mvs

that is a cool picture! <propellerhead>Takes a long time to load because it's uncompressed (bmp file)</propellerhead>

We saw those, looked neat! You know, there is an ice climb on the east face of the Tooth, which goes up a wide shallow gully to connect with a left-leading snow ramp to the upper face. That looked climbable if a little colder. Maybe it has a name, I dunno. Some tracks went to the base of it, but not higher. Stop you're killing me!

Apparently. As Pilchuck is to Scot'teryx, Toof is to me. Wanted Chair. Too warm for us scardy cats. Again with the dancing! Oh you make me laugh!!

was in fine form Saturday. There was a very warm wind above the ice fog, kind of like standing behind a laundrymat in some places. We left crampons and 2nd tools at the base, just taking an axe for the snowfield on pitch 3. Snowshoes or skis were needed for the approach. The NE Slab looked too thin for me (the canonical poseur) to have fun on. We climbed steep snow and trees to the summit of Baby Tooth to finish up the day. It was disappointing not to find the mixed conditions we hoped for in winter, but on the other hand, you don't often get June in January, and should enjoy it! Dance for me, oh puffy creature!

at the Tooth on Saturday, we were surprised by a really hot wind coming down from the pass above Great Scott Bowl. We were in short sleeves, no gloves, etc. Crazy!

NICE!!! Your tribute band:

It was worth it, my man.

Where can I sign up to be a moderator?

Yeah, that trail must have been made by aboriginal peoples...

Hey guys, Mike's site is still completely there. Only the entrance page is gone. Just visit http://www.alpinelite.com/Archive/jberg_sharp.htm, and you get everything back! The link goes to one of my favorite stories there - Mr. Goodtime's Jo'berg epic.

right on cracked! Yeah, that was a great picture of you, what with the clouds blowing in and out around there. Let me know if you want a bigger digital picture.

Naw, he's just in pied troiseme [or however you spell that]

Random scenes from the mob on Saturday. Orange pack!

Plexus, too bad it didn't work out. I haven't been up there in a long while -- now I'm apprehensive all over again about finding the trail. Gates locking and unlocking, land sliding, that place changes too much! --Michael

that was a great ditty little dance!

Take a look at Mattp's topo for the route: here. Two more good pitches after the 5th. The 7th was pretty wild, especially for the variety it packs in. You amble up and pass two overlaps, protecting the 2nd with a cam. There is a great hand jam there. Then easy slab to an overlap. I girth-hitched a schrub here, then moved left to finger jams to pass the overlap. Then it gets hard. Clip a bolt and move up and left to another bolt on the toughest slab climbing on the route. Move past the second bolt to a cam placement, and 15 feet of easy liebacking to the anchor. Dang, I sure do remember it well... 6 bolts, 3-4 cams. Pitch 3 was really great too. Can't wait till spring to go back and climb the Kone and other routes...

Was really nice. We climbed Silent Running. When the sun was on us, it felt like a warm spring day. I fell twice at the 10b friction on pitch 7, finally grabbing a draw and aiding past it. Does sticky rubber work better in cold or heat? Intuitively I think heat... We had the place to ourselves, it was pretty special... Thanks to Mattp and others for bolts, beta, and pitches!

I liked Forrest's comments above. I did some via ferratas in Italy this summer, mostly, they were a lot of fun. I wouldn't want to see them here either, but I think they are a natural part of the landscape in the alps, along with the lifts, and villages in every valley. Some of them can be enjoyed from the standpoint of a climber too. One called Monte Albano was very difficult, zig-zagging up a vertical cliff twice as high as the Index Town Wall. It combined some thrilling "Traverse of the Angels" type stuff with overhanging corners. I wore rock shoes and did plenty of backstepping, mantelling and other "real climbing" techniques. The rock was _extremely_ polished due to popularity. I got to cover a lot of ground in exposed terrain, all before lunch, all by myself. If the Euro's are OK with these things in their mountains, so am I. Seriously though, how about a AAC Mountain Hut in the Picketts? <flame suit on> --Michael

That was a great read! I hope you brought some biscuit tins and Nutella for tea. At one point on that climb I threaded a tape around a sturdy bush, attached a snap-link, and abseiled directly. (I've now used all my Euro-words)

There's actually some great splitter hand cracks right here in Renton. I don't know why you have to go to the valley...

Way to go Dan, Paco! Reeeally nice pictures....

I have a friend, a solid 5.11 - 5.12 sport climber who swore off trad leading after a successful, but very shaky lead of Midway pitch one (Jello Tower). He'll always be able to climb way harder than I can, but the way this lead affected him underscores what a different game trad climbing is. That "5.5" pitch only becomes "casual" or "laughably easy" with experience. Glad you are O.K. Anna. I'd follow the advice to do lots of aiding, probably the best way to regain trust in your gear. --Michael

I was gonna do that route last week. Jezus-pleazus, I'm glad I changed my mind!!! Keep me posted on when that thing comes down...

I got some advice about the orb. Apparently my underwear was too tight. Go figure!

I have to jump on this wagon...another TR here. I made it quite recently and it describes the road approach in detail. Don't forget a bike!