Jason4

PM sent regarding the ice axe.

Surf trunks and a sit pad...? I actually have a pair of super simple Stoic softshell pants that I've been happy with. I don't kneel very much and if I'm stopping to enjoy the view then usually I'll sit on my pack or flip my split over and sit on the base of it.

I don't really see myself with a full rack of quickdraws with lockers at both ends but the new Grivels would have helped me out last summer. I managed to clip one of the draws on my harness to the bolt end of a draw I had just placed in the awkward chimney at the top of Prime Rib and found my upward progress suddenly halted. The fall might not have been too dangerous but it would have dumped the rest of the draws that I had on that gear loop if it had broken. I'll have to pick up one of these to try out, maybe they'll find their way into my gear bin.

Canting is usually used to describe the angle between the sole of your foot and the topsheet of your ski or snowboard. What you're describing sounds more like forward lean. It could be that the boots you're using have too much forward lean for your skiing style. I'm a splitboarder so skiing is not second nature to me but I know enough about ski boots to know that different boots have different forward lean angles and to hear that you were happy skiing in the TLT5s make me really wonder why you aren't using a set of those instead. If my foot fit in them I'd be using a pair for splitting. You might look into the model of boot that you have to see if the forward lean can be changed or talk to your boot fitter to see if they can add foam to your tongue and remold the calf of the liner to get your leg more upright.

Jason speaks the truth. I've had enjoyable turns with him on the WS side in May but I don't think it would be much fun in August.

Nice pictures as always. I was hiking the Arm that day with friends from out of town and saw your tracks. I was more than just a little bit jealous.

This one hits close to home, I haven't seen the names in the news yet but I think the guide is a friend of mine. Too many friends have been lost to avalanches.

Squamish! I joke that it's my local crag but I'm not really that far off. It's 2 hours to go from my door to the parking lot at Smoke Bluffs. Reasons: I can plan my day from the Starbucks at the end of Loggers Lane. New stuff is developed faster than I can climb it. It was dry and warm last weekend (Junuary might be good for something). Great rock. Great variety. Great friends.

When I was in there on Dec 28 the winter route did not look like it was in so we walked the summer route with skis on our packs. This last storm must have helped.

I strap mine to the outside of my cilo pack but want to find a better way. When I have my avy tools in the cilo shovel pocket it ends up on the outside of the 'pons and really ends up making the pack big and cumbersome. This would be alleviated by either having the cilo ski pack (but I really can't justify another pack) or having lash points on the outside of the shovel pocket. I like having them on the outside and easy to get to since usually by the time I want my 'pons I've already wandered past the point of easily setting my pack down to dig through it.

I get the idea that this question isn't intended for a climbing application, maybe it's for cleaning a roof or something like that.

No affiliation and I'm a splitboarder so maybe this stuff isn't all that rad but it seems like an incredible deal: http://cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/1115128/FS_NEW_AT_Package_K2_Marker_BD#Post1115128

Ruth Mountain off of 542. I was up there 2 weeks ago and slept on the bench on the south side of the summit. There was a great slope above where we slept that felt like a permanent snow field. You do have to cross a glacier to get to the summit. The bridges were obvious and possibly dubious.

An update on my Cilo 45L worksack experience: I was out on Ruth over the weekend without the split kit so my pack was relatively light. I weighed it when I got back home at 37 pounds without water, I was carrying around 3 liters most of the time so add a few pounds for that too. I'm able to fit everything inside my pack for an overnighter with a glacier crossing except the few things that I want on the outside: crampons, ice axe, picket, and a map. It's clean and narrow and out of the way. I'd actually appreciate the pack being an inch or two wider since I think I might be built a inch or two wider than most of their athletes. I'd go for being narrower but I think it would be easier to adjust the pack. I still find myself wishing for faster access to the interior of the pack even if it's just for pulling out a layer during stops or stashing a layer after dropping off a ridge but I generally like the simple tube and multiple strap options. A voile ski strap fits perfectly on the side to carry skis A-frame style. I also wish there were a couple more D-ring/Tri-slides on the bottom of the pack for the occasion that I want to carry a tent or sleeping pad there. I don't care for the way the brain pocket sits on top without a full load either, it seems like it flops around a lot and I don't see the need for quick release buckles on the back panel side, I'd prefer D-rings/Tri-slides there instead.

No. If your friends can't transition in the time it takes you to assemble a splitboard, your friends have work to do. The only advantage to a splitboard is if you are already a dynamite snowboarder or have the gear. You get thrashed on the uphill, traversing sucks both skinning and riding, you have a set of sails on your back when carrying, the wide skins are a pain in the ass, and if the terrain is rolling (a considerable chunk of good PNW terrain) you will be left behind. There are those who make it happen, but they are the exception. I think it's a disservice to lure a mountaineer into splitboarding when there is an option to go with skis, as it will eventually be limiting. People generally don't seek out long breakable crust runs. I'm not saying I'm faster with the transition, I'm saying I'm not more than 30 seconds slower and I've seen that time eaten up with guys falling over trying to rip skins while standing or trying to dig ice out of their dynafit sockets. If someone is starting from scratch then skiing is the obvious choice but for someone with a strong snowboard background I wouldn't suggest taking the step backwards to learn how to ski. I don't go looking for breakable crust laps but I seem to find them more often than I want. The best part of skiing is the flexibility in the ski quiver: skinny skis for hard conditions and fat skis to keep up with snowboarders in pow. Splitboards just get shorter or longer and that doesn't help much on the up.

This is a bit misleading and I could counter with saying that you'd have to be an amazingly good skier to keep up with even an average snowboarder in breakable crust. There are advantages to both and there are disadvantages that are specific to splitboarding. Anytime a ski that's less than 130mm in the waist is a major advantage a splitboard is going to be slow on the up. That makes for most of the spring touring/climbing season. Anytime a binding release results in losing a ski in a crevasse a snowboard is at a major advantage, it's been a long long time since I've had a snowboard release and runaway. Specific tools excel in specific conditions. That said, there is no way that I'm going to go out and learn to ski just for the ski mountaineering aspect, I feel comfortable enough on a snowboard that I feel serious descents are not an issue. Transitions are not an issue if everyone is transitioning at the same time, it's only a few seconds slower on a splitboard and I've waited for enough friends to deal with dynafiddles that it really isn't based on which way you face on the descent. It is an issue on rolling descents with benches where skiers can waddle /herringbone across them while snowboarders are left with the dreaded scooch. This is a pretty rare issue for me in the terrain that I play in. Either way, if you're an adult and you're sliding on snow with sticks made of wood and plastic you better be smiling because there really isn't another reason to do it.

You might try going to a SAC meeting, they have members that are very involved at Erie and are local to the area. Meetings are usually the first Monday of every month. There are a handful of ladies involved in the club that climb hard too if you swing that way (on a lead fall of course!).

I've done a lot of reading on the TLT5 and 6 in hopes of getting one of those to fit my foot. I'm coming out of BD Primes that fit my foot well with just a heat molded stock liner. What I've read and learned from talking to a few boot fitters is that the ball of the foot is the hardest spot to change on the TLT5 and that the 6 should be better because it lost the walking hinge. Both boots are thin grilamid but a good boot fitter should be able to work with either. Wildsnow has a write up about a neat trick for heating the toe of the TLT5 and then clamping it with a tennis ball inside to squish the toe down and a bit wider.

I was up on Skyline Divide over the weekend. Glacier Creek Road is still closed for repairs, I'm not sure of the current status on Canyon Creek road, Heather Meadows is open.

What is the GS mod?

I picked up the last copy at Erie General store last week. I assume they were out of chalk balls already but that wasn't why I stopped anyways. Time to restock! Nice job.

I've been splitboarding on AT boots and plate bindings a bunch now and did a lot of reading on boots with that as my primary use. As was said the TLT5 is the current top choice if your foot fits in it and Dane has a lot of good stuff to say about ski mountaineering and ice climbing in those boots. My foot does not fit in the TLT5 and I couldn't find a boot fitter confident in getting it to fit when I was ready to buy boots. I'm hoping that things will be different with the TLT6. I don't have much interest in vertical ice but I do enjoy getting out of my comfort zone ski mountaineering (or split-mo in my case).

If you don't get much feedback it might be the thread title, I clicked expecting boots from Patagonia called the Ice Cap and was curious to know if they were making real mountaineering boots now. I bet I'm not the only one. There should be plenty of experience around here to answer your questions unfortunately I don't have it. Good luck!

Haha, I'll admit that I've had an ironically not ironic mustache in some of my climbing adventures since I got my Cilo pack but I'm currently clean shaved, with nothing wrapped around my ankle except dress socks (maybe hipster argyle, I was half asleep when I put them on) and the only personally meaningful tat is ink covered by my dress shirt. Cilo packs have downsides, I'm not saying that they are the best out there and I know that I would want a couple of things done differently on mine but my pack fits your description of what you want perfectly. I almost bought another Cilo pack in the spring when a 30L worksack popped up in the classifieds. I'd be very happy to get that for a day tripper. The 30:30 doesn't do much for me since it has volume near the 45L but with the lightweight suspension of the 30L which is backwards from what I want, I want to carry heavy skis and metal junk strapped to the outside with just a bit of space for a puffy and lunch.

You're welcome anytime. I don't currently have any work travel planned so I should be around. My schedule is pretty consistent at work M-F 7-4 and get out in the mountains on the weekends but lately it's been housework on the weekends.