TRbetaFlash

Jim was a student of mine in the BOEALPS Intermediate Climbing Class in 2010. He went on to instruct with the class in later years and we had a blast climbing together. He was a great student and a wonderful instructor and many climbers around the area can attribute their skill to Jim's teaching efforts. To top it all off, he was a master spray lord and could both dish out and take climbing smack talk like no other. This is truly awful. I cannot believe this suddenly happened. It doesn't seem real.

I think the worst part about the Chosscadian is that you have to stare at Long's Pass the whole time down, you go all the way to the valley floor, then have to claw your way back up. One of my entrepreneurial goals was to set up a paragliding rental shop halfway down the chosscadian couloir. I'd make a killing.

Nice work in there Mr. Dave! Bill here, lurking as usual. While you're out gettin' it, I'm in here reading about it. doh! Pretty cool to learn about that little bolt too!

Trip: Mt. Stuart - Ice Cliff Glacier (w/video) Date: 6/26/2011 Trip Report: The conditions were fantastic and the crux was rather a rather hilarious semi-acrobatic step up/pull-up move across a crevasse. It's in the middle of this long video somewhere. [video:vimeo]25889881 Some crazy Summit Viking was up top, harassing all the climbers. Hey, at least he was wearing a helmet. We got up at about 1:30, but didn't get on route until 2:30 at least. Here's a picture of the harsh conditions we had to start in. The majority of the climb was perfect styrofoam step-kicking fun. As we stood at the crux crevasse step-across, I peered over to the left. I couldn't help but notice the precarious little boot track going up this snow formation, which continues 80 feet away on the other side of a massive collapsed snow bridge. It was incredible to think how someone could have walked across this recently. Gear Notes: - no flotation required. - used two screws just one time each - used 4 pickets a lot for simul-climbing - 1 ice tool and 1 mountaineering axe did the trick. Approach Notes: As stated in previous posts, don't cross the boulder field hiking to the base of this climb. Drop down to the left and use the creek as a handrail up to the bivy spots. - Sherpa glacier route is still in, chosscadian couloir has a ton of snow still - watch out for that damn Viking.

salamander, we appreciated your beta! Not everyone will stop and chat on the way out of there and you went out of your way to do so. Thank you!

Damn, there's still a lot of snow up there...you forgot the skis! After this big snow year, heliotrope trail must have been a disaster. Nice work powering through all that.

How about those crevasse crossing shenanigans? Apologies for all the flying/falling ice! I was in the green jacket, two teams ahead of you guys. And then we had those others above us! There were 4 two-man rope teams on that climb all at once, including you guys. That rut straight up from the crossing was such a bowling alley, it was impossible not to be hit. Going low and using that creek as a handrail (thus completely skipping the boulders) was critical beta for us. Luckily, a very nice guy stopped to talk with us as we were hiking in and shared the info. I'm definitely using that low approach next time. For those who need the specifics: On the way in, once you reach the boulder field everyone talks about, ignore all cairns and head left, going toward the creek. There's a faint trail which follows (but never crosses) this creek full of delicious drinking water. I'm pretty sure you two were the last people who were going to make it over that particular crevasse crossing. That step is going to drop out any moment. Did you happen to look over to the left 100 meters of that and see the boot tracks walking up toward the crevasse and starting again on the other side? That snow bridge that collapsed was massive. What a gorgeous day for a climb.

There are certain images you can't un-see. That last pic is one of them. Wicked trip, man!

I see you're also a purveyor of the fabled Summit Headstand. I thought I was the only one! Those are great because you can pretend you're holding the entire planet above your head.

Wow, nice work! I was up there in 2002 fishing for pollock as well. I stared at that mountain quite a lot, dreaming of just walking out of work at the dock and hiking to the top of it. That view is amazing. Something freaks me out about that island. Perhaps it's the fact that there isn't a single tree on it. Hey, no slide alder. score!

I'm at a loss for words. Dallas had a special part in my life as a mentor and someone to look up to. He was my distance running track coach for all four years of high school. You should have seen how dedicated this guy was - to his runners, to sharing his infinite knowledge, and to keeping his personal fitness sharp. He was the kind of guy you just _have to_ admire for all the amazing shenanigans he'd pulled off in his life. He was always cramming in route development sessions on Mt. Erie between track practices. He disappeared on impromptu runs up Sauk Mountain. The guy was an animal. I don't know how to put it otherwise. He was a blast to climb with, whether cragging or in the alpine and he had a true respect for the mountains. Some say that when someone important to you goes away, it's helpful to write your feelings down. I guess this is that time. I don't know what else to say other than - If there is one person to follow the example of in climbing around here, it's Dallas Kloke. .Bill

Hey do you have info on that original ptarmigan traverse? It's unrepeated? I noticed these routes do have a lot in common. lincoln, nookie, and index are all falling apart. Loose rock is scary. I suppose this is why 5.8-ish routes clean people's clocks some times.

holy son of a... SICK!

I used a gopro HD cam for the filming and iMovie for the editing. I don't really do anything crazy while editing these things since the footage is all pretty fun. When the videos get longer or I want custom effects, it's time for something like final cut. For those asking, the fun beta we found was from Ms. Abegg's site. I suggest you check this out. http://sites.google.com/site/stephabegg/home/tripreports/washington/northcascades/burgundy

I love it! Finding that note Swenson was in on is like finding buried treasure. I love how we find things like this while climbing. Nice work!