DPS

Make all the protagonists vampires. They are very hot right now.

I have a lot of respect for Alasdair and his climbing accomplishments and experience. That said I have to disagree with him about down outerwear in the Cascades. IF the weather is good and the humidity is low then down can work fine. But if the weather is bad or it is humid a down belay jacket will soak up water like a sponge. I got rid of my down jacket after descending in one two many winter storms with my jacket deflated, doing me no good. Now if your idea of the backcounty is cold mornings at Smith Rock or Vantage, then down is probably ok. Even in good weather on Rainier in August down can be ok. But when the weather turns poor and you need your insulation the most it will fail. In dry ranges, like the Alaska Range, down outerwear makes a lot of sense. As for bags, I use down almost exclusively. They are easier to keep dry because I sleep under a tarp or in a tent. The only case I wouldn't use a down bags is on large, multi bivi climbs in the winter.

If your parents are footing the bill I would think about switching schools. Colorado College (Colorado Springs, Colorado), Whitman College (Walla Walla, Washington), Reed College (Portland, Oregon), and Darthmouth (Newhampshire) all offer outstanding academics as well as great climbing and outdoor recreation opportunities.

If your parents are footing the bill and you are truely interested in climbing I would think about switching schools. Colorado College (Colorado Springs, Colorado), Whitman College (Walla Walla, Washington), Reed College (Portland, Oregon), and Dartmouth (Newhampshire) all offer outstanding academics as well as great climbing and outdoor recreation opportunities.

If I had to guess from which college it would be some type of sunday school for big kids like Seattle Pacific 'University' or Bob Jones 'University'.

One way to get started is to take a comprehensive course from American Alpine Institute here in the Cascades. The Alpine Mountaineering and Technical Leadership courses 1, 2, and 3 would teach you tons about climbing in a relatively short amount of time.

Jason Martin and I climbed a route on the North Ridge of Pinnacle Peak quite a few years ago. As I recall we gained the ridge on the west side via an ice ribbon and/or ice gulley which lead to a col and then a gendarme of very compact andesite. Bring KBs/Bugaboos. Here is a photo: http://gallery.photo.net/photo/6793769-lg.jpg The route climbs behind the big blob of rock to a col then follows the left hand skyline.

I would have to disagree. There are many benefits to climbing in a three person party. Group gear is distributed among three people so each climber carries less, if something goes wrong having an extra climber can be livesaving, and the dynamic of three people is often more fun. An experienced party of three who knows what they are doing is really no slower than two people. Belaying two followers using double ropes is cake with an auto locking plaquette style device (Petzl Reverso, BD ATC Guide, etc) and no slower than belaying a single follower as both followers climb at the same time. Many two man tents will fit three people pretty easily. My Mountain Hardwear Annapuna (same foot print as the Trango 2) probably could have slept four in a pinch. John Varco was telling me how their three person party on Annapurna III shared a Mountain Hardwear EV 2. The third climber slept with his head towards the back and his feet stuck into the vestibule.

Hi Jesse, Try giving Alex or Dane a PM. They have both been to the Canadian Rockies quite a bit. Dan

Sadi Carnot must have been a closet aid climber.

Hey, be easy on the kid. Most of us listened to crappy music when were young too. I mean Duran Duran, what was I thinking?

I have a Lowe Alpine Continuum that is 5,500 cubic inches or 90 liters. It was built to compete with Dana Designs and Gregory packs. I would part with it for $50.00. It comes with a shovel pocket and a mesh kangaroo pocket. One minor hole on the underside of the lid that has been repaired with a piece of nylon and seam grip. The size is adjustable via a moveable shoulder strap assembly. http://cascadeclimbers.com/plab/showphoto.php?photo=41560&size=big&cat=500&ppuser=54. Email bighurtbob@hotmail.com if interested.

There was a post here from a fellow that shortened a BD X-15 BRS to create an alpine wall hammer. He had to use a heat gun to melt the glue holding the spike in as I recall. Edit: found the post: http://cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/913446/New_BD_Alpine_Hammer#Post913446

Nooooo! He was the sweetest guy. My thoughts are with his wife and parents.

Nice work. One question (not a criticism) why did you choose the left hand lobe over the right hand lobe? From your photos it looks like the right hand lobe is not as threatened by seracs.

Seems to me that climbing is inherently risky. Why make it more so by establishing inadequately protected routes? I realize that back in the day routes where often run out because it was difficult to hand drill from stances but in this day and age if you are going to the trouble of placing bolts then why not place enough to make the route reasonably safe? Isn't that the whole purpose of placing bolts? If the element of risk is of prime importance to you then why not free solo everything?

I'll let you know Gene.

I'm waiting until March when (hopefully) it will be thickly iced.

I wear a 42.5 in both La Sportiva and Scarpa boots. Do these have the same narrowish lasts as the Trango series?

You don't actually know what a theory is, do you?

Would you characterize the route itself as loose, somewhat loose, mostly solid or very solid?

The UI threw me too. Try this: http://www.patagonia.com/us/tinshed/index.jsp?src=avl&avad=3057_af41509&netid=1

I enjoyed the mandolin music. After 4 years of French you would think that I would have understood something they said other than just 'Allez'.

Chamonix? Alaska?

Finding partners would not be your biggest obstacle. If you want to climb water ice, well we have that, sometimes, but if water ice is your game you are better off going to the Canadian Rockies or Ouray or Hyalite, or Cody or really anywhere else but the Cascades. Except maybe Florida. The ice season here is so fickle and some years only lasts a few weeks. If you are interested in winter alpine climbing then you stand a better chance of finding something climbable. But then there is the weather which during the winter in any given two week stretch has a 98.3% chance of sucking ass. That said we consistently get a ridge of high pressure right around the President's Day weekend and can last a few days or a couple of weeks. So, my $0.02: If you really want to come during the winter plan to come mid-late February, investigate potential winter alpine routes in addition to water ice, and be flexible; if you ski then bring skis so you can at least hit the lifts if the avalanche danger keeps you out of the 'pine and the water ice is more water than ice. Bring rock shoes and a harness and hit one of the many climbing gyms if the weather is completely miserable. That said, winter is my favorite season for alpine climbing.