mountainsandsound

Those kind of jobs were more of a 90s/00s thing.

Thanks for the awesome trip report. In another forum it was suggested that CC is on the wane- no way, not with TRs like this.

The proliferation of personal blogs has steered people away from delivering such useful information as current conditions, useful route info, techniques, gear tips, etc, on sites like CC. Spray seems to be lacking lately.

Never had an integrated gaiter, but for me the disadvantage would certainly be sweat unless it is really cold. I have taken to going without gaiters during most trips now to let my feet breath. The bottom of my pants hug the uppers on my boots well and don't tend to let snow in anyway if I'm not post-holing in some deep.

FWIW, I wear mountaineering boots (single, no liner) with all leather uppers, no insulation, usually no gaiters and have no problems temperature wise during typical early season conditions on most mountains in the North Cascades. I stay home during early season storms. I think many climbers prefer double boots on Rainier for early season though.

Interesting, the guy who authored the Patriot Act is sponsoring this USA Freedom Act. A come to Jesus moment? Thanks for the link. I needed a fix of political participation and this hit the spot.

True. Just plain forgotten really. Who was the obese one who got stuck in his bathtub? I found that story amusing in high school.

Harrison then? Beyond the 20th century things are a bit hazy for me aside from the big names.

Begs the question, is it better to be evil and famous, or benevolent and forgotten? Fillmore, Arthur, and Garfield: the presidents that history forgot. Maybe Ivan knows about them though because he has to.

That would be the 20. Maybe it's the Muscogee in me, or maybe I'm prejudiced against Scotch-Irish, but something about Andrew Jackson...

Statues might be a good way to remind us of past leaders who have committed atrocities, but there are only so many laying around. Today I made a withdrawal from my ATM and was able to give a big fuck you to America's homegrown 19th century ethnic cleanser.

Will the supreme leader ever make it to Seattle? I've always had a strange urge to slap him on his fat fucking pufferfish face. [img:center]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/be/Kim_Il-sung_and_Kim_Jong-il_statues_from_Flickr.jpg/800px-Kim_Il-sung_and_Kim_Jong-il_statues_from_Flickr.jpg[/img]

Finally. When I was doing more surfing we used to have an animal joke- but it was Westport, not La Jolla, and whales rather than cougars.

So true. Maybe we can diversify our tales of eerie wildlife encounters a bit now that wolves are back.

My uncle, a forester, was once stalked by a mountain lion. He didn't like it either. Russians, in the far east at least, live with the largest feline in the world. For next time, just tell your Soviet comrades a mountain lion is like a cute, kitten version of the Siberian tiger.

Did you actually see a lynx? One of my climbing goals is to see a wolverine on an approach hike someday. A lynx would be a good baby step for me. Cool report, Wyoming kicks ass in a lot of ways.

Sweet. Brotherhood climbs are the best.

Don't see the report on NWAC yet. Was it some persistent wind slab?

It's all about sturgeon. A quarter of a billion years with no significant changes. And they keep the river bottoms nice and clean.

Good effort, bummed I missed out. I need to start racking up some unsuccessful winter attempts.

The media is corporate.

Wow. All I have for beer schwag are some commemorative pint glasses. You are a lucky man.

Did anyone else just throw on layers of cheap fleece for warmth before buying a nice sythetic or down puffy? I did that for the longest time- it was sort of heavy and bulky, and not too warm in truly cold conditions, but it was my set up for years. Makes me realize how little one really needs. Or maybe youth and enthusiasm easily offset sub-standard gear, discomfort, and heavy packs.

How would you compare merino pieces to fleece for insulation while on the move? My only experience really with merino is as a next to skin layer, and I prefer synthetic in most conditions anyway. I too have a sweet merino sweater thrift store score, made in the UK. But everyone keeps telling me it looks good so I have not tested it in the backcountry yet.

Hey Smiley. I am largely self-taught. But living in Bellingham and going to college there meant being around a lot of other mountaineers who showed me things along the way. I learned a lot from books though... but not just reading. Reading and then practicing. It helps to have a motivated friend along who is in the same boat. Depending on the person, that can be a very effective way of learning. The only formal classes that I have paid money for have been avalanche courses (AIARE 1) and wilderness medicine (WFR). I really think those were worthwhile and IMO more important to spend money on then actual climbing courses.