summitchaserCJB

Ya sounds awesome but I am planning on the year after. Good luck.

"Half of our national prison population, over a million people, are in for drug offenses involving no other crime." wow.

This is a bit of a contentious issue. hmm... As far as bottom line potential to damage your body- there is no getting around the fact that alcohol absolutely is more physically damaging. Alcohol kills many people each years while pot doesn't. Pot does have some psychological effects and perhaps some neuro-physical effects that lead to short term memory problems that may go away after ceasing use.

Ya cmon guys, I led all the crux pitches. Does that count for anything? If anything I should get brownie points for not being one of the lemmings following the herd down the path of least resistance, right? Too bad it wasn't a first descent. Well anyway, lesson learned.

It kinda depends on what you want it for. IMHO a soft shell shouldn't be your last line of defense (especially in the cascades wetness). I personally can't justify spending hundreds (even with a pro deal) on something that a gortex shell combined with a mid weight soft shell can do better, but thats just me. I've found that a mid weight Marmot softshell with windstopper is great for a huge number of tasks in the mountains. Don't get me wrong- if someone wants to give me a arcteryk softshell I'll take it and use the crap out of it.

Yep I agree with everyone. Great packs. I've used the status (80 Liters I believe). More like a Rainier pack or backpacking pack. Fits greats. No complaints whatsoever. I've also used the alpine pack which is comfortable, but it lacks a frame and padded hip belt so it isn't as comfortable. Good luck.

Hey, I have the beal jokers which are rated as twin, half or single so I have a lot of latitude if you will. If you have a rope that is rated for both twin and half ropes it is OK to clip them both into the same piece UNTIL you start clipped them separately. Once you start alternating clips and return to clipping together you create a situation in which one rope will have different amounts of pull (based on different piece placements). So you could have a situation where the two ropes move at different speeds in the same biner and could potentially saw each other. Make sense?

Update: I went back and went as far as the basin (about half way up the route) and didn't find anything. I left a note on a car I thought was heading for the summit (they had ropes and pickets in the car so I assume they were going up Baring) to see if they had found it but I didn't see anyone on route. I did find a ski pole on my descent route that indicates someone else was up there between the time I first came down and a couple days ago. Anyways, cya later. If someone did find it I have a nice leash that goes with it. Contact me and I'll give it to you.

Agreed. I went up there is May and it was a total s*** storm. People freaking out on 30-40 slopes while roped up and we had to get down quickly because of the falling ice. Also people heading up way late in the day, putting them at huge risk for ice fall. Sometimes fast and light is the only option and if you can't pull that off you can get into a pickle.

I soloed Baring today and after coming down the ridge traverse (before the descent) I noticed that my second tool had somehow detached from my pack. I was wasted and didn't want to go back and search for my tool. So if you find it along the route I'll have some beer for you. Thanks much. (The snow is coming too so this will likely be found next spring).