Moof

Looks like the weather gods are not being in my favor.

Hey Ivan, How about next weekend? I don't fancy a solo ascent, but I would like to get some pitches in before heading down to the valley in a couple weeks.

Anyone up for a lap on Stone Soup this weekend?

Next time you want to run up Stone Soup on a weekend let me know. I've been wanting to do another lap in. Should be a good warmup for Excalibur.

Dude, you still want ownership of that ledge?

Thanks for getting that posted Stew-beef! Most excellent trip. Stewart was an excellent partner, and climbed fast enough to make up for my plodding pace. We finished earlier each night, and kept things to a pretty casual style. Highlights: 1. Starting pitches so overburdened with gear you can hardly move, and finishing them with just a few cams and a set of nuts... 2. Projectile vomitting MRE and orange Gatorade all over the top of the slab pitch. Note: Don't buy the Chicken in Buffalo Style Sauce MRE's. 3. Being unable to walk up stairs once I got home. 4. Sleeping in my own homemade ledge, and not having it collapse (Yay!). 5. Leaving water at the top for the third wall in a row. 6. Avoiding the hateful flair. C1+ variation is highly recommended. 7. 12 pitches, only clipping 12 pins, 12 bolts, and ZERO copper heads. If you back clean as much as Stewart, 4x of #1-3 is probably fine, but if you're like me 5x in in order. 2x #3.5, 2x #4, and 2x #4.5, and 2x #5 camalots about right for the Planck's Constant roof (old school sizes). Double #3.5 and #4.5 is all that is needed higher up. I biffed and was a cam short in the #4 size due to improper size conversions and hasty preperation (sorry Stew!).

SMC did very similar testing to REI many years back. I can't find the report now, but the pictures were impressive. Majorly tweaked biners were statistically just as strong as the controls. Basically there have been a couple bad choices in alloys over the years resulting in recalls or reduced lifespans (I think the early light-D's, and early double stem camalots are examples). If you can't see a crack, it is likely just fine. Just the same, I'd rather not have second thoughts when I'm cruxing just cuz I cheaped out. Belayers are far more likely to fail than the devices they use.

Why not just get a decent scale? Weigh the fuel before and after.

I just use a grigri. You have it along anyway, and the feeding is only a minor hassle till you get some rope out. Just thumb the lower ascender while jugging the first bit. Also, you can quickly swap to the 2:1 cleaning rig for steep sections of cleaning. Everything on the wall should be as multipurpose as possible, stick with the grigri.

Mine is not for sale, but collecting dust. I'd be willing to loan it out for a month or so for couple good sixers plus a deposit. Trouble is that I'm in Portland, it'd be up to you figure out how to get it up there and back. I got it specifically for Pipeline, but got way too fat waiting for Tom to make a batch up... I also have a couple big-bros I'd loan out as well.

For small holes I've been very successful with seam grip, and larger ones using a scrap of pack cloth and seam grip. I fixed a few in the field, just had to wait a while before going to bed.

depends how things work out - maybe i have a partner at least for the first part of my break? as always, thanx for the support there moof-san - now will i be able to escape come august? I think so, but I have commitments for the weekends of the 7th, and the 13-16th. But I should be able to carve out a week for some insanity in the valley after that.

Man, wish I could... Maybe by late summer I'll be able to bust out again. If you need to borrow anything for this effort, swing on by.

#9 Wild Country Hex Yellow Alien Largest brass HB/DMM offset Large Colorado Nut (used my buddies, wish I could get one)

We were after Wet Denim Daydream, but were one vagina short of having the sack to finish the bugger. Hand placed? No.... I beat the mother fucker in there with zeal. It still fell out 2 days later in the hands of a free climber.

Sorry, no topo. I don't have the FA, a good friend of mine does. I got to TR the first ~5 bolts worth before it was done. The FA is by Tad, aka the Man of Steele. If you know Petch out there (local, used to be the best bartender at the lodge, still guides) he could hook you up with beta. He also has beta on other ham related routes. http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.php?topic_id=206617

East Crack is decent and sees little traffic, though it shares the last pitch with a couple of the most popular... Deception Direct while listed at 5.9R, only has a move or two of 5.9, and with a little gardening you can get some slammer brass placements so it isn't even that R. The newer lines on Hogsback like Better with Bacon see almost no traffic. Check out Honkey Toast for excellent 5.10+ slabbery. Perhaps you could get the second ascent of the second pitch?

Basic ideas: 1. Donate donuts and stroke egos of the ranger/rangerettes. maybe listen to their stories and nod a lot to make them feel the love their mothers so clearly withheld? Power wielding LEO's enjoy that, and see no hypocrisy in scratching the backs of their buds in blatant defiance of their sworn oaths. 2. How about a rational discussion that results in a non-blanket closure? There are plenty of anecdotes out there that indicate complete closure of rock faces is severe over protection. Perhaps some of these biologists could show their math as to the size of the closure? Perhaps then a simple set of rules could be derived that could easily be interpreted by the climbing community and still be well within reasonable and appopriate safety margins for the birds (say SE Corner and further East is open, plus the first pitch for the rest of the wall?). Having endured abuse and direct lying from rangers more times than not I hold out little hope that anything short of bribes or lawsuits will do jack shit, but the notion of a less retarded closure is great.

Howdy Bill, I am painfully versed in the ways of the three leaves of doom... Zanfel has bailed me out many times, and I managed to squeeze out one last glop from my old tube, so I'm all good now. I've also had decent luck with Ivy Stat. I've never gotten the full miracle results they advertise, it usually takes me 2-4 rounds of the stuff to beat it back, not their single application claims. Now I gotta toss the rope in the washer, and everything else that likely is contaminated...

Right arm is already oozing from the poison oak. Good times... BTW, here is the topo I ran across showing Pipeline Headwall using the bolt, then going left: http://www.portlandrockclimbs.com/beta/pic/brfree.gif

The real solution is to make Ivan lead the pitches with Wasps. Of course he gets revenge by sending you up "Sort of up over there somewhere, up through the loose blocks, lichens, and poison ivy, sort of." Now I know what Jensen's Rim Job is all about.

I tried leaving a spare beer at the top of the column, he hiked all the way back up and drank the thing. Leave no man behind! Oh yeah, we also had 100 lbs of gear to bring down as well, but the concept of leaving a beer behind gave him a facial tic.

Kick ass dude! Way to get after it, though my brain did start oozing out of my left ear seeing Nose names on WFLT pics. Twitch twitch...

Thanks Joseph!

All pissing aside, when's this sucker opening, or is it already?