Laughingman

Does anybody know if the coveted North face of the Jannu has been attempted since the russians sieged the wall out in 2004? Also very few of the last of the great himalayan "big walls" have been climbed by Americans in the last decade or so. In the same time frame the Russians managed to climb the big walls on Jannu, Changabang, Pik 4810 (look it up), Ak-Su and countless others. Style aside, is there a fundamental difference in ideology and tolerance for adversity that americans don't have? Or is the russian style of climbing simply better at producing results at the expense of style? below Pik 4810

Anybody use "Brynje" (fishnet style) base layers? How do they compare to modern wool and synthetics? Also does anyone in the US distribute them. They look like this for people who have never seen them

For many of the worlds top alpinist it seems common to use a single double rope (8.0-8.6)mm instead of a fully rated single rope. How "safe" is this system for moderate ice and alpine climbs and ridges with little rock (like the north ridge of Baker).

Anyone used the Singing Rock Guru Climbing Harness? looks like it may fit needs

Personally i don't mind using a all around harness trad harness well alpine climbing, except most suck when wearing a backpack with any sort of hip belt. Anybody have a harness that works well with a pack on?

I have used the alpine Bod before and did not really enjoy it. I felt the lack of a suitable belay loop really hurt performance of the harness.

Hi guys I am looking into buying a new harness for alpine climbing and am looking for suggestions any help will be much appreciated. At the moment i cannot afford a 120 dollar arcteryx harness. Has anyone used the CAMP coral harness ( looks more featured then most mountaineering harnesses. Also the Camp AIR and AIR CR look like they would suite my needs.

I went and tried out the boots, they fit me well (I have narrow heels). The boots have a much better fit then the La Sportiva trangos i own. They appear to be stiff enough for alpine ice but still walk fairly well. Lowa boots appear to be fairly narrow, does this hold true for the entire climbing boot line ( Lowa Vertical, Silberhorn etc)? Does anybody know of boot maker that makes Narrow boots outside of Lowa and La Sportiva?

Sorry guys got my glaciers mixed up ( we crossed at least 10) several routes off the Bell glacier, Geddes and elsewhere looked to have not been climbed. I have gone back and corrected myself I will indeed enlighten myself with Don Serl's Book

I was intending to use the boot in a mixed climbing and moderate alpine ice (north ridge of baker, etc) climbing application, does this seem appropriate?

In all seriousness the inner Waddington range is filled with unclimbed peaks to suit everyones interest from mixed climbing horror shows, to huge alpine walls that likely have never been climbed.

The knights inlet approach looked like a nightmare to slog up. Going down the "logging road" was epic and there are large sections of the road that have fallen away leaving only alders to make your life more miserable. On the other hand the Waddington range is a very wild place, tons of routes that have yet to be climbed. If it was not for the 2000 dollar helicopter ride the place would much more crowded.

Hi everyone, does anyone have experience with the feathered friends vireo? I am 6ft tall and am torn between the 68in version and the 72in version. Complicating the decision i end up sleeping on my belly a lot of the time. Any advise would be helpful. Also does anyone have experience with cilogear 30L pack? I am under the impression it lacks a frame sheet is this true? Also has anyone been able to stuff enough gear into the pack for a 2 day trip?

Thanks guys, I also got the impression that "auto-blocking" Munter hitch would be handy in a crevasse rescue or pack hauling when your belay device needs to be handy for whatever reason

Has anyone here ever used this method for belaying a second? Seems to work in theory but what problems have people run into? Would this make a good alternative to a magic plate?

Does anyone have experience with lowa mountain expert boots? are they somewhat like Nepal Evo boots, or are they more like the la sportiva trango models?

Trip: Waddington Range traverse with NOLS - entered via "Twist lake" to exit via knights inlet Date: 6/15/2011 Trip Report: To start are epic we drove across the border into BC then drove for 15 hours to the "end of the road" at the Foster Family Ranch near Twist Lake. After spending the night camped out in one of the family's fields we we began to bushwhack are way around the lake and up Twist Creek. The approach was long and made difficult by large amount of dead pine. Are group then crossed over a high pass and down to another alpine lake where we got resupplied via helicopter. We then proceeded to approach Geddes pass for two days. After which we dropped (sliding down scree and nasty slopes) to the bottom of the Bell glacier. Bad weather (a mixture of snow and sleet) pinned us down in are tents for the next 4 day. After a two day push up the Bell weather cleared and we made it down to the franklin glacier without incident. After digging up are cache on Franklin glacier and practicing crevasse rescue for two days we packed up camp and headed over the Shelf glacier onto the Confederation glacier then booked it up to Jubilee pass. After down-climbing onto the Jubilee glacier we took a rest day are practiced ice climbing technique. When then packed up the next day and climbed the adjacent ridge which was filled with nasty scree and unprotected runouts. It took us 13 hours to get to are objective. Coincidently this day I also turned 18 The next day was spent slogging down the remaining Ridge to a "old logging" road which leads down a lake and a floatplane ride home. the road it turns out was gone in many places replaced by large sums of alders. At the end of the day we could not find a suitable spot to camp so we opted for a open bivy and prayed for no rain. The next day the rain began as we slogged down the remaining slope to are extract point. The next day we waited for fog and rain to clear and are plane to show up. a small window opened and half are group was on there way. However me and several others got stuck for another 36hours before weather cleared enough to fly. after 30 days in "the Wad" we returned to civilization. Note: I am a NOOB with photos Gear Notes: If you approach on foot be prepared to destroy very expensive clothing. Goretex is mandatory my rain jacket turned out not to be waterproof spent many days semi-wet. Berghaus yeti gaiters would have made my day the snow was fairly soft and crampons were not needed for much of the trip If entering on the twist lake side bring bear spray the first day we saw 4 bears walking around. Approach Notes: approaching the Franklin glacier on foot is not advised CorilAir has "Ok" service expect long delays if the weather is anything but bluebird If you approach Jubilee glacier from the knights inlet be warned the "old logging road" is nonexistent in many places. After bushwhacking your way up the road you will hate alder trees for the rest of your life. This can become "Type 2 fun" very fast.