CascadeClimber

Phair Creek! Phair Creek! Phair Creek! Phair Creek! "Let the powers that be keep the Phair Creek road open. Cause 'A Phairwell to Arms' just looks totally dopin!" Ice! Ice! Can someone sedate me until mid-December, please? -Loren

I've only been up there once- December 23, 1996. Clear, blus skies and plenty warm. But then we were able to park directly across from the 'trail'. I take it that the spur road is now gated or undriveable? -Loren

I suspect some the hazardous enigma value has been mitigated by liberal use of flagging tape and a pair of loppers. Did you solo down the gully or rap? It looked nasty loose to me, but maybe not? -Loren

This is terrible, sad news. My sincerest condolences to family and friends. I live in Issaquah. Please let me know if there is anything that I can do. -Loren

The two Doorish routes are in the updated CAG V1. Three hours to the summit. Damn. That is flat-out hauling ass. Nice job Colin & Co. We took eight hours and didn't dawdle, though we had some route-finding issues. Did you play in the 'dirt gully' or climb the rock to the right? -Loren

On Saturday, September 28, I left a pair of Saloman cross trainers on a rock on the Nisqually moraine, down on the flats below Glacier Vista. When I returned from a day of seracing, someone had apparently 'accidentally' picked them up and walked off with them. It put a sour note on an otherwise fun day. If you are reading this, and have my shoes, I'd appreciate getting them back, no questions asked. -Loren lorennerol@aol.com

On Saturday, September 28, I left a pair of Saloman cross trainers on a rock on the Nisqually moraine, down on the flats below Glacier Vista. When I returned from a day of seracing, someone had apparently 'accidentally' picked them up and walked off with them. It put a sour note on an otherwise fun day. If you are reading this, and have my shoes, I'd appreciate getting them back, no questions asked. -Loren lorennerol@aol.com

Looking for some beta on the couloir within the last 14 days or so. Anyone? Anyone?? -Loren

Nevermind, I got it handled... -Loren [ 08-22-2002, 03:46 PM: Message edited by: CascadeClimber ]

I don't have a pic of the lower 'icefall', but here is the upper part of the glacier. The access route to the North Ridge is non-descript from this angle, but fairly obvious when you are there- just don't go too high on the glacier. I think it is via 'snow point' just above the hairpin turn we took (in blue). We went in via Cache Col. My partner did the Middle Fork drainage approach on his last trip and said never again. More here: http://cascadeclimber.com/mt__formidable.htm -Loren [ 08-06-2002, 09:09 PM: Message edited by: CascadeClimber ]

The "trail is just west of a meadow/clearing, climbs in trees, then exits east into the meadow" description sounds exactly like Variation #2, which I came down from Sherpa last year. In fact, here is my description from last year: "We rejoin the Ingalls trail 100 feet east of the Turnpike Creek junction." Hmmm. Ray- that first picture you posted shows the correct entry from the valley bottom? If so, I'll print it and take it along. Thx all- Loren

Now that is the info I was looking for EasyPeaks! For your succinct and effective proffering of mountain info, I hereby dub you this week's honorary MasterBeta. -Loren

Any Stuart south-side experts out there? I'm looking for some beta on which of the myriad of climber's trails coming down to the Ingalls trail is Cascadian. Planning to camp where the Long's Pass trail crosses Ingalls and scramble up Cascadian from there. Thanks in advance-

Nope, no sleeping in the gravel for me. I'm apparently both too old and not old enough for that shit. The picture isn't Jberg, though I see the resemblence. The C-J couloir doesn't get that broken up. Say, that wasn't you that bashed my car, was it? [ 07-25-2002, 11:47 AM: Message edited by: CascadeClimber ]

I'll play...

There is still a good bit of snow in the gully system above C-J Col. With the current warm weather the rock would be wet and the snow mushy. Would make for a scintillating ascent/descent. Got a good look at the alternate descent route from C-J Col to Cache Col. Getting past Mixup looks like a PITA. Has anyone here ever gone that way?? Someone ran into my car at the Cascade Pass lot over the weekend. They were kind enough to leave insurance info. I also had a nice flat tire that we got to change yesterday evening. Many thanks to Ranger Kelly Bush who took pity on me and left a nice note instead of a parking ticket on my windshield.

I second the vote for Little T. The top of that thing is nothing but a loose rubble-heap.

I made it all the way up the gully to the start of the East Ridge a week ago in my tennis shoes. YMMV

Great route. Climbed it last year in late May. Is the road open yet? Might want to call the Detroit (Oregon) Ranger station for some beta.

Hee hee. Yeah, it was battle stations in that gully. Here is a pic I took while Book of the Dead (circled in red) was yelling down to us: Was that ice pitch really a 'full rope length' like the book says? Sure didn't look that way from below. You guys survived that, I think that's worth two more of those stickers on your helmet Necro. More here: Cutthroat and SEWS [ 05-12-2002, 08:34 PM: Message edited by: CascadeClimber ]

Hey, thanks, Mike. I'm glad you appreciate it.

"Toooooo Sofffftt!!!!" That's what we heard as they crested onto the col. Still, we ventured up the couloir to the base of the slush, er, ice. Damn. A couple hours too late. Fearing for our lives in the cornice-threatened death-gully, and getting pummeled frequently by falling ice, we agreed that they were right and retreated. Damn. Nice go guys, I wish we'd been just a bit earlier. Which way did you descend?

The big "Spring 2002: Gear up for *any* adventure" catalog showed up at my house today. It is 104 pages including the front and back covers. The first piece of real gear (backpacks and trekking poles) appears on page 74. Notably missing: - Any kind of rope- Boots (other than light hikers)- Crampons- Axes- Cams, nuts, hexes, tri-cams, etc.- Rock shoes- Harnesses (there is a picture of two people hiking in their harnesses, though!)- Four season tents I guess when they say "any adventure" they mean your next trip to Bellevue Square. Jules, I'd say REI's priorities are pretty clear and you friend may be in for a very frustrating experience trying to make any change. But all the power to him!

quote: Originally posted by jules: OK, another question: Do you think that the assortment is good in ANY of the categories (check out rei.com)? Yes. They have an excellent selection of casual wear, especially over-priced imported fleece of all shape and color. I also like the holiday candles and the collapsable dog dishes, which are, of course, the 11th and 12th essentials on any serious climb. Please don't confuse selection with availability. Over and over in recent years I've heard, "Oh, yeah, we don't have any of those in the store, but we have, lessee, 9436 in the Kent warehouse." Once I went in to buy a Trango Pyramid only to discover that the FLAGSHIP STORE had not a single belay device of any kind! Stock the gear in the stores!!! Will said it best: Get back to being a source of a full selection of high quality climbing equipment at excellent prices. If they do that I don't care how much fleece they carry. The current leadership seems to have confused "biggering" with "bettering".

quote: Originally posted by chucK (snipped): Loren, Nice post. I appreciate your restrained tone respecting the way this thread was started. Once you have to do it yourself, you see it is not as easy to be perfect. Like kids, the mountie students and leaders are not telepathically connected to one brain. Unless you actually deny them the right to go out into the mountains, I think you have to give a big untrained group a bit more slack/leeway than smaller teams who have been climbing together for a long time. I display proof, digital proof, that those installations are a product of the WAC I have done some guiding myself. I know it is not easy, or maybe possible to make a group of six or more with mixed experience move efficiently. I always go out of my way to be gracious, humble, and as polite as possbile when I'm out with a big group. I guess my biggest beef has been their marked unwillingness to hear feedback from the rest of the "climbing community"; that their role power and "everything they've done" for climbing in the Northwest somehow exclude them from being accountable for their impact on climbers who are not in the club. Steve's post, his non-defensive follow-up, and his thoughtful email reply to my post seem to indicate that things are changing at Mountaineers HQ. Lundin: I think you'll find that there is another memorial placard there now. Thanks for the thoughtful discussion.