Rodchester

Nelson I, 2nd Ed. Nelson II Check out and buy both Nelson books. For an 8 day trip you'll get PLENTY of ideas from these books. They are well written and provide good beta on routes, approaches, and how to get to the trailhead. Most people are shocked when they come from back east and see the North Cascades. They just don't know and understand how many great peaks there are around the PNW. Get these books, read them over, then ask for opinions and advice here. You'll get plenty of feedback.

"Do you think they used a US made helicopter and a US made missile to assassinate the guy?" Possibly, but Israel is very good at making thier own equipment and armaments. I hate Sharon......Fat Bastard.

Hmmm...I have a 9.8 x 60 meter dry that I generally use for alpine stuff. It has worn average so far. I haven't used it for AID, but have for some sport and crag trad. I think the quality of the rope is going to have more to do with the wear than the diameter.

How did the Sherpa get from Nepal/Tibet to the Baltoro? I guess the client hired him as a guide. You know what I think is a real scam? Taxis...I mean come on, drive yourself. Think about it, if you can't drive and find you own parking you must suck. I mean come on. You know that Cabbie is getting rich off it too. I bet he drives around the block twice to run up the meter. And then the Cabbie says to the client: "wait here a minute while I go do something." And he is off doing something personal on the client's dime. That makes me mad. When that client can drive himself, pay for his own gas, and then find his own parking and not rely on the immigrant cab driver I'll respect him.

Will: I get your point, but the reality is, most clients that have the money to shell out are USUALLY sharp enough to hang up the phone and call another guide service, and that is exactly what they do. VERY few actually pay full price on the large trips. The quoted and often passed around price of $60,000.00 is not a reality excpet in rare cases. To say that the few times that this happens (if ever) makes all guiding a scam is BS. But I understand your point. Hey Mattp, love the T.

Will: Commercial non-guided climbs, or even adding non-guided commecial climbers onto a permit is standard in the industry and always has been. This is mostly in Asia, other areas don't have the same permit issues. I don't see any problem at all toward commercial non-guided climbs or climbers on a permit. I am familar with how it works. Further, ading a guide that just wants to climb a peak is fine, but on many peaks the permit is based on the number of people. Add a guide, cost go up. Now, if the owner is using what would be his profits to cover the increased permit cost allow a guide to climb, so what? That's just dumb business. How does that make guiding under the rules a scam? It doesn't. If someone breaks off of a permited climb and climbs another peak, well, that is breaking the rules. They don't have a pemit for that peak. How does that make guiding under the rules a scam? It doesn't. Doolittle seems pretty clear that all guiding is a scam. I disagree.

EriK: I can understand some concerns that many have. And to a certain degree, I agree. I also know that many here are troubled by guiding in certain areas: i.e. 8000 meter peaks. Again, I don't totally disagree and realize that many concerns are valid. But Doolittle's rant is not realistic. The permit issue he raises is a BS misconception of how guiding and permitting works.

So one wannabe gloms onto another wannabe? Sounds like you're saying that the guide is a wannabe just like the client? Who is getting scammed, the client? And please explain how an owner can take a run up another peak using the permit for the client's peak? Permits in most countries are for a particular peak. How does having a client(s) pay for the permit as a part of the cost of a climb for the client's peak allow the owner to climb another peak without a permit for the other peak? Do you have personal experience with this occuring? Where? What company? And who is supposed to pay for the permit anyway? Isn't that a business cost? Hmmm....$250 a day....hmmmm. I wonder what the $250 a day is paying for...hmmm. Man, this guiding business must be a scam, making a lot of people rich. Just curious about the scam.

In Utah, weeks are like marriages...there is more days in the week and more wives in their marriages.

Are you saying all guides are wannabes?

I wouldn't say they are dumb, but I'd say that autolockers can let one get lazy and assume becuase you heard a metalic click/sound that the biner locked. In an alpine environment or multi-pitch setting one often has a lot of gear on, and the biner gate may be making that metalic sound as it hits something else made of metal, say another biner, a cam, a nut, etc. With a classic screw locker, you know you have to lock it...not just check it. I stick with screw lockers to force me to not get lazy and assume that it locked. Just my opinion/preference.

Glacier: I remember that well. Your friend is a good guy and was well liked despite ultimate differences. I think he is much better off where he is now, as far as work goes it has more room for a strong willed guy like him to make animpact on his work and those around him.

Hmmmm...I thought you said: Hmmmmm....

Leading WI1 in full goretex while your partner video tapes you is not up to my standards. And jugging fixed lines that a shepra or another climber placed the day before is not climbing, it's jugging fixed lines. Let me know when she actually climbs an 8000m peak, instead of jugging fixed lines set by sherpas or other climbers to the summit of an 8000m peak. You're really up to speed on her and her climbing experience and abilities aren't you? She Did Shisapangma "alpine style" (to the true summit) with no porters past basecamp, no fixed lines, no moving camps in something like a few days. I can't recall exactly. It was just her and Fowler. I know she herself fixed lines on GII and K2. Dude, you are so funny. You don't know shit about her. Why do you make such simple-Simon-assumptions about someone you don't know. Maybe she was doing an instructional video for children? Who knows? CB does a LOT of work with kids and schools. She is regularly involved with helping "Room To Read" raise money for children in Nepal so that they can go to school and learn. She does promos for them. Sorry this isn't up to YOUR standards. Maybe it was a promo for M2? Get over it. Anyway...I've known Christine fairly well for 8 years. She has always been shy around the camera. Many around her push her into the spotlight and she is smart enough to realize that it can help her climbing and others, so she does it but I does so reluctantly. Its not her thing. Many climbers are like this, and that’s cool. Just because a climber is well known or is featured in R&I or something doesn't mean they are a poser. DRU: Come on bro, you know she's not my girlfriend. Just kidding.

I would consider doing other things besides Rainier. If you like the volcanos look into Baker and Glacier. Also try Shukshan. Too many great peaks in the PNW to spend 8 days on Rainier with 1000 others.

Oh, I agree that we shouldn't have to pay...and that the guide companies should. I do agree with that.

Why don't you drop Moonstone a line at: Moonstone Mountain Equipment 1700 Westlake Ave N, Ste. 200 Seattle, Washington 98109 Toll Free: 800.390.3312 email: info@moonstone.com

STeepC: Those Corps are paying a pretty penney to guide and use the land. You'd be surprised how much guide servcies pay for the users days.

What's the difference? The funds were there, but congress choose to not allocate the funds for management because it saw that suckers like you would let them not do their jobs and would pay at the gate so to speak. That has to be the weakest argument I've ever heard. A shortfall in funds provided, but not in funds? Too funny.

I have the old style neon Koflachs. I am very happy with them and have had them since they were new. They are warm, but the warmth is in VERY large part dictated by the type and condition of the liner. (that's likely obvious to you). The older Koflachs (Neon ones), sometimes had a foam liner that was VERY warm but it crushed down fairly quickly. As far as ice climbing goes it is fine, but not exactly comparable with the newer insulated leathers. It is like most plastics, a sloppy boot. Fine for winter stuff, mountaineering on the volcanoes, etc. Shell holds up very well to the cold and is somewhat flexible for French stepping.

Carlos Buhler and Mark Price did a line very close to the Simpson Yates route in 1999 (I think it was 99). I spoke with both of them in Huarez right after they did the route and have since duscussed it with Carlos on a couple of occasions. He was, and is, impressed/amazed by the effort Joe undertook to get his as out of there. He said the terrain was very rough. he said the route they did was challegning and if I recall correctly difficult to protect.

Traditional, or trad climbing, is the use of traditional (trad) gear to protect in the event of a fall. In trad climbing one may also use natural protection as gear by slinging trees, chockstones, etc. However, very rarely does one rely solely on natural gear. There is nothing natural about a cam, a nut, or a hex, or etc. Why are you using the term natural?

The droop of the pick and the teeth are often indicators of the age of the axe. Also the length can INDICATE age as well. Back in the 1920s and 1930s almost all axes were long, damn long. Can you post a picture?

But the Fee Demo program was done when there was a surplus? Surplus. So what shortfall were they dealing with? Hmmmm.....