Climbers stuck on Glacier

[Lambone]

Forrest,

I agree, unfortunately my better half does not...so what can you do... When I am out with the bro's the cell stays in the car.

 

Regardless, if we had not showed up by Monday night, our parents would have launched a rescue anyway.

 

[ 07-31-2002, 10:37 AM: Message edited by: Lambone ]

[Cpt.Caveman]

I would have had the satellite phone and called the Starship Enterprise to "beam me up Scotty!"

[bobinc]

Hey, Matt:

 

After this, the big walls in the Valley will seem ever more forgiving.

 

Don't beat yourself up too much over this. The weather can change awfully fast and then it's hard to know what is best to do. I have wished for a cell phone to notify loved ones of my situation before (on Johannesburg) and even though it is odd how you could only get 911, the result was a relatively quick resolution.

 

Bob

[Lambone]

quote:

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Originally posted by Cpt.Caveman:

I would have had the satellite phone and called the Starship Enterprise to "beam me up Scotty!"

---

"Beem me up Scotty" crossed my mind more than once!

 

Bob,

Previously the highest winds I had ever experienced were on El Cap. The wind on Glacier Peak made that day on El Cap seem like a joke. I have been in severe lightning storms and avalanches and you name it, but that wind scared the shit out of me like nothing else. There were times where it felt as if it was trying to pick us up and throw us off the mountain.

 

But it was the cold and moisture that caused us the most distress.

[allison]

I was recently the contact person for someone who was late coming back. Had to decide how long to wait before making the call to SAR. I held my breath until I'd almost turned blue, not reaching for the phone.....and then they made it out. Whew.

 

Now hearing Matt's SAR tales of woe, seems to me that maybe waiting a teeny bit longer than you want to is not such a bad plan. Sounds like those guys don't mess around once they get the call.

 

ML, glad you made it back in one piece. We can chat about it sometime if these silly guys ever give us back our chatroom, hint, hint!!

[forrest_m]

so, lambone, is your fiancee still psyched to to "easy alpine climbs" in the rockies for your honeymoon? i'm always paranoid that if i get my wife involved in an epic i'll never get her out of the city again...

[Cpt.Caveman]

Ooh rockies and afternoon thunderstorms SPICY!

[allison]

 

OK, Ray just made me laugh out loud, for the record.

[gapertimmy]

quote:

---

Originally posted by allison:

We can chat about it sometime if these silly guys ever give us back our chatroom, hint, hint!!

---

the chat room is still there you just need to use mIrc to get to it, or any other irc program

[Greg_W]

quote:

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Originally posted by allison:

 

OK, Ray just made me laugh out loud, for the record.

---

Even more shocking is the news that you have a sense of humor, Allison.

[Cpt.Caveman]

I was just talking smack actually.

 

But when lived in CO the t-storms would come in on the front range every afternoon like clockwork. Displaying dazzling lightning and deafening thunder followed by torrential but short rain spells.

 

I think Lamebone was talking about Canyucker rockies but it's all about the fun.

[Lambone]

quote:

---

Originally posted by forrest_m:

so, lambone, is your fiancee still psyched to to "easy alpine climbs" in the rockies for your honeymoon? i'm always paranoid that if i get my wife involved in an epic i'll never get her out of the city again...

---

haha, we'll see. We may be trending towards the easier of "easy alpine climbs" in the can rockies. Or at least less commiting, especialy in september.

 

But she is keeping her chin up and still wants to get out there, even though she promised god she would quit climbing if he lifted the storm. Luckily he didn't lift it all the way I keep telling her that it wasn't quite an epic, but might have been if we descended in the storm.

 

This little experience taught us alot about each other, the mountains, and how we would do things diferently next time.

[erik]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Lambone:

quote:

---

Originally posted by forrest_m:

so, lambone, is your fiancee still psyched to to "easy alpine climbs" in the rockies for your honeymoon? i'm always paranoid that if i get my wife involved in an epic i'll never get her out of the city again...

---

haha, we'll see. We may be trending towards the easier of "easy alpine climbs" in the can rockies. Or at least less commiting, especialy in september.

 

But she is keeping her chin up and still wants to get out there, even though she promised god she would quit climbing if he lifted the storm. Luckily he didn't lift it all the way

I keep telling her that it wasn't quite an epic, but might have been if we descended in the storm.

 

This little experience taught us alot about each other, the mountains, and how we would do things diferently next time.

---

like beg erik to come along next time, so he could lead them to safety.....

 

[Attitude]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Lambone:

This little experience taught us alot about each other, the mountains, and how we would do things diferently next time.

---

I'd be curious what you come up with, after a period of reflection.

[Lambone]

quote:

---

Originally posted by erik:

like beg erik to come along next time, so he could lead them to safety.....

 

[/QB]

---

totaly, I blame all this on erik and shawn, my two bro's who bailed on me at the last minute and left me alone with two women...

 

(two badass women I should say. despite the phone call they kept pretty damn solid the whole time. oh, except when they had to go out in the gale and pee )

 

[ 07-31-2002, 11:30 AM: Message edited by: Lambone ]

[iain]

Hehe just for fun.

 

http://www.summitpost.com/mountains/user_link.pl/user_id/283

[chucK]

quote:

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Originally posted by Jim:

Sounds like dispensation Mr. Techno wiz.

---

Not quite sure what you mean by dispensation.

 

I just think you might be a little thick if you are surprised that people are less likely to slam their friends than someone they don't know.

[Lambone]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Stefan:

Lambone. Question. I am not second guessing your experience with this question. I just want to know for my future reference.

 

Did you notice any cloud caps on either Rainier or Baker on your last nice day camping at the summit? Even small ones high above?

---

Stefan,

 

Saturday night the entire North Cascades including Baker, Shuksan, Eldorado, Buckner, etc, etc...way up to Canada(I wish I new them all) all of which were in the clear. Clouds were all well below the treeline. The summit of Whitehorse and the Three Brothers were also above the cloud cap. We could see the Olimpics on the horizon, and there were no sign of large storm clouds coming in.

 

We could not see Rainier to the south be cause it was blocked by the summit of Glacier, but I assume it was also above the cap.

 

We did notice high wispy clouds blowing in, but they looked non threatening. They were probably a sign of the changing preasure system, but we didn't know how to interpret that. Winds picked up as the sun was setting, but that did not seem unusual. By mid-night the house was fully rockin and emergency tent repairs were underway.

 

Good question.

 

[ 07-31-2002, 01:13 PM: Message edited by: Lambone ]

[Jim]

Geez Louise - here's my points. Leave the cell phones home. Check out the weather forecast. Climb with people you know can get out of testy situations that you can manage. Be conservative or suck it up.

 

Have I ever call for a rescue. Once. When my friend took a leader on an alpine rock route in S.A. Had another party help him out with a dislocated shoulder and two broken ribs.

 

Sounds like the cell-phone call was out of Mr. Lambones control. Too bad.

[TimL]

I saw the same thing as Lambone did on Saturday evening. As the sun set, the only difference in the weather in the Stuart Range was the wind picked up a little. Actually, it was a very beautiful evening. Everything else was completely normal with no changes in the low hanging clouds over the Cascade Crest. I never thought the weather would turn as bad as it did without any of the normal Cascade indicators. The wind that hit LB at midnight hit us around 3. At 5 the summit of Stuart was clouded but I could clearly see the the Colchuck Lake area and Icicle Valley. By 5:30 is was pea soup. It was a very sneaky, quick moving system. And the wind was horrible. I got intimate with the glacier a couple of times after being slammed by the wind while retreating. LB's party made the correct decision and walked out alive. We've already had enough drama and life lost in the Cascades this year. No need for more. Besides, its only climbing and its supposed to be fun.

 

[ 07-31-2002, 01:22 PM: Message edited by: TimL ]

[Lambone]

Hey Jim ya wanker ,

 

Your points are well taken, and I respect those who chose not to bring or use a cell phone when climbing. Sure, maybe we jumped the gun...who is to say. Kinda like leaving the hammer in the car on a C3+F aid route. It is a different level of commitment. I never used to have a cellphone, but my attitude towards them is changing. I think it's a very fine line between abusing it, and using it as an emergency device. If we could have reached our friends and parents to get a weather update we probably wouldn't have dialed 911 in the first place. Once we did we has basically commited ourselves to their help. Once a search is organized they are legally bound to see it through untill the end.

 

However, if you talk to those who are actually out there doing rescues, they are very gratefull for parties who carry cell phones and know when to use them. All I know is that given the situation the SAR coodinators felt we made the right descisions up there. Those guys have some serious experience and I am more willing to belive them then anyone else.

 

Plus they said they enjoyed the practice and were relieved to participate in a succesfull effort. The army guys in the Chinook wre way serious, but grinnin the whole time!

 

[ 07-31-2002, 01:35 PM: Message edited by: Lambone ]

[ryland_moore]

aGREE WITH Tim, we checked the weather as well and it said clear skies for Sunday in Marblemount, Mazama, Bellingham, Concrete, and Diablo. If that is not checking the weather report, then what is? Jim, obviously you didn't check it because you were sitting on your ass surfing the tube while waiting for Sponge Bob to entertain you! As for the cell thing, what if they didn't have it, the storm had stayed for days, and something more serious, god forbid, had happened. I don't think 'Bone is the type of climber who takes the cell with the intension of using it to bail when his thumper legs start acting up, unlike your climbing partners, Jim. Why else would you have such a bad taste for it unless you experienced these actions first hand? I guess I am judging you when I don't even know you, but feel that is how you are acting on this post towards 'Bone. So, get off yo ass, get out and climb somethin' instead of spraying folks who were in an austere predicament while you sat cosily on your couch eating ho-hos and playing with yourself. What goes around, comes around.

[RURP]

This is RURP:

 

I suppose that we can all learn by the Lambone's epic. Here are some questions to explore:

 

Mr. Lambone says:

"I let the members of my party aware of the implications of such an action, and told them that I did not support the idea of asking for assistance. At that point I stepped out of the leadership role and let the group decide how to go about it."

 

Why did you leave the decision up to the two inexperienced people in your party???

Aren't you supposed to be the [more] experienced guy on this trip?

Democracy is over-rated in such situations.

Your choice of equipment also seems pretty poor considering the group and the objective.

911 means "save our lives", not "I'm gonna be late for dinner".

It sounds like you indeed were rescued and needed it. Still, I would have walked out instead of riding that helicopter.

 

These things do happen. Good to see that neither the "climbers" nor the rescue-guys got hurt.

Good luck next time; you know doubt learned a lot.

Have this beer...

Maybe a few more are in order:

 

RURP has spoken.

[Jim]

Mr. Lambone,

 

I agree the guys in the helicopters get a kick out of it. I helped a banged up guy get lifted off the summit of Stuart once and they were stoked.

 

Then there are the guys who die or lose appedages chasing down wankers.

[Attitude]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Lambone:

Your points are well taken, and I respect those who chose not to bring or use a cell phone when climbing. Sure, maybe we jumped the gun...who is to say.

 

Plus they said they enjoyed the practice and were relieved to participate in a succesfull effort. The army guys in the Chinook wre way serious, but grinnin the whole time!

---

I think you made a relevant point in your TR that it was better for you to call 911 than your parents. If your parents had called, they would have been looking for you all over the mountain. That alone probably significantly reduced the risk to the rescuers.

 

But too many copters have fallen out of the sky this year on rescues already. No matter how much 'fun' it is for the pilots, they should stay home unless absolutely needed.