rbw1966

Sounds like Griz is being tired of being the 'bottom' on that Brokeback Mountain.

There is no way of predicting the weather with any level of confidence 7 days out. Hell, you cant even predict it 24 hours most of the time. Carrying skis up the north face would suck--assuming you carry them over. Leaving them anywhere you would get back to on the way back down would be an indirect PITA. This route would be a LONNNNNGGGG day if you started from the parking lot. While not nearly as technical, I suggest the Sandy Headwall. Starts from the Timberline parking lot, making it easy to hitch a ride to, nice trudge to the saddle on skis and the route itself is pretty scenic. Likely to have it entirely to yourself as well. Leuthold Couloir would be a decent route as well. Good luck

"pop relativism"? Jay, don't you think you are guilty of that yourself when you start imposing your value structure on the palestinians? I do not agree with their views, but I believe the suicide bombers do not view any of their victims as 'innocent civilians'. The fact is, the US tends to engage in a lot of 'pop relativism' when it comes to foreign policy.

My wife had an Quaker who met an untimely demise at an all too young age. I was initially apprehensive about birds as pets but have seen how affectionate and intriguing they are to watch. My red heeler keeps a healthy distance when the bird is on the prowl. We now have an Afircan Gray Timneh who, strangely, seems to pick up strange things to say from both my wife and I. He goes from saying "I love you" to "roll over" to "Fucker!" I got him to say "Rob is God" once. Fun stuff

Both of the Illinzas have routes on them that are relatively easy and non-technical. On Illiniza Sur, the Ramp route (I think this is what its called) is a bit more fun. Second the recommendation for Otovalo. Incredible place. I would recommend Papallacta (sp?) for hot springs rather than Banos. Sure, Banos is closer to the jungle but the hot springs itself is pretty ghetto. People were washing their clothes in them when we arrived. Also, I recommend hitting some of the spots along the coast. After our summit on Cayambe we took a bus to the beach where we laid out eating Ceviche and washing it down with many cervezas. A nice respite before heading back to the mountains. I would love to go back to Ecuador someday. Have fun!

hero?

Sorry I can't make it. Leaving for Whistler in the early a.m. but of course I will be thinking about you. Merry Christmas everyone! p.s. That picture makes Bono look suspiciously like Pat and his omnipresent cell phone.

Another vote for Mountain Shop. When I bought my new T2s the guy spent well over an hour fitting me to them, and I still got them at a better price than anywhere else I had seen them, including online.

Not necessarily germaine to the discussion at hand but some might find interesting from the perspective of screamer use. Anecdotal experience: when I fell last winter (~20-30ft) the screamer fully deployed and the screw held. No physical change to the screw whatsoever, at least not visible to the naked eye. The placement felt solid at the time and went in to the hanger but given the conditions of the ice where I fell, I am not so sure it was good ice. Maybe its not terribly logical of me to feel this way, but I am convinced that the screamer saved my life. I'm with Alex, and will use screamers as much as possible.

I got a report that it was -19 in Lapine.

Better question was what were you doing looking at that trash?

And its not sustained.

Tex--where do you see anywhere that they said WI 4 or 5? I see mention of WI3-4 which I can generally agree with depending on the conditions although much more likely to be WI3.

I've had the opposite experience from Alex. Try to find a local (sobo used to be local and might know someone there now) to give you an idea. Its a long haul in to find nothing there. I've done it several times from Portland myself.

Fuck that. Bring your own shit. What are you taking down with you that weighs so much that you want to leave out essential climbing gear and take a chance on worn or outdated stuff that may or may not fit correctly?? Do you really want to be hustling around Quito trying to find shit that fits? If you got big feet you might as well forget about renting boots. You don't need plastics either. I climbed both illinizas, cotopaxi and cayambe with makalus on and I am a long way sfrom being a hardman. If you are worried about cold feet bring supergaiters or overboots and some chemical warmers. You aren't camping out; you're staying in huts. Its not that different from climbing volcanoes in WA or OR. If you are worried about lugging around excess gear when you aren't climbing, keep in mind that most hotels/hostels have space available for storage. We stayed in the same hostel every time we returned to Quito and they stored our gear for gratis. Safe and sound.

Hey Oleg-- Be wary of people telling you they worry about being too warm in their sleeping bags. Don't you guys know how to unzip them and open them up when you get too warm? I used a Western Mountaineering bag for two trips to Alaska that was rated at something like -35. Yeah, it was warm down low but when we pitched our tent at 17K in a storm I had to put on my down parka in my bag to stay warm. As I'm sure you know, a good nights sleep can be the difference between success and failure so why sell yourself short? I didn't think I'd ever use this bag again but its served me well on two trips to south america too. If you can't afford to buy one, then rent or borrow one.

When you get to S. America pick up one of those huge, colorful plastic weave sacks that are ubiquitous down there. Keep it with you and stuff your pack in it whenever you travel by bus as well as use it when you return to the US. It will skillfully camouflage your expensive backpack from greedy thieves as well as protect it from road damage.

Its my understanding that poison ivy is an east coast phenomenon and that poison oak is what you get out here in the PNW. I am very allergic to poison oak and have had to endure steroid therapy (prednisone) for it several times. MDs are the only ones who can prescribe that medicine. I tried naturopathy and it didn't work at all. Each of the medical professions has its own intrinsic value. I suffered through months of shoulder problems with my MD prescribing pain killers, surgery and PT to no avail. I passed on the surgery and went to a chiro instead and was pain free in 4 visits. There are quacks in every field.

Chris is right--that trail is way better, faster and more direct.

Prison? Is that what they call Animal Control now?

I'll add to what hemp said wrt dogs: the rangers there WILL fine you if your dog is not leashed. They tend to stick around the main areas so if you want to avoid the stink eye head over to the marsupials. The mud pile has lots of fun stuff too. Zebra Zion is probably the funnest route out there. Get on it early. Bring warm clothes, its gonna be very cold!

Thats great news Paul. Congrats!

Yes--we need to dress appropriately.

I'll try and make it too.

Send it to BDEL. Same thing happened to me three days before I went to Alaska the first time. The repair was completed and I had my tent in hand within 48 hours.