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[TR] Burkett Needle - East Arête "Repeat Offender" (FA) 9/11/2011


John Frieh

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So... when will you tell us how the latest adventure went?

 

Soon. I owe you an email also!

 

That video is super sick! Hope there's one coming for the Dickey venture... :rawk:

 

We didnt shoot nearly as much video on Dickey so I doubt we'll put a video together. Perhaps a slideshow at sometime...

 

Seems like a pretty substantial carbon to climbing ratio.

 

Sure does.

 

The only thing bigger than my carbon footprint is my tick list :fahq::grlaf::wazup::laf: :laf: ;)

 

In all seriousness I could understand at face value it might seem like that but everyone since 2007 including Colin Haley, Mikey Schafer, Fred Beckey, Jens Holsten, Max Hasson, etc etc has taken a plane from Seattle to Petersburg and then a helicopter from Petersburg to the glacier. Unless you know someone in Petersburg with a boat you must take the chopper.. or swim I guess :rolleyes:

 

But yeah: staying 3 days or 3 weeks has the same exact carbon footprint as the flight time is exactly the same. I would argue staying for a shorter period of time is actually a slightly smaller footprint as it requires less gear which means less fuel burned flying to the glacier and less impact on the glacier (human waste, etc etc).

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What about Zach Hoyt's ascents? Didn't he hike in from the beach or something like that?

 

As someone with a job & family, I can understand why you wouldn't have the time to catch the ferry up to Petersburg, hitch a ride on a fishing boat, and hike in from the beach, but I still think it would be better style. Actually, I think a pedal powered approach to one of our local ranges would be prouder in many ways. Glorifying the "smash and grab" trip is also glorifying the activities that are drastically changing the character of many of our mountains.

 

The climb looked like a fun adventure though, for sure!

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John is a good dude, and I'd say we're friends (hi John!) No question he gets after it and is one of the most excited people about climbing. That said, if you hire a PR agent to announce your recent climbing accomplishments... (hahaha, just kidding)

 

But yeah, I think these short resource heavy trips aren't something we should aspire to. (I do plenty of them myself and have been known to fly for a weekend of sport wanking) For me I get more excited to hear about people that sat on a glacier for a month or laid siege to a sports project for years because it shows commitment and love of the sport. These short trips should be viewed as necessary evil because of real life time constraints.

 

As for the carbon thing.. All types of climbing are resource hogs, but alpine climbing has to be the worst. You could live in the Valley for six months and climb every day and still spend less money and burn less fuel then one trip to a major alpine destination. I don't have a problem with that, but it is hypocritical for climbing companies to spray about how their alpine athletes being "stewards" when they burn more fuel in one trip then a red neck on a dirt bike does in a year.

 

Sending routes is always nice, but hanging out in nature with your mates is the the real joy. These short trips lack that as it is just rush rush, I do plenty of that in my day to day life. Climbing should be a break from modern chaos, not an extension of it

 

Sorry for the thread drift on this one. I'm going to sit in traffic for an hour to climb a few pitches *pout*

 

-Nate

 

 

Edited by eldiente
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If the 737 to Petersberg is pretty full that's not that bad, although it's not insignificant. Boat's are just as bad as planes, neither have pollution control. Unless it's a sailboat of course.

 

The helicopter is what's bad. About 1 to 2 mpg and no pollution control. A helicopter flying 1 mile puts out as much pollution as a Prius does in 1000 miles.

 

I recommend a donation to an environmental charity to offset the damage. There are some good ones here in the PNW, where you might even benefit from the land they buy and set aside for preservation.

 

The climbers you list are at the top of the game. Most everyone else has lesser objectives where a heli is just not necessary.

 

Nice climb and vid anyway.

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Fair enough. It's apparent to me we arent going to see eye to eye on carbon and outjectives and what is and isnt proud... but hey... it's cc.com... I should haven known better. Glad you guys at least liked the video.

 

Zac Hoyt whom I've met a few times flew in to snag the first winter ascent of the Devils Thumb a few years ago and fell into a crevesse on his hike out to the sea (he thought he'd save some money hiking out instead of getting picked up). As a result a large, helicopter assisted rescue ensued.

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Hey, I'm not hatin. (probably jealous :wave:) I like to play with sport bikes and fast cars. I also donate to environmental charities.

 

I'm just saying don't kid yourself about heli's. Not a demand, just a suggestion.

 

It's an awesome climb and an artistic vid. I especially like the shot with the spindrift snow coming off into the light.

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Wow, normally I'm pretty far on left on the tree-hugger scale, but I find myself bristling at some of the objections here. How many of the heli-haters have been to Waddington? Should we shut that down too? What about flying to Spain or Thailand or Chaimonix for climbing vacations? Best to bicycle to the gym and call it good, I guess. :rolleyes:

 

I'm contemplating a similar style and wrestle with all the carbon concerns mentioned. As much as I might like to spend a month schwacking through the brush and sitting in a tent on a rainy glacier drinking scotch with a bunch of stinky dudes hoping a weather window will open, it just doesn't square with my other obligations. So smash and grab sounds a hell of a lot better than sitting on the couch. And yes, maybe I should take extra steps before and after a trip to reduce my footprint in other ways. sickie

 

Regarding the self-promotion, John is clearly stoked about his adventures and shares that energy. I think that's great. His trip sponsors may even require some degree of promotion. Either way, maybe he'll inspire others to push their own limits, or maybe take steps to reduce their carbon footprints. Surely that's better than going and not telling the world what an amazing wilderness we have in BC that should be protected.

 

On a lighter note:

 

Zac Hoyt whom I've met a few times flew in to snag the first winter ascent of the Devils Thumb a few years ago and fell into a crevesse on his hike out to the sea (he thought he'd save some money hiking out instead of getting picked up). As a result a large, helicopter assisted rescue ensued.

 

So maybe he got the heli ride out for free then! :fahq:

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Jeez, make a suggestion, try to raise awareness, point out ways to offset if you feel the need to do something like this.

 

Stop calling it hate, that's not what it is, it's love of the planet.

 

Americans are at the pinnacle of consumption, if everyone on the planet was here the earth would be a cinder tomorrow.

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