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I always blow the water back out of the tube and into the bladder after drinking, so there is nothing in the tube to freeze. Yes, I carry a separate front pack to hold things I access frequently. Yeah if you regularly dig pits (I don't) then you'll need to wipe shovel dry before sticking it down in the pack as the material in the pocket is not waterproof so any moisture will soak through to other parts of the pack. When I took Avy 1 we were taught to keep avy gear outside the pack where it could be immediately accessed, but I have heard they are teaching differently now - not sure what the reasoning is, but I am happy to have the clutter off the outside of the pack and not have to worry about things falling off, catching on tree branches, etc.

I have the 30z and have about ten days on it so far. No, and I prefer it that way. Everyone has bladders of different size and in summer why carry insulation you don't need. You can wrap a bladder in a down vest or something else that has dual use in winter. Yes, and I find it a bit annoying as my right arm hits it. I can't bear to cut it off so I'm trying to get used to it. Handy place for nav gear for me. Avy gear is only wet if you have to use it which hopefully is never. Yes you can cram skins in there, but I prefer to keep them in a front pack where they are easy to get to. My only beef about putting avy gear inside is if you have to get to it you'll have to peel gloves/mittens first so you can operate the zipper that holds the brain down. It's fairly well protected by a weatherproof cover and not real easy to grab. Overall it is very burly and appears to be more weatherproof with the permanent brain that peels back with a covered zipper. However, this makes the zipper somewhat hard to get to under the cover and this design doesn't allow for cinching things down like the typical Cilogear pack which has a drawstring on top underneath a removable brain. I'm starting to get used to this.

I'm not a pilot or an aerospace engineer so I'm not familiar with the definition of glide slope and glide ratio. However, if you do a simple mental experiment and imagine the worst case scenario - zero air density, then (assuming your initial acceleration only has a vertical component) you will fall straight down no matter what your shape or angle of attack. I think the poster is referring to glide path, and is correct in thinking that the glide path will be steeper at higher altitudes, but perhaps used the incorrect phrase to describe what he is thinking about, as I also may have done.

Damn! I get tired and achy all over just reading this. Youth is wasted on the young!

Exact time they open varies, but that time of year it is usually from 7:30 to 8:30 AM. An alpine start from the parking lot will get you way past 8,000 ft. (top of Palmer lift) by 7:30. Keep in mind, though, that the snow may not soften enough up high to making skiing enjoyable until much later.

Is it open? How far? Thanks.

You can fly with a stove. You can't fly with fuel.

Better yet if you are establishing a route and bolting anchors, use hangers with rap rings in them. That leaves plenty of room to clip a biner in.

Mammut says to wash their ropes just like you would wash wool - so I use Woolite in warm water, gentle cycle.

I have wide feet and currently ski in BD Primes which didn't need to be punched out. Factory liners were way too small though. They may have fixed that by now.

Torre Principal, Frey Valley, Argentine Patagonia

So explain why no one yet makes rock shoes for wide feet...

My recollection is the French guy skied Wy-East face?

Dan Helmstadter and John Plotz have done it... http://cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=966443

Torre Principal and the Frey Valley from summit of Cerro Goye, Argentine Patagonia.

I can't think of a caption for this, but I was astounded when I found Emilio, the Refugio Frey cat, several hundred feet above the refugio on Aguja Frey, lording over Frey Valley, Argentine Patagonia.

Great video! I’m in Bariloche now and have made three trips to Frey so far so I really enjoyed your video, particularly since I was able to recognize routes I’ve climbed. What an amazing playground it is! I will have to say it is largely wasted on me since I’m a beginning trad climber and most of the climbs are beyond my abilities. That and lack of a climbing partner forced me to hire a climbing guide, which was worth every penny - both for the great experience he provided and for all I learned from him. I’m getting pretty good at finding the easy stuff (f5+), but pickings are slim in the Frey Valley for those grades. I recognized the view of Cerro Tronador and Puntiagudo (from the summit of Torre Principal?) as well as Diedro de Jim on Aguja Frey. Great style on the fisura! I was unable to climb that splitter without keeping my right leg out for an outrigger, to keep from barn-dooring to the right. Then it looks like you were on the Sifuentes-Weber route on Aguja Frey after that? Since your video was made all but one tiny patch of snow in the valley had melted by early February as most of January was very warm. The lake is now so low that the refugio can’t make hydro power so no lights at night. It snowed briefly last week and more is on the way so the days of lounging around shirtless at the refugio waiting for the mid-day heat to pass are gone. I'll second the "really cool vibe". I’ve had a great time hanging out with Frederico, Bosquo, and Nahuel, as well as Emilio the Frey cat and all the visiting climbers at Refugio Frey. Thanks for the video. I have no way to make a video so it serves as great documentation to remind me of the fun I’ve had so far.

I had a blustery wet day off and was able to trick a buddy into a "fun adventure in the Gorge". Vivian supplied two wheelbarrows and we made a mad dash to the top, followed by a crazy harrowing trip down with overloaded top-heavy wheelbarrows. The loads were so large we had to alternately back down and then go forwards because we couldn't turn at the switchbacks. Great fun was had by all.

I've been trying to resist responding to this post, but I have something to add that someone new to mountaineering should consider, especially if you have checked off "navigating in a whiteout" as something you think you can handle. In my experience you cannot navigate safely in a true whiteout in an alpine environment. On a flat surface with no hazards maybe, but in a total whiteout, when you can't see your feet, you can become so disoriented that vertigo sets in and your brain will basically lose its reference on life as you know it, making it even impossible to stand without falling. This is a terrifying experience. If you are in a cold stormy environment, then hopefully you have the mental fortitude to keep it together and the skills and equipment to safely hunker down and wait it out. Trying to travel in a whiteout with hazards around is dangerous. Even if you were on ZigZag snowfield below Crater Rock on south side Hood, and your altimeter told you you were safely well above ZigZag Canyon and Mississippi Head, you risk falling into a blow hole or falling off a three foot wind slab. Either could result in serious injury simply because you can't see where you are falling. IMO this guy would have died had he not called SAR, so calling SAR was the right thing to do at that point, from the standpoint of ensuring his own personal survival. Had some SAR personnel perished during the rescue effort then you could second guess that decision. There is no question he made several mistakes that got him to that point. Re. GPS, I have one and seldom use it, but when I've used it I was glad I had it. I consider a non-electronic map, compass, and altimeter to be mandatory. I regard GPS as an emergency device to fall back on if I should become disoriented. If I become disoriented I have made a mistake, so I regard GPS as a "fix" for doing something I shouldn't have done. If you stay oriented to the terrain and you are familiar with the terrain or have a good hard copy map, you will not need GPS. If you are unfamiliar with the terrain and are staying oriented to a map on a GPS then you are traveling on borrowed time. Oh yes... I'm grateful to have survived my mistakes w/o calling SAR or being hung out to dry on CC.

I had a great experience with these guys: https://threesistersbackcountry.com/education/

Since no one else will say it I will... safe practice is to NOT rope up on a steep slope unless you can place reliable pro. Pickets will be next to useless in new snow. It is not very likely you'll be able to catch him if he slips on a steep slope, meaning he will pull you off and you both will go for a ride. This is an oft-repeated tragedy on Mt. Hood.

I got in the habit years ago of using a snug wrist leash when on steep slopes. It is certainly a hassle if you have to change hands. I try to always keep my axe in my right hand, since I am right-handed, so I try to avoid traversing up and to the left, and look for routes that allow me to traverse up and to the right or straight up. Obviously - you can't always do that. I'm sure someone will point that out (I already have) and comment that route finding should not depend on which hand you like to hold your axe in. Well, for me it does. If I have to change hands I do, but I try to optimize things so it is always securely in my right hand with pick facing out. The reason I like my axe in my right hand is that I am right-handed and feel more confident self-arresting in that position. The reason I like it leashed up snug in a self-arrest position is because self-arresting can be a fairly violent and scary procedure, with the possibility of the axe being yanked out of your hand when the pick grabs. If you don't do it immediately you are toast. I want to be as prepared as possible. Years ago I slipped due to dull crampon points and was able to self-arrest, bit it was a scary experience and a wake-up call for me. Now my crampons points are always sharp. Like lead climbing, the real solution is to never fall (or slip if on snow/ice). My conservative nature, however, still wants my axe as ready and as secure as possible in my right-hand, always ready for immediate self-arrest. It is a hassle sometimes, but it makes me feel more comfortable. I think the correct answer depends on your experience, how you climb, and what makes you comfortable. If I was more than an occasional recreational mountaineer then I suppose I would grow more confident and change my ways, but I'm not and I haven't. I don't climb often and I don't climb hard. I just climb for fun and I'm most comfortable with this arrangement. So.. different strokes for different folks. BTW this arrangement is for climbing with a single ice axe, not two tools.

When I follow my saved link to "Past 24 hours" everythng looks fine... but I just went to the front of the site where I normally don't go and it does indeed appear that something is not right...

I'm using Windows 7 Pro and IE9 and have no problems. I also use auto updates so both get updated every week.

I'm fairly new to trad climbing and am wondering why more people don't use equalettes. I used cordalettes until I read in one of Long's books that equalettes did a better job of equalizing. It takes a bit more fussing with getting knots in the right place, but it does give you more room for error. With a cordalette if you don't judge the load angle just right, or if moves, it is no longer equalized. Thoughts?