drescj

Hey Panhandler, I've done the route several times but haven't been up this year, so I can't give you any idea of current conditions. It's a great route though, I've done it up until the first week of July with great conditions every time. I've never seen anyone go up the SW chutes route. The SW chutes route finishes a few miles to the west of the south route which starts at the parking lot, so it is a lot easier to use the south route to the top, and then go down the SW chutes routes and then hike back to the South climb (as opposed to hiking to the west for a few miles to get to the base of the SW Chutes). Also might want to consider that because it's so much easier to go up the south climb, people probably consider the SW Chutes to be a "one-way" descent route. Of course there's no rule stating that you aren't allowed to go up the SW Chutes, but in general people coming down probably won't be expecting anyone coming up. There's two possible ways to get from the exit of the SW Chutes back to the South Climb - you can do a high traverse from the end of the chutes back towards the south climb, which will involve a climb or two. I've never done it this way - basically I've heard if you nail it and you get good conditions, it's really fast and easy, but if you do it in the wrong spot or if there's not enough snow to ski the downhills, it can take a long time and be pretty annoying. The other option is to just ski downhill until the end of the snow, and then start walking downhill until you get to a trail. This will be the "Around the Mountain" trail - you can follow it about 2-3 miles (guessing) back to the South Climb trail. I've always used this method, it's hard to mess up even if it takes a little longer. I bring a GPS with a map of the area just to reduce the chance that I miss the trail on the way down, although that hasn't ever happened to me so far. Van camping in the parking lot is definitely a go, the road is a little on the rough side though so if your van has low clearance it might be an issue. Someone else can probably give you more info on the current road conditions. Also, you're supposed to have a "Volcano Pass" to go up. Remember to get cash on your way, if you forget you'll either have to drive a long way to the nearest ATM or risk getting caught without the pass. https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/giffordpinchot/passes-permits/recreation/?cid=stelprdb5144542

Looking for a maternity-friendly climbing harness for my sister to buy or borrow. Any new moms have one sitting around?

Left my Stoic softshell at the base of Senior Citizens in Space, or maybe in the parking lot. Teal-ish outside, purple inside, well loved. Return will be rewarded with beer!

Front half of a BD ice crampon found just below the bottom of NBC on Colchuck. PM me if it's yours.