duckfeet

Can anyone offer some fit advice on a Thermawrap Pro? Wondering med vs. large Med Atom LT is too small in the chest/shoulders, and while my large fits well in the chest/shoulders, it's fairly baggy in the rest of the torso. I found the Med Nanopuff pullover and hoody to be a better overall fit. I've also got a Med First Ascent downlight pullover that fits very well. Generally planning to use the Thermawrap as a non-bulky, trim fitting belay jacket for ice or as an outer action layer if exceptionally cold.

I've got very tough to fit feet as well. Very low volume, always heel lift and blisters, bone spurs and growths on the heels, etc….tried tango extremes, nepals, scarpa guides, mammuts, basically whatever I could find. Eventually got a pair of the Sportiva Barunteses with the moldable liners and its the best boot I've used. With a good aftermarket insole and a solid job molding, I can hike miles in them with no issues and lock my heels in place with no movement at all. Sure its a little heavy on long walks and sport mixed but anything from long moderate alpine ice to steep WI is great. Order them from backcountry, get them molded, and go try them out.

Wow, this thread makes me want to run. Just not sure if thats going to be running towards or away. Thanks for all the advice. A 6 month lease is a great idea we hadn't thought about. No poaching in MT. However, if the said moose looked "funny" and was posing a "threat" or looking to mate with any of your multiple wives or 25 kids its got another thing coming

Thanks for replies so far. As far as driving, we live south of missoula by 30 miles. Driving between towns or to the store is typically 15-30mins on open roads. So a 20 min drive doesn't seem bad at all. With our schedule, we'd be working 3 days or nights a week and often will have 3-5 days off in a row. Being able to ride a bike or run to work sounds awesome, but DPS saying he's got access to miles of trails, climbing, etc sounds more like what we have here. Google maps has the distance at about 20 miles and that sounds pretty easy, but with no experience in a big city I have no idea how that 20 miles is in reality. I'm sure Pete would agree, 20 miles in Montana isn't something to think twice about! Keep it coming, I really appreciate the input

My wife and I are looking at moving to Seattle in the near future (mid Jan) from Montana and I'm not gonna lie...going from a town of 60k people to a couple of million is scary! We'd be working downtown at Harborview Medical Center and and wondering about places to live and the commutes. I've heard from a few people about Issaquah. On google the drive is easy, but how is it really with traffic? What other spots would be good to look at with fairly easy drives into the city, but also have good out of town access for climbing/skiing/fun? Anyone here work at Harborview?

http://www.metoliusclimbing.com/monster_7-8mm_dynamic_rope.html I've got the 7.8s and a 9.2 and have been pretty happy. They have been fairy durable for the size and the middle mark is fantastic.

I agree with the eat what you want idea. However, as you go higher avoid the fatty stuff. Fats and proteins become far more difficult to digest and turn into energy as you move higher. I think that is when gu type things shine since they are designed to be absorbed easily under "load."

Anyone know about or seen the north face recently? Looking at maybe running over this weekend. I rock could be fun too. Any word on those routes?

I considered the verto 26 but 26L is pretty big for a basic leaders pack. I've got a 30L pack that fits that spot. I've seen an older version of the patagonia that didn't seem too large, its probably worth checking out. I'd be curious to hear about any additional experience with the new cierzo 18.

I've been looking for a new leader pack. I've had the Flash 18 and its been ok, but the opening is too tight and the inner pockets are kind of a pain. I've been able to use my wife's older Cierzo 18 and it has been awesome. Its actually been so awesome that Arcteryx had to do their normal thing of making something great then "updating" it into something not so great. I haven't personally had my hands on this new version but why add another zipper and take away the shoulder padding? Does this help, not really... Anyone used this new version and have an opinion? Does it have a sternum strap? Hows the zipper/drawcord combo work? I like Cilo's 30L a lot, but after playing with the 20L it seems much smaller than both the Flash and the Cierzo. Anyone used one?

Thanks for the replies. I think I'm going to try out the western since I've been able to have some hands on time with them.

I'm looking to replace a marmot atom that I always froze in and am checking out the FF Merlin and WM Summerlite. Both are pretty similar in the cut. FF has a little more fill, WM is a bit lighter. I've never seen FF stuff, but hear its nice. I can check out the summerlite for fit, feel, etc... Anyone have anything really positive or neg to push one bag in front of the other? I've heard some complaints about the hoods on FF, any truth? I'm also looking to spend more time in the Cascades and the climate seems similar to the Bitterroots so do you guys find a 30 degree bag to be pretty useable this time of year through early-mid fall?

I would pass on that one. In my experience the heart rate watches without a chest strap aren't accurate or reliable. Go with a Polar, Timax, Garmin, Suunto or similar. The chest strap measures the actual electrical impulses from your heart and gives you realtime numbers. The one you've got listed doesn't do this. You have to hit a button for it to spot check your pulse. You can get the above listed starting around $70 I believe.

Not trying to hijack the thread, but does anyone know how the job market for Respiratory Therapy is the mentioned areas of Seattle and central WA?

I've got free time April 7-10 and am looking to head over to Cali Ice in the beartooths. I'm in Missoula so carpooling would have to start here. Anyone interested?

A few of us are looking at heading over to leavenworth in a week for spring break. What's it looking like up there now? Any ideas what crags may be in better shape, get more sun, etc?

Just walked into eddie bauer this afternoon and they were having a clearance. The down hoody for men and women was going for $75.

I've seen the test stuff, but don't put a lot of value in them. Like what was said above, they are based off a controlled environment. I have heard enough good things from enough people to believe that event does a better job. Bringing more shirts isn't a real world solution. I'm not looking to start a debate over layers, hardshell vs. softshell etc...as fun as it can be, I'm really looking for some fit advice on the RAB jackets and anyone that may be able to compare the M10s three layer fabric to gore/event. Thanks to secret ninja magic, all are on sale

I'm looking for a new hardshell. I've had a paclite jacket and can't stand goretex. It feels cold, super clammy, and I always wind up damp from the inside. So I'm looking at Event and the Patagonia M10. I'd prefer event, but so far can't find a good fit with the few companies using event. Anyone have any experience with the M10? Can anyone compare the fit of RAB's Latok Alpine and Momentum? I ordered a Med and Large in the Latok Alpine and neither fits well. The med is too short in the arms and way to tight across the chest/shoulders. The large fits great in the upper regions, but is very baggy in the body. Does the Momentum fit any differently?

The garden has been closed for a few years now. There isn't any other gym in town except for the university, but sadly its only for student use. No other plans to open another gym in town. There's been talk of getting some artificial boulders similar to Bozeman, but the project can't get the funding. A friend with a good home woody is your best bet.

I'm also in Missoula and love to get out. Send me a pm.

There was little ice on Cali. What ice there was, was thin and discontinuous. There is very little snow in the front end of the canyon and the temps had been fairly warm, even up high.

The plateau was certainly one of the more "entertaining" spots I've been recently. The route is really good and I'd recommend it, even if you're coming from WA or OR. Don't let our time fool you. If you don't botch the descent, we would have been back at the car in under 15hrs.

Trip: Beartooths - Ice Dragons Date: 11/6/2010 Trip Report: We left Missoula late Friday night and pulled in the trailhead just after 2am. Sorted the gear, got in bed by 3, and up at 5. We took just at 4 hours to do the approach and found the first 2 pitches not to be in. No problem, we'll go up the easy looking corner to a chimney. It turned out to be in the M5R range. Still, great rock and fun climbing. Besides, 2 pitches of rock got us to the ICE. And such great ice it was. Fat and totally plastic for 500ft up to WI3+. 3 long pitches later with increasing spin drift (we were getting hammered) and decreasing light, we had 2 more rock/moss pitches up to M5 again (guidebook claims easy rock, but we found a more fun way) and a steep snow pitch put us on top about 730. Did I mention the spin drift? Well it came from the plateau where it was blowing a steady 50mph and much harder on the gusts. Oh, it was dark too. And we got lost by heading down the wrong descent gully. And we spent the next 10 hours temporarily not knowing where we were. Its okay though. If we follow water down hill it'll eventually take us to the right drainage. A few raps, lots of talus, a river crossing, and finally the trail. We made it back to the car after 30hrs. Pretty good day out! Gear Notes: Screws, rock gear .5-3 and full set of nuts Approach Notes: Easy, its getting down you gotta watch out for

My dad and I used an HD hero for a 5 week motorcycle trip through AK this summer and it was great. Video was really good as others have said. Biggest down side are the controls and having to guess where its pointed. If using the full waterproof case, the audio sucks. Overall, its awesome. Took the old non HD version up in the tetons and even then it was cool.