Devin27

Trip: Unicorn Peak- Tatoosh - Standard Date: 7/21/2013 Trip Report: Unicorn Peak- Tatoosh Danika, Ilia, David and I took a summer trip down to Mount Rainier National Park and climbed Unicorn peak in the Tatoosh last weekend. This was my first trip back in the mountains after spending a month abroad for work and it was nice to stretch my legs. Two years ago, Danika, Meredith and I were turned around from this peak in early spring by a long road walk, ski boot issues and bad avy conditions. This trip featured none of the above, though it threw in its own challenges. I had expected a summer trip to this area to be following a trail to the summit block, but this was actually a fun alpine climb with just enough spice to make it a really great trip. Hiking past Snow Lake Having hiked the road from Narada to Reflection Lakes several times this year already, it was pretty nice to drive all the way to the trailhead. An hour of trail hiking had us passing by Snow Lake (I wonder how many “Snow Lakes” there are in this state?) and switching from easy trail to much less amusing boulder fields and then hard snow in the gully leading to the upper basin. Hooray boulder fields….. Much cursing ensued as we worked our way over sliding rocks and hard rotten snow, but we crossed into the upper basin without incident. This was our turn around spot from our previous attempt and we got a good view of our folly in attempting during that climb to traverse to Castle for a better ski descent. Following a navigation discussion which almost led us up and around the wrong subsummit, we ascended the correct second gully and crossed circumnavigated to the South side of Unicorn with great views of Rainier, Adams, St Helens and Hood. Love the view More choss climbing and loose rock dodging (I can see why this is a good spring climb) got us to the summit block and our reward for hauling several pounds of rope and rack. I lead the 5.6 “Classic Route” which reminded me that I still have rock skills despite several months of not using them between snow and traveling. Sadly, the rock pitch was over fast and we hit the summit a leisurely 4 hours from the car. Rock climbing On the summit with great views. Poor souls trekking to Muir The long but fast way down I havent seen Paradise this melted out in a long time The descent was more eventful that I usually like. Choss surfing was fun at times, while dodging falling rock was certainly not. I also had a large snow bridge fail below me during the descent down the lower gully, which lead to a 4-5 foot drop onto some rocks. Fortunately I was unharmed but be careful on snow this time of year. Round trip 8 hours car to car, during which we were never particularly rushing. Great trip and a lot more alpine fun that I had expected. Ilia Choss surfing Debris from the collapsed snow bridge Gear Notes: If anyone finds a black diamond z fold trekking pole up there, please let me know. I only have a 60 m rope, but a shorter would probably do just fine. Light rack. BD cams 0.5-2 and a set of nuts.

Well I am two for two. After losing a trekking pole last weekend on Unicorn peak, I have now lost its mate at the campsites at Wing Lake near Black Peak on Saturday 7/27. This time was not my fault, as it was stolen by some Marmots/Goats in the night, likely for the salt on the grip. So if you find a Black Diamond Z-fold Black and blue trekking pole at Wing Lake, please send me a message.

Need some help from the climbers out there. I lost one of my Black Diamond black z fold trekking poles somewhere between the summit and the bolder field near snow lake. Not sure where it fell off my pack exactly. If you find it please let me know Thanks

Price drop to $400 for the skis and bindings

bump

Decided to eliminate one of my ski quiver because I just have too many. 2008 Black Diamond Stigma Skis 166cm- A great light ski for spring skiing, ski mountaineering or someone just getting into backcountry skiing. This is the ski I learned to ski the backcountry on. Want to upgrade some other equipment so they have to go. The bases are in great condition with no repairs made or needed, there is a small chip in the top sheet on the tail of one ski about the size of a quarter that can be easily epoxied and is purely cosmetic Length (cm) Nose/Waist/Rear (mm) Weight (g) Radius (m) 166 120/79/106 2800 16.50 2011 Fritschi Eagle 12 Backcountry ski bindings- Currently on the Stigmas. Size X-Large BSL 330 - 365 mm Asking $450 for the entire set up. Get all your gear in one stop and get out and enjoy the snow. I also have a pair of Black Diamond Method AT ski boots size 29 that would go perfect with this set up. They were a half size too big on me and I wear a size 10.5 street shoe. Asking $150 for the boots Info on the boots The Black Diamond Method Alpine Touring Boot refuses to compromise between downhill performance and tourablility. The Black Diamond Men's Method Alpine Touring Boot offers all-mountain skiers a stiff freeride boot with excellent backcountry access capabilities. Black Diamond gave the Method an alpine style overlap design that provides a natural, progressive flex on descents and increased uphill touring efficiency. Three forward lean setting allow for eight degrees of customization, and the mechanically integrated ski/walk mode toggles on and off securely. The Method Alpine Touring Boot comes stocked with a thermoformable, anti-microbial Stobel Power Fit liner. Brand new unused Thule Gateway 2 Bike Trunk bike rack. I do not have the box, but all the parts are still in the plastic bag and brand new. Save $50 off MSRP. Asking $100 http://www.rei.com/product/850951/thule-gateway-2-bike-trunk-rack

Maybe try a half shank boot that will still flex a bit for trail. I also really like my Scarpa Mount Blanc's because they have a series of plates instead of a shank which still flexes on trail but stiff as a full shank for ascents.

I also use two layers of socks and always have for climbing and hiking. This will help pull moisture away from your foot and keep you dry. Your feet should not be constantly soaked in the boots. A little moisture is normal, but maybe try thinner socks or a warmer weather boot depending on what you are doing. Moisture will make your skin weaker and more susceptible to blisters As far as tape, a single layer of duct tape on the back of my heels does wonders for any problems that come up. Prevention and good fitting boots are key. Once a blister is forming it is almost always too late to prevent it. Consider getting your boots from a store that allows unlimited returns like REI, Sierra Trading Post or backcountry.com. That way you are covered if they are the wrong fit. That being said, I would try to go into a store and try on a bunch to see how they feel. You want your heels locked down in the boot and not moving around. If your toes feel crunched from the sides in a smaller boot, take a look at the Scarpa's which have a wider toe box usually.

Stars over Mount Baker on route to the North Ridge

Sunshine through the incoming storm on Mount Baker

Basalt in the shadows

Lava tube bouldering during a rain storm near Smith Rocks

The following story is true, only the names have been changed to protect the innocent

Black bird skies for a Mount Hood ski

Hi all, Just realizing that I can't find my climbing skins. Might have left then anywhere along the south side route, over near illumination rock, down in the groomers or even in the parking lot. PM me and I can describe them Devin

Also wanted to add a photo of a fellow skier

Skied over towards illumination rock hoping to avoid the ice and eyed that line. It looked pretty awesome and made me wish I had my tools

Trip: Mt Hood - Hogsback-Old Chute Date: 2/2/2013 Trip Report: Climbed and skied the Old Chute route of Mount Hood on Saturday under perfectly clear skies, great climbing conditions and significantly less than great skiing conditions. Had a group of snowshoers and skiers, though we never needed floatation. Arrived at the lodge at 11pm and crashed for a few short hours before our 3am walk time. Ended up getting moving by 3:40am and headed up the groomed trail through the ski area. Skies were crystal clear and wind was minimal minus occasional minor gusts. Overall fantastic conditions. Crampons and ski crampons were on from the start and we moved pretty quick to the top of the Palmer lift. Once we got off the groomers we found hard packed wind slabs and ice that sent my skies to my pack with 300 vertical feet. Our other skier with the fixed Violie crampons made it another 500 ft or so before he gave up as well. I hauled my skies to about 500 feet below the hogsback before stashing them after finding wind created ice formations that were going to make skiing very unpleasant (more on these later) Hit the Hogsback at the same time as the sun and headed up the old chute. Snow was still very firm, so cramponing up the steep slope felt secure and fast. Topped out at 9:30am, which we were pretty happy with given it was our first big ascent of the season and we made a few stops along the way. The ascent was great, the descent was much less so. The sun had not been on the old chute for a while, so the decent was very slow and involved a lot of down climbing. Once below the hogsback, we discovered that the entire lower slope had lost its light cover of snow that was concealing the endless field of windblown ice fingers which varied from breakable to bullet hard and made skiing pretty terrible. There was really no way to avoid it, as the entire slope was a mix of edge catching ice fingers and huge chucks of broken ice. Top 1000 feet would have been descent skiing Middle 2000 feet was torture on my skis and legs Lower 2000 feet groomers in the ski area. Back down to the car at 1:30pm and back in Seattle by 7:30pm after food. Couldn’t have asked for better weather, could have asked for better snow. Leave the skies and snowshoes at home until there is more snow. Photos Gear Notes: A ice plow would have been nice Approach Notes: Perfect crampon conditions, no need for floatation at all.

Who says you need cold for ice climbing?

Trip: Jim Hill Mountain- Stevens Pass - Henry Creek Basin Date: 1/20/2013 Trip Report: Ilia and I skied Jim Hill Mountain on Sunday in an adventure of varied snow conditions and interesting route finding. This “winter” ascent, felt more like a mid spring climb with light jacket weather in the basin and cloudless skies above. The sun didn’t get into the Henry Creek basin that was our approach route, but it was still pleasant all day. Drove past Stevens Pass and got to the semi legal shoulder (The one next to the for some reason illegal turn out near the start of the approach) at around 8:30. Skinned up the closed road and up to the first open clear cut. Plenty of skiers have been up here since the last snow, but still plenty of clean runs left. We decided to follow the road across the creek and then cut straight up the hill until we found the road again. We eventually ran out of road and had to cross back to the West side of the creek. Wasn’t an issue as the creek is mostly covered higher up, and there were many crossings. This is where we got our first hint of the fun yet to come. The cold weather and sunshine created an perfectly terrible tree bombed ice field in the trees, of which there are a lot on this descent route. Found pretty varied snow on the entire route. Fresh light powder in the clear cuts (fun), wind affected solid snow on the open slopes (wished I had ski crampons), and of course the solid chopped up ice in the trees (joy). Burst out of the trees and headed towards the summit. At the summit block, we made the wrong decision by going to what looked like easier terrain to the notch on climbers left of what looks like the summit. Skiing off the false summit block is possible if you are a better skier than me. I had to down climb after trying to side slip and failing. Wish I brought my ice axe, because it was a little too firm and steep to plunge step. After that was a sometimes pleasant, sometime less pleasant mix of the varied snow I mentioned earlier. No picture here because my camera was safe in my backpack and most of my concentration was on not hitting trees in the ice (didn’t help) and trying to turn when the snow turns from powder to solid mid turn. All in all, a really great ascent with a less fun descent (should be the other way with skis). Wait for better snow before heading up there. Gear Notes: Ski crampons would have helped for the ascent and a whippet or ice axe would have been nice for the ascent. Approach Notes: Follow Henry Creek until it starts to curve climbers left in the open basin. Leave the creek and follow the climbers right drainage towards the summit.

PM Sent on Method Boots

Maybe I found the magical route, but I climbed it back in July and just went up the most obvious center part of the gully. I found nothing above class 4 and mostly easy class 3. Loose rock was an issue for sure and I was happy to be the team there that morning. We did not use a rope at all and climbed in boots and I am not more than a decent rock climber. I could see a rope being nice for raps and climbing if uncomfortable, but we didnt need it. Right now though, it might be interesting with all the snow.

Tent Sold

Monday morning bump

Snow stability is going to be a big issue with any steep narrow gully. Im sure you would want to bring crampons just in case, but you may wish you brought snow shoes instead depending on how much snow is up there. The reason most people do not climb up the cascadian is that it is a huge pile of choss (not an issue with snow) and a long steep hike (could be a big issue with snow). In winter conditions, you are going to find cold temps, wind and possibly lots of snow because of the elevation It can be done in fall/winter if you have the skills and knowledge to handle snow travel, access avy danger and deal with varied snow conditions. If not, I would wait until Spring or Summer to climb it.