jakedouglas

I think we chatted with you briefly in the overnight parking lot as we were gearing up to skin to Muir in the evening. Glad to hear you made it - congrats.

I called the ranger station and it is still closed. She guessed maybe another 2-3 weeks until opening. Thanks for the help.

I saw a mention from a few weeks ago, but does anyone have more recent info about whether the gate is open and what the condition of the road and trail is? I also don't remember how far it is from the gate to the TH if it's closed, as I've only been up there once. Thinking of skiing the glacier this weekend. I'm guessing that the lake is probably no longer bomber to cross? Thanks

I ended up going to Rainier instead because I didn't want to deal with finding other parking and walking in. This is a real shame and makes it totally unreasonable for people to camp in this area during the winter. Was this ever brought up with someone at the Access Fund or anything? I don't know how any of this stuff works, but people should be able to use the area.

This blows. I'm not into doing the grey-area thing, so we'll probably park somewhere far away and walk. Thanks for the info.

Whatever happened with this? I'm looking to park overnight here.

This tent is advertised to setup with trekking poles and a 300cm probe. Has anyone actually used it this way? It weighs 1lbs 9oz if you do that instead of carrying the tent poles. This sounds attractive, but how does it work out in practice? I've only found a few reviews so far that seemed inconclusive. Would like to hear from anyone with personal experience using this tent. http://brooks-range.com/Propel-Tent.html

Came upon this today. The debris was frozen so it was probably from yesterday. Debris under Chair also. Beware. http://dl.dropbox.com/u/12238854/slide.png

My toes are a bit wider and I ended up with Mammut Mamook GTX. Nothing else I tried on really came close to fitting comfortably.

Any update on recent conditions?

I bought my boots at FF but got similar advice elsewhere: There should be zero or minimal (1/4 inch or less) heel lift when walking (walk up and down the test "slopes" in the store). Heel lift is most apparent for me when climbing dirt trails on approach. Toes should not impact the front of the boot when kicking. Don't want to mash your toes when kicking steps into snow or ice. Just kick your toes into the floor to test this. Make sure the ankle area is laced tight to keep your foot from sliding forward. My foot also tends to slide forward into the front of the boot when descending dirt trails, which is not fun. The general fit should be pretty snug to keep your foot locked in, but not to the point of reducing circulation at all. If you sat still in them for an hour, your feet shouldn't fall asleep or get pins and needles or anything. I prefer being able to wiggle my toes a bit.

I just took one of these out for the first time and loved it. http://www.hyperlitemountaingear.com/packs/3400-series/3400-ice-pack.html The top rolls down completely so it's still compact if you don't fill it up all the way. They also have a smaller one if you never plan to carry that much with it.

Looking for a partner in the Seattle area to get into alpine climbing and mountaineering with. I: Have some snow and glacier travel experience Know crevasse self-rescue and z-pulley skills Boulder V3/V4 and climb up to 5.11-something in the gym, but have done fewer than 10 sessions on real rock outdoors Have a decent studied understanding of rope and anchor skills, but haven’t gotten a lot of real practice aside from a little sport climbing, and practicing “multipitch” and rapping at the Magnuson climbing wall. Have a rope and sport draws, as well as trad gear that I need to learn how to use Have plenty of gas and food money to throw down Am very safety oriented and struggle a bit with fear of heights and exposure. You’re unlikely to find me on sketchy exposed scrambles or rapping off of single pieces. Want to work hard to become a better climber You: Hopefully have a similar attitude and amount of experience and are eager to learn, or put up with me until I catch up Are patient, level headed, and a clear communicator Have consistent views on safety and acceptable risk (don’t throw agreed upon best practices out the window when you’re feeling confident or pissed off) and err on the side of caution Don’t hate yourself if you don’t make the summit, and consider the primary goals of climbing to be self improvement, discovery and enjoyment, rather than just getting to the top Are willing to drive and have a car, because I don’t Want to get out regularly Some things I’d like to do in the coming year: Learn to ski, because descending snow for hours on end can get old Refresh crevasse rescue skills Take avalanche and wilderness first aid courses Learn trad on easy single pitch routes Some intro trad objectives like The Tooth Snow couloirs like on Lane Peak (Lovers Lane, Zipper, Fly) El Dorado West Ridge of Forbidden if I can harden up with regard to exposure Baker and Rainier The season is poor for a lot of these things, but I’d like to be getting outdoors when weather permits, even if just for sport climbing. I climb and train at a gym or on my bike most of the time right now. I also have a flexible work schedule, so I can do outings during the week. It seems like the common thing for someone at my level to do is join a club like the Mountaineers, but I’m not interested in being part of a large group. I’m looking for someone of a similar mindset to share the learning experience with on an ongoing basis. PM me with a little bit about yourself if you're interested.