ColinB

Good times! Glad to see you made it up there and in excellent time to boot.

Looks like a fun climb even with the shitty weather. Did you snap any other photos of Illumination Rock? Looks like more ice on there than I'd expect this time of year.

Proud line! Looks like you guys had a boatload of fun on that one.

If the 45 is too big, you might want to consider the 30:30.

Or just buy dry ropes. Sterling did some test on saturated (non-dry) ropes back in the day that Twight references in Extreme Alpinism. For sure something to keep in mind out in the soggy PNW.

Thanks for the feedback and thoughts everyone. Looking forward to next season's ice already!

No he did not. It has the standard 1.5" webbing hipbelt for the Valdez packs.

Bump. Everything is still for sale.

I've got an older CCW Valdez that I'm not using anymore. It's treated me well and can get years more out of it but I've switched packs and haven't used it in a year or two. Bomber material but it has seen some wear. No holes, just some piling of the nylon. Asking $35, buyer pays shipping or picks up in Portland. Also have a medium Arc'teryx Beta AR for sale. Like new condition. Worn it out maybe 5 days, mostly in town. More beefy of a jacket than I need and I'd rather have the beer/scotch money (a dead bird jacket buys a lot of beer or a little single malt!). Asking $200, buyer pays shipping or picks up in Portland. CCW Valdez Arc'teryx Beta AR

After the new gen BD Punishers have fallen apart in less than 10 days of climbing, I'm looking for new ice/mixed gloves. Anyone have experience with Rab's line of gloves, either softshell or eVent? Looking at the M14, Alpine and Latoks in particular. Any thoughts on eVent vs OutDry in gloves or the durability of Rab gloves in general? Also curious if sizing is pretty similar to Punishers (wear a medium but usually a large in other gloves)? Thanks! Colin

I had no problems flying with my rack this spring (ice screws in the checked bags...) and don't see why they should care. I had to unpack my bag every time I went through, but I think that's because the metal makes it hard for them to see whats there. I think that crackers did the same thing to Red Rocks recently and I'm pretty sure they didn't mess with him. Good luck and have fun!

I'm looking for a partner this Sunday to scratch up some of the excellent mixed climbing on Illumination Rock. Probably in the M5-M6 range. I can lead or swap leads, depending on preference/experience. I've got rack/vehicle/rope. PM me here or email me at colin.bohannan@gmail.com. Cheers, Colin

Doug Coombs skied the left gully back in the day. Stephen Koch snowboarded the right gully in 1992. Bad ass dudes for sure.

Its not technical, but backpacking into the diamond peak wilderness and scrambling up it makes for a good weekend close to Eugene. Maybe take an ice axe, and definitely take a camera. One of the little gems of Oregon for sure.

I know that The Mountain Shop in Portland has a bucket of 404 parts in their basement. If you call them up, they might have what you're looking for.

My 2 cents: I have an old Valdez and found it a bit small for most overnights (with a tent and what have you). For most overnights where I'll bring a rope & rack too, I use a CiloGear 45. I strip it down without the lid, framesheet, and most of the straps and it carries great while climbing. I think that the 30:30 would fill that gap for you pretty well too.

Glad to see you guys getting some ice climbing done in this funky winter weather. Looks like Washington is gunning for best ice crag in the West...

Just as a heads up, there can be avy hazard in the bowl of the SE Chamber along with on the uphill slog to the start of the route (its steeper than it looks from Timberline). Another option would be to traverse from over from Illumination Saddle and place gear in case it slides. Have fun and be safe!

I use a Cilogear 45 and its more than big enough. I'll usually take out the aluminum suspension, as it carries good enough on its own. It's expandable enough and can compress down easily for when you're actually doing some climbing with it on.

Doug, I'm too tall for a firstlight so I took the bivy sack outside. Three in a firstlight would not have been pretty...

Trip: Dragontail - Northeast Buttress Date: 2/3/2012 Trip Report: On February 3rd and 4th, Nate Farr, Jens Holsten, and I climbed the Northeast Buttress on Dragontail. As far as we know, it hasn't been climbed in the winter before. We climbed 16 pitches total with some pitches being long simul-climbing blocks. I think it worked out to some 1200 m of climbing at something along the lines of M5 5.7 A0. The first day we hiked in and started climbing at 2 pm. We climbed six pitches up, did the rap off the big tower and climbed one last pitch to get to a sweet bivy ledge. After some excavating, we tucked in for the night and woke up above the clouds. An airy pitch over the north face led to lots of rampy climbing. We found a few short vertical sections, but most of the climbing was moderate. We topped out around 4:30 pm and had an uneventful descent. Snowmobile approach/deproach was kickass and sure made it more fun to do in two days. Sure beats walking in on the closed road. Approaching the start. Nate scratching up the 3rd pitch. Home away from home. Waking up above the clouds. Myself leading off from the bivy. Starting up the 9th pitch. Jens working his way up some awkward climbing. Moderate simul-climbing late in the day. Jens enjoying the windy summit. Gear Notes: Doubles to #4. Extra instant coffee. Approach Notes: Two climbers on the sled at a time, not three... Walk across the lake. The right fork of the NE Couloir is the 1971 start.

bump. make an offer!

I've got a pair of Nepal Evos that I'm looking to pass on to another bigfoot. I found a better fit for my weird foot and switched out boots for the winter. These have had a good amount of use, but its mostly been with crampons on, so the soles aren't that beat up. The lowest inside eyelet broke on both boots and were professionally repaired at Mountain Soles in Portland this fall. Pickup in Portland is the easiest or buyer can pay shipping. I can also be reached at colin.bohannan@gmail.com Asking $200.

In 1997, Guy Lacelle soloed all three in a day.

Classic!