pcg

Don't own one, but here's a new entry to market... Drift HD 170 1080p 5 Mpixel remote control LCD viewer $289 at Amazon http://www.driftinnovation.com/hd170-action-camera

I'm on a mission to save weight and am about to buy a pair of full strap Al crampons to replace my steel for climbs where I will be on snow/ice only. I'll be wearing them over everything from hiking boots to my AT boots. Why is the BD Neve preferred over the Grivel Air Tech Light?

Yeah thanks a lot! Now I pay $8 postage!

Nope.

As a previous poster alluded, the GPS unit in a cell phone will only work when you are within cell range, unlike standard GPS units which work as long as you can see some satellites. To me that makes a cell phone GPS unreliable.

If you want to make a trip to get glacier experience you really should consider adding a third person to your party because it is much safer to travel roped-up across a glacier with three than with two. The exception to this is that people often travel unroped across glaciers in summer when all crevasses are open and visible. You just can't fall.

1972, Longs Peak, somewhere around Chasm Lake. Egyptian cotton anorak purchased from REI in 1968. I think it was about $30 retail. Remember goldline?

Most are bridged over my mid-winter, but the danger of falling through a snow-bridge is very real. Climbers on foot are more likely to fall through than a snowboarder or skier whose weight is distributed over a larger area. Even when crevasses are open, you can fall in if you are standing too near the edge and the edge breaks off. The same goes for cornices. Cornices are very dangerous, especially after recent storms, and late in the season when they are melting and collapsing. Of course. Every route to the summit has a crux that can be fatal. The standard south route is dangerous for that reason (except in winter and early spring) when the Hogback bergschrund is open. More than a few have slipped in the Pearly Gates and ended up going into the Bergschrund, some with fatal consequences. A common mistake here is to rope up when it's icy w/o placing pro, meaning that if someone slips they will likely take their friends along with them. Two other popular routes that are sometimes skied/snowboarded on the descent are the Sunshine route and Cooper Spur. These are no-fall zones. A few years ago a snowboarder from Argentina tried to descend the Cooper Spur route and fell and went for a long fatal slide. Of course. (If you aren't aware of the OES disaster Google it) I manage a high school snowboard team and I can tell you right now the biggest problem with high school snowboarders is that they take that "NO FEAR" logo seriously. They have no fear because they aren't educated. Skiing/riding at resorts lulls them into a sense of safety that is not present in the backcountry. Specifically I am referring to three things: avalanche danger, no-fall zones, and weather. The courts have established that resorts are liable for avalanche injury so resorts take avalanche control seriously. However, avalanche control takes place early in the wee hours of the morning before skiers/snowboarders arrive and most just have no clue how much work has been done to make the area safe for them. Any danger is out of sight and out of mind. Often, especially after a big powder dump, it is impossible to make it safe so unsafe areas are roped off and closed by ski patrol. Those are days when you might have some riders head for the backcountry, eager to shred pow, but oblivious to the avy danger. A more likely scenario is simply ducking the rope and going into unsafe terrain. A very common example on Mt. Hood is a gully with a snow-covered creek at the bottom. Skiing/riding at resorts also desensitize you to no-fall zones. Until recently, there were no no-fall zones at resorts. Consequently, skiers/snowboarders don't develop a fear of falling. Sure, they may be on a steep icy slope and start to slide, but after a few seconds they reach a nice safe runout and slide to a stop. (This is starting to change a bit as areas are acquiescing to the demand for more side-country experiences.) In the real world (backcountry) there are often cliffs, crevasses, or rocks to stop your slide. Expert skiers and snowboarders have died on Hood after making just one small slip. You can't do that in a no-fall zone. Resorts also desensitize you to weather. Unless the wind is blowing so hard as to disrupt the operation of ski lifts, resorts stay open through just about any weather, including weather that would have me digging frantically for shelter if I was in the backcountry. The same weather in one scenario is uncomfortable and annoying, and can be remedied by a ten minute ski down a sheltered run to a warm lodge. In the other scenario it can be deadly. The most common scenarios where snowboarders get in trouble on Mt. Hood is starting the day off at a resort, going out of bounds, and then descending below the lift and getting lost. This usually results in them spending a very cold night. Another potentially deadly trap is falling into a treewell. Most skiers and boarders get into trouble after they have left a ski area boundary, and then head into backcountry. This is true simply because few initiate trips that don't begin with riding a lift. It's just too much work for most. Consequently there are more snowboarders and skiers getting in trouble after going out of bounds than there are from something gone awry while climbing Mt. Hood on a purely backcountry outing. The scenario you envisioned could easily happen, however, and many boarders do go up above Palmer when the weather is good. This is mostly true in spring and summer. A sudden storm can put them in a whiteout and result in them going down into White River Canyon (where they can encounter open crevasses) or, more likely, Zig Zag Canyon. If unstable weather moves in and high wind ensues, then everyone could end up being holed up in a snow cave for days. Without sleeping bags and food and fuel, this could turn out really bad.

Fun stuff. Dangerous in general, but no one was disturbed and it seemed safe enough given the circumstances, and I'm all for that. Of course I'm partial to explosions and such and was fortunate enough to have grown up in the pre-terrorist era when boys that made bombs were just considered to be boys. Many years ago I attended a high power amateur rocket launch in the desert of central Oregon. Everything was legit and cleard through FAA, but the day before the event a few fellows scheduled a non-publicized off-the-record special event. Everyone that had anything explosive they wanted to get rid of was invited to bring it for "disposal". The collection included multiple sticks of dynamite, kinepak, old cans of black powder, and other stuff I was not familiar with. A bulldozer was used to dig a hole and bury it all I'm guessing 1/2 mile from the launch area. There was a countdown and instantly a large brown mushroom cloud rose from the desert floor - no sound. A few seconds later I felt what can best be described as being hit in the chest hard with a sofa cushion. I don't remember the sound, but I remember it was all glorious.

Yes, and to elaborate a bit, if you have arrested a fall and now are straining to hold over 200 lbs. of weight, how are you going to remove your pack, get your shovel out, and gather materials for and then build an anchor?

Early season snow is often unstable for a few days, especially when the wind has been blowing and then the temp is going to warm, which it has and it is. There is no avalanche control in the backcountry and skiers used to skiing on the groomed are often not aware of the dangers of unstable snow because the avalanche control that goes on in the wee hours before they hit the slopes is out of sight and out of mind. In the backcountry it does not exist. Acquire avy gear and learn how to use it (you must practice this stuff first), get educated about how to travel in avalanche terrain, and go with others who are similarly prepared, or... stay off and out from under slopes between 25 and 40 degrees. Enjoy! You will love it!

I'm not currently in the market for a tent, but educate me please. What is the downside to a fire resistant coating? Thanks.

...until you touch it. While it is a ridge, that pile of rock is highly unstable until it becomes marginally so when somewhat glued together by ice and snow. Trying to climb on Yocum Ridge right now would be kind of like playing "pick up sticks".

Conditions are terrible right now. On Wednesday I tried to climb up to the top of Snowdome (red circle in photo, which was taken Wednesday) on the NE side to do some skiing, but was forced to turn back at 10 AM by rock coming down onto the bottom of Elliot Glacier. From my vantage point it looked like new snow above about 9500', but it is all turning to water fast. IMO it is impossible to summit safely via any route at the present time and to attempt to do so would be foolish. If you can cross Elliot Glacier and get to the bottom of Snowdome before the sun gets high then I think you'd be relatively safe on Snowdome itself, but not beyond. The problem is getting there and then getting back, which forces you to cross Elliot Glacier. Like I said, it was a shooting gallery by 10 AM. If you wanted to just do some hiking/scrambling sans crampons/axe and not try to summit you could head up Vista Ridge on the N side to the top of Barrett Spur and be safe from rockfall. That is also a nice place to sit back in the sun and watch and listen to the mountain slowly falling apart.

That's why we have seasons. Time to take some time off before the next season which brings new activities. We all need down time now and then and we all need variety. I embrace the lack of passion and relax for awhile, but I force myself to do some sort of low-key exercise daily, like long walks with the dog.

15 minutes ago. Anyone else see Hood this morning? I live directly west from the mountain so at the beginning of fall the sun comes up right behind it.

Amateur radio devices typically have higher power, operate at more frequencies, and can often hit repeaters in areas where cell phones cannot hit cell towers. Downside is a license is required although the requirements are fairly easy nowadays.

Just an edit to " there was no sign of the other two, who are still missing and presumed dead." Both bodies were recovered by PMR in late August.

Can't speak for the person who said not to, but I would not plan to climb Hood on a specific date in September because the chances of conditions being solid enough (cold enough so that there is no falling ice or rock) to be safe on a specific date in September are not good. Mt. Hood has killed many. Don't take it lightly because there are easy routes to the summit. Mt. Adams south climb no problem as long as high pressure prevails and the weather forecast is good (no storms) for several days. Don't fall prey to the pyschological trap sometimes referred to as "the lost opportunity". In other words, it is often tempting to go through with a planned climb, despite the facts that conditions are not suitable, because you have traveled from somewhere else and can only climb on a certain date. Too many have pushed caution aside because it was their only chance and all too often those who do so perish, making it truly their last chance. Dont' take it.

I was told by ski patrol that it was for their (ski patrol) and Timberline employees use only.

Never done MSH. Of the above, Punch Bowl on the Eagle Creek trail and Barret Spur are most bang for the buck. Less than eight miles roundtrip gets you the view pictured from Barret Spur below. If you go to Punch Bowl (pictured in previous post)take a swimsuit. You can jump cliffs there from 15' to 90'. If you don't belive the 90' watch this - insane... [video:youtube] Top of Barret Spur, late July 2010

You might contact a boot fitter and see if they can widen the toe box. People do this with plastic ski boots all the time, but some of the techniques might work an a non-plastic boot as well.

The Yocum Ridge Trail on Mt. Hood may be too long as you said 12-14 miles max. It is now 18-1/2 miles round trip since the Sandy River flooded and washed out the last section of the road to Romana falls several years ago. If you find yourself short of time the quickest way to get high on the mountain is to hike up the Vista Ridge Trail and then scramble to the top of Barret Spur on Hood's north side, about 8-1/2 miles round trip from the trailhead and a spectacular hike overlooking Ladd and Coe glaciers. Another short and spectacular hike is Cooper Spur which overlooks the Elliot Glacier on the NE side. If you have crampons and ice axe (a trekking pole will sub for an ice axe here if snow surface is not frozen) you can make this a longer hike by crossing the moraine at the bottom of the Elliot and climbing the Snowdome snowfield to climber's right of the glacier which is mainly crevasse free until about 9,000 ft. At that elevation you have a spectacular view of the Sunshine route up Mt. Hood.