Loon Mother and Baby + Baby's First Swim

We spent the entire day today photographing Loons and had some incredible luck doing so! When we came upon this nest, there was one chick already born and snuggling under mom's wing. After our mid-day lunch break we returned to find that the second chick had hatched while we were away! It was an incredible day :-)


Just moments after leaving the nest, a baby Loon gets its first taste of life on the water. If you look just above the beak of the Loon on the left, you can see the nest and the egg shells in the background.

"Primo" time to climb

Summer is in full swing. Warm temps and mostly clear skies have been generous to climbers and the forecast looks promising.

The snowpack is rapidly melting, which allows for quick and easy access to the alpine. Most of the Wonderland Trail, for instance, has melted out (save Panhandle Gap area.) The meadows are in full bloom, yet the upper mountain still has a fair amount of winter snowpack. Time to climb...

We've posted updated Mt Rainier climbing conditions on the Emmons, Tahoma, DC, Ptarmigan Ridge and other routes... If you've some reports, please pass them along.

PARADISE CONSTRUCTION UPDATE

A shuttle system is now assisting visitors along the Paradise Valley Road and those who park remotely at Longmire and Cougar Rock. The shuttle is free of charge and will operate Friday – Sunday and Labor Day through September 10th. See the Access and Roads page for more information.

Sunset Tide Pool, Bandon Beach

Last week we were out in Oregon and Washington to visit Jessica's family. While the focus of the trip was to spend time with family, we did make it out here and there to see the sights and get in a little bit of photography time. These shots were on Bandon Beach in Oregon, one of my favorite areas along the entire coast. Bandon is a rather well-known beach and a favorite of photographers because of the large variety of "sea stacks" that are all along the beach. At sunset the place is a photographer's paradise, especially on evenings where the tide is low and receding. Many of the sea stacks were high and dry, others had pools of water around them. Several were covered with star fish along the bottom edges of the rocks. We had a glorious sunset during our evening at Bandon. It was one of the highlights of the trip for sure!

Labor Day

It's Labor Day Weekend. A big holiday here in the USA.
Have fun but be safe.

Bruce Gordon Was Nice to Me

I spotted him in the shadows, at the back of the exhibition hall. It was unexpected. This was Interbike after all, not NAHBS. But there he was, behind a big beautiful red bike with Bruce Gordon decals, underneath a banner with the mysterious word SOPWAMTOS (which, I soon learn, is the Society of People Who Actually Make Their Own Sh!t). A broad-shoulderd, slightly slouchy, gray-haired man with the face of a Soviet literary dissident circa the 1960s. I would give anything to have the writing skills to describe Bruce Gordon's facial features and expression. But alas, I must struggle. Coyly suspicious? Exuberantly grumpy? Playfully defiant? Something like that.






If you don't already know, Bruce Gordon is a framebuilder out in Petaluma, California. One of the best, they say. One of those guys who has been at it for decades, one of the legends. At a loss for words from the bizarre charm of his physical presence, I blurt out something generic about being pleased to meet him. In reply he laughs with a bitterness that is masterful in its combination of sincerity and theatrics. "If I could go back and do something else with my life, trust me I would!" he snorts. "So... want a bike?" Out of curiosity I ask about the wait list. "I am all caught up," he says, "no wait list. You can go ahead and write that on your blog" (the last word is accompanied by a playfully-scornful - or maybe not so playfully, this is ambiguous by design - roll of the eyes. But who cares. Bruce Gordon has no wait list? Okay, I will write that.)








Next we discuss his famousDangerous Pointy Brakes, which I'd recently tried on one of Pamela Blalock's bikes and discovered to be surprisingly functional (unlike most other cantis I've tried). He was pleased to hear this. For a small fortune the brakes could be mine. Alas I had neither the required sum, nor a bike on which these superior brakes could go. But yes, I would mention them on my "blog."






What can I say. I could have moved along at that point. But I don't know when to quit. And no, that's not even it. In truth, I was a little smitten. I wanted this man to keep talking. I wanted to study his face and figure out what or whom it reminded me of.






So I stuck around, touched the bike, asked questions. He quickly grew suspicious of how much I seemed to know about frame geometry and such. "Oh don't tell me. You're planning to become a framebuilder!" I assured him that I was not, but confessed that I might be building a frame for myself shortly. Nothing serious. Just to give it a try. But becoming a framebuilder, no. I understand the amount of training that requires; I know that earning a living that way is next to impossible. "You're damn right it's impossible." And thus began a speech about the horrors and deceptions of the pipe dream of becoming a framebuilder that claims hopeful innocents of my generation by the dozen. Bruce Gordon's opinion on the matter is basically a more extreme version ofthis. "If I could save just one young person from becoming a framebuilder, I would die happy," he tells me. I believe him, and promise to never become a framebuilder.






He eyes me with sadness and shakes his head. He asks what I used to do for a living before the tragedy of succumbing to bikes. I tell him briefly, and soon we are talking about bikes as one would talk about a disease. He tells me some personal stuff, I reciprocate. We commiserate. Before I know it, the conversation begins to resemble the sort of jaded, weepy, vodka-fueled exchange that takes place at around 3 in the morning. Except this is Interbike, high noon, and I am sober.






The following day, I walked by the booth again and gave Bruce Gordon an uncertain wave. I genuinely did not think he'd remember me; it was as if our conversation the day before had been something I'd imagined. But he did remember. And then he gave me this pin. It's a limited edition. The regular one reads "Bruce Gordon was rude to me."




And that is my story of meeting Bruce Gordon. You should buy one of his bikes. I hear they are good and he's all caught up on his wait list.

Chillaxin' at Meadow Run

Laura and I decided to have an easy day. So we spent the morning climbing a few lines at Lower Meadow Run in Ohiopyle State Park. We warmed up with alap on the Main Flow in verygood conditions. If you look back to my post fromJan 29th and compare thephotos, its pretty impressive how much ice built in just afew days.

























After our warm up, Laura wanted to try out her new picks on a mixed line. She topped out on the Main Flow andwent over and rigged a TRSeason Finale.She took her turn and made it up to her usual high point and came off. Not bad for her first go.























ROUTE NOTE: Although this line has beentop roped for years it has yet to see alead ascent.I've wanted to give this thing a whirl for quite a while, but thethuggish nature, poorrock quality and my inability to sack up has kept it as a someday kinda thing. Well I decided its time to put it to rest. So this time I decided to take gear with me and see if I could findreasonable gear to protect the route. Well I successfully climbed it and placed the gear on TR. I found 2 placements and 1 stubbie in 35'. Goes like this, first is the screw at the ice bulge (not necessary, but there),next isa #5 BD micro at 15'.Pump through the next 12' of crux to a good hook and a get the #.75 camalot. Finishatanchors.Falling while clipping the cam would most likely result in a grounder.Gonna take some EXTRA spinach to pull this one off.Laura went again pullingthe gear as she went up. She did way better this go. She made it up to the cam without falling. If she didn't have to stop to fuss with gear, I think she might've had it with no falls.I'manxious toto head back and give it a true attempt on lead.SEND or SPLAT! Either way the photos should be good! Since it was a mellow day for us, most of the photos are typical ass shots (we all knowhow much everyone loves those).I've tried to include afewof the moreinteresting!

Coming soon

The enigmatic Antoine Moussette.
































Pets at Work

Every time I visit Circle A Cycles, I sift through my pictures of the shop afterward only to discover that they are mostly cat portraits. But who can blame me, when they have such a fabulous shop cat. BT's job is mainly reception, customer serviceand PR. When it comes to being petted, she is an equal-opportunity practitioner - diligently making her way from one visitor to another, ensuring that everyone gets their fair share of stroking her silky fur and scratching her velvety ears. When this task is done, she slinks around delicately amidst the machinery, inspecting the quality of her colleagues' work.




I've tried to invite my own cats into my workspace. There was that one time I attempted to have them in the same room while I painted. Minutes later, they'd already managed to dip their little paws into some paint, and were now proceeding to spread it around the entire room while swatting brushes off of shelves and batting at jars of turpentine playfully. Oh how I paid for their visit with hours of cleanup. Oh how they squirmed and squealed as I quarantined them in the bathtub and scrubbed their paws with soap.




On another occasion, I tried to scan negatives around my whiskered friends. Their curiosity in this task made the scanning process unnecessary, since the strip of negatives was quickly rendered unusable.




Working on bikes in the same room is excitingly risky. They are intensely interested and make a show out of being very good, so that I allow them to be there. And they are good, up to a point. Until a particularly attractive part catches their eye and they challenge each other to a soccer match. The speed and elegance with which they can cause damage are admittedly impressive.




I can work from home on my laptop, but just barely. The cats like to stealthily make their way onto the table and slowly wrap themselves around the keyboard, until both my wrists are resting on some part of cat and my typing is constricted. "At least help me type if you're going to do that," I try to reason with them. They ignore me, purring triumphantly. Later a friend explained that this really is their way of helping me write: The purring functions as a metronome of sorts that helps me keep rhythm and type faster.Shop cats they are not, but perhaps I underestimate their value as office cats.

Sorenson-Eastman ice

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=woRoY-7t_gw

New Video from Wildfilm Productions

Amphitheater II



Our good friend Ray Burnsworth of Wildfilm productions put together a short clip of Upper Meadow Amphitheater. A huge thanks goes out to Rayman for the efforts and great clip. Follow the link from here to view or click on the image above.

Snowshoe adventure on Mt. Josephine

My last few snowshoe hikes have been up Mt. Josephine, but not on the "normal" trail that everyone knows about. I decided to go up the back side of the ridge, going in from Highway 61. There is an old trail that runs along the spine of the ridge but it has not been maintained in years and is very difficult to see in most places. It took two trips on two consecutive days to break the trail to the summit. The first day I only made it halfway up the mountain and was completely worn out due to the depth of the snow and uphill climb. Most of the "trail" goes through some pretty thick brush, but once you get to the summit the terrain opens up and the views are worth all the effort it took to get there.








Once I had a trail packed all the way to the top I returned with a couple of friends who wanted to snowshoe the trail with me. We took our time and spent most of the day on the trail. Its only about 3 miles round-trip, but we took our time and savored the views along the way and spent quite a bit of time at the summit. Along our snowshoe path we saw 4 or 5 places where deer had bed down for the night. It was interesting looking at the indentations in the snow and thinking about a deer curled up there for a good night's sleep. When we made it back to the highway the sun was getting ready to set and the colors in the sky made for a perfect ending to an incredible day.

Tumbleweed

Even after all that snow we found a tumbleweed hanging on the fence. There was a sunset the night of the 30th that was really nice. But anywhere I try to take a photo of a sunset from my property there is always someone elses house. This one is across the street from us. And our street happens to be a dirt road.

Double boots

I have probably spent more time in plastic double boots that any other style of mountain boots. Two decades to be exact. I was climbing in leather single boots before that for the most part with the occasional foray into leather doubleboots. But the older and better double leather boots were heavy. Really heavy even compared to a good single boot and a Super Gator.



So what I ended up with was a very good pair of leather single boots (Haderer) and a custom pair of Carmen/ChouinardSuper Gaters that weremodified by addingmore insulation (synthetic pile) and a zipper down the front that was backed with flaps and Velcro.



Once I got into a pair of Kolfach Ultras (shown above) I never looked back. Even if that did require a few layers of mole skin every week during the first winter season climbing andguiding in them.



So 30 years later you might ask how did those original plastic boots compare to what we have now? A recent conversation on a Internet forum made me ask the same question myself. But this time I wanted a more complete answer. Some times we get caught up in the newest, lighter, better, warmer and eventually more expensive product and loose sight at what we once had. It is called institutional memory. This blog is one way I have tried to keep our climbing history and its institutional memory alive.



Sometimes it is not better to reinvent the wheel every few years. It might actually be better to build a better tire for that wheel and take advantage of the best technology first.



If you look at the original idea behind double boots the biggest advantage is to keep your boots (inner boot at least) unfrozen and if required dry on multi day outings. You can put the inner boot in your sleeping bag and dry it out over night or at least keep it from freezing if needed.



The disadvantage of double boots is that they add volume to your feet. Volume means extra warmth everything else being equal. But as we all know nothing is ever "equal".



So if we have a huge volume boot you have warm feet. A Sorel or other double layer cold weather bootsare a good example.









Warm butseverely lackingon most technical ground.



So what is really required is a certain level of warmth but at the same time the real key is to keep the over all volume of the boot as compact as possible so it is easier to climb technical ground in.



Make sense?



Big volume for warmth.



Small and sensitive to climb technical ground in

So some where in between we should be able to come up with a double boot that is both warm and sensitive. But it isn't as easy as you might first expect.



A multitude of materials to make a boot from these days. Plastics, fabrics and the old stand by, leather. And all have advantages and disadvantages.



So first I think to have the best boot you need to look at the last. The last describeshow the boot interior is shaped. Currently we have literally bath tube shaped lasts (some plastics) and very ergonomic shaped lasts that match the foot almost perfectly (again some plastics). And boot lasts that are every where in between.



In the old days a cobbler or boot maker would have literally hundreds of hand carved lasts. Once measured and your foot matched to a specificlast the boot fit could well be phenomenal. With the ability of good leather to mold to your feet the fit just got better with use.



With a boot built to your foot the amount of insulation added to the bestdouble boots simply made the warmer. With a generic boot last the boot just got heavier than required and may or may not have gotten warmer for your foot.



The answer for that was "give them a bath tub" and let the inner boot take up the slop. That would give you a warm boot if the inner boot and bath tub last actually fit your foot. But it was also heavier than required if the last had been done correctly to fit your foot.



It is not happen stance that the best lasts on good leather double boots like a Haderer double or a plastic boot like theDynafit TLT look like your foot.





This isthe best example I can easily show you of what I am trying to convey on boot lasts. The Koflach Arctisis over size and bath tub shaped. The TLT 5 is very anatomical lasted. Even with just a ski boot sole the TLT5 is easier to climb in for feel.



I have heard a great manycomments on how cold the TLT Series of boots is compared to other down hill ski boots. I'll challenge those comments. You really need to look at the amount of insulation before you start to make comparisons for warmth.



How do youmake a boot warmer the easy way? Add volume. This is the answer from Kolfach with two different boots, both the same marked shoe size. In this case a 11.5 US.









So let me back up a bit here.



I have summited Denali a couple of times in Koflach Ultras with foam inner boots and simple nylon knee high gaiters. I have also turned aroundat 17K on Denaliin really cold temps with the same boots and had really cold feet. But the issue wasn't that I didn't have warm enough boots. I did. The reality was the temps were too cold for me to be climbing.(no one else summited that week either btw) My feet getting cold were just the first sign of that cold. That and a thermometer that bottomed out during the night at 17K.



So when it comes to double boots I think there is a distinct disconnect between what the manufactures make us and what we really need.



La Sportiva Spantiks seem to be the most common boot for winter climbing in Chamonix by a huge margin.

Some type of double boot and generally a insulated over boot seems tobe required (or at least suggested) for Denali. More likely a Olympus Mons can be used above 14K on Denali in early spring and over kill later in the season. And a Spantik won't be enough boot for Everest or K2 or winter climbing in the Himalaya. There are and should be options forvolume and sensitivity.





Current Koflach "Guardian"But actually the last gen Ultra shell, which was/is an excellent boot.



If a 30 year old Kolflach Ultra will get you to the top ofany Alaskan peak, and keep your foot warm and dry how much more warmth do you need? My answer would be none. If I need a warmer boot I can use a Spantik or a Scarpa 6000 which both have a bigger volume. The Spantik slightly larger than the 6000 by what I can tell. And just a tiny bit warmer as well form my experience. But when you start getting cold feet in either of these bootsisn't going to be a boot issue but your hydration and food intake is my guess. The Olympus Mons and its close mates made by other brands are the next and final step up for cold feet btu the boots are huge!



So what I think is missing is a totally different boot.



One with the volume or something similar to a old Koflach Ultra or better yet the newest TLT 5s.



Modern material, fabrics, plastic, leathers,open and closed cell foam all make great materials to work with. San Marco made a single boot in the '80s that had a plastic lower and a leather upper. It would be easy enough to come up with something similar now. Think of a Nepal Evo with an anatomically cut plastic lower and leather upper and a thin, easily heat formablefoam inner boot?



It is a boot that would easily replace the Spantik everywhere but Denaliand the greater ranges. But perfect in the rest of Alaska or Mt Blanc most of the year. I suspect it would bethe boot of choice for everyone from the Canadian Rockies to Chamonix if done right.Basically a boot that we all really need but that no one has even thought about making. Might be because simply no one asked until now.



These days I don't care how good the outer boot is or how good the anatomical shape of the last is. If your inner boot isn't easily heat moldable you are behind the curve.The liner needs to be air permeable as well. We can do better than a VBL. But the innercan not retain any moisture. It is possible. But itis frustrating to see all this technology out there and no one taking advantage of it. I think it is too easy for the boot designers and manufactures to get tunnel vision. instead of going back to the basicsand requirements at thedrawing board level



A short design list for the new doubleboot I want made:



Less over all volume, more akinto a high quality technical single boot.

Double boot so you can dry the inner or keep the innerfrom freezing

simple inner boot lace system for fit

Lace system for the outer shell so it is one handed and most importantly reliable (no Velcro it wears out)

Anatomical last on both inner and outer so you use what insulation you do haveto best effect

Plastics and synthetics for the lower boot for waterresistance.

Upper of fabric or leather for a close and flexible ankle fit

Split the insulation between the inner and outer boot so the fit can be optimised in the inner but the outer offers good insulation above and below the sole

Use the smallest sole lugs and stickiest rubber technical climbing soles possible.

Honey comb carbon mid sole for rigidity long term and most importantly warmth through the sole





As much as I really like the "super gater" boots they are a design dead end. All of them. Simple reason. The newest pant fabrics allow the pants to be easily used as a breathable gaiter now. Adding a gaiter, no matter the material, slows the moisture coming out of the boot and slows theevaporation. So the attached gaiter is not a help in design as you might first think,







Our climbing clothing, from boots to hats are really now more than ever a system. Attached hoods on the base layer, help us eliminate one additional layer. Mid layers with attached hoods allow us to use a lighter mid layer for warmth.



Boots and the gaiters we use are a part of that system as well. As are gloves and the gauntlets on the gloves and seals on the jacket sleeves.



Gaiters on the boots aren't required and in fact lower the performance of the boots. Remember the basics..."you must stay warm to stay dry". Adding a feature that keeps you from staying dry or thatslows the drying is a feature you don't need.





double click this one to see them all



Any of the current boot makers have all the technology to make the boot I describe and market it for $700 or less than the current price tag requires on some of the boots today.





These are the two lightest true mountaineering boots available that Iknow of.



La Sportiva Trango Evo Extreme GTX 2#3oz 992g

Scarpa Phantom Ultra new model 2#3.5oz 1006g



1000g or less in a size 45 four season mtn boot is a magic number.



Here is the list and pictures of the current double boots that I can lay my hand on easily.

And a few odd ball combinations that I have used. Check out the over all weights and the inner boot weights.



I know it is possible to build a light weight technical double boot in my size (12 US/45/5 Euro) that would come in under 1000g per boot. And be the warmest and best climbing technical boot currently available. But I am shocked no one is doing it yet.







Euro size 45.5

La Sportiva Spantik 1370g

liner 252g



La Sportiva Spantik with a Baruntse liner1290g

liner 172g









La Sportiva Baruntse 3#2.5oz / 1503g

liner 172g









Euro size 46

Scarpa Phantom 6000 newmodel 1230g

liner 234g

Scarpa Phantom 6000 Baruntse liner 1200g

liner 172g









US size 11.5

Scarpa Omega 1110

liner 140g









Scarpa Inverno 1450

liner 318g









Koflach Arctis Exp 1440

liner 462











Koflach Degre 1160

liner 184g









Koflach Ultra (1980 vintage, white) 2# 10oz or 1190g total

Kastinger foam liner 234g









29.5 Mono

Dynafit TLT 5 Performance size 45.3-29.5 mono, (no tongue)1210g

TF liner 232g



TLT 5 Mountain TF 1200g (no tongue)

TF liner 232g



All the current double boots are within ounces of each other. 1110 being the lightest..the Scarpa Omega. And the Kolfach Arctis the heaviestand likely the biggest boot by volume@ 1440g. Volume wise the Arctis compares to the Spantik. And is bigger imo than the 6000.I am still impressed by the original Ultra now called the "Guardian" by Koflach. Sadly it seems to be soldover sized with the Arctis' liner. That shell, properly sized, with an Intuition liner would still be one of the best climbing boots available and around the 1100g or less instead of the 1258g Koflach lists.



More here on the Kolflachs:



http://www.koflach.com/en/parsepage.php?tpl=tpl_index



More on Scarpa's plastic boots here:



http://www.scarpa.co.uk/Products/Mountain/high/



Bottom line here? Some really good cold weather boots available today and all of them climb well on ice. The price point of the plastic boots make them a reasonablealternative if the $700+ is a little hard to swallow on the most popular models.



I have been turned around with cold feet but I have never been turned around on technical ground because of wearing plastic boots. The temps that did stop me would still do so in a Spantik or a 6000 today. I found it easier to climb 5.10 rock in a pair of the old Ultras than I do in the bigger volume Spantiks.The reason is simple..less volume means a better climbing and easier to climb in boot. Plastic boots make sense on hard technical rock or vertical ice in cold conditions if you can get a decent fit in them. If I could get my hands on a pair of the current production Koflach Guardian's easily, I'd be climbing in them this winter instead of my 6000s or Spantiks.



That doesn't say a lot for the current state of the art in double boots imo when a 30 year old boot technologyand1/2 the retail price of the upper end "state of the art models" available is thebetter option most days out today.



I'm lucky enough to have almost any double boot available to me. But if I had to choosejust one pair of mtn boots for every condition, any seasonand mtn range...it would be a rather old school pair of whiteplastics from the current Koflach production run.





If the idea of a ultra modern, super light weight and lowvolume double boot interests you, make sure to add your own comment to this blog post. More on the idea here:



http://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?t=475986