NotMessner

Has anyone tried these? "The Billy Goat Ascent Plate is a new Patent Pending alpine snowshoe for technical terrain made from an aluminum plate component that fits between the ski / mountaineering boot and a crampon. The ascent plates are designed to provide just enough floatation in soft snow to take the suffering out of long climbs. By allowing the front points of the crampon to engage the snow normally they still allow the crampon to provide an element of security. THESE ARE NOT TRACTION DEVICES. They are designed for use in soft snow, if the snow is firm enough that the plates are not providing float we recommend that they be removed and carried until soft snow is again encountered. They are designed to assist with front pointing, as in kicking steps straight up. They are not intended for sidehilling on firm snow or other hard surfaces, the side rails are for stiffening purposes and are not intended to be an edge for sidehilling. Ascent Plates are not designed to be used in rocky terrain, hard or variable snow or ice. The plates are designed to fit a wide variety of crampons and as such there may appear to be some play, especially in the width of the toe bale cut out with some crampons. When properly installed on a boot with a rubber (Vibram) sole the plate will not move regardless of apparent gaps in the fit. If you experience movement let us know and we will review your fit."

Re: "only concern I'd have with the firstlight would be it's ability to stay strong buried under snow and handle heavy winds since the poles are definitely thinner." If you expect heavy snow or heavy winds, and you have purchased a 2nd set of poles, you can double-pole the Firstlight, FWIW.

Re: "This section was undoubtedly the worst section of the entire route, with knee high to chest high sugar snow..." Did you consider the option of taking a pair of racing snowshoes for the entire group, then decide that would be too much weight?

“Two members of the group slipped and fell into a crevasse on Emmons Glacier. They were all tied together.” Is “No pro, no rope” a good rule of thumb?

OK, don't close the whole hill, but how about puttig a metal staircase above the surface of the snow for those of us who don't like risk or danger?

“Four Japanese climbers are missing and presumed dead after a major avalanche swept the West Buttress of Denali on Thursday morning. The slide tore loose at a point known as "Motorcycle Hill" at approximately 11,800 feet and had a crown measuring roughly 200 feet wide with a slide path 800 feet long.” Was there any way for the climbing rangers to have evaluated that hill’s avalanche danger as extreme, and maybe closed the hill till the danger subsided?

"At 1.15 pm I reached summit of Everest. Clouds appeared on the sky. The view was limited. I could spot Tibet on the north side. Makalu, which came out of the clouds. I thought about my ascent on Makalu. What a fight it was and how exhausted I was. Although the view was limited I had the feeling to know exactly where I was. It was not new or unfamiliar or strange. I took some pictures with the Sherpas." All-in-all, a pathetic perfomance compared to Reinhold Messner's SOLO climb of Everest without bottled oxygen. The superman of the Alps becomes just another climber of 8,000 meter peaks. [i freely admit that I am nothing, as a climber.)

Although, you can leave the 1 lb pole set at home, but you can't leave behind the extra 1.5 lbs of thick poles and heavier fabric.

Has anyone tried double-poling the Firstlight in heavy winds?

Dane has a link to a Nilas review, with comparison to the Rab Neutrino Endurance, with a mention of the Plus. http://coldthistle.blogspot.com/

Rab sponsored athlete Nils Nielsen has this to say on the new Boreas: “The last month I’ve been in the French and Swiss Alpes climbing and guiding. Almost every day I’ve been wearing the new Boreas top... The Boreas is a thin pull-on with a hood, it breathes well, but is still quite windproof. And the hood is super good when it’s windy. The stretchy fabric makes it fit good both with and without a helmet. And the small chest pocket also works well as a stuff pocket and is easily clipped to the harness on warm pitches in the sun.” My Boreas easily stretches over my Meteor III helmet, yet sucks down to fit without a helmet. I can wear it as my only hoody in mild conditions, or wear a Smartwool mid-weight hoody (no-stink merino) under or over, and / or, wear an R1 Hoody over or under. “The Boreas Pull-on is a lightweight stretch pull-on designed to offer protection from the sun and the elements when in the mountains. It has been designed to offer fantastic sun protection when climbing or traveling in mountainous areas. The fabric does also offer some wind resistance but this does not compromise breathability and makes the Boreas a fantastic mid layer for both warm and cold conditions. The Rab Boreas was recently awarded a coveted Backpacking Magazine Editor's Choice Award. Weight: 300g / 11 oz. .

Is this an advance in parka design and construction? MH Nilas parka (the Ueli Steck design), $500.00: - 850 fill down. - 15 denier AirShield. - Weight: 22 oz MontBell Frost Line parka, $235.00: - 800 fill power goose down - 30-denier Ballistic rip-stop nylon shell - 30-denier Ballistic nylon taffeta lining - Weight 24.3 oz - Fill Weight 6.7 oz. MontBell Frost Smoke parka, $199.00 - 800 fill power goose down - 15-denier Ballistic Airlight nylon shell & lining - 40-denier nylon taffeta for reinforcements - Weight 12.6 oz. (Size M) - Fill Weight 3.5 oz.

- Orange juice? - Ethylene glycol? - Jamieson’s Irish whiskey? - Crystal Light? - Tea? - Coffee? One would think that someone like the maker of GU would do scientific studies to find the best liquid to take to, say, the top of Denali. I have seen videos of Sherpas taking a rest near the South Summit where they break out Thermos bottles of some liquid, maybe fermented Yak milk?

Your re-explanation or maybe this is the third or fourth time you explained it, makes more sense to me, and seems clearer. Sorry if my ignorance stirred the pot unnecessarily, although others also may have been unclear. I think I missed the significance of: “Then a Nano Puff pull-over (60g). No hood, intentionally.” Here you deliberately avoided a hood, I assume to avoid the super pile-up of hoods I mentioned originally. I was misled by your statement that “the more hoods, the better.” Here, one less hood the better.

Dane’s “layered up” photo shows him wearing a 60 gram parka, another 60, a 1000, and a 60, for a total of 280 grams. Assume you need to keep your helmet on. The second parka has to go over the helmet and the first hood. The third hood has to go over the helmet plus two hoods. The fourth hood has to go over the helmet plus 3 hoods. Does any 60 gram parka have a hood big enough to go over that much bulk? A 100 gram parka plus a 170 gram parka totals just 10 grams less than Dane’s four hoods, but the outer parka only has to go over a helmet plus the 100 gram parka. Does this situation point up a problem with Dane’s theory? (I love Dane… no, not that way… so I’m not trying to dis him.)