Wordless Wednesday :: Nearly Ready for Liftoff

The Great Forest Park Balloon RaceSt. Louis, Missouri September 1994Copyright © 1994/.. by Rebeckah R. Wiseman

The Southerner's return to ice

Day 1 (Saturday)What a weekend! Hope everyone got out to enjoy the current fatness. Ice climbing conditions were perfect in the Laurel Highlands. Longtime climbing friend Matt Johns finallymade the drive up from Kentucky for some ice climbing. It'd been about 9 or 10 years since Matt has climbed ice. For many years the conditions seemed to have thwarted all attempts Matt has made to come climb ice. Well this was the year.Laura and I were in need of another restday andMatt needed a slight refresher on the art of ice climbing. Schoolhouse was our destination for Saturday. After a delicious breakfast at Valley Dairy, we drove to Ohiopyle. The road into Mitchell parking hadn't been plowed so we had to park at the main parking area in town andsnwoshoe 4 miles into the climb. Matt's an adventurous guy and Laura likes to hike so we decided it was a nice way to spend the day.Laura and Matt starting the day. Photo TA

We set off from the parking area and the going wasn't bad the first 1.75 miles. Snowmobiles hadbeen down the rail trail packing the snow and making for easy travels. Stopped by a downed tree, the easy goingended there. Breaking trail in the deep snow was the norm the rest of the way. I was pulling Laura's and my gear on a sled and Matt was packing his own. It took about 2 hrs for us to reach the crag. I had been worried about the ice conditions with all the sun beating down.Matt and Laurahad slowed down a good bit in the final 1/2 mile push to the climb. He was very excited upon his arrival at the cliff. We found the ice in snowcone condition. I quickly geared up and climbed the route. I belayed Matt up as Laura took some photos.

Matt had a good time seconding the climb and getting back onto ice after so manyyears. We left it rigged on the shuts and walked down. We took turns climbing thequickly deteriorating ice. We finished up a little before 3 o'clock. Whilepacking up our gear Dr. Bob and Regina camewalking up thetrail to the cliff.We briefly chattedthen let themget to climbing as the routedidn't appear that it would be climbablemuch longer.Surprisingly the hike outfelt a little better than the hike in.At one point Laura hopped on thesledwith all the gear to take the easy way out. She was grinning ear to ear duringher 1/2 mile of sleighing through the woods.She was surprised I could manage the load and her. It was the least I could do since I didn't get hera valentines present this year.At the car we snapped a photo and made our way to dinner atTall Cedars in Donegal. We all agreed that the day was a lot offun. The weather was warm and it was great to getMatt on the elusive route. Remember Matt, the cliff is always 10min. away!

Laura climbing Flying Dutchman. Photo TA

One of many bent trees on the way out. Photo LH

Laura's viewon the Schoolhouse shuttle. Photo LH

The happy crew

The southerner says -mmmmmm good eatin'. Sneak photo LH

Day 2 (Sunday)We enjoyed our "casual day" Saturday saving our energy for a climbfest on Sunday. We met Joel Torretti, Dr. Bob, Regina, Mike, and Kenny atanother local cliff. I think Matt was impressed at his first sighting of the crag. We stopped at the top and I pointed out the different lines while Laura took some pics.Matt & I checking out the routes. Photo LH

We made our way down to the climbs. Matt and I decided to start the day on Called on Account of Security. It was in thebest conditions I've ever climbed it. The normal mixed start was buried under about 12' of snow. It was still thin through the bottom, with a huge middle pillar and a slightly thin finish. It was a lot of fun.



The super fat middle of Called on Account of Security WI4. Photo LH

Matt Johns seconding Called on Account of Security. Photo LH

Laura was giving Joel a belay on G Gully. He led the initial pillar and threaded off.Mike and Kenny did the same on the Central left pillar. Ropes were left on all the lines while we all took turns climbing each of the lines. After our warm ups, Joel racked upfor theline he tried last week. He quickly made his thread and pushed up the nextstep to below the crux. He went upto thecrux,poked around a bit and backed down to the rest stance. This happened severaltimes before commiting to the moves. He worked up through on thethird try, placing several screws and looking solid.He did a great job of keeping it together and finishing what he startedthe week ago. Congrats on the send Joel! What's it called?



Joel Torretti on his new unamed line. Photo LH

My goal for the weekend was to get back onmy attempted routefrom Valentines day.Regina and Bobfinishedup on Called on Account of Security andit was "Go Time"The route looked slightly better or should I say "wetter" than last weekend. Some new blue ice graced the top of the climb concealing the V threads from the week before, all the while making the final bulge abit bulgier.The water was really running on the route. Temps were on the rise and I wasn't sure if I would get another shot next weekend or even the rest of the season.I figured it might be my last chance. I tied in and started up the route with Matt on the catch.



A cool perspective of me startingup the route. Photo LH

Climbing through one of the earlier crux sections. Photo LH

I found the climbing to feel a tad easier than the previous week. Still very commiting, but not as much work clearing the rotten shit as I had on last Sunday's attempt. Knowing the route, I utilized all the possible rests andthings went well (except for dropping my lucky BD stubbie in the snow. Gone forever!)



Finishing up the FFA of World of Pain WI 5+ Photo LH

Matt instilled great confidence as my belayer. I placed nowhere near the number of screws as the week before.Pulling the final bulge and not being pumped gave me a great sense of accomplishment. I placed an anchor screw, clippedin and relaxed.The view from the top was sweet.In a fine show of style Matt offered Laura to second mysend. ThanksMatt!She didincredible showingsmooth, effortless climbing.Matt was 3rd up the line doinga great job and enjoying the climb. I'm gladmy sweetie and old buddywere in on my send.



Laura seconding World of Pain. Photo MJ

"The Southerner" Matt Johns enjoying SWPA ice. Photo LH

Mike led The Awakening with Kenny as the last lineof the day. We hiked out to the cars satisfied as the day was drawing to a close.With some luck and cold weather we'll get in another weekend of climbing.

Rodeo

We went to the PRCA rodeo last night held at the Santa Ana Star Center here in Rio Rancho where they do a lot of events like hockey and concerts as well as the rodeos. I was a bit disappointed since it was billed as being a PRCA event, meaning that it was backed by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. But to me it seemed more like an amature event than a professional rodeo. I would have been alright with it if they had billed it as an amature event but not as professional. Consider this - out of about 8 steer wrestlers only one was able to jump off of his horse and wrestle his steer down as it is supposed to be done. Another rider got his down but it took him way, way to long so no score and the others just fell off their horses beside the steer which looked back at the cowboys as if to say 'Ha Ha - you missed' and ran out of the arena. Have to admit that the other events like the bareback bronc riding, calf roping, team roping and saddle bronc riding were better but the barrel racing wasn't great as most of the girls were riding way to close to the barrels so that the barrels got knocked over. I have seen teenage kids on TV do better than most of these professional were doing. The bull riding was Ok and I was able to get better photos of that as by then I had figured out how to adjust the camera to get some half way decent shots. Of course we were sitting up in VIP seating which was kind of high up but better viewing than I expected, plus the lighting wasn't the greatest being an indoor arena. Actually I almost didn't even take my camera as I didn't expect anything to come out, but my little camera did good considering.
Still it was fun especially as it was the first rodeo I had been to in about 20 years near as I can figure. The very worse part was the anouncer was so loud that we couldn't understand what he was saying so we didn't know who the contestants were or their scores.

WHAT... There's still ice

Just when I thought it was over. Ice season had ended. Low and behold there's (a little) more. We were given a bit of good news the other day. Laura caught wind from a good friend of ours that there was still some climbable ice if we were interested. Of course we were. He told her of a still fat 20' pillar tucked away in a shaded little nook. She called to tell me right away. Other than somemixed stuff with poorly bonded "snice" we really haven't had much climbable ice in a few weeks due to the heavy rains and unseasonable warm temperatures. Eagerly we made the half hour approach to see if we could squeeze in one more ice climb. Sure enough there was a short 20' pillar with a mixed exit that was still in good condition. Granted it wasn't a rope stretcher by any means, but it sure was fun to get on a little more ice. It was smooth and lovely (a little hollow), but amazing compared to anything I'd seen in a while now. Not to mention that it was a beautiful day for a walk in the woods. A much appreciated thanks goes out to the searching samurai that gave us the tip on this little beauty. Here's a few pictures of our fun outing.

As we set out. I'll admit I was doubtful

a little break for the passing trains, will there be ice?

Here's what we found. Hard to believe!

Laura finishing a screw unaware of the muck that lies ahead

On the ride home we stopped to check

out other ice enthusiasts

Monster Knot

Part of the twisted knot on the juniper tree. Kind of looks like a monster of some sort.

Clouds Over Canyon

Clouds Over Canyon, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

About 45 minutes after sunset the clouds parted a bit, allowing crepuscular sun rays to penetrate. It was a beautiful morning in San Luis Obispo, but a cold and windy one!

- Off to a snowy start

Near record amounts of snow fell at Paradise in December and early January. The weather station there recorded over 360 inches (over 30 feet) of the white stuff so far this fall and winter. At that rate, the mountain is on track to break the previous snowfall record (93 feet in 1972)... The breakneck pace of snowfall has blanketed the entire Cascade range and has also caused a significant amount of avalanche distress and accidents. The thick unstable snowpack brought a series of severe avalanche cycles that have claimed nine lives in the region. Almost another record, yet very grim, for avalanche fatalities.

At Paradise on Mount Rainier, a snowshoer was caught in a snow-slide on December 18th. It took 3 and 1/2 days to find 22 year old Kirk Reiser. Though the accident occurred within 3/4 miles of the parking lot, a tremendous amount of continued snowfall made the recovery hazardous and arduous. To find him, we called upon Mountain Rescue and Crystal Mountain Ski Patrol to help. They showed up with many rescuers, search dogs and bombs (to mitigate the hazard). Left: Crystal Mountain Ski Patroller Chris Morin tossing a bomb, photo by Stefan Lofgren.

It's been over 20 years since someone has been caught and killed in a "winter" related avalanche on the Paradise side of the mountain. Climbers have certainly been caught, but those incidents happened in the spring and fall at higher elevations. The last four avalanche fatalities were in June (3) and October (1), not your traditional "avalanche season." Left: Mountain Rescue volunteers working a probe-line, photo by Stefan Lofgren.

Anyone who leaves the parking lot for a day of fun in the snow should definitely pay attention and adhere to the avalanche forecast. You'll also need to know how to evaluate the hazard and make route finding decisions that avoid hazardous areas. Another key is to carry the necessary backcountry rescue equipment (a beacon, a shovel, and a probe per person) and know how to use them efficiently during an emergency. Remember, rescue equipment is a last resort, avoiding an accident is the goal. Perhaps the best advice is to take a class and learn about snow safety. If you haven't done so, check out some of the avalanche courses offered in the area. If it's been a few years since you've had a course, take an update/refresher. A good place to start is the Level 1 AIARE or the Recreational Level 1 course from the Canadian Avalanche Association.

Over the last week, we've enjoyed mostly clear and cold weather (as attested by Chris Olson's image to the left). This allowed 3 climbers an opportunity to summit via the Gibraltar Ledges route on Jan 23rd!! During that weather window, numerous snowshoers and skiers made their way to Camp Muir. Most were reporting firm, hard snow, no one else summited (that we know of)... That said, the snow has again started to fall in Longmire and at Paradise (another 2 feet reported). Once again, things are very soft and hazardous. As a safety heads up: the emergency public radio at Camp Muir is not working (more later on when it gets fixed). As for the snow/ski conditions, check out our ski reports from Lead Climbing Ranger Chris Olson. As always, I appreciate any field reports route updates, if you send them, we'll share them...

And speaking of updates, we have a new writer on the website that you'll be meeting later this week. But to give you a quick heads up, get ready for famed writer and blogger: Rebecca Agiewich. Rebecca is a Rainier enthusiast, skier, and for the benefit of this website, a writer. She has signed on to help me with route reports and other updates so that YOU wont have to wait (sometimes 8 weeks) for the local scoop on Rainier traffic and events as I wade through NPS policy and budgets... Look for her pithy and fun posts to come. She'll spin her own Rainier press and provide added entertainment and information.

Above image is of Park Ranger Stefan Lofgren assessing the snowpack, by Mike Gauthier.