ScaredSilly

BITD on Rainier my partner was too poor to buy all that fancy polypro stink wear. So he fashion himself some out of pantyhose. Not just any pantyhose but purple ones. Now that was a climbing and fashion statement. Later he fashioned a G-String out of a bandana that he normally wore on his head.

What time of year? During the summer the Climber's Ranch is your best bet. Otherwise, Motel 6.

A three season tent will more than likely work fine. The biggest concern would be wind. Make sure it can be tied down.

You can find similar ropes on Cooper's Spur. Back in Oct 93 or so I found several. I pulled a few lengths out and watched them slither down the slope before dropping on to the Elliot Glacier.

I use a Wild Things Belay Jacket. It packs down nicely and gives just enough warmed while, well belaying. http://www.wildthingsgear.com/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=6&products_id=88&zenid=115da24dc1aa260a84368b24851d464e

Once you have one end of the pole in place put your finger under the other end. That way your hand slides along the floor. Once near the grommet move your finger. Do the same with the other pole. Do not stake out the tent before hand.

Hmmm, I have done nothing because my insurance will cover medical costs no matter where in the world I am. I might be paying up front and only be reimbursed 80% of the "standard and customary" costs but I will be reimbursed. What is not covered is rescue and repatriation. But for that there is coverage via Assist American and over similar programs that I get through diving (DAN) and climbing (AAC). The kicker for these is that you must contact them when you need assistance not after the fact as they want to be in control of the resources used.

Given these guys a call - http://www.summitcanyon.com I was in their shop over labor day and picked up a Cobra head for $1. They had all kinds of misc ice tools parts on sale for cheap.

I have been using neoprene socks from these folks: http://www.gator-sports.com in combination with dachstein socks. This system works quite well but it should not be used unless the temps are below freezing. Further, you must dry you feet at the end of each day to avoid trench foot or other nasty fungal problems. Typically, once in the tent I turn the socks inside out and let them dry a bit. They go in my bag for the night. Finally, after a couple of days the socks will sink.

Chouinard once said something to the affect that if you want to be sponsored to get a job. Or as I like to say - we are all whores we just sell ourselves in different ways. And some are better at it than others. More seriously, several of my friends are or have been sponsored at one time or another. I have even been the recipient of some free gear from time to time. People forget that while we (i.e. climbers with a job) do just as hard core of stuff that those who are sponsored do the mfg. are not trying to sell their goods just to us. I was in Manhattan this week and saw a lot of people walking around wearing North Face clothing. I seriously doubted that many of those folks have climbed more than a set of stairs but hey they looked good.

Udder rubbish, ever climbed chandelier ice there youth? Many of times I have used an adze for hooking in. Ever pulled up to the top a pillow and stuck your pick in only to have it zipper through the crust? Many of times I have used an adze catch the edge without it pulling through. Personally, I would ditch the Shrike and find a match for the BP and then get a modern set of tools for vertical ice. I still use my straight shaft CFBP on alpine climbs as the they are light, plunge great, and a nice alpine tool. For the vert I have a set of the original Cobras which are also very usable on alpine terrain.

On mountain routes it is nice to have medium and maybe one longer screws for the belay (using your tool(s) for the rest of the anchor). For glacier/crevasse travel we typically take per one person. I think the most screws I have ever taken for a big route (ie. Cassin Ridge) was 5-6 screws for stuff like Rainier's Norward routes it is more like at most 3-4 screws, for Coopers I did not even take a partner but if climbing roped 3-4 screws would be sufficient.

I had a something similar but not quite as bad. I think they doubled my rate and took away the double indemnity clause. After about 10 years they dropped the restrictions. On thing that did help me is that I was climbing regularly which for some odd reason the insurance felt that it was better to climb regularly than not. Do some shopping around.

Something, to watch for at about 6:20 in the original video. It is my understanding from another source that while the rescuer manages to clear a path to the victim he did not fully clear an airway. Because the victim had the avalung part way in an ice mask formed around him. Further, if you watch the rescuer he steps away for about 20 seconds before he finally clears a good airway.

There is camping with showers in Zermatt just down from the train station. There is also a hostel also a block down from the train station. Those are your two cheapest options in Zermatt. Everything else is expensive including the huts. As for transport - fly into Geneva and take the train. The cheapest and easiest option. If you are taking a white gas stove look for Essence C at a hardware store. Other wise plan on using cartridges.

It is kind of a joke about the expression "there is a reason it called Camp Hazard". While it is indeed named after Joe Hazard, the camp can also be a hazard due to ice fall right above it. Now a days people rarely camp there but instead camp about 200 feet below.

Shit I did not even get hardly a thanks when I gave the owner of Falcon my corrections in person. So what you expect a hand written thank you with a complementary signed copy??? :-) Sorry, youth but the kids from the high school in La Grande were climbing those nipples well before they ever went to EOU (EOSC for you old farts). Some of those sorry ass punks even skied them. One of those punks just had Pattagucci publish his book on his romps around the hills. Alright now I am insulted, BITD that was one of my finest FAs. Yeah, it is dirty, ain't very hard, and lacks any difficulties and some people make fun of it by skiing it but shit we drove up from LaGrande at least twice before we got the thing done. What do ya expect for a couple of 18 year olds that had barely got away from their mama's apron strings??? I think Lee's took us three tries cause of the damn snow Bill mentioned. Hell once later we were on a roll and did both in a day. We were such studs. Yeah stay out of Eastern Oregun nuttin but mutton ...

Look at the new one from McMurdo - very small and not that expensive. Get the GPS version.

Good on ya for getting out east and seeing some new country. There is fun little stuff to be sniffed out. Not to mention some bigger lines. As one of those who came after Dave Jensen and spent many summers and winters up at Anthony Lakes climbing, skiing, and forms of debauchery Shapp is spot on. The Falcon guide is a piece of excrement. I spent an hour with at the Falcon booth correcting the numerous mistakes in the book not such for this area but others as well in Northeastern Oregon. I will see if I can find the article we wrote for summit,it may be old but it is at least accurate. In the meantime this article we wrote might help for High Valley - Climbing 100, 1986

The Nose did get a new name "The Nose Free". In my experience (30+ years of flogging around) very few routes get renamed after a free ascent. Yeah sure there are the exceptions. One reason many of the big walls are probably not renamed is because of the relative of free v aid that is freed v the amount of time between the FA and FFA. In some cases such as Astroman it is known as the free version versus the East Face of Washington Column which is the aid version. So if you say you have done Astroman you had damn well had done it free. Personally if someone has freed a significant feature on a route that is a small portion of the overall route that does not warrant a name change. Especially, if they happen to be one of many people who have freed various portions over the years. If someone has freed a significant amount of the route that has not been freed in the past then maybe all depends ... BTW if some does an ascent on TR then some one else later does the first lead should they get to remain it???

Huh?? The Colorado is a river not a glacier????

Yeah, don't be silly, wrap your willy. The cost of blanket and the time to install it is probably less than the cost of rebuilding the ramp each winter. So while the warming is causing grief the solution is economical. Of course there may not be any snow on the runs but that is another problem.

Yeah but at least the state will not have allocated monies for an interpretive center. On the other hand getting spoofed by kids scribing will surely leave little confidence in the abilities of the state archeologists.

I remember once walking into the NPS office in the Tetons, no one was around so I wandered around and happened to walk into the Super's office. My complaint was that I did not like the fact I was visiting only Teton yet had to pay an entrance fee for both Teton and Yellowstone. The Super understood my view point but said I should talk to congress as they set up the rules (Congress sets the entrance fees for all parks). The Super then asked me how many days I was in the Park - two days - so that came out to $5 a day. He then asked me if thought the cost was worth the fun compared to a movie. Of course it was. He had me there. The problem with the author's thesis is that she can already afford the entrance fee and feels that those who already can afford to go could probably afford a bit more for what they get - especially when compared to a night out at the movies. This thesis is true but only for a portion of the population. The problem with her thesis is that it excluded the population that can not afford to go to the parks in the first place yet they still pay taxes and get no benefit. The other problem is that for those who visit 90% of the cost comes from the general fund. So when 90% of the cost of the visit is already subsidized why not just make it free to all? On the other hand why not have those who do use the parks at least contribute something to their up keep? Where to balance?? As was noted there are free days a few times a year. Perhaps this idea is the answer. Many museums have a free day once a month as they want everybody to be able to see the arts yet realize that the cost is often more than many can afford. Yeah you are restricted to certain weekends. But then again if you want to go on another weekend you know will have to pay. And if it is important enough you will find a way to make it work (i.e. you have an incentive - which are good).

If the scribbling is true then this closure will go down in history as a close second to the rock art found on the Deschuttes River (???) some twenty years (??) ago. The Forest Service got all excited about the discovery, got funding for an interpretive center and were just about start when the perp came forward and admitted that they were trying to understand the process and made some drawings/