Winter Layers?

This is a post from Feb of '10 . But as the season is just getting started for the winter of '11/'12, thought it worth reposting with a few updates from what I have learned over the last two winters.



Winter layers?



(or in this case lack of layers)



If you have seen this all before skip down to "layer ONE".



I get to spendtimeice climbing around Banff and on the Icefield's Parkway in Alberta Canada. Places I have climbed and skied in most winters for years. Last winter I was lucky enough to spend a few months in Chamonix.



Besides the obvious high quality ice climbing I alwayslook forward to field testing some new (for me anyway) pieces of clothing and ideas on cold weather use.



But before I get to what I have learned in the last two years, let me back up a bit and tell you what I have used in years previously and have been happy with generally.



The coldest temps we would actually climb in hover around -25/-30C (-22F). Anything colder and I retreat to a shelter, hot springs and good food. Not uncommon to see



+10C (50F) on calm days in the sun on sheltered ice climbs.















Base layers?



Generally Merino wool or Capilene, two piece set ups. Some times even these will get layered.









Mid layer/insulation ?



Pile. Pick your weight and material but generally some sort of pile gear. Pile pants and pile shirts or sweaters.



Outer layer/ protection?



Early on it was nylon shells, then Goretex and then Shoeller style soft shells of wool/spandex (25 years ago) and more recently synthetics (Shoeller and Polartec fabrics) with real 4 way stretch.



Boots were singles and dbls. Often times with Supergators on the singles and even the dbls when required.



Gloves/Mitts?



Old stand-bys were boiled wool Dachsteins with/without over mitts. My favorite were Dachsteins and Helly Hansen over mitts and when required a foam pad between the layers to keep your hands from getting too beat up with straight shafted tools. Dachstein gloves had their place as well...but generally considered a luxury. Goretex shelled gauntlet gloves with thick pile liner came next and have remained a standard with leashed tools.



Leashed tools? Leashless tools? Here is where much of the info I am relating changes drastically. Tools te newest BD Cobra and Fusion or the Petzl Nomic and Quarks have in many ways redefined what we use for clothing on ice/mixed climbs. Gear that easily works leashless will NOT be warm enough, in my experience, for leashed climbing.



OK..back to the clothing systems.



An old saying I heard as a kid was, "Eskimos never sweat." The thought behind that? It was just too cold in an Arctic environment to ever risk getting wet, soaking your insulation and then having that insulation freeze. Makes sense, but how do you ever get anything done and not sweat if you are working hard and trying to climb fast?



(I'm about to repeat info now that can be better understood by reading Mark Twight's and Will Gadd's ice climbing/technique books)



Obviously you'll sweat on the approach unless you really back off the pace. I don't do approaches longer than just a few minutes in my climbing upper layer. I dress really lightly on the top layer for the walk in and then dry off (while not getting chilled) at the base of the climbing. That generally means I bring an extra top layer if the approach is long.



To stay dry on the climbI use a belay sweater/jacket (depending on insulation required by the temps) to let my body heat dry me off and keep me warm while drying out at the belay if I have broken a sweat climbing.

The trick here is to make sure your clothing system will dry out with body heat alone. One wrong layer and the system may not work efficiently. Better yet climb with a light enough and breathable enough set of clothing that you don't wet your body or gear on anything but the hardest leads. It is a tough balancing act.



Light enough...breathable enough?



Four words that are saying a lot! You need to push the definition of both imo.



I switched a few years ago to all Shoeller style clothing. Which if you look at much of what is available today for cutting edge fabrics here in the US is actually a Polartec product. But early on unbelieving on just how far I really needed to go I bought all the gear in a insulated form.I have worn out a set of both over time. And I still love both of them for climbing. For everything but the very coldest weather (below -10C) I find the insulatedsoft shellsto be too much insulation and not breathable enough.



That was then () ...and it may still be true. But last winter at the OR show in Salt Lake City, there were several new fabrics that were getting a buzz. I was lucky enough to get a Neoshell Westcomb Apoc jacket to try out. PreviousI had spentyears in hard shell Goretex garmentsand finally abandoned them itforwinter climbing. Neoshell was the first of the "modern shells" I have been able to use.



And by most accounts Neoshellis what all the rest of the new fabricsare being judged by if the early reports are accurate.







I am currently testing some of the newestvariations on that idea from Polartec. And it would seem that we might actually have more breathable and more water repellant soft shell options available soon. But I'll report what I do find if there is a significant change.



So why too much? Too heavy physically, too warm and not breathable enough.



OK, you ask, "WTF, Dane?" "That is a $400 piece of kit (Gamma MX Hoody) you encouraged me to buy last year and now you are telling me it is rubbish?...too warm?...too heavy?"



This year Arcteryx has changed the material on the Gamma MX Hoody and is offering an alternative to that technology in the Venta MX Hoody. Both are suppose to be more breathable. Patagonia is there as well using Polartec fabrics. Mountain Hardware, Eddie Bauer and Outdoor Reasearch and even Cabella's have joined the game as well.



All with one idea, to stay warm you must stay dry.



Last year I thought the Gamma MX hoody would be the one piece of clothing I would always take on alpine/ice routes. Last winter I didn't use the Gamma MX at all climbing, but did for one day of skiing in the Alps. So, yes it is a big change for me as well. Now I am saying it is too much? Yes....but don't throw it away just yet :)



















You need to go back to the idea that "cool muscles work more efficiently".







Mind you it might take you a bit of effort to find out just how "cool" you are willing to work at to make this all work. That might include a trip where you dress too light and freeze your ass off to find out just how "cool" you'll want to be :) I'd suggest you make that trip, a low risk, high energy event. If you blow it bad on the clothing combos at least movement will generally keep you warm. You need to iron out your system in a fairly controlled environment.



The rewards are worth the risk imo. But to be sure, blow these combinations in a big way and cold injury is almost certain or even death will be the end result. I have used the system at a fine edge half a dozen times now and I had significant performance and recovery break through each time. I also look back and thank my lucky stars that there was no "incident" on those climbs that could have easily precipitated a disaster. An unplanned night out in bad weather while cutting it close on gear can be more than just uncomfortable.



The results of 24 unplanned hrs out in 10F temps? And a full year of recovery.































Here are my current thoughts on winter clothing systems.Limit the layers. Yes, limit the layers! The first picture in this post is me climbing early in my career in mostly wool, with temps rapidly going to -40 as the sun went down. It was pretty miserable at the time and to be honest a little scary. I had never been in such temps and that exposed before.



But a couple of things made a big difference. I was mobile, light layers made that possible. I was dry internally because the clothing breathed well and so I stayed warm if I kept moving. Funny now because I realised as I typed this morning that the clothing pictured there (circa 1973) would be a perfect set up for leashless climbing now in very cold temps...say -20C but not at -40C :)



So limit the layers and stay mobile. Easy to do now with modern clothing.



Layer ONE:



I am using a R1 Hoody inner layer. MEC makes R1 tops and bottoms for something like $60 retail. Or you can buy Patagonia's for $150. Same exact material and in several ways the MEC clothing is better designed imo. Now there is a easy decision for price point. Buy I do like the detailing offered by the R1. I want to be comfortable and the R1s details like a long cut, easily tucked in and off the face zipper make a difference to me. Not a $100 difference mind you as I'll find the R1 on sale before paying retail.



Yes, just the R1 and nothing between it and my skin. Although my lowers are actually Costco longs...almost expedition weight but some brand name called "Paradox". The R1 seems to be just a bit much on my legs and I lose some mobility compared to the Paradox lowers which seem to slide in the outer shell pants I am using easier. Last winter in the Alps on the-20C days I would use two layers of the Paradox longs and lwt soft shell pant. So the system isn't perfect. I'd also add a Merino wool hoody from Sherpa Adventure Gear under my R1 on the really cold days. But even when adding layers for more warmth in the Alps I know the material I was using would breath.



This newtechnology (again a Polartec concept) Cabela's E.C.W.C.S Thermal Zone® Polartec® Power Dry® might be much better yet than simply dbl layering as I have done in the past to gain warmth.

This technology with a hood would be hard to beat.





Generation III Extended Cold Weather Clothing System (GEN III ECWCS) from PEO Soldier on Vimeo.





It shouldn't be a huge surprise that Mark Twight has his design fingers in the US Military'scurrent cold weather systems,























Layer TWO:



That depends on the outside temps and the level of aerobic action I expect.











In the past I have used the Eddie Bauer Front Point jacket..it is a combo hard shell and soft shell . Very water resistant (my top was dry in a soaking waterfall that went straight through my pants and filled my boots to the brim) and very breathable. I am highly impressed with the details of this garment and the combo of materials used. A surprising and almost immediate favorite for cold technical climbing. And now discontinued.



But here is where the newest fabricsget interesting. There are now several offerings from Polartec that are soft shell and "hard" shells that might well replace what I thought was a good use of the fabric technology in the EB Front Point.



Patagonia is offering a newPower Shield Pro product, Marmot is offering a Power Shield '02. That is just touching the surface as Mountain Hardware is in the game as is Outdoor Reasearch and Arc'teryx.











We can thank our tax dollarsand the US miitary for testing much of this gear and the budgets that enabled Polartec and others to do the research and development.







-OR-







Arcteryx Atom Lt Hoody....lightly insulated shell with stretch vented sides and under the arms. Again a surprise, water resistant as well but not tested to any extreme yet. Very warm for its weight and thickness but useful in the right temps (cold) for hard climbing because the stretch side panels and insulated body breath so well.















































Worth noting that I have now cut one full layer from the previous suggestions from even last year's system. Insulation is used as required in the base layer and in the outer layer. And most manufactures are now making something similar.



Patagonia's Nano series is another example. I use a Nano puff to layer over my Atom light in many cold weather instances. Mtn Hardware has one as well with the stretch side panels . But there is no separate insulation layer short of the belay sweater (like how I am using the Nano Puff) and a actual belay jacket. The real insulation is in layer THREE where the insulation can EASILY be added or just as likely removed to keep you dry and mobile.





For my pants I have been using the Arcteryx Gamma Lt. for three winters now. I did add a set of grommets to use them as a pant gaiter. And no one more surprised than me that a set of generic long johns and a Gamma Lt. would be good enough to keep me warm and toasty from -10C to well above freezing and still breath enough on the "death marches" while toiling and dripping in in sweat. Only disadvantages I see are they aren't very durable and the lower left leg could be more tapered if my crampon "wear" is any indication.



Layer THREE:



A Belay jacket chosen for the degree of warmth required and how much drying will be required.















Listed in amount of warmth is required. Warm temps to cold and how much moisture I expect:







Mountain Hardware Compressor Hoody (Primaloft 1)



*shown here in combo with the Atom Lt @ -20C in the shade* (lots of other high qulaity jackets in this catagory now)



I use this combo now with a Arcteryx Atom SV and have been happy with it to -20C as well.









Any of these trhee will offer even more warmth if required

Narrona Hooded Down



Arcteryx Duelly



Eddie Bauer XV



As a system that is it...THREE... layers total. And one generally will be in the pack or going in and out of the pack. Only times I have found myself climbing continuously in all three layerson my upper body last winter I was either very tired or more likely it was dark and I was tired.



Staying hydrated and your food intake up as required has not been mentioned. But the fastest way to get frost bite is get dehydrated. Fastest way to get tired and stat moving slowly is not eat enough. You need to manage your clothing systemand what you east and drink.



Gloves and boots?



Maintaining your mobility, cutting down on weight by doing so allows you to move faster. You can then use lighter weight boots and gloves and still stay equally as warm or warmer while moving faster with less effort! Add the advantages of leashless tools and the differences of what you can get away with for a glove system while still being comfortable is simply...amazing.



You have to remember it is a SYSTEM. If required I could carry and use both layer TWO pieces together for extra warmth. I'll do another post and describe the boot and glove systems I am using with this clothing combo. Scarpa and La Sportiva for boots and Outdoor Research and Mtn Hardware for gloves cover the brand names here for me currently.



But there are new players here as well, Salewa, Mammut andArcteryx again. But it is hard to find bad gear these days. Much easier to use the right gear in the wrong place though. I think the newest materials and designs will sort themselves out in the next winter or two and much of this will become common knowledge. Right now it is hard to keep track as there is so much new gear and new applications it is hard to keep track.....I can't.



Bottom line to all this and thefield testing? I'm climbingharder and faster with less effort and less clothes and in more comfort than ever before. Huge success for me.



I think you find a similar result.



An after thought..



A long time climbing buddy who on rare occasion reads the blog busted on me for listing all the brand names I use. I search out the best gear for my own use and buy it at retail. No one giving this stuff to me. But that doesn't make it the best gear for your use. I list the manufacturers simply so you can make direct comparison for your own benefit.

Gunks Routes: Three Vultures (5.9) & Keep on Struttin' (5.9)

(Photo: Maryana working up the flaring crack on pitch two of Three Vultures (5.9).)



Summer is flying by.



It is hard to believe I was away from the Gunks for over a month.



Adrian and I were talking about heading up to the Adirondacks this past Saturday, maybe for a death-march one-day spree of climbing. We'd drive up from NYC on Friday night (at least a five hour trip), crash somewhere, climb all day on Saturday and then make the return drive that same evening. For me this sort of arrangement isn't optimal but it means I can go climb somewhere new and not spend the whole weekend away from the family. And as for Adrian? I don't know why he would ever agree to such a miserable plan. For some reason he likes climbing with me, so he's willing to adapt to my needs.



But this past weekend the weather looked iffy and we had arranged no place to stay, so we decided to just go to the Gunks on Saturday instead. And because we were staying local Maryana tagged along as well.



I don't mind climbing in a party of three. It gives the belayer someone to talk to, and if you use double ropes and have both seconds basically simul-climb with a staggered start, three climbers aren't that much slower than two. Also if you like to memorialize your day with photos a party of three can much more easily get decent shots; you have one person who is totally free to roam around and take pictures.



There was one disadvantage to our party of three: we all wanted to lead! As I've previously posted, Maryana is breaking into the 5.9's, just like me. Adrian is no stranger to 5.9 and in the Gunks he's been breaking into 5.10. So we all had similar ambitions for our leading, which led to a little healthy competition and good-natured fighting for position on Saturday.



Somehow I got the first lead of the day without much of a struggle.



I had proposed we head down to the area between the Arrow Wall and CCK. I'll call it the No Glow Wall for lack of a better term. This part of the cliff is similar to the Arrow Wall in that the climbs have high-quality second and third pitches, but sometimes mediocre first ones. The rock leading from the ground to the GT Ledge in this part of the Trapps is generally not terribly steep, and it is rich in horizontal cracks. The grades are pretty moderate; there's nothing much that distinguishes these first pitches from any others in the Gunks. The upper pitches, by contrast, are on this beautiful white marble-like rock, like what you'll find on the upper part of the Arrow Wall and CCK, and there are numerous roofs and other interesting features around which to climb. So the good climbing in this part of the cliff tends to come above the GT Ledge.



The only climbs I'd actually done on this wall before Saturday were No Glow (5.9) and Moonlight (5.6). It is very helpful to have done a route or two on this wall, because unless you can get your bearings the beginning of one route looks much like the next. There is a huge right-facing corner that marks the left end of the wall at the location of the classic easy climb Andrew (5.4). And Moonlight's smaller left-facing corner system is also a helpful landmark on the right end. It also may help you to pick out the vegetated gully that ascends the wall diagonally at the left end; this is Goldner's Grunge, a 4th-class scramble that begins about 35 feet right of Andrew's corner.



I started off our day with pitch one of Three Vultures (5.9), which isn't too far to the right of Goldner's Grunge. I wanted to start with this climb because I knew that the hardest move was right off the ground, and that afterwards the climbing was much easier all the way to the GT Ledge. I was unsure how solid I was going to feel after a month off the real rock. It was also my first day back in the Gunks after my lead fall on Ground Control on July 5, in which I flipped over and mildly sprained a couple fingers. I thought that it would be good for my lead head to get a quick 5.9 tick off the list, and if I couldn't do the opening moves it was no big deal. I'd just hand the lead off to someone else. If I could do them, on the other hand, I would get a nice long warm-up pitch as a reward and receive a confidence boost besides.



I'm happy to say it worked out just as I hoped it would.



The opening step off the ground is the hardest move on the whole route. A good horizontal edge is tantalizingly out of reach. A broken vertical crack starts just above. Some pretty crummy footholds and crimps exist below the good edge. You have to boulder up to it. If you are tall you MIGHT just be able to reach it. Certainly if you're tall the move will be easier. For a short dude like me (5' 7") it required a few abortive efforts to nail the hold, but after trying a couple different approaches I got it. Can I still claim the onsight if my failed efforts were all on the first move?



Whatever, it was good to try the hard move as many times as I liked with no commitment required. Once you get the edge, the route follows a crack up and right. It is a couple more thin moves to a nice hold and the pro. You still aren't that far off the deck; a good spot should suffice until you get the pro in.



And then the rest of the pitch is cake. It continues up and to the right after the opening holds to a bulge. As I stepped to the right of the bulge to place a good nut before pulling over it, I realized that the bulge is kind of contrived. It appears you could easily climb around the bulge to the right. But I had no desire to avoid it so after placing the nut I moved back left and climbed it as directly as possible. There are positive holds; it is probably 5.7 or so in difficulty.





(Photo: At the bulge on pitch one of three Vultures (5.9).)



After the bulge the climb goes straight up the pleasant but unspectacular 5.5-ish face to the GT Ledge. There is a big tree with fixed rappel gear on a ledge about 15-20 feet below the GT Ledge. I chose not to stop there, but to continue instead up to the bigger GT Ledge to build my belay, because it seemed like this would be a better way to find and begin pitch two. These last 15 to 20 feet of the pitch to the GT Ledge are through unpleasant grassy ledges. I had to mantel up on dirt; I couldn't see any way to avoid it. It detracts a bit from what is otherwise a nice enough pitch.



Pitch two (Adrian's lead) turned out to be the money pitch. From the GT Ledge, it goes up a flaring, diagonal crack that turns into an off-width. This crack ends at a ceiling and then atraverse heads right for about 15 feet to a ledge.



I thought this pitch had easier climbing than the hardest moves on pitch one, but it was more sustained and mentally challenging. The hardest part for me was getting up the flared crack. There was one move, just below a fixed piton, in which I actually used off-width technique, wedging my body in the crack and worming upward until I could grab the good holds above. I'm not sure this was actually necessary; Maryana may have climbed the outside of the crack past this section. But it was secure and fun, and an unusual experience for the Gunks.



On the lead Adrian clearly found the move into the traverse to be the crux of the pitch. He stayed there at the top of the crack for a while, fiddling with pro and gingerly venturing out and back, before finally swinging out there and committing. The traverse looks intimidating because it seems there are no good footholds. Dick Williams calls this crux "deceptively easy," and when I tried it I saw what he means. Once you force yourself out there you find that the hands are great, and good footholds are just a move or two away. Large cams help protect the traverse. Definitely bring your blue #3 Camalot. Bringing a bigger cam as well wouldn't be a bad idea. You'll use it for sure.



I suggested to Adrian that he skip the second belay at the end of the traverse and just gun it for the top through the short final 5.5 pitch if the drag isn't too bad, and that is what he decided to do.



Ultimately I thought Three Vultures was a worthwhile route. I would suggest the first pitch to anyone looking for an easy 5.9 to lead. (I still think of myself as such a person even though the list of 5.9's I've led is starting to get kind of long.) But it is not a great pitch. Neither is the third. But the second pitch is really fun and rather unusual for the Gunks. I would like to go back to it again to lead it some time, although I'm unlikely to use the first pitch of Three Vultures to get there. Now that I've done it once there's no real point. I'd be much more inclined to do the first pitch of Moonlight (5.6) or the nearby Erect Direction (5.8), or maybe just rap down to the GT Ledge after finishing another climb.



There is a fixed rap station just to the climber's right of Three Vultures, made of steel cables around trees atop the cliff, directly above No Glow. I have only used this station with two ropes. I am unsure whether you can reach the GT Ledge with a single 60 meter rope-- but I doubt you can. The cliff is very tall here; it may be more than 100 feet from the GT Ledge to the top. I know for certain that you'll need two ropes to reach the ground from the tree on the GT Ledge.



When we returned to the ground I suggested we try Keep on Struttin' (5.9). I thought this would be a good climb for us because like Three Vultures it also has two 5.9 pitches. Dick gives it three stars. I had seen pictures of the crux second pitch, which ends in a traversing section through a multi-tiered roof. I was very excited at the prospect of leading this pitch, but so was Maryana, and she hadn't led anything yet. It was hers if she wanted it.



It is pretty easy to find the start. Not far left of the Moonlight corner, Keep on Struttin' begins directly below a large pine tree with rappel slings that sits about 40 feet up.



Adrian set off on the 5.8 pitch one, about which I'd never heard anything. He made quick work of it, getting all the way to the GT Ledge in no time. Pretty early in the pitch, below the pine at what appeared to be a slightly slabby section, he said "now there's a move right here." But he cruised right through so I didn't think much of it.





(Photo: Adrian about to do the crux moves on the 5.8 pitch one of Keep on Struttin'.)



When I followed him I found out that it is a little bit serious. On the slab below the pine the holds suddenly disappear. Instead of good horizontals there are a couple slippery crimps. And the pro at your feet is a microcam. The sudden difficulty and commitment came as kind of a shock to me. The move is totally doable but I don't know how comfortable I'd feel leading it above my used blue Alien, as Adrian did. In any event, after maybe two moves the climbing returns to the 5.6-ish cruising that you'll find all over this wall. Ultimately I enjoyed the pitch, finding it reasonably clean and straightforward, though nothing special.





(Photo: Maryana at the first roof on pitch two of Keep on Struttin' (5.9). A more difficult roof waits above.)



Pitch two, on the other hand, looked pretty special indeed. From the GT Ledge it appeared tough. Dicey moves up to a roof right off the ledge, then an upward traverse through 5.7 R territory to a bolt, then finally several more overhangs to clear before the belay.



I wasn't feeling timid any more. I wanted this pitch. But Maryana wasn't giving it up. I tried suggesting to her that she'd like the face climbing on pitch three more than the roofs on pitch two, but I couldn't pull it off with a straight face. She knew I was full of it. I was going to be stuck leading pitch three.



There are two ways to start pitch two. To the left of the notch in the roof, the holds look good but there doesn't seem to be any pro. The other option, directly under the notch, offers a bouldery move up to a good pocket that will take a cam, and then another bouldery move up to the overhang.



Maryana chose the approach directly under the notch, and got through it just fine. Then she quickly moved up and left to the bolt. The bolt is visible from the GT Ledge, and there really isn't that big a runout. But it is very blocky/bulgy above the first roof on the pitch and it definitely appears a fall just before clipping the bolt would be a bad idea.





(Photo: Maryana just above the bolt on pitch two of Keep On Struttin' (5.9), about to move left through the final roofs.)



Maryana clipped the bolt and then moved up to the jugs that begin the final set of overhanging moves. She mentioned how tough she thought the moves up to the overhang were. She placed two cams. Then she decided one cam would suffice, and removed one. Then she started to move left and up, but she was worn out; she had to take a hang.



After a rest, she got through the rest of the pitch, placing a lot more pro as she moved left and up through the roofs. I was deeply impressed with her performance. She'd had to rest on gear, but she'd been in control the whole way, and had been very conservative and safe about the lead. I don't think I could have done it any better.



As a follower, I didn't need to stop and rest, but as I climbed I only grew more impressed with the lead. This is the hardest pitch of 5.9 I think I've been on in the Gunks.



It is in your face right away if, like Maryana, you take the right-hand start, with a hard move on crummy, crimpy holds just to get up to the first overhang. Then, later, the moves right after the bolt are, surprisingly, the hardest ones on the pitch. The jugs are right above you but again you have to crimp on a couple thin edges to get up there. You are expecting the pitch to be nothing but a pumpy jug-fest but the cruxes are actually technical and thin. And then, of course, the pumpy jug-fest finally comes and it is no joke.



What an awesome pitch.



I'd gladly go back and lead it tomorrow. I know now, having done it, that the pro is very good for all the hardest bits. I like to think that having previewed it as a second, I could now lead it clean. And if I can't, I'm confident I can keep it in control and take a rest if I need to, just as Maryana did.





(Photo: Pitch three of Keep on Struttin' (5.9). The "bell curve block" is visible at the upper left.)



Pitch three is also rated 5.9, but it isn't nearly as difficult as pitch two. It is also the least serious of the three pitches; the pro is good the whole way.



Of course, I didn't know this as I set off to lead the pitch. Dick Williams describes moving right around an early roof, then getting over a protruding block, and finally the crux-- a move out of a shallow corner above the block.



I could see the early roof directly above me, and the protruding block as well; it is shaped like a bell curve from below. But I couldn't see what was to come above the block and this made me nervous.



As I led the pitch I tried to conserve my gear so I'd have whatever I needed for the crux. It got a little ridiculous; I think I placed three Tricams in an effort to save cams in case I had to throw in a piece later on while gripped.



There was no need for such worry. The pitch is casual and really rather nice. It ascends that wonderful, white, marble-like Arrowish rock. And the moves are interesting, first up a fun right-facing corner, then 5.7-5.8 face climbing around the roof and up to the bell curve block. I wondered as I approached it whether I would need to go left or right around the block; the answer ended up being pretty much straight over.



After the bell curve block I confronted the crux. I don't want to spoil it for you. It is just one move, interesting but not strenuous in the least. I felt it was easy for the grade, frankly, but then both Maryana and Adrian puzzled over it for a bit so maybe it is harder than I think it is.



Pitch three of Keep on Struttin' is a great pitch for a new 5.9 leader. Soft for the grade. But a quality pitch with nice moves and great pro.



In the end, I found the climbing very reasonable on both of these climbs. I walked away from Three Vultures and Keep on Struttin' regretting that I'd drawn the easier 5.9 pitches on both climbs, and thinking that just maybe I'm ready to graduate from "easy" 5.9. Maybe I'm done breaking into the grade, and I can just be a 5.9 Gunks climber now. When I put this thought into action-- say, when I walk up to CCK Direct or Le Teton or MF-- I'll let you know how it goes.

Mt Rainier Update

It's been far too long since I've posted... So what's going on at Mount Rainier? Lots of road repair, but very little climbing and hiking. I snapped this image of the Carbon River Road on Saturday, Jan. 13th. For the most part, hikers/skiers/climbers are limited to the main road corridors, unless they'd like to bushwack.

On Sunday, the 14th, I hiked to Camp Muir under calm, clear skies. Though the temps were well below freezing, I wore only light clothing the entire way. Camp Muir and most of the buildings were encrusted in ice and firm snow, however, and access to the Public Shelter was straightforward and easy.

The snow conditions (ski/board) below Pan Point were absolutely fantastic. Over the past week, there has been a prolonged cold snap throughout the Pacific NW, which left great backcountry skiing and climbing conditions around the region. Even in Seattle, there was snow on the ground for more than 72 hours. As for the route to Camp Muir, I needed snowshoes up Pan Point, but things firmed up nicely above 7K.

Speaking of snow, there is over 130 inches on the ground at Paradise (nearly 350 total inches this fall/winter). Not bad for an El Nino year (predicted by climatologists to be warmer and drier).

In the meantime, David Horsey of the Seattle PI decided that Mt. Rainier needed a cartoon.

Rawhide

Newspaper photo of Clint Eastwood, who played Rowdy Yates and Eric Fleming, who played the trailboss, Gil Favor.

Sophie Prior - "The Ricoh Destruction Test"

Sophie Prior came to visit.






So did Logan Barber.

The jjobrien climbing and relaxation ranch on Australia's Sunshine Coast hinterland has beengraced witha long list of climbing legends and little-knowns.

The staff were excited about the arrival of Logan Barber and gave little thought to his plus-one a Sophie Proir.

Turns out she has talent, grace and presence.




A quick climbing tour of the Sunny Coast starts with the obligatory thrash on Coolum Cave's icons.



How do you like this guy? He puts all the moves together in one session. Sadly, didn't get to go back and send it. No doubt he can and will.





Then for a "rest" day they get stuck into "The Ricoh Destruction Test" 100m 23 (M1)

I have to work that day but I wag a couple of hours and rap in over the fourth pitch.

They ran into some problems on the second pitch and I whipped out the long lens justas they werefeeling the joy of getting established at the second hangingbelay.







Logan knocks off the tricky third pitch, blocky overlaps and lack of feet.







Sophie follows and picks her way through the overlaps.



Funny story. I moved to Tinbeerwah in 2000. There were just a couple of routes there but rarely any climbers. I hatched a plan to create a climbing scene close to my home.

So I spent weeks bolting the longest, hardest route I could conceive ofthinking it would drawclimbers from everywhere.

Nothing.

The route has probablyhad about three repeats in over ten years.

A year later I bolted some 14s. That got 'em in.







Gareth Llewellyn and Adam Donoghue did the route on their epic "Tinny in a day"

There's been a couple of hundred metres of hard climbing added since then.







Sophie gets the stand-out pitch 4.

Slabby, columns, run outs, big air below, carrots, it's got it all.











The Ricoh in question failed the 100M drop test by the way. It's mangled body could be seen at the base of the route.

My old Nokia phone got dropped from here at 80M. Recovered the following day.

"You have 3 messages"!!!






















Best shot of the roll.

Perfect position and poise. You can just make out Logan at the vanishing point.







Nice work team. Logan ticked a swag of tough routes around SEQ in a punishing nine days on.






Logan inspects Queensland's hardest high ball boulder sector never to have been touched.







Late winter is luxurious on the Sunny Coast, beautiful days and wild flowers.

Sophie's home is in the Blue Mountains, a favourite of Aussie climbers but so harsh in winter.












Thanks Sophie.

I've been trying to sell this route for a decade.

Another Orchid

Although this isn't an orchid, it sure does look like one.

Escalante River Hike

We were a little tired after our hike back up the hill from Upper Calf Creek Falls, so we decided to stop in the nearby town of Boulder for a snack. As luck would have it, we found a nice little store that sold bagels and smoothies. This was the perfect refreshment after our morning hike! After that we headed a few miles down the Burr Trail to Long Canyon, which I thought might be perfect for a short bike ride. Indeed it was, and we had a blast cruising down the canyon on our cross bikes. Our final adventure for the day was a hike upstream along the Escalante River to Escanlante Natural Bridge and Arch. This hike had a LOT of vegetation along the way, included some beautiful giant cottonwood trees and tons of sage. The trail also crossed the Escalante River several times, which was fun and refreshing each time wehad to cross :-)





































After about 2.5 miles we came to Escalante Natural Bridge, which was fascinating to comprehend but really not all that photogenic, since the bridge blended into the background cliff and was not standing out against the sky like some other natural bridges. We contemplated the bridge for a while, then continued on up the trail to the arch. The arch was awesome, certainly unlike the other arches we've seen on this trip. This one was not very big, but it was extremely high up on top of a cliff. The lines in the rock running down the cliff were mesmerizing, and the bottom of the cliff was lined with beautiful cottonwood trees. After another full day of outdoor adventures, we were ready for a good meal so we headed back to the Escalante Outfitters and this time tried their calzones, which were just as goodas the pizza we had last night! This has been such an awesome trip already, I wonder what cool sights and experiences tomorrow will bring?