AlpineMonkey Posted January 7, 2008 Posted January 7, 2008 My girlfriend and I and one other self belay soloist were the only ones out at Banks today. We found perfect conditions. Climbed Devils Punch Bowl and Trotsky's Revenge. There was a bunch of other climbable stuff as well. Saturday we climbed Fuggs Falls, but I doubt its still climbable. If anyone else got out around the state I would appreciate hearing about it. Thanks in advance. Trotsky's Revenge (Left), Devil Punch Bowl (Right) Quote
catbirdseat Posted January 8, 2008 Posted January 8, 2008 I'd heard that Tvash and company were going to go to Banks, but changed their minds and went to Lilloet instead. Quote
jstreet Posted January 9, 2008 Posted January 9, 2008 Ypu think there's enough other stuff in to make worth the drive from seattle this weekend? How fat or thin was the other stuff? Quote
Paul_detrick Posted January 9, 2008 Posted January 9, 2008 H202 was in but not fat, cable had not touched down yet. Nothing in the lower canyon is in. Some lines are close to being ready, but we keep getting one or two warm days a week thats hurting the forming. Lots of snow the last two days. Don't know if I would make the drive for the punchbowl, depends on how bad you want to get on ice. Maybe the last two days will help from mre up. Quote
AlpineMonkey Posted January 9, 2008 Author Posted January 9, 2008 I thought I could climb up some of the little crap with brushy topouts lower in the canyon last week. As said, some of the big stuff keeps forming, but hasen't really come in. Quote
powderhound Posted January 9, 2008 Posted January 9, 2008 Anyone wanna climb in Banks on Thursday? I am driving through and would be willing to tie into the sharp end for just about anything under WI5+. Pm me tonight or I won't get up early. Or better yet call me at 503 550 3373 Quote
AlpineMonkey Posted January 13, 2008 Author Posted January 13, 2008 Drove past the punch bowl today and saw 8 people below the route. Quote
TrogdortheBurninator Posted January 13, 2008 Posted January 13, 2008 how'd everything else look? Quote
powderhound Posted January 20, 2008 Posted January 20, 2008 Went to Banks today and got shut down on all fronts. 1st: Coulee Police stopped me and gave me a ticket for speeding and then brought out the drug dog and took my grass, and pipe and bent me over. 2nd: Ice around devils sucks. daggers above drop down randomly and crash all over the lower pitchs. Zenith is getting close needs another cold snap. Cable isn't touching but close. Salt n Pepper looks in. The Pee wee climbs are wet and the top outs look a little bit to be desired. All in all we didn't climb any ice and got f'ck by the GD pinkertons. Quote
kurthicks Posted January 20, 2008 Posted January 20, 2008 bummer. i meant to tell you not to speed out there. they're not too lenient about speeding. Quote
Jens Posted January 20, 2008 Posted January 20, 2008 Sad to hear about the cops. ------------- cascadeclimber & I hit banks for a little bit also yestertday. It certainly needs another week of cold. We soloed the punchbowl and then later I led phase transition. The ice was good on both routes. There was a party TR'ing the Trotsky's Folly down low in the trees. We then walked in to go try Zenith but it was spraying way to much for us. A lot of the routes are really close but are exfoliating away from the tops of the cliffs. We saw a group of TR'ers that had set up a rope on the Cable. H202 is leadable but in 5+ or 6- shape but bogus screws. Salt & pepper looks in with the rock start. Shitting razorblades is not getting hardly any water this year. The PeeWees Playhouse area climbs looked to be coming along. --------------- It is really sad to think that the weather people say we are having a slightly colder than normal winter with way more snow then normal and it is already late January and the Washington ice hasn't really kicked in yet. As I get older, The Washington ice season gets shorter and shorter and sometimes only prime for 2 weeks or less. Quote
Doug_Hutchinson Posted January 20, 2008 Posted January 20, 2008 Nozel and I climbed at Banks on Friday and Banks/Frenchmans on Saturday and concur with Jens - decent ice is close but still needs a lot more cold. If anything, especially in Leavenworth, the ice has been deteriorating over the past few days. Now, I'll basically repeat everything Jens said with some photo documentation. Pic of Trotsky's and Devil's Punchbowl from Friday (1-18-08) which is good: Those deathcicles are not to be taken lightly! While waiting for Michael, I decided to quickly solo the Punchbowl. I was about 10 feet from the start and a few tons of ice few all over the route. We decided that Trotsky's was much "safer." After climbing it, we discussed decent options - either a v-thread rap of the route or the standard walk off below the deathcicles - I won the discussion and started to walk off just when another ton of ice rained over Trotsky's right where we would have rapped (a little right) of the climb. Great beginner's area except for the nearly constant threat of the ice dagger in the head... The most-in classic looked like Zenith which is touched down: Yesterday, we were the party that TR'ed the Cable which is about 20 feet from fully touching down (can't see the bottom in this pic): At about 200 feet of sustained WI5, that would be one proud lead! Since we climbed out Banks, we drove over to Frenchman's Fugs later in the day and had a great time climbing this fun route. The first pitch was plastic, hero ice: The second pitch was really cool - mushroomlined ice chimneys with stemming and hooking and good screws on top on the 'shrooms. The last five feet is running water so Michael built a three pin anchor at his belay. You can rap from this anchor to the base with two 60 ropes. Hopefully, with the looming artic system, someone will start a thread next week about how great the ice is everywhere but I think we climbed all the current worthy ice in WA Friday and Saturday. Has anyone mentioned lately how awesome the skiing has been this year? Quote
iceslut Posted January 22, 2008 Posted January 22, 2008 i drove up from portland to meet my friend from couer d'alene in banks over the weekend. we hit pee wee's for a day 'cause the deathcicles didn't impress us. had some interesting times fightin' the brush, but overall made a full day's adventure out of the day. ice was peelin' off the headwalls a bit, but there was enough solid ice to make it fun. needs some more cold. can't believe the access there...will definitely be back to try the climbs that weren't formed. Quote
Jens Posted January 24, 2008 Posted January 24, 2008 Best approaches in N.A. -- easier than the weeping wall in Canada! Quote
dbb Posted January 24, 2008 Posted January 24, 2008 1/23 Update- Fuggs in but wet. Get on it early Top part of Frenchman's looks like it fell off. Soap Lake B looks in (or whatever that skinny pillar is) Lots of other ice at Soap lake, but not totally formed. maybe by the weekend Guinness - nope Champange looked good to go, but thinner than last year. scotch on the rocks - nope Children of the Sun is phycho wet. wouldn't be surprised to see it fall down in the next couple days. Quote
AlpineMonkey Posted January 24, 2008 Author Posted January 24, 2008 Update 1/24 Frenchman is in, Fuggs is in, Red Acid somthing, somthing looks climbable Quote
dbb Posted January 27, 2008 Posted January 27, 2008 Nice work on Champagne Craig. Was it wet in the middle? As of today: Lenore: Beer climbs along the East side of the road looked in. mostly Champange in Children of the Sun - still too soft (talked to some folks who tried) Absent Minded professor - forming, but not in Brush Bash looks to be in WI3 shape. Not as brushy as the name implies. The other short climbs nearby are also in. Salt N Pepper was climbed today Zenith p1 looked like WI5+/6 but it's all there Cable - kinda thin, but in H202 - still lean PeeWees playhouse - the easier climbs look to be in. looks wet Emerald - in WI5 shape Agent Orange looked mostly in. maybe weird at the top Trotsky's Folly - in but very wet. think Wild Waves Trotsky's Revenge - in, less wet Punch Bowl - in with biggest "dagger" ever. more like a pillar Quote
Rafael_H Posted January 27, 2008 Posted January 27, 2008 There are many climbs formed between Euphrata and Coulee, well worth the drive. Easy or hard, many top-ropable, short approaches. Today's conditions were cold and hard, brittle ice. Amazingly, Zenith by 11AM was flowing like a downpour at the middle section yet temps were so low that all our gear - draws, tools, hood - was encrusted in ice. The ice was semi-plastic, depending on wetness. At the same time Salt And Pepper was dry and very hard, brittle but not "a horror show". Quote
AlpineMonkey Posted January 27, 2008 Author Posted January 27, 2008 (edited) Champagne was wet in the middle. My partner got sick today. If anyone would want to climb with me or need a partner, please give me a call today. I live in quincy and can get to banks in 1 hour 10 min or so. I can get to Frenchma coulee in 10 minutes. Edited January 30, 2008 by AlpineMonkey Quote
lightning Posted January 27, 2008 Posted January 27, 2008 craig, I cant go until after 7 tonight but if you are still feeling the need I could meet you at the coulle after for some night climbing. Andrew Quote
selkirk Posted January 27, 2008 Posted January 27, 2008 Anyone ever thought about taking a .22 to the daggers above the Punchbowl? Quote
Franko Posted January 27, 2008 Posted January 27, 2008 I doubt a .22 would do much, but a 12 gauge with buckshot might work. I plan to give it a shot next week. Quote
Alex Posted January 27, 2008 Posted January 27, 2008 Of the big climbs from Ephrata to Electric City: Champagne - in Scotch on the Rocks - not even close for the upper bit Clockwork Orange - nope Children of the Sun - looks in from the road but as Dave says sounds wet. Cable - touching down, but super chandeliers H202 - leadable I guess. It was our backup plan if Salt and Pepper sucked. Salt and Pepper - Very pleasant outing. The upper pillars are very-hard-but-not-brittle ice that takes a very long time to place a screw in. Double v-threads in place. Use 60s. Shitting Razorblades - as someone else said ealier, no where near the shape it was in last year! Not in. Zenith is in 5 shape, but its a complete drenching shower even yesterday when it was pretty cold. There is a bail sling just below the few crux moves on the left (not ours) and lower down in the mushrooms on the right (that's ours). The ice is pretty good, though. It needs some real extended cold to not be so wet. (I know that Weekend_Climberz has scrambled around to the top of Zenith before, so if you do have to bail off a screw you can always retrieve it.) Punchbowl/Trotsky's/Folly - all in, with lots of traffic Saturday Don't know about Electric Avenue, didnt drive that far. Driving conditions in Eastern Wa are pretty challenging right now. Quote
AlpineMonkey Posted January 28, 2008 Author Posted January 28, 2008 Andrew, thanks for the post, i ended up going out and ran into some climbers who let me on their ropes. Quote
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