Climzalot

Do you consider twice a day a lot? Just kidding. Surprisingly never. They are large but well behaved brows. Thanks for noticing.

Heres what mine looks like after it took a shot in 15 degree temps last spring. Dont mind the ugly guy wearing it.

Thanks for the sizing correction. I have noticed that actual size can vary quite a bit between manufacturers. I wear size 9.5-10 depending on the brand and these are just a bit small for me. I think they would fit a size 9 foot pretty well.

Used for 2 seasons of ice climbing and a few glacier routes. The boots are not brand new but they are in fine shape structurally and aethetically. I bought them too small and as a result get cold toes, otherwise I would not be selling them. Asking $130. Can negotiate or trade. If interested please email cgentzel@aai.cc or call 360-647-4394 and talk to Coley.

Sorry Forrest, I meant ice on the route. On the Twisting Couloir there were a few short steps of water ice and i was wondering if there was a bit more on the Central or if it was mostly neve like the Twisting. Dont get me wrong, neve does rule, especially 2000 flawless feet of it in a nice position. I asked about the descent because we took the Aussie and it was pretty quick and very harmless. Looking back up at the SE Ridge on the walk by made me very glad we didnt go that way. Looked, well, tedious I guess. Nice work man.

Nice work on the climb guys. Was there any ice to be had or just neve? Why didnt you descend the Australian Couloir instead of the tedious ridge?

Gonna have to go with Layton on this one Bob. November seems to be pretty spotty for what most people consider good conditions in the Rockies, especially for moderate pure ice routes. I've been up there three years in a row in November and there, as you have said, is always plenty of ice if you know where to look and climb hard, but not everything is in. Not even close. I havent had good experience in the Ghost early season any of these years. 4 early season trips in there with onle one frickin climb done. Saying most climbs, with regard to the number of routes in the area as a whole, are formed by November would be pretty far from the truth I think. Who cares though. Plenty to do that time of year and its usually worth the trip, especially if you are a hardman like Bob! When are you going to get up there guys. Coley

I tried to climb the Coleman Headwall on Saturday morning and it was really warm so we bailed. A good freeze is essential for both of these routes to be safe and enjoyable. A few friends climbed the North Ridge earlier in the week and said conditions were good on the route. The approach is beginning to ge a bit more problematic. We approached up the Coleman Deming and started traversing over and down once at the Roman Nose. After bailing on the route we went straight down the Coleman and this was quite a bit harder to navigate than the way we came in. I would recommend the approach we used for the Headwall for both route right now. There is stil plenty of snow on the cut off slope so you dont have to go to the toe of the ridge yet. Hope this helps.

Some friends and I climbed the route yesterday and it was in pretty good shape. It was pretty cold up there and the snow on the approach was nice and firm which eliminated the need for snowshoes. As long as it continues to freeze at night and doesnt get nuclear hot in the day I think the route will be climbable.

Hey JB. Thanks for posting the photo. I was really bummed we didnt get a photo of the face from an angle that showed our route. I am super stoked to see this perspective on the peak. Thanks man.

Hey Josh and Eric/Ivan. It was nice meeting you guys on the mountain. Beautiful day for a climb eh. Thanks for being cool and I am glad we all had a good time. It sure would have been nice to crash at the lake but it was real nice to get to sleep in my own bed later that night. Made it back to the 'ham by about 1:30. Not too bad considering. Well done guys!! Coley

Finally got my film back. Here is a link to some photos. They wont be there for long so feel free to check them out. Sorry the quality sucks. I will attempt to photo shop a line on the face when I have a few minutes. http://aai.cc/ProgramDetail.asp?program=63

Chris. The line about the breaking trail was meant more as a joke for Bob who told me that will be checking in later today under a nice veil of anonimity, not seriously. As for the warthogs, they are pounded into frozen turf or mungy cracks rather than placed in ice of any sort. Spectres work for this stuff too but they lever out if you are not careful.

Thanks for the post Jason. Sounds about right. I dont really have anything to add as far as details go. None of the cruxes on the route are terribly long but they are all serious to say the least. Finding adequate let alone confidence inspiring protection was often the hardest part. Warthogs were the ticket though. I think we used them in four or five of the seven belays. I am kind of wondering if such a route belongs in your book Jason. The cruxes were thin, thin ice but the route in general was not an ice route. Just a thought. The mixed pitch is hard, especially in a river of spindrift. M? As for the Bob thing goes, he is a good guy. As with most people, there are some things about him that might rub people the wrong way, but I repsect him for calling things as he sees them. Sometimes people react badly to an honest opinion especially when their inflated ego are at stake. Bob is a great climber and there is no one that can argue that. Take or leave the personal issues. I have seen content on par with the worst of what Bob has said on this site with little or none of the same flack being sent towards the parties generating it. Sure he is inflammatory but as I have heard here many times we are all free to express our opinions as long as you keep in mind they are just opinions. Bob is a good guy to climb with and I will gladly break trail for his slow hiking ass any time as long I dont have to listen to the same dirty polish jokes over and over. The name of the route is kind of a funny story. After taking a few wrong turns on the descent from the peak, wandering around in the trees after dark, and getting in a car accident at 2am on the drive home and having to get towed, it kind of felt like the day was never going to end. Coley

Hey Rat. I did see your tracks. I noticed them first where they crossed the snowcone/slope over to the base of the face and then I picked them out again from on the route. It looks like you picked a better line for the approach. Did you come from the lake? We continued up the snow cone into the gully couloir on the left and then climbed up a depression/groove on the right hand side of the gully to access the face and then up from there. We came to the same conclusion that it looks like you did with the right hand side of the face, not enough ice. It there was a little more of the frozen stuff it looks like there would be some stellar lines there.

Hey Jason. The guy that emailed you those details must have been Polish Bob. We climbed this route yesterday with a friend of his. Feel free to drop me an email if you are curious or want more details. Coley

Wayne. Nice work on the climb man. I am guessing it was you we saw descending yesterday from the route as we were walking off of Pyramid. I was hoping you were Mike Layton so I could conratulate him as well but I guess it was not to be. Sorry once again Mike. It sounds like we got to enjoy the same rotten snow and ice conditions on our respective routes. Kept it interesting for sure. Sure was a beautiful weekend in the mountains huh? Well done guys.

Erik - Not sure man. I was actually wondering that myself. If they had, it would certainly take some of the glimmer away but not all. Do you know?

I guess that was my point in asking which was a more impressive effort on ice, since Gadds route cant really be considered an ice route. I guess I just tend to be more impressed by folks moving fast and climbing big committing routes in good style rather than rehearsing bolt protected moves in a no committment environment. I have no doubt that Gadds route would be the harder of the two to pull off for todays Rockies hardman but it should have been in a mixed category rather than ice. When you say there are a host of people who could duplicate the linkup it makes me wonder why no one else has (or have they?). Others may be capable but not many are willing to endure the suffering it would take or expend the necessary energy. The selection for the winner in this category is a good example of how mainstream climbing and related coverage is gravitating towards things like bouldering, sport climbing, and pure diffuculty, and away from big scary routes in the mountains.

The award that burned me the most was the award for Ice. It was given to Will Gadd for Musashi (M12) and in the process they passed over Rolo Garibotti and Bruno Sorzac climbing Slipstream, Polar Circus and The Weeping Wall in a day. Honestly, which is a more impressive effort on ice. Gadds route is impressive certainly, but I dont think you can group these two in the same category and give the award to a mixed climb that was worked for a period of weeks and months over the effort and drive required to pull off 2 grade V's and a grade VI in a day.

Trask-Would an example of your definition of judging be calling someone a two faced tool without ever having met or spoken with them. Just wondering. No more spray for me. PM if so desired.

I didnt want to reply to this for fear of contributing to what I so harshly criticized earlier but I just couldnt resist. Maybe there is a little sprayer hidden in me somewhere that I just need to get in touch with. You are right Caveman, I am not a huge spray fan, and yes I am spraying now, but what I have an even harder time dealing with, and this is my problem and not yours, is not the spray, but the attitude from which it stems. I came across as more confrontational that I had intended. Forgive me if you can. I just happen to think that in general people, myself included, tend to talk more than they act and I have a low tolerance for attitude and ego of any sort especially when it is not backed up with accomplishment and ability. I guess I was just trying to encourage folks to get fired up and get after it more than anything. You do your thing and I will do mine. Do what you want as long as it doesnt affect those around you in a gegative way and dont let your experience hinder that of others if at all possible. Word to Cavemans Mom

Excellent. Thanks for the info guys. Colby Coombs told me that June-July are better for Peak 11,300 but Steve H and Paul at TAT say winter and spring conditions are best and April-early May would be about right. Any feedback here?

I am sorry, I dont mean to be inflammatory in any way but I cant believe the amount of useless babble that is generated by the people who contribute to this web web site. A friend and I were up at Chair on Saturday and I recognized a few names I heard bouncing around the mass of people gathered there and I had hoped to breeze through this topic and get a few accounts of how other peoples climbs went. Instead I was greeted with a lengthy stream of childish BS and found the recent posts almost completely devoid of any useful or even interesting information. Much of the content of this web site is a good representation of what was happening at the base of Chair on Saturday, a lot of useless talk and speculation and very little action. Climb faster, talk less, and shut up if you dont know.

I was thinking about that whole getting dropped off below the route thing and I wasnt sure how that would work with 3 weeks worth of food and gear. I was thinking it would make more sense to drop our stuff on the main landing area, maybe near Dickey, and then carry a few days worth of stuff up to the nice spot below the route and camp for a couple. Correct me if I am wrong but it would suck to have to descend from the upper glacier with all that gear in tow. Where are you at right now anyway Mr. Layton.