Seamstress

No. The route is well consolidated. The freezing level will be higher than the summit all weekend. The snow may be wet and mushy, and you may choose to stick to the exposed rocks for much of the climb up.

So sorry to see it was Mark. Condolences to the family.

The boarding will be excellent. The snow should be gone below 4,000'. It gets flat there anyway.

I see that he fell into hot rocks. Anyone climbing the Old Chute would be directly over the scene. Anyone climbing today would have been out already by the time that they asked people to stay off.

Heard the news at 6:30 this morning on Koin. The anchor was chatting with a PMR member on the way to the scene, asking dumb questions given what was already known. Was he wearing an MLU? Excuse me, people saw him fall on the South Side on a clear day. They know precisely where he is. Steve told her it was irrelevant. I still hope for a good outcome. There is a lot of exposed rock up there in Devil's Kitchen adn Hot Rocks. I have fallen over 600 feet and walked away with a free facial dermabrasion. This person was not that fortunate. Until there is news to the contrary, I am going to hope for the best. Why would the sheriff ask people to cancel their climbs for the remainder of the day? That makes no sense unless it would interfere with the extraction of an injured climber. So maybe that is good news, in a way. It sounds like the person is in Devil's Kitchen, so the Old Chute wouldn't interfere.

Tri-cams are fabulous. I have used them for 25 years, and I almost always carry two pink and a red with me on trad leads. I used to carry the larger sizes, but I rarely placed them once I owned a magnificent rack of rams. If you understand how they work, they are quick to place and easy to remove. Take a few minutes to educate your second on how to retrieve them. They are well suited to irregular cracks, pods, horizontal cracks. I was following a young man last fall, and he placed a tricam in a unique little pod that I had not noticed. I had been looking at the crack we were climbing and had tunnel vision. It was a good reminder for me to widen my vision. The somewhat dirty crack was now a fine lead based on using the tricam.

If he wants to go, then he is ready. I have taught skiing for over 20 years. SOmetime between 3 - 5 is right. THere are 3 year olds that can conquer the green slopes within a few weeks, and 5 year old that aren't ready. Plus one - he wants to. Get him on ice skates or roller blades if you can. That developes the internal and external rotator muscles that just do't develop from walking in a straight line. Wait for a sunny, warm day. Give him to a pro. Go away so he can listen to someone else without performing for you. Give him the promised reward. For a 3 year old, my expectations are 45 minutes of magic carpet work, 15 minutes of snow agnel/snowball fight/snowman building. Then you are ready for 45 more minutes of work. Day one, maybe master the straight run and the gliding wedge. Day two you can get those stops working. Day three - begin to turn. Once the turns and stops are there, the kids will then generally begin to tolerate a while day - 2 2 hour sessions on the snow. After 1 - 2 days on the bunny slope, they will graduate to the gentle greens. The learning curve really ramps up when they get that mileage in. Be sure their gear fits right and they are well fed and rested. Then they have the fuel to be successful. THe following year, you will have a fun partner to ski with. THen your issue will be how to keep them from doing the crazy stuff......

Send me a PM, and describe the shoes. We'll meet you and return them.

Appreciate the advice. I began ski mountaineering with fat snow blades, so virtually any ski feels stable in comparison - and heavy. I have skied a wide variety on piste. Want a better weight and performance balance. I don't want to drill more hills in my skis - and the new ones will be lighter. Realistically, the skis won't be that much shorter - going from 163 men's skis to probably 156 ladies skis. The Starletts are 2 lbs lighter.

I was looking at the various specs, and the TLT is definitely worth investigating. I'll have to find some to try on - the end of season opportunities for them is not as good as others. So I better make sure that they fit well.

Fitness, aging, and size - not all working together. I lifted all winter and run 50 miles per week. I climb 5,000' vertical at least twice a month. On those volcano descents, I'm loving my skis. I have to add a good hour to my probable ascent time when skinning. The 17 pounds that my skis/boots/bindings weigh are slowing me down, and I notice it a lot more now that I am heavily recruited by AARP. I'm looking for a way to outsmart that with technology.

I loved my BD crossbows so much that I picked up a second pair intending to use them after I trashed the first pair. I am still skiing the volcanoes with the first pair, so these remained wrapped in cellophane in my garage. I'm older and now looking at a woman's ski for my next pair, so these are not going to get used. I paid $200, and they liosted for over $600. If I can get that 4200 back, I'll be delighted, and you'll get a great ski. I live in SW WA and work in PDX. We can arrange a physical transfer of the goods or you can pay for shipping.

Folks seem to be fairly helpful. I am a strong downhill skier and have been sampling ski mountaineering. I want a new set-up that will allow me to get uphill more easily without bucking me off the bronco on the descents. I'm a small lady - 5'3" and 125 pounds. I see a huge array of choices out there. Are the La Sportiva RT bindings as light and sturdy as claimed? I currently have very old (2001?)fritschi freeride bindings that weigh a ton. The randonee racer folks seem to be on amazingly light gear. Is that going to kill me with chatter? I currently have BD Crossbows at 163, and I want to reduce the weight by going shorter - 150 - 157. I was looking at the BD Scarlett, but La Sportiva's product line looks pretty light. I am trying to find a site that allows me to compare the products side by side.

You want to protect those eyes from sun and wind. You will also need great sunscreen - and be sure to get under the nose, your ears, every conceivable place. Keep lip balm handy. I didn't stop to reapply on my way down from Muir, and my lips became unrecognizable. They split, and I couldn't really eat for four days. These little personal care details make a huge difference the bigger the mountain gets.

Near the ground or a ledge, a run-out is 5 feet for this coward. 50 feet off the deck with several good pieces below me and no ledge, I'll go 10 - 15 feet before the wailing commences with vigor - unless it is way over my head, then whining commences much earlier.

Last Updated: May 28, 2012] Climbing Conditions and Route Information Forest Road 81-830 is Closed to Climbers Bivouac. Forest Road 83 is open to Marble Mountain Sno*Park Given current conditions, I expect that it will be at least 2 weeks.

There will be rangers out this weekend. This spring I have seen rangers every time that I have been out, a big departure from previous experience. You can go to 4,800 feet without it. There is coverage down to Marble Mountain. It is all pretty mellow skiing below 4,800 feet. The mandatory donation to the MSHI was instituted outside of the prescribed bureaucratic practice. Don't thank them for maintaining the trails. Lots of us locals do far more work. It took a lot of noise a few years ago to get the USFS to put our fee dollars into the program that generates them. The Loowit is still in dire straits, the Blue Lake Trail restoration is horrible, and the loss of recreational opportunities available to the non-mountaineering Joe is still very sad. I was determined to celebrate Mother's Day in traditional style. We'll see - maybe follow the ridgeline and make a decision in the wee hours.

Freezing level will be very high, so the snow will be soft. There will be a huge crowd this weekend, especially Sunday when it is traditional to climb the mountain while wearing a dress. The snow hasn't melted back very much yet.

Didn't see this earlier. I have been teaching skiing for 21 years, along with my husband. All three of my kids are now ski instructors. My kids all learned at different ages, and I've taught thousands of kids. The right time is totally dependent on the child. My littlest one started skiing at 2 - just a straight run from Mommy to Daddy for an hour here and there when we weren't teaching. At age three, the muscular development was there to really ski and turn on her own. She was tiny, so we had to find the lightest weight gear possible and the softest ski boot so that the gear worked for her. By the end of that year, she was tearing up the greens and blues. At first, 45 minutes to an hour is the entire attention span until they start having a lot of success. Once they can actually ski green trails on the mountain, they start having a lot of fun and can enjoy being out for a couple of hours at a time. Don't teach your own. No matter how patient you are, the criticsm and coaching from a parent just isn't as well received as it will be from a different person. You want to be the one they show off to, the fun person, not the "coach". Progress isn't a straight line. At age 5, our skier suddenly decided that she only wanted to ride the chair lift, and Daddy should carry her down the slope. We let her goof off for awhile, and half way through the season she wanted to ski again. Our middle girl took a season mostly off, just reading in the lodge. The next year, she was enthusiastic again and shortly after that joined the school ski team. Expect entusiasm to come and go. Initially, being able to ski with Daddy was the ultimate for our little one. As the kids got older, we could turn them loose with other kids with radios to stay in touch with us. That independence was very helpful in keeping them enthusiastic. I really discourage the use of a harness, edgy-wedgy, and other devices. They definitely slow down their development and get them into very bad habits. A better idea is to encourage activities that promote the muscular development needed for snowsports. Roller blading and skating are very good corss training. It develops the ability to rotate the leg, muscles that aren't generally developed with walking and sitting. Smaller kids don't do well with snowboarding initially as the gear is too heavy for them. I seldom see kids have much real success until they are closer to 8, while many kids can learn to ski between 3 - 5. All learn faster with repeated short exposure to the sport. Most 4 year olds will learn to ski bunny slopes and easy greens after 4 - 5 weekly sessions in a row. At first, you get 45 minutes of work, 15 minutes of snow play, then 45 minuites of skiing, followed by hot chocolate. The best instructors use praise and rewards for the tiniest accomplishments. Hope you had a good winter. Invest some time and money today, and you will have a family activity for life. You don't need to ski - that may even make it easier for you not to teach them and just be fun. They will model what they see, and they will want to go play in the park, especially if that is where you go. My daughter has banned us from the park, but we can peak in and watch her. She both skis and boards, though she is a far better skier than boarder. My husband does both and telemraks. I just ski.

Melt and filter is the fastest and lightest way to go. Even for cooking - melt, filter, put back in pot. Skip the long boils.

I didn't think to post here before. For some reason, I have been driving away without my poles this year. Back in Feb (I think), I drove away without my Black Diamond traverse poles, complete with a whippet, at St. Helens. Later in April I could not find my trekking poles - Black Diamond 3 piece - and I last used them on Wyeth to North Lake. Please let me know if you recovered them.

Take it from one who has seen tick borne illnesses on their child and their friend - 100% DEET can't possibly harm you as much.

Will look. SHared the message with others that are up there a bunch.

Please post up earlier - so we can plan to be there next year.

Think about some real food for 1) the day you land, 2) the first camp, and 3) possibly at your cache at the airstrip. You won't be carrying that around much. We did a couple days of fresh food - steak, veggies, tortellinis - and that keeps your energy level high. Orages and bananas are great for hydration and replacement of electrolytes in the opening day or two. These foods are not practical to carry for your overall menu, but gobbling them for a couple of days will ensure good nutrition and less burn-out on freeze dried up high. Err on bringing a little too much - you can always cache it. It's easy to work very hard for a couple of days. Depleting yourself every day for 2 - 3 weeks will hurt your performance, ability to stay warm, and chances for success. I'm a little gal, and I put away 4,000 calories every day. Brown sugar, spices help perk up the food. Be sure that you have adequate magnesium, calcium, sodium to avoid cramps and get those muscles firing well. Two tents low - one tent at high camp.