max

Does any body know about the tunnel at tunnel rock in the Smoke Bluffs? What purpose does it serve?

Probably better to rap the route... jk

http://blog.seattlepi.com/seattlepolitics/2013/05/08/u-s-judge-awards-70804-to-anti-lookout-lawyers/ Salt on the wound, for some.

eastwa: Got your message. Ropes are gone. Kite: If I don't hear back from T Newman by monday evening, the kite is yours. Voicemail me again with your address. Dave

Hooks are spoken for but not picked up. I'll get in touch with you if that falls through. dave

T Newman: The kite is yours. PM me your address and I'll send it. Offer Expires Monday evening. Sunglasses are spoken for, but your on the reserve list. dave

Free. I'll even deal with shipping if you promise you're actually interested, not just collecting crap. Only thing left is the jacket. 1. Hooks: 2. Large down puffy. Very puffy, but a little short for me (I'm 175/scrawny/long). Stained and slob-like, but warm. And free. 3. Trainer kite. Complete kit ready to fly. 3.1 sq m. 4. Smith sunglasses. Lots of interchangeable lenses. nice solid zipper case. Tortoise shell frames. Reasonably fashionable (I think)... and free. I'm getting rid of them b/c I know have prescriptions. 5. One serviceable/one out of commission 10.5x60 bicolor ropes. These guys weigh alot so you pick up in Bellingham. Gone Offer expires when ever I feel like it, check the dumpster if expired. I never notice I have PM's so call or text 360.319.3050 Dave

You don't want to find yourself on the wrong side of a gopro gap!

Hey Fargo! Check this out: http://www.nwac.us/weatherdata/timberlineupper/ I got this from the sidebar On the NWAC site. "weather Data -> telemetry -> the little graph icon. Much easier to interpret!

FYI I've purchased tickets to Palm Springs for about $250 RT from SEA. It may be cheaper and quicker if you've got a ride on the CA side...

...

Austin: I've never climbed Rainier in the winter because I've never had the nuts. But I will offer the advice I've heard the most and that has made the most sense with my experiences: It's all about the weather. If you notice what's posted around here, you'll hear about a fair number of Hood, Rainier, and Baker climbs/partial climbs that go off without a hitch. And you'll also read a few winter epics/case analyses that invariably involve getting hit with sooner/quicker/stronger storms than predicted. Combine this with something you said that piqued my ear (please don't be offended if I've misinterpreted you): "it looks like the 28th is going to be the day" Given the pattern of weather here (Bellingham) over the last two weeks, there's been - something like 4 ft of snow in the last week - two or three mountain storm cycles that persisted and hit hard - maybe two periods of time with "good" weather lasting over two days. that a in seven chance of hitting it just right. - It takes most people at least two days to climb in the summer, it WILL take longer, and you MAY get slowed down.... Your chances hitting one of these windows are poor, and you better be sure you get it right. - It gets really shitty real fast at 11,000 - disaster situations often people making choices based on schedules, not conditions. Conditions are very dynamic now, so should your plans. So, to rap it up before I sound like Grampa Telemark, pay real close attention to the weather and don't underestimate the quickness and intensities winter storms can hit in the mountains.

Good advice for others, just bad directions: Index is on Hwy2 (I'm sure Drederek knows this... )

If that video was supposed to convince me of something... I missed it in all the rapid cuts, chopped up quotes, over-layed text and voice, implied and explicit logical falicies, smarmy know-it-all-ness. That was 15 seconds of my time wasted.

Navigating on the flat in WAY easier than on the slope.... I worked for the FS doing stand analysis, drag line layouts, and marking sales. Most of this was done with compass bearings and pacing. Anyone who says pacing a bearing on a sidehill is easy is Wack! I think this guy's decision to hunker down was his best. High stakes navigation in the fog on a slope is a bad idea.

Both North of Bishop right off of HWY 395, both south of HWY120 to Tioga Pass. One was a small grouping of sharp granite mini-domes east of the hwy about 1/2 a mile. Not a major area but had 2-30 sport climbs. I think this is them: 37° 45.447' N 118° 57.504' W Another was near here, RIGHT off the road. A small cliff of basalt and tuft-like stuff. 20-30 ft high max. Maybe this place? 37° 46.151' N 119° 0.305' W The name of the "area" was (something) pass. EDIT: AHA! THe New Rock and Road is online.... Deadman's Summit. Any insights? Thanks, Dave

Check this: http://www.wunderground.com/weatherstation/WXDailyHistory.asp?ID=KWAGRAND5&day=28&year=2012&month=11&graphspan=month It looks like the last few weeks have been pretty warm...

If you're speaking from a mechanical standpoint, one end feeds through the device and the whole show unravels. But I'm thinking you get that. From a reasoning standpoint, I think the logic goes that the largest, most published climbing safety book in america (the world?) says one of three main reasons people die rappelling is uneven ropes. I'm no actuary, but I think that means even ropes removes you from a hazard pool.

WTF does NASA have to do with space?

Climbig is all about hedging your bets and doing as much as you can to make things safer. Redundancy is a big one in terms of avoiding the Big Chop. I'll tell you my story, how it changed me, and how it applies to your rope situation. I was rapping with a rope that had lost the middle mark. In the process of "finding the middle", I f'ed it up. I started rappeling. I would have rapped off (one) end of my rope if my then girlfriend hadn't yelled "What the f are you doing?!?!". Did I almost die? Yes. Was it because I made a error in judgement and procedure? Yes. BUT, if I had made it easier to tell where the middle was, I would have bbeen less likely to make that very error. I now only use buy bicolor ropes to help reduce the chance of making this sort of mistake. You have a situation that you can mitigate by... oh I didn't even pay too much attention to what everyone above has said because they are all deviations from a "standard". That standard's value is that it is the same (or dang close) every time, so your less likely to mess it up. Do you want to rely on telling every partner to be aware of this variation, every time you climb? My opinion is reduce the risk at every opportunity you can. Two ropes of unequal length are just waiting for an unintentional disaster.

Being as I didn't really speak to the original issue (I only spoke to the claim pharms have a had a net negative effect), I'm not sure how you're able to make a conclusion about what I grasp and don't grasp. In fact, I'm not sure exactly what ya'll have been arguing about; sometimes it's hard to see the trees through the bullshit. But so maybe you can back up and make a more informed assessment of what I know: 1. I would agree pharms are big business and maybe a bit shady about it, 2. we do seem a bit focused on drugs as a cure for our ails, 3. I bet a lot of drugs out there have (significantly) bad side effects, 4. but I'm also one of those limp-dicked morons who trusts my doctor and 1000's of scientists over my own opinions. It seems to be working for me so far. Dave

yeah, like getting rid of polio, having antibiotics for post-op infections, malaria drugs that save millions each year, antigen specific chemotherapy drugs, bio-engineered hormones and enzymes, the (in process) AIDS vaccines, heart drugs,.. hell, ibuprofen.... All these drugs sure have made us feel worse. As a cancer survivor, I chalk my current health (11 years and counting, bitches!) up to three things: getting a "good cancer" with lots of medical history (Hodgkins lymphoma), an oncologist who cared and knew what the hell he was doing, and finally, getting highly studied chemo drugs specific to my DNA and incredibly sophisticated, bio-engineered white blood-cell stimulators that collectively kicked the shit out of my disease. I'm sorry, but your conjecture here is absolute ass-spray.

AT boot size?

There's a big difference between .11 and .11 scary death route. Shit, I can't even climb 5.8 if it's a death route 'cause that's not what climbing's about to me. So to set the bar for all around 5.11 climber using scary/hard to protect climbs seems a little odd.