geordie

See the thread under N. Cascades trip reports. I haven't been up lately, but the area hasn't gotten much snow and mostly was missed by the Pres. weekend storm. I assume it should be an ok drive up to the gate at Eldorado. I should have an update prior to next weekend.

As silly as I find the Twight threads I have to put my two cents in. I was lucky enough to spend time with Mark at the Bozeman Ice Fest this year. He was the most personable, helpful, friendly instructor one could ever hope for. A few days later we ran into him at a local gear shop and talked for an hour or so. Say what you will about Dr. Doom, the legend, but Mark is a decent guy, who we would all be lucky to have as a friend or neighbor.

Go where the ice is. Sounds obvious, but I wouldn't make concrete plans for spring ice climbing too soon. See what the weather does and head north, south or east accordingly. I had a great time in November in the bozeman, mt area. I was there climbing for a month and found plenty to TR as well as my first leads. It's probably not much farther than Lilloet. I haven't climbed at Lee Vining, but the sierras snow year has been good. You can also bust down to Bishop for bouldering and rock climbing if the ice isn't in. All that said, I may be up for joining you depending on conditions here. (Highway 20 opening for example.) -Geordie

A beautiful day, no climbing partners and a craving for adventure. A perusal of my Beckey guides led me to the Roost. 6705', located between Mt. Ross and the Pickets, 6 hrs from Newhalem. "The route is not difficult, but expect some crosscountry obstacles, including berry bushes." Perfect. I had been up Goodell Creek to the Southern Pickets earlier in the summer and knew that the hike along the old road would go quickly and that the path up the hillside, while steep, would be routine. What a joy to be doing this with a daypack. At 3200' according to the Suunto on my wrist I headed off the climbers' trail and into the huckleberries. Soon enough I reached the "talus tongue" (mentioned in the old Beckey) and boulder-hopped my way up. From 5500' the area is wide open and covered with wonderful rock slabs spread out across the west facing slopes. The season's first water ice was sprinkle across the slabs here and there. A little scrambling through recent snowfall led to the "summit" - the largest bump on the ridge. But what a view. The Pickets,Triumph, The Chopping Block, and that little strip of asphalt called 20. And I on my Roost! If only my descent was as simple as my climb. I retraced my steps down to the bottom of the boulderfield. From here I headed down the slope and near 3200' began looking for the climbers' trail. There should be an obvious shelf here where the trail traverses north. And yet.. Out came the map and compass. Which of these seasonal streams was big enough to be shown on the map? I traversed the slope having heated internal discussions that would make the producers of Survivor proud. Somehow I kept finding steeper forested slopes that were much steeper and nastier than the ones I came up. I wasn't really lost though - all I had to do was descend and I'd hit the old road. (sounds easy doesn't it?) Finding the climbers' trail would make this so much more pleasant. For one reason or another I listened to the Devil on my shoulder and decided to follow a streambed down. At the first the going was moderate. The angle was gentler than the surrounding slopes and there was friendly vegetation to hold on to. As I progressed, the walls of the gully trapped me in and the going got rough. Before I knew it I was descending a class 3/4 waterfall with all my gore-tex on to stay dry. "If I get hurt I will disappear forever." Sweat collects on the inside of my raingear and my pulse quickens. I take deep breathes and continue down. An hour (?) of this struggle and I find a way out of this wet hell and onto forested slopes. Magically and mysteriously I'm not far off from the climbers' trail and I scurry down it. I'm filled with relief. Down on the overgrown road I begin to run. I'm ready for the day to be over. After 10 hrs in the mountains, it is.

my two cents- Get a jacket with a hood that can fit over your helmet. If it's that cold, keep your head warm. We all had this inner discussion at one point. A friend of mine pointed out that if it's cold enough for you to be wearing this jacket, it's not going to get wet. Sure there are places where that may not be true, but I've had no problems keeping my down jacket dry. (Marmot Parbat) Lots of folks seem to like the Patagonia DAS jacket, if you do go synthetic.

Was it L-Even-worth-it? Went to Leavenworth in search of the elusive beast this weekend. Hubba Hubba was not in, but 2 parties climbed Hubba Hubba left. (3R)Bring rock gear (pins) and a sense of adventure or just go someplace else. Sunday climbed Rainbow Falls left (4+?) across from Snow creek lot. One of us managed to lead this short, but sweet beast and the rest tried in on TR. The top out sucks. "There wasn't even moss, I mean there was moss, but not the kind you can have any confidence in." However, this route was fatter than anything else we saw in the Icicle. A third party reported having a good day on Millenium wall.

yes, I'm a seasonal ranger. No I'm a Seattle Native, raised in Olympia. Now a gripe. This bulletin board is beginning to look like a PG13 version of the mountaineers bbs. Someone asks a question and the community feels like they have to answer even if they have little to say. The Captain and Colonel Crags of this world have made this site amusing, but they're really a turn off to many climbers who could find this site useful. If you want to argue this point, open a new thread. If you want to find out more about me, send me an e-mailk. Spickard deserves better.

Has anyone climbed the sw couloir on Spickard? Would you recommend it? Has anyone done the depot creek approach in winter or early spring?

Update as of 2/7. Cascade River rd plowed to Eldo gate at Mp 20/21. Beyond the gate 12" of melt-freeze crusted snow. Go get 'em.

We climbed Cherry Ice last weekend in the 40 degree weather. It was super plastic and climbing it sounded climbing an old cedar tree .. thunk, thunk. I wouldn't have wanted to test any of those screws, but it was thick enough to put in 17s without them hitting rock. We also made it to the Rambles on Sunday. It may have been busy, but we camped nearby and didn't have any problems choosing our route. Early bird gets the worm... ( or the big fat ice)

hey folks here's the update. The cascade river rd has snow on it beginning about mp 6 (1200') near the USFS boundary. High clearance 4x4 vehicles can make it to the gate at Eldorado lot (mp 20/21, 2300'). Beyond the gate there is now 16" of new snow. Skiing has much improved. I haven't been up there, but this comes from a reliable source. g

I'm up for a party. The only real slides I have are of Kenya and Kili, but I'm in. (unless the weather's nice and I'm climbing.)

I'm pondering getting into the AT ski gig. (Despite this year's snow anomoly.) Hagan and few other brands sell approach skis in the 120/130 cm length. Has anyone used super short skis like this? Even 160/170 cm seems short for a tall climber and gear. I'm not interested in world class ski performance, just a better way to get to and from climbs.

The road is a little icy, but not much snow. The toyota camry handled it fine. I think climbing conditions should be good except that I would expect crevasses not to be as filled in as one might like/expect.

A handful of us decided to take a hike up the Eldorado approach since the Cascade River rd is open until the gate at the Eldo parking lot. The lack of snow is bizarre and amazing. We ran into a few inches of snow prior to the boulderfield. In the open, the boulders had a foot or so of snow with lots of punching through. Rumors have it that the Cascade Pass trail doesn't have much snow either. Folks in Marblemount seem to think that highway 20 will be opening soon. Can anyone confirm or deny?

I own a 3R tent that I bought last summer. It came late in the season and I've only used it a few times this winter. It is really big and very light. It looks like it will handle the wind and weather well and reviews, both from Climbing magazine and other owners I've run into are good. I've heard a number of stories about stephensons being the only tents to survive nasty storms on rainier. I'm still dealing with the condensation issue, but I think that's only a matter of tweaking and fiddling. everyone else will tell you bibler is the way to go, but I like the idea of more space for us tall folks and our gear for a lighter weight. Curious to hear other folks thoughts.

I was in Kenya and Tanzania a few years ago. I climbed pt. lenana (trekking) on Kenya and have some sweet slides of the diamond couloir. I also climbed the arrow glacier/western breach on Kili. I'm in NH now, but live in Olympia and will happily show you my slides and hook you up with some guides and porters. (guides required on kili). I'll be back jan 22. garomer@aol.com ps keep this africa stuff quiet. most people haven't figured out how much good stuff is over there.

Ahhh, the PNW climber's favorite can of worms.. the +/- of the Mountaineers et al. Someone probably told you to post that question just to get a rise out of us. Like the weather doesn't give us enough to complain about...

Ok We went to pinnacle on Friday and spent the night in the rain just above reflection lk. It shoulda been a day trip but... anyhow we finally got going around ten after it stopped raining. Went to the pinnacle -castle saddle but stopped there due to lack of snow and motivation. Snow had funky crust and mush underneath - not a whole lot of snow on classic winter routes. good luck on that secret new route on mailbox..

What do folks use for sleeping bag systems? My old bag is losing loft and life. I was thinking of a light 800 down bag for summer with a synthetic overbag or add-on for winter or cold climbs. I'm a cold sleeper so despite Twight's precedence I won't be taking the 25 deg bag to Alaska. As always light weight and price are factors. thanks.

As far as Cascade River road goes the park boundary is approximately 5-6 miles from the Cascade Pass parking lot and I'm pretty sure the new NPS ban is in effect. Another issue is that the road sometimes is closed before one reaches snow - either by down trees or mud/rockslides. The county usually waits until spring since no one lives past milepost 4 0r 5. All that said, I think snowmobiling to the NPS boundary would be the way to go.

I'm an aspiring alpinist with excellent backcountry travel skills and experience and technical abilities that are struggling to catch up. I've done a dozen or so routes in the N. Cascades, climbed all the volcanoes by fairly pedestrian routes and have recently returned from an iceclimbing roadtrip where I managed to get in my first ice leads. I'm looking for folks to try some winter ascents during those rare weather windows we sometimes get as well as taking full advantage of highway 20 opening in the spring. I'm also open to longer trips outside of the region and am fully flexible and available throughout the winter. I'm available anytime 24-7 and have a reliable 4X4 vehicle. Geordie garomer@aol.com

I'm the mostly proud owner of my second pair of Solomon adv. 9s. I use them for climbing, backpacking, long North Cascades approaches, and recently spent a month climbing waterfall ice in them. I have a very very narrow foot (AA) and have found them to be one of the rare boots that fit my feet right out of the box. They have kept me warm and dry without fail. My one issue with them is the "soft/sticky" rubber that they use for their soles. My first pair lasted only 1 season. Admittedly, I used them 25+ days a month from June-October, not typical use I know. My second pair may last into their third season in part due to the havy snowload in 99 which kept the scree slopes from eating away the rubber.

I'd just like to remind everyone who the governor of Texas has been these past few years during the Hueco Tanks debacle. Despite good faith efforts by the climbing community, the state of Texas has not been willing to come to the table with a workable solution.