keenwesh

not so fast, the cody report sounds real gud http://www.coldfear.com/conditions/

it's colder in town today, with forecasted cool temps for the next few days. check out this http://winter.junkfunnel.com/ I'd say this weekend is shaping up to be pretty good. Not as fat as it might have been, but good dry ice in fun conditions. Worth the drive in my opinion.

He's not gonna be out here until February, stuff should be nice and fat by that time. Hard not to keep complaining every chance we get though. Dribbles is in good shape at least. This warm spell is like my head cold, it sucks, but it'll pass before too long.

bone, the government is monitoring everything you do, so you might want to stop revealing the "truth" on here in order to avoid being silenced. They're out to get you, nowhere is safe, we are all gonna die!

if it doesn't get cold next week and build stuff up that bodes poorly for the icefest and the routes that receive the bulk of that traffic, think elevator shaft becoming a totally hacked out ladder climb, however with any luck shit will still be forming afterwards and there'll be enough building to repair the climbs even with the regular traffic they get. The ice might not be as great as it could be, but Hayden and his dad on Friday will be a great show, and the comp on saturday will be good fun. Make it out here and chances are you won't be disappointed. All profits from the icefest go to plowing the road and maintaining access through the end of March every year. Rest easy knowing you're helping everyone out by seeing shows and participating in clinics. See everyone next week!

I went and did Dribbles last night with the (almost) full moon, used headlamps when climbing but otherwise hiked in and out in moonlight, really cool. Go for it if you get the chance. The route itself was in good shape, a little thin on the top outs but not too bad. Just made it from the base of the headwall to the trees up top in a full 80 meter pitch. Unfortunately it's 50 degrees outside my classroom and is forecasted to rain in the next couple days, perhaps getting chilly again around monday. We'll see how Hyalite holds up, but I'm not very optimistic.

just take 'em up half dome http://vocr.sri.com/herson/climbing/tr/halfdome-kara.html

with a pack at my feet I have even less room. How big are your feet? My dad has a 3 person hillburg (maybe the Nallo?) that weighs 5 pounds and stays dry because it's double walled, the thing is bombproof and I'd take it to AK if I could ever get my shit together and go. it's also long enough to fit in comfortably with two 6' 6" individuals.

Maybe it's my clown feet. when I get supine in a BD I end up with soggy footbox in my bag as they're right against the end of the tent compressing the down and collecting moisture. Perhaps if I had a tentmate that would let me sleep diagonally I could manage. Sometimes I dryhump in my sleep though so that isn't a very comfortable solution.

Being tall sucks, I have a lightweight extra long 3 season sierra design tent that I use when I go winter camping. in a actual winter storm I would get absolutely ass fucked though, so probably would want to get a hillburg if you plan on the big mountains. For summer backpacking and fair weather mountaineering it's damn nice though. Not sure what it's called but for a 6 and a half foot monster it makes a really comfy den.

backcountry carries up to size 47.

yeah, thanks kevin. As much as I like throwing shit back and forth lets try and keep this thread strictly about conditions. If we must make sheep fuckin' jokes perhaps that can be done in spray. Keep it on topic team!

careful now lazzara, yer sounding like some kinda pansy. Foreign women and pad thai? Real men brave winter cold alone or in the company of other burly dudes (there are no women in MT, the country is too rugged for the gentle kind) and eat fresh killed venison for sustenance.

people get pissy about pounding pins, place 'em and don't tell. It's one of my favorite things about mixed climbing.

Wayne, you just reminded me. Mummy 4 is forming, and the last WI5 pillar on zack attack should be touching down momentarily. Those shots of you on Mummy 4 last year are sick, I hope to recreate them in the next couple months. Mummy 3 can be done without much ice, correct?

I've been getting lots of people PMing me asking for Hyalite conditions reports. Check here instead. I copy and pasted this out of a PM, so I hope that explains the haphazard way I listed these routes. Maybe next time when stuff is actually in I'll organize it a little better. I assume people would like being able to check what the ice is doing over here, let me know if that is too bold of an assumption. I've been getting interrogated quite a bit lately from ya'll PNW people, I should probably post a Hyalite conditions thread on here or something. I can also give info on the rosebud climbs, but it'll be second or third hand info as I have to attend school and can't go driving into the beartooths every 2 days, unfortunately. Current Conditions: Dribbles ain't in, not even a little bit. I haven't hiked up to it but looking across there isn't anything. Don't be discouraged though, Silken slot could be climbable, that gash stays pretty cold. What is in that I have climbed: Elevator shaft, fun WI4 pillar right now, bring KBs to place in the rock behind. GII, good shape, but the top step is a fucking waterfall, wear your hardshell and put your hood up, save it for the end of the day as you will get soaked. Routes that should be climbable by next week if it doesn't get super warm for some reason: Scepter is looking like the picture on the back cover of winter dance, actual WI5, git' it. Matrix maybe, it's kinda a long shot, but if it is in it'd be in really fun mixed shape. Feeding the cat looks like a good WI4+. Twin is in (of course). Fat One. Thrill is gone is thin where there's normally fat ice but it has been getting climbed. Small possibility that good looking one will be in. needs a few more days of cold temps. Genesis is in for the hoards. Over easy and curtains are forming, but probably harder than their advertised ratings. This is the time of the year that dielectric breakdown forms, if we get a cold snap jump on this one. Slot corner would be in with a day or two of cold temps. That's all I can rattle off the top of my head. ask me about other climbs I didn't mention and I should be able to provide you with some kind of response. For those wondering if it's worth making the drive over in the next week or so: I'd say it depends, none of the more difficult climbs are in, and the easy routes are all in difficult early season shape. The ice is thin enough that if it's warm out stuff isn't bonded and pillars can easily come down. If you're confidant climbing stuff that is a little sketch but way fun come out, if that kind of thing makes yer balls suck up inside your body maybe you want to go to thailand to clip bolts and drink fufu shit on the beach (I have no idea what you'd do in thailand, I've never been there, but probably not as fun as ice climbing in MT). Also, I'm leaving MT Friday afternoon to climb at Index, I will be away for my computer for a full week. Hopefully ya'll don't get too lonely without me. As soon as I get back in the canyon I'll update.

Just spent all the daylight hours today taking the tools for a walk to the beehive. When we finally found our intended route the descent to it was windloaded, the route wasn't really in, and it was 2 pm. I'd guess that the temps with windchill were around -10. In a month you'd want a sled so you could make it to the base within the short daylight hours. A good climb for you guys that shouldn't be too much of a slog would be Silken Slot combined with Dribbles or Silken Falls. The Slot is one of the best WI3's in the canyon, and the first pitch is a really fun 5.7 mixed pitch. The last (3rd) pitch is fantastic WI3 with a topout right next to a cool hyalite rock formation. Send me a PM before you come out and I should be able to give you a up to date conditions report.

that OS space shot is sweet! brings back memories of the last pitch of Iconoclast, and reminds me why I was glad I followed it.

cut the metal strap off the front of your crampons and run the keeper cord directly around your ankle. That'll help some of the heel lift as your foot will be more locked into the boot.

I left a #2 behind as pro while I camhooked up a crack for several moves, felt warm and fuzzy inside, but I never fell. They rock. If you can find 'em on sale for 30% off buy a set or five.

Trip: Beartooths - Funeral for a Friend Date: 11/4/2012 Trip Report: The ice climbing forum has been stale for a while and I always like taunting westerners with the climbs in my backyard. First ice of the season, and a route that said "climb me!" the first time I saw it in the guidebook over a year ago. My buddy Justin and I hatched a plan for a rad FA in the Beartooths, and a full weekend was allotted. Envisioning 2000 feet of mixed ice and rock we packed a single rack with a bunch of KB's and baby angles, figuring there wouldn't be much ice we only brought 4 stubby screws. I met Justin in Laurel around 9.30 friday night and we drove up to the Glacier Lake TH in the dark, where we managed to get some sleep crunched up in the back of the troop. The next morning we got up, hiked to the dam and got blasted by the bitterly cold wind Camp was set behind a big boulder and we both promptly passed out for a few hours, the last thing we wanted to do was overexert ourselves Half of the junior supine alpine club in action In the afternoon we roused ourselves and walked up to scout out our rad FA, a line of mixed terrain to a prominent ledge system halfway up the face was picked out. As an afterthought we walked up to take a peak at Funeral, just "to see how it looked". Well, see for yourself Yeah, that looks a lot better than 800 feet of unprotected/scary snowed over rock that will never get repeated ever. Plans were quickly scrapped and the Friendly Funeral was on for the next day. 11 relaxing hours of sleep later and coffee was brewed, hot cereal was consumed, and warm jackets were donned. Retracing our steps from the afternoon before we found ourselves at the base. I led up the first snowy approach "pitch", below the giant chockstone, and built a belay with 2 of our 8 KB's, spindrift was blasting down the chute giving a good alpine feel to our icy gash in the granite face. We were convinced that there were two pitches still above us, so I led off again, heading up a fantastic slot of ice, the steepness made easier by stemming off either side. Only having 4 stubbies I ran it out quite a bit, so much for easing into leading ice this year. The envisioned cracks in the walls for pins never appeared, fortunately the climbing was so good I didn't spend much time worrying about the gaps in gear. The last 30 feet from the comfort of the rappel I reached the cave belay at the top and brought Justin up We had tossed around the idea of continuing up the extension that Shepard and Mulkey did a few years back at M6, but seeing as Justin had forgotten his climbing pants in his car and was wearing my rock climbing pants with patented duct tape gaiters© we figured it was prudent to bail. Not without the standard selfie. Raps were made to the tent, where a hour long siesta rested us for the arduous 4 mile downhill hike to the car. Made it back home to find that the friendly Bozeman police department had visited a get together hosted by my roommates the night before. As bummed as I was that I missed them I have solace in the knowledge that perhaps they'll come by again. Hopefully I'm out climbing. Gear Notes: Bring 6 or so screws, a couple KB's might be good for belays. Top anchor can be backed up with a nut when the fattest member of your party goes first. A warm sleeping bag and bottle of scotch would be hard to beat if the 2 day ascent (highly recommended) is decided upon. Approach Notes: Drive 8 miles up Rock Creek Road, walk up the trail to Glacier Lake. Sleep, if you feel like climbing do so, but it is optional.

I thought JFK was killed by Lee Harvey Oswald...

I wish, the cassin has been at the top of my list for a long time. don't come to bozo during the ice fest if you want to go ice climbing, it's a zoo and there's a line on everything in the canyon. anytime midweek you'll have the place to yourself.

both those atrocious beverages are currently in my fridge, maybe next time I'll just cut to the chase and mix isopropyl alcohol with club soda.

excuse me, $2.40.