skibum14

Hey Dina, just replied to your email. Sorry for the delayed response. Maybe we can hit up Squamish again when you're back, if the weather is nice? Never managed to make it up there this summer, and I'm really itching for it!

Neat stuff dude, thanks! Crazy how small of a world it is! Hearing him talk, he seemed to indicate that wasn't a one-time thing. Good reminder that no matter how fit you are, there's always someone fitter.

I'm pretty sure I ran into him at Exit 32 one day. Overheard him saying he did that back when he was "in shape." (The story I heard was Serpentine Arete, fwiw.) He had the conversation with his belayer while he was floating up some 5.11 sport climb. Crazy stuff for sure. OP: I'd just plan to score a ride or stash a mtn bike. Not terrible difficult to do either of those and beats getting lost on a climbers trail which may or may not be the one you're looking for. If it's a weekend, the chances of catching a ride have to be pretty good.

Very tempted, but I'm not sure I can keep up or whether my formerly-tweaked knee could handle the hiking (not too worried about the skiing). Ahhhh... Hope you find a partner.

Index is worth a visit if you're a solid climber comfortable placing gear. Exits 32 and 38 off of I90 have some decent sport climbing, but are smaller areas.

Personally, I always really like the Octopus' Garden area of the Smoke Bluffs. Single-pitch stuff, but fun nonetheless.

^^ I'm in no shape to do this right now, but damn that would be fun. I'm thinking it ought to be an annual cc.com event...

Props if you can do all that in a day. But it's cool you posted pretty much all of my favourite crack climbs in Leavenworth (though you seemed to have missed the stuff at Pearly Gates). Or just head to Squamish and lap the apron a few times. Diedre, Snake, Vector, Calculus Crack, St. Vitus' Dance, etc. (Oops, missed the title of this thread. Still a good option if you've got the time.)

Water is right: 4th of July to Labor Day is your best bet for decent weather. Obviously, the earlier you go, the better the snow.

Thanks for the bump. This is awesome!

Boots are the #1 thing that makes or breaks a skiing experience. I try to buy gear on sale, but boots are the one thing I'll buy at retail if it means I get a good fit. Go to a reputable shop with a good bootfitter and buy something that fits your foot well out of the box. Get said bootfitter to modify shell and liner as necessary to get the boot to fit perfectly. Hint: If they don't take the liner out and fit the shell to your foot, it's not a real ski shop. Also, they should hurt a bit for the first 10 days until the liner packs out or they'll be too big. Good advice above on the skis: 95-105, rockered tip, 8-9 lb for the pair (weight measured in the 180 ish length, though the length you buy will depend on the height). I'd seriously check out the Praxis Backcountry, as well as the Moment PB&J. Both have gotten excellent reviews. Full carbon offerings from DPS and PM Gear. The Vicik from ON3P is on the heavier side of things, but might be worth a try. At your size, I'd shoot for something between 170 and 180 (though 185 isn't out of the question). Oh, and the K2 Coomback is a pretty well-liked, known ski. As far as tech changing - Trogdor is right about Dynafit's offerings for next season. Definitely a step up from the past. I've got my eye on the Vulcan for sure, even though I just bought new touring boots at the start of this season. But these boots will likely not be found on sale and retail will be steep.

Great stories, Dane! I have a number of girls with whom I climb (no gf though). If I had a girlfriend who wanted to climb a bunch, I'd prefer to let my girl partners take her out for a bit so she didn't have to deal with me pushing and prodding. Random story: I was friends with this girl who said she climbed in the gym. So I asked her if she wanted to go outside one day. I showed up at her house to pick her up, and we chatted for a while before I asked if she was read to go. She was like "wait, you were serious about going climbing?" Gah!

This was great! Thanks for posting.

When I was looking I didn't include the Stephenson tents or the super light BD bivy tents (Firstlight etc.) in my list of tents becuase of their limited usage. Those tents are made for alpine / snow only and aren't so great in rainy environments. If I were looking only for a high alpine bivy tent I'd go with the Firstlight. Yeah, I have the Firstlight as well, and definitely agree that it shouldn't be used in the rain. Didn't realize that was also true of the Stephenson's tents also...do you have any reason for grouping those two together other than the weight? In other words, how do you know the Stephenson's performs poorly in rain? I've been looking intermittently, but never came across a review stating something to that effect.

Hey dude, sorry for treating you a bit like a noob in my post. Misread your experience level and completely missed the fact that your current 30L is a CiloGear. I'll leave the future recommendations to those more experienced than I.