Random Tips and Tricks Thread - not spray

[ivan]

Cheap light fire starters; tie a little light twine in a small bundle and dip it in wax a few times. It will light easily and burn about 10 times longer than a match.

what i like even better is: fill each of the 12 holes in an egg carton w/ lint from your dryer, then pour candle wax over it to fill it up - cut out each of the firestarters (you'll have 12) - each one will burn like mad for 10 minutes or so - they weigh practically nothing and work great to start fires even w/ wet wood

[RuMR]

even better...add a chunk of steel wool and a 9v battery...works wet and cold...hotter than a muthafucka!!!

[pindude]

wet wipes and body glide.

 

TMI

 

Tipping dangerously close to spray, here, fellas... Please respect the OP's request.

Thank you, and we now return to your regularly scheduled program.

Rob's not too far off: at least the one is well worth mentioning. Wet wipes--moist towelettes--or better yet, Baby Wipes, are a high-demand commodity at populous base camps, such as on the Ruth, in Patagonia, and on Everest (only not this year on E ). Friend of mine brought several cases to Nepal and was able to trade them up for single malt, among other things. Fortunately, few climbers need body glide, and I don't think I'd want to climb with any that do.

 

Good thread. Why haven't we yet seen any tips/tricks for removing stubborn booty?

[tvashtarkatena]

When hiking in the dark (not that I ever do that) for a long ways, rig your headlamp to your waist belt instead of your head. The shadows from this angle help you see the ground better.

[pindude]

When hiking in the dark (not that I ever do that) for a long ways, rig your headlamp to your waist belt instead of your head. The shadows from this angle help you see the ground better.

Some folks get a little dizzy or disoriented when hiking in the dark with a headlamp in the usual spot on their forehead--not sure why this is so, but it can be mitigated by instead holding the light in your hand, or better yet, TT's suggestion above or letting the lamp dangle from around your neck.

[tvashtarkatena]

The lack of shadows when worn on the head means a lack of depth perception, which leads to dizziness. At the end of a long day, this can provide much amusement for your partner.

Edited March 21, 2008 by tvashtarkatena

[pindude]

Makes sense to me (I'd forgotten, and couldn't remember earlier in the haste of posting...must be old age ). Amusement is right!

[denalidave]

Always count calories/weight of the food you bring. Pure oil is 9 calories/gram and is the highest calorie content of any edible material (the fattier the food, the better weight savings, at least in your pack, maybe not on your thighs). Peanut butter is the best actual food item, packing 6-7 calories/gram. Don't bring food that's less than 4 calories/gram. Alternating Snickers - Paydays is the fuel of champions.

Plan your actual food intake to be ~2000 calories per day. I've never wished I had more food than this. Sure, you can eat more, but you'll just poop more.

 

Leave the camera at home. You won't miss it. You're the only one who actually enjoys looking at your pictures anyway, although your SO will never let on this is true.

So 1 cup of lard per day?

Or 1 stick o butter... mmm butter. I've heard of high altitude climbers eating whole sticks of butter but could not imagine doing it myself. Edited March 21, 2008 by denalidave

[denalidave]

Climb with Ivan. He brings whiskey.

 

i learned from my master, Lord Layton. coupled w/ smokes and the aforementioned happy pills and there's no epic that can't be laughed at, even while in progress

 

quarter-pounders w/ cheese. take the box too. nothing better than being many miles from nowhere and "loving it!"

 

tvash's tip from nelson about toe-straps was critical in fixing a severely mangled snow-shoe and sparing me epic insanity in the sawtooth this past winter - duck tape and ghetto-mindedness woulda worked, but the toe strap was much better.

Along with the usually duct tape, carry a handfull of zip ties for emergency repairs.

[selkirk]

wet wipes and body glide.

 

TMI

 

Tipping dangerously close to spray, here, fellas... Please respect the OP's request.

Thank you, and we now return to your regularly scheduled program.

Rob's not too far off: at least the one is well worth mentioning. Wet wipes--moist towelettes--or better yet, Baby Wipes, are a high-demand commodity at populous base camps, such as on the Ruth, in Patagonia, and on Everest (only not this year on E ). Friend of mine brought several cases to Nepal and was able to trade them up for single malt, among other things. Fortunately, few climbers need body glide, and I don't think I'd want to climb with any that do.

 

Good thread. Why haven't we yet seen any tips/tricks for removing stubborn booty?

 

I thought that's what single malt was for?

 

Only trick I have is patience, though small gentle circular motions seem to work. Hard pulls only serve to set it and change the orientation making it even tougher to get out. The only pieces I've lost (nuts) worked themselves into some where I couldn't get at them with a nut tool.

 

Here's a pretty common one but I haven't heard it mentioned. When lowering and cleaning on an overhanging route clip quickdraw to your belay loop and the other line (running up through your gear). Makes it easier to clean on lower.

 

 

[denalidave]

If you bury food in the snow, bury it VERY deep. Take into account meltage and desperate snaffles.

Also, if you mark your food stash with wands, be sure to put the wand 4-6 feet AWAY from the actual stash. From a ridge above, I watched the ravens below us at about 13,000 ft., fly straight to our wands and start digging to get to the food that was buried 3-4 foot down in the snow. Crafty little bastards got away with over 100 power bars/candy bars and entire 2lb loaf of pepper jack cheese (among other delicacies) before we got back to salvage the rest of the stash. So much for the best quesadilla in the world at altitude.

[sobo]

If you bury food in the snow, bury it VERY deep. Take into account meltage and desperate snaffles.

Also, if you mark your food stash with wands, be sure to put the wand 4-6 feet AWAY from the actual stash...

Variation on a theme:

When burying your apres-climb beers in the snow, bury them sufficiently deep so that when you piss on the burial spot, your piss won't melt all the snow away. After you leave the car, the yellow snow discourages snowmobiliers checking out all of the tramped down spots looking to pillage your brews.

[rbw1966]

If you are going to do the trade route on Denali, take minimal food and little fuel. Once you get to the 14K camp you can have your pick of free food and fuel from all those leaving and trying to lighten their load. We actually had the luxury of picking and choosing food from others giving it away.

[ivan]

If you are going to do the trade route on Denali, take minimal food and little fuel. Once you get to the 14K camp you can have your pick of free food and fuel from all those leaving and trying to lighten their load. We actually had the luxury of picking and choosing food from others giving it away.

yeah, but most of the food they're trying to ditch is the crap they didn't feel like eating, so at least bring along your own sweet stash of tasty treats - this also doesn't work so well if you're part of the early rush or arrive at the tail-end of the season.

[Ducknut]

Always count calories/weight of the food you bring. Pure oil is 9 calories/gram and is the highest calorie content of any edible material (the fattier the food, the better weight savings, at least in your pack, maybe not on your thighs). Peanut butter is the best actual food item, packing 6-7 calories/gram. Don't bring food that's less than 4 calories/gram. Alternating Snickers - Paydays is the fuel of champions.

Plan your actual food intake to be ~2000 calories per day. I've never wished I had more food than this. Sure, you can eat more, but you'll just poop more.

 

Leave the camera at home. You won't miss it. You're the only one who actually enjoys looking at your pictures anyway, although your SO will never let on this is true.

So 1 cup of lard per day?

Or 1 stick o butter... mmm butter. I've heard of high altitude climbers eating whole sticks of butter but could not imagine doing it myself.

I have done shots of cooking oil or olive oil when times were tough. Not as good as single malt but warmed me up twice as much.

[olyclimber]

wow....i'm thinking about the Press Expedition into the Olympics Mtns. Towards the end of their epic they kill a bear and eat the fat. I've never been that hard up, but I then my son would eat butter by the cube if I let him.

[Rad]

Sounds obvious, but photographs can be useful aids in wilderness navigation.

 

On an overcast trip in the South Pickets, I once took a photo of the steep gully we planned to ascend in darkness during a momentary break in the clouds at sunset. By consulting the image on my camera the next night, we navigated past key snow patches and rock bands to find the right ascent route the next night/morning.

 

Similarly, digital photos can help you ascend or descend complex terrain in poor visibility without major backtracking or deadends. These photos could come from your own camera or from ones pulled from CC or guides or other sources. They do, however, reduce the adventure in your venture, just like detailed beta would, so find the balance you need.

 

[mikebell]

There are some good tips here. Here is one you can use on the east side in the middle of summer in good weather. Go without a sleeping bag and wear your clothes in a bivy sac. This creates room in the pack for a half rack of your favorite beer to use for hydration on the approach and at camp afer climbing.

[Dechristo]

 

A related tip: try the routes you haven't heard anything about.

[Dechristo]

what's the tip for keepign the rope strait when doing block leads then?

 

clip a shoulder sling from your belay loop to the anchor (parallel to your daisy or whatever). Stack the rope - short loops are better than long. When buddy arrives unclip the sling from your loop and reclip to his. Or clip the one sling biner to the other around the rope stack and get it outta the way hanging off the anchor directly.

 

Glad I read on before posting near the same thing.

[ivan]

There are some good tips here. Here is one you can use on the east side in the middle of summer in good weather. Go without a sleeping bag and wear your clothes in a bivy sac. This creates room in the pack for a half rack of your favorite beer to use for hydration on the approach and at camp afer climbing.

i've experimented in da hills w/ the only bivi sack or only lightweight sleepign bag and from now on will always go w/ the sleeping bag...the sack always ends up being colder, but then i've never unexpectedly been hit by a rainstorm.

[Bug]

I've had some cold nights in bivy sacks.

I like my 24oz bag over my coat and pants, inside a bivy bag.

That's 2.5 pounds of pleasure.

[Doug]

I don't want to read the whole thread, but has anybody brought up the old tried and true putting a nalgene bottle with hot or warm water in the bag with ya? Especially comfortable on a glacier.

[Cairns]

Sorry for the spruhumm, er, meta-analysis, but this thread truly hits the cc.comer demographic target: an army marching on abandoned food, twist ties, laundry lint, and wearing aluminum foil hats.

 

 

If the old is new again: in winter put your jacket at the bottom of your sleeping bag and put your feet in the shoulder sleeve holes.

[mike1]

I have a tip/question. I saw a few guys wearing water socks around camp in the cascades last year and thought that was the best idea for alpine camp shoe. But now I can’t find anything like what they had. They were extremely light and rolled up together into a ball about the size of a baseball. I can't remember specifically, but I think they were blue, rubbery and mostly open except for the sole. They looked comfy with socks on. Anyone out there use something like this?