Zenolith

I think rescue insurance like they have some places in Europe is a good idea. To be fair though it should be voluntary-if you don't want it you can pay for your own rescue. I think this would decrease the total number of rescues by making incompetent people think twice about taking on too much. Barring that, I think we should continue with the system we now have. People should be free to get into any situation they want to whether others think it stupid or not because there are a lot of things that my taxes pay for that I think are stupid (like the drug war and limosines for the mayor).

There's a new book out called 'Glaciers!' by Michael Strong et al. that I think is more in depth than any of the others. There are a lot of good tips in it. Here's a tip of my own. You'd think it was common sense but you'd be surprised... Don't girth hitch your axe so that the sling runs over the head; you'll cut it the first time you have to hammer a picket in w/ it. Don't be an idiot and pound with the adze either. Max is right about the long rope ends. You need enough to set up a C-pulley at least. You cant haul a climber out by yourself without at least a z on a c but you can belay a prusiking or climbing victim with a C on his harness and a prusik at the anchor.

Mine are Metolius in all sizes. The reason? Smooth action and easy to grab, very durable, made locally. I do own some Rock Empire cams as well and like them too. They are 4 cams as well but the cams are closer together than most and don't seem to walk as much as wider cams.

Thx for the info Erik. I have never noticed that about friends since I don't know anyone who uses them (I use some rigid stems but have never had a problem like you describe). I don't aid climb (yet) so I dont really have much use for offset cams. I do think they may be handy for a lot of columnar basalt climbs where the larger cracks are more weathered on the outside and thus don't take a regular #10 Metolius as well as I'd like. That inspires me to start a new thread...

Erik, Notice the subtle winking Icon on my original post...it means I was joking. You are too sensitive my friend.

I agree with Mike. People who want someone to filter the content of the site should lighten up a bit. You don't really have to read it, just like you can mute commercials or turn off the TV; censor yourself. I don't rely on route beta from here or any other internet source (besides csac). If someone gives beta I take it into consideration if I think they are for real, but I don't change or make plans based on what I hear here. I enjoy some of the humor that is technically spray and if this site were all beta I would get bored and go to a rowdier site.

The Erik Snyder who wrote to the editor of R&I has a very familiar prose. Erik the Spray Queen, is that your letter? I agree with the it, but I'm glad they did Washington state no favors. I don't want it to become a climbing destination; the crags are crowded enough already.

The way we came up.

Sunday the 20th we started out at 4am after spending the night wondering if the wind would slow down enough to let us go up. We had camped at 5900' on the right lateral glacial moraine so we just followed that up to where the glacier widens and becomes heavily crevassed. There were two of us climbing together above camp and we decided to stay on the lower slopes of the N Ridge to avoid roping up. This worked well and we got to the 'shrund (9800') at 6:00. I don't usually travel that fast but we had great conditions and were anxious to get past the Mohler Tooth before the sun hit it. We crossed the upper 'shrund by climbing 8' of water ice between it and Mohler Tooth. We then climbed up steep slopes to the base of the "5.1" ridge. The wind was howling up there so I racked up in the shelter of a giant ice fin. I stepped up onto the ridge and got quite a shock. I stood on a hump and looked down at the exposure on both sides. I was standing on a crusty ice ledge about 2' wide looking down at a drop of hundreds of feet on both sides when a big gust took my balance. I dropped to my knees and regained my center of gravity. I backed down to look for a belay and to survey the route. The start of the ridge was too hard for pickets and too soft for screws so I looked ahead at what I would be climbing. The ridge has a long (3-400') series of very sharp pinnacles. After this the ridge flattens and widens as it stretches off to the summit (which was completely covered with ice). We could see that if we got past the pinnacles we could get to the base of the summit pinacle. These begining pinnacles are steep enough to make me want two tools but totally unprotectable. My partner suggested we traverse on rotten rock ledges on climbers right (SW). It looked really scary b/c of the enormous exposure and the wind was coming up that side. With no feasable belay available, the strong gusts, lack of pro, etc we decided to back off. Note: It occured to me that "5.1" rock when covered with ice, unprotectable, in a driving wind...is a lot harder than 5.1 in crampons and gloves. Later I spoke to an accomplished climber who has done that route in like conditions. He said that the pinnacles are "impossible" when iced up like that and that even when dry they are passed on the SW side. Apparently the traverse is very sparsly protectable in winter/early spring, and belays are a little better than "imaginary". Hmmm Warm temps are coming and may remove a lot of that ice. I would go back and try again in a week if I could (I'm going again on June 2-3). I reccomend using the N Ridge as a backup plan. If you get to the ridge and have to back off you can descend to the glacier the way you came and go around the base of the N summit and climb up to the N Ridge crest. The N Ridge route bypasses most of the worst difficulties (except the summit). This plan should be attempted early since the guidebook says the rockfall can be rather bad until you get on the ridge crest. The route is spectacular and, like Mt Washington, it has a remote, big mountain feel that the rest of the High Cascades lack.

erik, my compliments to your mother as well. yes, i never knew how morally upstanding the bc/climbing community was until i tried to be a little subersive. I did end up getting what i wanted tho...

Anyone have experience with these? I can think of more crack climbs with flared cracks than paralell so I imagine they might be rather useful, especially in the larger sizes. Black Dome is having a big sale on these $32 apeice, and also on rigid stems and 1.5 tech friends.

JCB, Bela Fleck, Dead from the 70s and 80s, Galactic Funk, PFunk, Bud Powell, Mingus, Britney...

erik and susi, My comments in "Spray" are just that, spray. I have learned to spray like a pro from you, erik. Don't be offended by my comments as I am not offended by yours.

Billy, I looked specifically at the "N Face" route that is right of the cleaver. That route and the gully to the left looked easier than usual. A more moderate angle and plenty of snow. From that distance I could not see whether I was looking at ice, soft or hard snow. In the right gully the short rock step was almost completely covered. I looked at the elliott headwall and thought the same as for the gullies but the rock was not covered with ice or snow.

erik the spray queen, you should check out the new bolt gun linked on the gear forum. with your love of bolting remote wilderness routes this tool should really give you a woody!

2 weeks ago I skied from the rock shelter on Cooper Spur. It was clear and the N SIde routes looked inviting.

Check out this handy tool! http://hilti.20m.com/index.html#main

I did get them overseas but that is irrelevant since the refusal was not for that reason. Where I bought them was not mentioned in Atomic's correspondance to me (or mine to them).

Since Atomic sells some popular ski-mountianeering skis I thought this warning might be of interest. Over a month ago I broke a tip on a brand new pair of Tourcarves at Bachelor. I don't know how it happened; I noticed it on the lift. I sent them to Atomic USA and they sent them back saying that the damage was from impact and therefore would not honor the warantee. I think this is lame and will never buy another pair of Atomics b/c they don't seem to care if their customers are happy or not. If I slamed a mougul (I did this on a 1.5' powder day) I would feel responsible, but I think their judgement call is wrong. They can be splinted but my skin clip won't fit over it.

Susi, Where could you possibly be from to think that America is polite? I can't think of a more disgusting culture except maybe Italy. I vote for erik. He is a filthy pig. The first reply I ever got on this board was spray from him.

Report for Thursday says condiderable to high and increasing on Friday. Sun is only a good thing AFTER is has restored equilibrium, not during. Unstable slabs of 3-5', several buried weak layers, etc tell me to stay on ridge tops or off the mountain.

I tend to see things in black and white. Bolting routes that would go free without adding an X to the grade is wrong. Roadside crag or not there is very little adventure left out there that you don't have to go to Alaska or somewheres to find. As the local frontier of climbing is further tamed, the adventurous will go to more difficult and more distant places to get their kicks. Some people might say that the Cirque of the Unclimbables will never be as developed as Yosemite and that we don't have to worry about imposing an ethic on development there. Crap, I say! They'll get thier super-lightweight geodesic domes in there, fly the rich in by luxury helicopter, etc. The place will not be a wilderness if we don't use ethics in development (route development or "accomodations" or whatever). My point is this; If we don't leave adventure nearby it will be destroyed in concentric circles outwardly until there is none left. Trad routes are adventurous but not balls-out dangerous and we should avoid getting to the point where every mountain and crag is so tacked up that the only way to get a thrill is to risk one's life. I want to hear people say in their TRs that they didn't clip a bolt b/c there was pro nearby. Same as picking up someone else's trash. You may be the only one to see it but it matters immensly nonetheless. Ethics are in the heart.

Some discussion on the Leuthold thread got me wondering what, if any, is a good time to be roped with no pro in. Glacier travel of course, and winding the rope around features such as is done on the summit pinnacle of Mt. Jeff and the like. I seem to hear too many stories of a falling climber dragging off his/her partner causing two deaths instead of one. The couple that died on Cooper last year, the two guys from U of O in '97 on N. Sister, come to mind. I follow a general rule that there be at least one solid peice in if we're roped. Otherwise the follower should untie and clip back in if the leader puts in a peice. I'm talking about steep alpine routes like Sandy, Cooper and such but I think the same is more true on rock routes. What do others do?

I would reccomend the Oregon Natural Resources Council (even if you live in Wa). I am an intern w/ them and am impressed at the hard and largely thankless work they do.

The prices ($160 for a set of 8) sound way too good to be true, and yet I've handled just such a set. The three small cams are quads and are similar to Aliens but not as fancy. The larger ones (Robots) are just like Trango's with a different sling. They say that they are UIAA cert. and have strengths similar to cams of the same size in other brands. They are no as durable-looking with plastic triggers and what not, but they are made w/ the same materials as any other cam where it counts (cam, axle, cable, spring). I have heard mumblings about how "scary" they are but not by anyone who would qualify their comments. Has anyone actually used them? I fell on a small one (it held), but that is not much to go on. If durability is the only drawback one could afford to replace them for that price. Thoughts???