truck for transportation, but I sure do love alpine climbing. Do some people need a certain level of thrill to function in today's stressful world? Maybe that's just how their brains are wired, but living without the stimulation, at least for me, is not acceptable. Quality of life means everything. IMHO, there are a lot of things worse than death.
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Making love TO the mountain??
Try Billbob's new goretex mountain condoms !!
All the other climbers are doing it, so get yours today!
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Way cool Wayne, you make it look easy! Can a fisheye be put on the helmet cam?
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Look closely at the pics above, see all those tracks in the snow? A climber was stuck and killed by a rock about this time last year (July 27), near the top of that snowfield. Take it seriously, wait a few months.
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Rumor has it that these and other little-known routes will be published in the new Mt Hood Climbers Guide, due to appear on shelves this winter...
Thanks out to Wayne and Tim !
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Hell of a great deal, thank you Mr. Olson!
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So if a minor makes an error in judgement, as the 17 y.o. apparently did, his parents get the 25K bill ? In the infinite wisdom of New Hampshire voters, children must exhibit the same level of judgement as adults? I am the father of a 17 y.o. man-boy with surging hormones and a strong desire to prove himself, thus I know that kids do not always posses the experience or mental facilities requisite for good judgement.
Sounds like the N.H. legislators have failed to use good judgement themselves.
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Great to see the video.. so how did you hold the camera?
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There is (usually) a lot less stuff coming down in the early morning hours, although as we saw recently on the Sandy HW route there is always a chance of being hit. At least with an early start the snow bridge is stronger.
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The USFS Regional HQ should have estimates as well, might want to give 'em a call.
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Yeah, well, one time I did it in high heels and a skirt, but no panties. Kept those in my pack, not needed.
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Indeed there are times when conditions permit ascent sans crampons, and sometimes bot plates are ineffective. Personally I would feel like a total idiot up there w/o pons, most particularly upon initiation of an unintended descent.
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I don't have much, can send you a couple things, PM if interested.
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It was so warm and calm at our camp below the glacier (early Sat morning) that even clothing was not deemed completely necessary. Up on the Sandy we could see plenty of rockfall had been coming down. Was prolly even warmer Sunday am.
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Sandy glacier & HW June 27
Terminus of Sandy gl, notice waterfalls on right
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My iPhone lasted all of three months due to moisture intrusion so I got a POS special that has performed basic duties for the past year. You might want to carry your iPhone in a ziplock baggie when heading up, apparently this is a frequent cause of failures.
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Well, there IS some nice weather coming. Could bring up the gas grill and some fresh juicy steaks, a keg, big tent, folding chairs, maybe some speakers for the iPod...
IMHO, those snowcats should be listed as a serious objective hazard. Saw a crampon stuck in the tracks of one last weekend.
[TR] Menage-a-Twat - Da Turkey Monsta & Da Bridge 10/11/2009
in Oregon Cascades
Posted
Congrats on that, Ivan !