LostCamKenny

Where's the pics?

Humble narrator my ass! Did you guys stop by a milk bar, beat up a an author and ravage his wife on the way there? Great report, Ivan! Reading your TR's never have a dull moment! Great pics!!!

Looks like a zoo - par for the course on a weekend!

Cool - possible booty on the route!

Pretty sick!

Well said. This is just the beginning. That whole place isn't designed to accept the amount of traffic that it is going to see this summer.

Its got a good title - one that makes me curious to read it. A good read usually starts out that way for me...

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo...! Well at least it's not falcons, again.

...and fairly light.

.

To life and solitude...!

No place is safe from this crap!

On that note, I love my REI mountain 2 and mountain 3. They weigh a little more but they are worth it when the wind starts howling at 10K. Of course if you're not soloing you can split up the tent into its pieces and distribute the weight among the climbing party.

You don't need a crevasse to practice the CR techniques, just someplace that you can set up an anchor and haul from. Though it wasn't effective for learning to build a deadman anchor my first CR course was taught on a gymnasium floor. This was great to learn the load-releasing hitches and pulley systems and how prusiks work in the whole system. Building a deadman is pretty basic and - do I dare say it? - simple, but the process of constructing and using the actual rescue system is what needs to be practiced. Before I even took a class I was tying a rope off to a tree and practicing in the backyard - though my backyard at the time was very conducive to this sort of thing. Of course, there's many ways to learn these techniques.

Personally, I don't really care about the extra bulk of carrying more gear specifically for building my anchors, so I always carry 6mm cord for that purpose. The benefit to this - as I see it - is that if you ever need a length of cord for whatever reason you have it! The speed freaks will disagree with me but I stand but my practice - you'd never see me without my anchor cord! However, if I come to a set of bolts that I can mindlessly clip into for an anchor I will probably use one of my slings. But if it is a trad anchor that I have to build myself the cord is where its at!

Gotta agree with ya on this one J... I clove directly from my knot to the anchor - its the fastest and seems like the least complicated way. Plus, there is no extra gear required.

This could have been a lot worse - speedy recovery to the fallen!

Cheers!

Jaffy would be proud!

use a munter... forget the device!

Great plug for BD, dude!

I have a Garmin Vista Cx which is the model before yours. If I remember correctly, I went to the main menu and went to setup. In the setup menu I went to the map icon and entered that. When it opened up I was immediately put at a screen with 6 icons at the top and the one with the "i" in the circle is the one you want. Now, when you download a map to your unit from your PC you have to name it (I beleive) so that the device you are sending it to can sort it with the preloaded maps. From the "i" circle icon you should be able to scroll down with your cursor to check or uncheck the map you want displayed when you are using the unit. It's been a while since I've loaded a topo on my unit so I'm not sure if this is exactly how I did it but it seems to me that this is the most logical approach. Let me know how it turns out...

I know several who have made that unfortunate mistake... Too funny! After the fact, of course.

Wind brings in the warmer air, and thus increases the rockfall/icefall potential. Starting late at night (10:30pm) would be advised - especially for a party of three - to keep you climbing in the coldest temps possible. The temps are starting to increase early in the morning so the more time you give yourselves the better your chances. Careful around crater rock! Good luck and be safe!

Wow lots of great input here - I almost feel foolish trying to add my two cents. Regardless... No matter how comfortable you may feel with your gear you should keep in mind that he/she who follows you must be able to remove that gear. You always want to keep your follower in mind and not just place gear randomly. Think about where you are placing from and how easy/difficult it will be for your second to pull it out. Bomber gear is great, but don't overdo it. A great place to practice is at the Chemistry Slab out at Carver. There are several routes that don't exceed 40 feet in height that rate at 5.7 or easier. I can't count the number of times I've sewn up Smooth Operator, Spear Fishing in Bermuda, and Leaning Uncertainty - Leaning Uncertainty makes a great introduction to 5.7 trad! The bottom line is practice WELL BELOW your level and don't rush yourself. Remember: You're not mindlessly clipping bolts. It's the real deal when you have to trust your own gear. With time and practice you'll be just fine. And don't be afraid to bail or hang on your gear when you know it's good - everyone has done it at some time or another.