Water

i am going to say 35-40 liter size. What is most important to you in a pack--comfort, weight, features? Does Cilo gear make a 40 liter pack? I'm too lazy to go check.. I know they have a 30 and a 45 you could probably pass with the smaller one if you pack light/small.

goddamn can the columbia river gorge forum area just be a sub area inside of spray???????

hell yeah! nice TR -- As much as the mountains you climb, finding the right people to climb with is as important. turning around short of the summit is nothing to be embarrassed about - summits aren't going anywhere (well, almost none of them are..st helens ).

i'll hear you on this in regards to political agendas. And those aspects of Christianity you focus on are real and are quite negative, though it seems to eschews a lot of the good done through the conduit of churches. I'm not convinced, but is it plausible people like Dawkins reinforce religious types that they are under attack, and help to galvanize their support? I guess I maintain seeing a balance between the horrors of organized religion (but one not need that to be zealous and misguided, though believing a 'big man' in the sky wants things done certainly is more powerful than a big man behind a podium (political)) and the valuable contributions that church-organizations do make. I've been to some pretty multi-cultural, open churches that do a lot of good without pushing political agendas that limit anyone's rights or attempt to influence anyone's beliefs. While much of the positive things done through churches could just as well be done through volunteerism outside of church, if the church is the conduit for the good to happen so be it, I'm not one to complain (thinking of some Presbyterian churches I have been to-I'll be honest I'm not even sure if some of the people I've gone with really believe in god, but they sure as hell spend a lot of time helping out and doing positive things for the community through the church-raising money for environmental initiatives, promoting community health events, coat drives, food drives, etc). Dawkins and others can intellectualize and try to quantify net positives and net negatives from religion, but I would like to see what his contributions have mustered that compare to the positives of some churches.

while I find hard-core religious types intent on pushing their world view, living in black and white absolutes, revulsive and plainly ignorant (6000 year old world), I have even less respect for atheistic zealots like richard dawkins. For masses who have simplistic fundamentalist beliefs, I can comprehend that many have not had the education, life-stability, ease of life, or opportunities to develop more comprehensive worldviews. I find the active crusade against and belittlement of religion and spirituality to which the likes of Dawkins and certain others have taken upon to be downright embarrassing. Borat was more respectful than Maher. I would place the onus of responsibility and maturity on the worldly university academic to have developed, in addition to a reasoned intellectual position, an emotional and communication style capable of reaching said people they 'preach' against, and a way to go about their business without resorting to the same zealous single-minded focus that the people they speak against use, thinking in absolutes about religion. In their attitude and communication it is implied if you don't agree completely with their view, you are wrong, stupid, misguided. disclosure: i am not religious, but ascribe to a neo-jungian/transpersonal approach

swedish bikini team (it should be a given)

this thread is spray if you want to use your mind when not actually climbing or reading or doing anything climbing related, I'd visualize and do positive thinking loops about success and accomplishing things that seem impossible, etc, and not worry about religion. my personal take after too much time swimming through jungian readings and process is that the only "divinity" that exists is that within you, which is also within everyone. everything is reflection of your inner`ness: "my heart is in the universe, the universe is in my heart. my heart is in the earth, the earth is in my heart"

nah, most IS the operative word, as far as southside climbers go in the past year+

Paul “Woody” Woodward, president of the Alpine Rescue Team: Woodward just got a PLB himself. “I think they’re a good tool,” he said. “If I was going solo on an extended trip, I might want to take it. If something happened on day four of a 12-day trip, no one might know for eight days that I was even missing.”

its probably a decent deal but by not being open to sell separately you seem to cut off a lot of potential buyers. Not everyone who wants boots needs a shell, and vice versus. Same goes, not everyone who fits size 42 boots would fit a small jacket, and vice versus. [edit: i see you have PM already so kindly disregard my well intentioned message if you've sold your goods that quickly (and kudos for doing such!)]

With all my auto insurance since I started driving, the standard collision and comprehensive and all those that you normally get don't cover 'items' inside (other than radio, and only the price of the stereo that came with, not if you installed some sort of system). There might be some sort of rider you can get specifically, for instance if you're a contractor and have tools in your vehicle a lot? -- But otherwise comprehensive does not cover non-car items. I have confirmed this with State Farm (michigan), Farmers, Amica, and one or two other insurance companies, because I have not always gotten renters insurance and was told about what was and wasn't covered when I would try to get some clarity about paying for the comprehensive coverage. maybe it is different in other states, and maybe your insurance agent was cool, but generally comprehensive does not cover stolen non-auto items in your vehicle. http://www.carinsurance.com/kb/content37292.aspx

mazama class = portland metro area (unless you're communiting from salem or kelso or something).

justin i, like you, had plenty of hiking and outdoors experience but after moving to the west from the flatlands of the midwest, felt I had no business 'learning on the fly/youtube' about ice ax use and the likes. i didn't have a friend to mentor in it either so the BCEP class made great sense. A ton of it will be irritating though if you're a solid backpacker that has your shit in order. You will learn some tips and stuff, but until you do some snow and rock practice, a lot of it is not going to be terribly valuable for you. i think one of the biggest values of BCEP is the networking and opportunity to make climbing partners through the class, which is what I was fortunate to have happen. do south side a time or two and get some idea of it, then leuthold's coulior on hood is good. I think all 3 sisters can be a good challenge, (when south and middle are all snow) to develop more snow experience. other, more experienced folks can probably give better details. climbing the cascade volcanos by Jeff Smoot seemed decent.

MAMMUT stratus on sale for 152 at STP. look around and you can find an additional 15-20% off that + free shipping. all sizes but M, must be willing to wear jacket color that makes you lose your appetite. http://www.sierratradingpost.com/Product.aspx?baseno=44776&plp=Mammut_Stratus_Insulated_Hooded_Jacket_-_For_Men http://www.sierratradingpost.com/Product.aspx?baseno=44776&plp=Mammut_Stratus_Insulated_Hooded_Jacket_-_For_Men

speaking from experience on a long-distance hiking trail and tons of hitching, if you got a lady with you, you can just about guarantee getting a hitch anywhere (as a grizzled, bearded guy, it helps to crouch or be off to the side though when they stop to talk to her). that hand in the above picture sure looks like a gals, I wouldn't imagine she spent too much time with her thumb out.

if that seriously is the stolen gear (or some of it-the story is beyond fishy/bizzare--it would be more plausible if it just said "a friend gave me his stuff") a name and e-mail address is bunk...an actual address would work a lot better for beatings, and/or involvement with LEOs. I've found e-mail be-ratement to be extremely unsatisfactory and unsatisfying.

so was anything heard?

why would you feel guilty for how someone else feels? You don't control their emotions. Unless you lie to them before meeting or can't keep up, which it doesn't sound like you're doing, why worry? I'd like to think a 25 year old who might be a slightly 'better' (and interpret that how ever you'd like-skill, speed, endurance) climber should be able draw some value of being around someone double their age, even if it isn't a specifically tangible learning that makes them a better climber. Unless you're a decrepit old man who is horrible to be around (doesn't sound like it to me)--even then a 25 year old should be able to draw some learning from observing an unhappy 'old man'. i wouldn't sweat it personally. I'm in my 20's and would climb with someone in their 60's, assuming they are friendly and have equal or more skill than me. Most of my friends are around my age, people that are younger or older contribute a valuable, different perspective.

figured as much, wanted to make sure there wasn't anything fancy needed. thanks much.

curious what type of file people use on an ice ax to sharpen the pick or the spike. also, a picket of mine has a ton of monster burrs on it after being enthusiastically unburried...assume i could use the same file as i'd use for the pick or spike to take some of those down. Is there a specific kind of file i should get at ace hardware or home despot that will work best? thanks

that is funny...but Mal_Con...the attorney is in regards to possibly the phone company or the alarm company being negligent or whatever term in a court of a law would be used. He pays a phone bill, pays an alarm/security company, but the alarm/sheriff notification did not occur as it should have. If it was a 20 second smash and grab, notifying the sheriff may not have done anything, but unless there were 10 people involved, it sounds like they would have been there for 5-10 minutes which could be enough time to be caught in the act. (my thoughts). Best wishes at finding the culprits, figuring out the weak link in the alarm system malfunction. If you have a sale or a presentation or something, I'd do my best to kick in a few bucks!

love the photos. I enjoy living down here in PDX but seeing pictures like that certainly makes me wish i was a bit closer.. =]

for all intents and purposes, yes. How many products would be fine as they are for 2-4 year spans? Many! However if you don't change something and make it different and market it as somehow being improved, people won't just buy it for the hell of it when they have something (specifically the same product) that works, and competitors will advertise some bullshit improvement that will make it seem like their product may have some noticeable performance edge. Sure there have been advancements and those come to the fore, and many are sequential, but for instance the cost of new sabretooths vs the old on sale is crazy for--what...3 oz and shiny crampons? correct me if I am wrong but if you are going through crampons fast due to wearing the teeth short or breaking them off (does that happen a lot during ice climbing?), you're either doing something wrong or are one badass mofo who has earned the right to bitch about the difference between metals.

yeah, anyone who owns a business automatically has all connections they need. Once you have a business you don't even need to network, that is all pre-business stuff. Not that a Seattle based family law attorney who climbs wouldn't perhaps know of a good lawyer who handles this type of thing in Portland, Eugene, or closer, in Bend, or anything like this, since professional associations and like-minded/profesioned individuals never cross paths. To boot, it is detrimental to even broach the subject on the off chance there is a connection. seriously mcjizzy, what an apt name! if your car broke down in duvall you'd be stuck there with nobody to help you with that attitude.

i would recommend the N cascades as well, for reasons stated above (most bang for your buck). Others may make a case for the olympics but in my mind the olympic range compared to the north cascades is like comparing the smokey mountains of Tennessee to the white mountains of New Hampshire. Not sure if those have any context for you, but while the smokies are great, the whites bang more of an impression, in my view. (ie: if i had to backpack in either for a week, I'd do the whites in a heartbeat, many times over)