Gunks Routes: The Last Will Be First (5.6)

(Photo: A view of climbers on the High Exposure buttress from high on the first pitch of The Last Will Be First (5.6).)



So you had your heart set on climbing High Exposure (5.6+)... but you arrived at the base of the climb to find it stacked three-deep with parties waiting to get started?



Well, don't waste your whole day waiting below the cliff.



Go hit The Last Will Be First (5.6) instead. It features high-quality moves all the way from the bottom of the cliff to the very top. It is in my opinion harder than High E and more sustained in its difficulty and its quality. I climbed it for the second time in early December with Liz and I was struck by how great it is, from start to finish. I think it is a contender for three stars, though I understand why Dick Williams gives it only two. It has no single standout moment, like the swing out onto the face on pitch two of High E, or the move over the big roof on Shockley's.



But it has something different: consistent fun. I think only Madame G's rivals The Last Will Be First when it comes to great continuous 5.6 climbing.



The first pitch is outstanding. After the initial easy moves up a slab to an obvious crack, you'll find never-ending steep climbing on good rock with good pro. Nice move follows nice move and then you hit the crux, where you'll bust it over a rooflet and up to the top of a shallow left-facing corner. Then you escape right from the corner and past a dead tree to the final good moves up to the GT Ledge. 160 feet of goodness. I can't think of another pitch of 5.6 in the Gunks that is so long and sustained at the grade.





(Photo: Liz almost finished with pitch one.)



When you arrive on the GT Ledge, you'll see a set of rap bolts off a ways to climber's left. I'd recommend against belaying from these bolts, as they do not put you in the best position from which to start pitch two. Instead you should build a gear belay in the cliff behind the ledge, just a step or two left from where you top out after pitch one.



Dick describes pitch two as beginning at the first left-facing corner, about 20 feet to the left of where you emerge from pitch one. I think it is actually less than 20 feet, and there are two corners right next to each other. You want the closer, shallower one. I was confused by Dick's instructions the first time I did The Last Will Be First and ended up going a little too far to the left, coming closer to the second pitch of Unholy Wick by mistake. What I actually did was an unnamed variation between the two climbs. Perhaps this was a first ascent? I can call it The Last Will Be Unholy (5.6). I thought my new variation was fun and well-protected.



I realized I was off-route afterwards, when I looked at the topo photo in the back of the guidebook. In this instance the photo is more helpful than the description. I also have a photo of my own that should help you make sure you don't suffer from the same confusion I had the first time around.





(Photo: Going the wrong way on pitch two of The Last Will Be First (5.6). The actual route is the yellow line on the far right. Click on the photo to enlarge and see the captions for the lines approximating the correct positions of the routes in this part of the cliff.)



In early December when I did the route for the second time I did the correct pitch two. Don't go as far left as I am in the above photo. Instead go up at the first, shallower left-facing corner, heading straight up about ten or fifteen feet thenheading diagonally upleft to the break in the little overhang.





(Photo: Looking down the correct pitch two of The Last Will Be First, from just above the crux overhang.)



The second pitch is not as sustained as pitch one. Itfeatures face climbing up and left to a small crux overhang that is cleared at the notch. The pro is good but it's a little spaced as you head left from the corner to the overhang. Great pro is available at the crux.



Once above the overhang the climb joins Ken's Blind Hole (5.6) to the finish. Straight up a shallow dihedral to a fun, easy traverse beneath overhangs to the right along a big horizontal. This leads to an exit at the top at a set of belay/rappel bolts.





(Photo: Liz at the finishing traverse on pitch two.)



While it isn't as sustained as the first pitch, pitch two offers good variety: face climbing, then a small overhang, then an entertaining traverse. Definitely well worth doing, and a fitting finish to a really nice climb.

Tahoma Ski

During our recent spell of high pressure a group of local climbers made a rare winter ascent of the Tahoma Glacier and ski descent from the summit. Thanks to Doug Daniell for the report and photos.



I climbed and skied the Tahoma Glacier with a group of four from Seattle
on January 19-21. I wanted to share some conditions information and
beta for a winter approach from the west side of the mountain. We began
our ascent on the 19th from the Westside Road closure near the park
entrance. We were able to skin from the car (~2150') although coverage
was a few inches at best. We eventually joined Tahoma Creek and except
for a few creek crossings found easy travel. Camped to the west of
Glacier Island on a calm, mild night. On the 20th we skinned up on firm
snow to the glacier, passed a few icefalls on the right, and then
traversed left at 9K to a smooth ramp that led to camp at 10K. Enjoyed a
beautiful sunset and alpenglow on the slopes above.





Sometime before 5am on the 21st we roped up, dropped down to the
north to avoid some looming seracs, and then navigated crevasses and ice
debris to the base of Sickle. We decided on this variation to avoid
what looked like large swaths of glare ice on the main Tahoma. In the
Sickle we found good travel on shallow wind-packed powder and firmer
styrofoam, with patches of ice globs especially higher on the route.
Beautiful Rainier shadow at sunrise though we remained in the cold
ourselves. Brought pickets/screws but none were used. Definitely not a
route to tackle with much avy danger - saw lots of evidence of sluffs
and maybe a well-weathered crown or two. The rest of the way to the
summit was a slog as usual. Great views from Jefferson to Baker, though
the Puget Sound was covered in fog and clouds.



The ski down was a hodgepodge of snow conditions - terrible off the
summit, some nice smooth patches below Liberty saddle, fun steep skiing
through the Sickle, thousands of feet of wind-effect down the glacier,
and then occasionally breakable crust down to the creek. Three of us
completed the full descent and one had a major binding failure high on
the route that entailed lots of walking and some improvised ski-strap
solutions to get out by 10pm.





FYI,
snowmobiles are allowed from the road closure on 410 to White River
Campground, Remember to self-register before your climb or overnight
stay whatever your route may be.

Long Top Tubes and Drop Bars

I was reading the Rivendell blog today, where Grant Petersen revealed a "mystery bike" that has been in the works for some time. It looks like this. And aside from the obvious oddities, it is endowed with an unusually long top tube for its size: a 62.5cm top tube on a 54.3cm frame. Apropos this geometry, Rivendell notes that the bicycle is"basically a flat-to-rolling land bike that, by virtue of it’s superlong top tube ...locks you into a sweeepyback bar." In other words, it would be difficult to set this bike up with drop bars due to the excessively long reach that would create.

This got me thinking again about my ownRivendellbicycle: a Sam Hillborne that is a 52cm frame with a 57.5cm top tube. That is also an unusually long top tube, given the frame size. Aside from the standover, the 52cm frame fits like a much larger one - possibly too large for someone of my stature to set up as a roadbike.

When I first got the bike, I could not ride with drop bars and so we did everything possible to ease me into it. The bike was built up with an extremely short stem (5cm) and the bars were set up considerably above saddle level. I rode it that way at first, gradually lowering the bars until finally they were level with the saddle. That felt fine for a while, and then came a time when I was ready for a longer stem (the 5cm was always meant to be temporary). The typical stem length for a roadbike is 9-11cm, but I soon understood that this range was out of the question given the long top tube - I would have to be lying down over the bike in order to reach the bars. So we replaced the 5cm stem with what we thought was an 8cm, but was actually a 7cm - and even that feels like a stretch. Now I find myself in bike fit purgatory: From the standpoint of how the bicycle handles, I feel as if I am not forward enough and would like a longer stem. But from the standpoint of reach, even the current stem is too long (and I have already shoved the saddle forward and replaced the seatpost with one that has as little setback as possible).

According toRivendell's sizing guidelines I belong on a 52cm frame, if not larger. However, it seems to me now that these guidelines are optimised for setting the bicycle up with upright handlebars (even though they do not explicitly say that). Otherwise I do not know how to interpret the sizing.

Long top tubes are good for eliminating toe overlap. They are also ideal for fitting a bike with swept back handlebars, so that the bars don't hit your knees. But if you plan to set up a bicycle with drop bars at or below saddle level and use a standard length stem, a long top tube could be problematic - unless you have a long torso. If you own a Rivendelland have it set up as a roadbike, I would be interested in your take on this.

Tuffee's Log Cabin

While we were wondering around the meadow Tuffee descovered what was left of an old log cabin in the trees. Can you just imagine having to cut and build a home with these big logs. I could see the notchs cut into the logs with hand tools to keep the logs stacked on top of each other. What seemed to be the front side was gone but I could see where a window had been on the side away from where Tuffee is in this photo. That tree behind here is about the size of the size of the ones used for the cabin but it was probably just a seedling when the cabin was build if it had even sprouted at that time.

Badlands :: The National Park

Tuesday, August 23rd - - After taking Babs to the airport in Sioux Falls (at 5 o'clock in the morning!) I returned to the motel thinking perhaps I could get in a few more hours of sleep. I rested for a while but sleep wouldn't come so I got up and back on the road, westward bound. Taking the Interstate, I made good time and arrived in Wall, South Dakota in mid-afternoon.



My “plan” was to visit Badlands National Park but the temperature had reached triple digits. Remembering what it had been like the last time, I got a motel room and hoped that it would be cooler in the morning! And, yes, I did pay a visit to Wall Drug, strolling through the various sections. It's an interesting place, to say the least.



Wednesday, August 24th - - As it turned out, it really wouldn't have been bad for camping last night after the sun went down. Overnight temperatures were in the upper 60s. Anyway, I got a relatively early start and was in the Badlands National Park by nine o'clock. Entering from the northwest, the route would take me south and east through the park.



Almost immediately upon entering the park I turned on the first drive off the main road, which was a gravel road but well maintained and in good condition with several overlook areas. The first one was Hay Butte Overlook.





An informative sign explained why it was called Hay Butte:

Erosion left a few high islands topped with virgin sod, the slopes so steep that homesteaders could not get their stock up to graze. Instead, the homesteaders waited until the grass was ready to cut.



Then several got together, took apart a mower, and reassembled it on the top of the table. Once the grass was cut and baled, homesteaders hitched it to a cable stretched from the rim to the lower prairie – and whoosh, the bales slid down. Hence the name Hay Butte for the long table on the horizon.



Today the high grassy tables are harvested only by bighorns and deer. The bison which roam the Sage Creek Wilderness are excluded as effectively as were the stock of the homesteaders.

One of the flat-top buttes. I was amazed at how much “green” there was. Apparently there has been plenty of rain in western South Dakota this year!





Looking at the sides of the butte, it's no wonder that cattle and buffalo can't get to the top.





A little further down the road was the Badlands Wilderness area. It was rugged looking but seemed to have some areas that were more “rounded” and also had more grassland. There are even trees out there! I certainly wasn't expecting that.





My recollections of the Badlands from a visit in 1976 with my mother are far different than this. I recall a very dry, brown landscape. Rather forbidding and desolate. Yes, this is desolate looking, but it also has a strange beauty to it.

Aunt Leah and Tatting

Dave Tabler's post this morning at Appalachian History on Reviving the ancient art of tatting reminded me of my aunt Eva Leah Wiseman Shock (my Dad's sister). Beside Aunt Leah's chair at her home in Goshen, Indiana was a bag full of thread. As she sat there visiting with my parents she'd pull out some weird looking thing and start to work. We weren't allowed to touch anything at her house, especially that bag. And, at the time, we didn't even know what she was doing. Years later my mom would tell us about Aunt Leah and her tatting.

Aunt Leah was born on February 4, 1908 in Tippecanoe Township, Kosciusko County, Indiana and was the second child born to Elsie Shuder and Charles Wiseman. The day before Leah's 18th birthday her mother died in a fire that destroyed the small house the family was living in, and from what I've been told, devastated the family as well. There were seven other children in the household with Perry being the oldest at 19 years of age, and my Dad being the youngest, just a little over 2 years old.

In the 1930 Federal Census (Tippecanoe Township, Kosciusko County, Indiana, E.D. 43-20, sheet 6B) the five youngest children are enumerated in the household of their grandparents, Samuel and Amanda Wiseman. I haven't yet found Grandpa Charlie or Perry and Leah in the 1930 census yet so I don't know where they were living. It's possible that Grandpa Charlie was in jail. Newspaper clippings show that he was arrested numerous times between 1909 and well into the 1930's for fishing with a net, bootlegging, and other minor infractions of the law. It's no wonder that Aunt Leah ended up in a mental institution for a while. She would somehow eventually be rescued from that place by her future husband, Ervin Shock (we always called him Shocky). They were married on April 13, 1941 in Elkhart County and made their home at 321 ½ First Street in Goshen. First Street was the first street to the east of the Elkhart River, hence it's name. When we were older, the first place we'd head for when visiting Aunt Leah was the river and the park on the other side.

The photograph of Ervin and Eva Leah Shock, with her nephew Bill Conrad, was probably taken in 1941.





Mom says that Leah learned tatting from her grandmother, Amanda Minerva Alexander Wiseman. The skill was not passed down to the younger generation and there are not many examples of Aunt Leah's work left that I am aware of, except for several items that my cousin Caroline was given. Those are shown above. Aunt Leah passed away on January 9, 1967 at her home in Goshen and is buried next to her parents in the North Webster cemetery.

Snow time...

Quite a bit of snow has fallen over the past week leaving plenty at Paradise (a solid 2 feet). As you can see in this John Piastuck image, skiers and boarders (32 ants by my count) are "chomping at the bit" to climb Panorama Point for early season turns... This is looking to be a very promising ski season folks. The question is, will it hold; will it continue?

The Washington State Climatologists have something to say about our weather. They just published an interesting report about our 2007 summer temperatures. It points to data that says we're still experiencing a warmer than normal trend (0.01 to be exact for Aug). I also found that they are willing to post an "Outlook" for the fall and winter. Check it out, but don't look for any clarity as it doesn't really predict anything substantial or exciting: "The Climate Prediction Center's 3-month outlook for November-December-January is for equal chances of above, below, or normal temperatures for Washington..."

Whatever the case, we're off to good start and the ants on Pan Point are seemingly stoked. With them are a few climbers who are hoping to find the summit this week. Perhaps they'll successfully weave through the upper mountain crevasses and visit Columbia Crest during this weather window.

If you are planning to climb this fall, here are few safety, registration and camping tips:

• Expect crevasses: Though it's been snowing quite a bit this Sept/Oct, be prepared for lightly covered crevasses on the mountain.
• Avalanche: Yes, slides have killed climbers in the fall on Mount Rainier and it could easily happen again. It doesn't take much to knock a team into a terrain trap (crevasse, cliff, hole) or bury someone. This is especially the case if the wind is blowing which could contribute to large snow deposits.
• Poor weather: Ok, this is a constant on Rainier, but fall is definitely the time when storms linger longer than expected and climbers regret their "fast and light" plans. Be prepared to sit out inclement weather and expect heavy wet snow.

You can register in Longmire at the museum, or self register (i.e. honor system) at Paradise on the front porch of the Jackson Visitor Center. Most teams will select the Camp Muir Public Shelter for high camp accommodations. Over the past few years, that hut has been very accessible... But you should still bring a shovel to dig out the door and always clean up after you leave. On nice/busy weekends, bring your ear plugs (snoring, running stoves, chatter) and expect to breath stove exhaust in the hut.