New Irishtown Mixed Route, Dirty-T M4+

Laura Hahn seconding the new route Dirty-T M4+

Laura and I put up a new mixed line at Irishtown. Its located a hundred feet or so left of Dynamite. There is a line of ice in between the two mixed lines named Pale Wildwood Ice Tower - WI4. Its not quite in yet, but should be touching down by mid next week. Dirty T M4+. It climbs up through some ledges and face passing 3 bolts. Climb up through a small overlap to the ice and finish it up with turf to the trees. Lots of fun climbing for almost anyone. Great introduction for the climber looking to combine rock and ice.

Pulling up onto the ice

Top of the ice section

Turf to the top

The route name came from all the dirt that came off of the cliff and ended up all over me. It started out with me being clean and the route being dirty and ended with me being dirty and the route being clean. Enjoy!

Dirty deeds done dirt cheap

Ancient ice tool used by the Irishtownian ice climbing tribe

Hurrican Irene's Destruction

When we left the OBX area, we had plans to come back quickly. Today we realized that is not likely to happen given the devastation there. Out of all the places we have visited so far, this was by far the one that felt the most like "home" to me so I'm sad we won't be going back just yet. We hope to return in the spring and in the meantime we will send supplies and do other things to help this area as they rebuild.

Crampons! These Freak'n 'Pons!

Rant mode on!





The best you could buy in the late 1960's. And good enough to get a few up some damn hard climbs even by today's standards.



OK I know we have to use crampons. In the old days (geeze i have to say that a lot) I owned one set of 'pons and did everything in them. Same 'pons for a slog on Rainier, 5.10 mixed or vertical ice. Same freak'in 'pons and I was happy about it!



Jim Elzinga photo on the 1st ascent of Slipstream



Now I own and use...wait I have to write it down first to actually figure out what I do own! Dartwins, Darts, Grivel Rambo IV, and G12s, BD stainless Sabertooths and Cyborgs and finally Camp aluminum 12 points. 7 pair!



It frankly pisses me off!



What I would be satisfied with is a crampon at the weight of the best aluminum 'pons that climbed as well as the newest BD Sabertooths. Sabertooths will easily do rotten WI6 in dbl boots if you are up to the task. Of course that magic of super light and real performance doesn't exist yet. Anyone that tells you the vertical front point crampons climb ice better than the horizontal crampons is just uneducated or naive enough to repeat some salesman's logic. Either way it is crap...excuse me.. false/bad info. Because vertical front points don't climb better and in most cases they climb worse. On pure water ice the horizontal front points excel in every condition.



Add some difficult rock and you might get me to sway a tiny bit on that opinion. But while a mono point can make rock climbing easier and a dual vertical point might have a tiny advantage at times...but then I have never been on anything out side an artificial environment like Hafner where horizontal front points weren't an advantage on pure ice in every way except weight.



Then there is the issue of a crampon losing downward angled spikes to make them lighter. What kind of nonsense is that? Climb in a pair of Dartwins and then a pair of Sabertooths on moderate ground with hard ice and see what I mean. Damn Dartwins (which I like btw) feel like roller skates in comparison to the Sabertooth.



Or how about spikes so long you can hardly walk in them? Do we really need crampons that are so condition specific, hard ice, soft ice, Neve?



Modified G12s on a pair of La Sportiva Trangos Extremes







Then we get into the binding. Only thing I own is clip on 'pons. Wire bail in front and a lever lock in back. Petzl seems to think the plastic bail biting your Achilles tendon is a good thing....knuckle heads! While BD makes their stuff so burly and hell for stout you could winch a truck up on the wires. A 2nd knucklehead award!



Getting any of the major manufacturers' clip on 'pons to actually fit your boots is another crap shoot all together. I have mixed Petzl front bails with BD and Grivel heel levers to get everything to fit and work to my own satisfaction. Crazy and expensive as all that seems! Hate to think anyone in the climbing hardware industry or boot manufacturing might actually promote a DIN standard for alpine boots and 'pons. No that would be asking way toooooooooo much!



Don't get me started on the anti-botts. Take a look at the newest Grivel Rambo IVs being imported to the USA if you want to see a disaster in the making. Hard plastic botts with a hard plastic bubble to slide around on...saw that happening for a week! Scared me bad and I wasn't even climbing on them. You'd be better off to just strip them while new and enjoy a exceptional design with no bott. Hey almost as good as not putting one on the crampon....Petzl's idea on how to design them...just don't bother.







My idea of a good boot 'pon combination? La Sportiva Baruntse and BD stainless Sabertooth...but at half the current weight!









'Pons Part Two



From another conversation...after this blog was written.



"Like many of us with an entire quiver of 'pons sitting in the gear room what we choose to climb on personally wasn't/isn't what is always recommended in print. Given a choice what I choose to climb on for crampons depends on the conditions and route choosen that day."



"I'm just interested in what you prefer for pure ice and why."





On ice you can easily go from hard blue steel type stuff to vertical slush in a single day of climbing. Road side crags aren't a big deal, longer routes can be. Climb longer routes fast or climb faster than the changing conditions and it may not make a difference. On a order of preferenece and reliability ( for good feet) the first crampon on pure ice to let you down in changing conditions are monopoints. They have the least amount of surface area to support you and will not easily support you if the ice gets bad enough. Right behind them but with twice the surface area will be dual vertical front points. Think about that for a minute. Your entire body weight goes on a mono, then you literally double the surface support on dual verts to even more support on dual horizontals. It will obviously make a difference.



The most surface area will always be horizonal front points and because of that, they will the most reliable in all conditions. The other issue I note is most but not all vertical front points require physical placement, just as a tool does, by a kick or two instead of that good swing with your tool. It also wastes energy. First kick needs to clean off the loose ice and the second or more to actually place them securely. The lack of surface area generally requires it.



Curved horizontal front points will sink into the ice under body weight, no kick required. And because of the additional surface area don't require much in the way of support by the condition of the ice in comparison to the other two styles. Energy saved. The majority of time that is true but not always. If I have to kick a cold fragile feature that might collapse I want a razor sharp, single vertical front point. But cold hard ice that is collapsing as I kick it that will eventually get to solid ice I'll want horizontals.



A fully featured horizontal crampon generally has at least 8 vertical crampon points. (Dartwin for example) While a G12 has 10 and a BD Sabertooth has 12. Doesn't take a lot of imagination to realise which will be more stable on moderate ice while using French technique. Same technique and places I get rests on hard technical ice. The Dartwin (which I climb in a lot) feels like a pair of roller skates compared to the other two imo with the BD a fair step up on the Grivel in the same conditions. Then why do I bother with the other 'pons? Simple. Overall weight mostly and even more important to me than performance at some point, the boot to 'pon fit.



Even with the big advantage of real rigids on pure ice, and it is a BIG advantage..I shy away from them now because of the same basic reason..weight.







For steep, technical climbs like these, all at about the same grade, I used crampons with horizontal front points, BD Sabertooth and Grivel G12s.







And to be fair all my partners for these three climbs choose to use some form of vertical front point or mono point. Black Diamond Sabertooth, Grivel Rambo and Petzl Darts were all represented.



So does it really matter? Only a couple of reasons for which I can justify a preference. First would be if the ice you are on starts to fall down around you when the sun comes out or you miss judge what the conditions were from a distance. These are all one or two pitch climbs close to the road. So I could choose what I wanted to climb on for crampons that day.



Or if you require a secure, easy rest or need to save energy on hard technical terrain. The added security on easy ground of a truly full featured crampon is comforting. All things I find helpful in my own climbing.

Night in the Tropics

My tropical garden at night during the month of October.

Flycatcher

I got this shot of a flycatcher sitting on the same plant stand to catch the cool air as the mockingbirds I told about in the previous post.

Chaparral, NM

Most of the area around Chaparral, NM where my son lives is flat desert country with a some low, rocky mountains. If you can call them mountains. Compared to what I call mountains they aren't much but still they are photogenic and nice to look at. The 1st photo is of the lower end of the Rio Grande River right before it goes into Texas. Chaparral is right at the Texas border near El Paso, Texas. Chaparral can hardly be called a town, more like a very small village. Remember my post from a few weeks ago that had photos of the river here in Albuquerque with lots of water, and several miles from Chaparral in the Anthony, NM area. Most of it goes into Elephant Butte Lake which is a big lake with lots of boating, fishing, and other recreation. I didn't go there this time. The rest goes to the farmers.
Other photos are just outside of Chaparral, NM.

Cycling and Self-Portraiture

I have long been interested in the connection between cycling and amateur self-portraiture. Anyone familiar with the world of bicyclists' image galleries is also familiar with the ubiquitous "panda shots," storefront reflections, snapshots of one's bike shadow. Taken quickly with tiny low-quality cameras, these provide spontaneous glimpses into how we move through the world, what we encounter along the way, and how we relate to our bicycles while doing so. Over the years it has become a distinct genre.




But why do it? Looking in from the outside, it is easy to interpret it as a contemporary obsession with documentation, a marking of territory, or in the case of "panda shots" (pictures of yourself taken while cycling) as a showing off of skill. And of course to some extent it is all that. But what makes it bike-specific? I have never encountered another group outside of the art world that is as prone to self-portraiture as cyclists. Joking around with bikeyface, we tried to start a trend for "walk pandas," but somehow pedestrian self-portraiture does not hold the same appeal.






Last year I wrote aboutbicycle blogs and exhibitionism - describing a culture among the blogs of beginner female cyclists where women communicate and encourage each other by showing pictures of themselves doing everyday bike-related activities. Outside of the intended audience (for example, when observed by experienced male cyclists), this is sometimes misinterpreted as exhibitionism. But for the intended audience it is in fact a "teaching by doing" sort of tool that can be more effective than any advocacy.




Still the trend for self-portraiture among cyclists is not limited to this alone. It is more widespread than that and encompasses a more diverse demographic. From racers to retrogrouches to randonneurs to pedaling fashionistas, cyclists just seem compelled to snap pictures of themselves on or next to their bikes.







It is possible that moving around by bicycle, particularly when we are new to it in adulthood, heightens our sense of self-awareness and it is this that inspires the self-portraiture. In a sense, the cyclist keeps a visual diary. And a true diary, be it written or visual, is more than just about what happens in one's environment; typically the diarist also focuses on themselves.




How well this works as an explanation, I don't know. But as a psychologist and a painter I am fascinated by the tradition of self-portraiture I've seen emerge as more and more cyclists share their images with the world. If you take pictures of yourself on or with your bike, why do you do it?

Regaining ground in the park, the NPS makes its move

The skies parted for a while today and the mountain finally revealed itself. Plastered ice and snow coated the upper 3-4,000 feet, seen here from a recently improved view point near Kautz Creek. Everything below 9-10,000 feet appeared thin and icy, i.e. very little winter snowpack, see below. Rumor has it, another storm is on the way. I hope it brings colder temps.

I snapped this image late today before the clouds returned. That is the Nisqually Glacier on Mt Rainier, the trails of the Paradise area in the foreground. The glacier ice looked really blue after the intense rain, and the mountain looked awesome.

For 24 hours, this was a place that people simply left. Today, the NPS resummed its plan to restore facilities and order to the park after 18 inches of rain fell at Paradise in 36 hours. The level of the primary rivers and tributaries remains high and it's very easy to note the newly scoured banks and freshly deposited log jams along the river corridors.

There was a noticeable change to the silence as the restoration effort moved forward. Electricians, water treatment specialists, and heavy equipment operators returned to Longmire and other parts of the park to assess the damage and begin the repairs. Highway 410 will open soon (probably Thursday) but the Carbon River road, Highway 123 and the Nisqually to Paradise road will remain closed (probably for a few weeks).

We surveyed the storm damage from the air this afternoon. The main hits were taken at Sunshine Point, Stevens Canyon (in somewhat predictable locations, see photo above-left) and on Highway 123 (left) where the road washed out entirely. The damage to Highway 123 looked severe given the time of year; I wonder if it won't be fully sorted out until 2007. At the Sunshine Point washout, I saw earth movers in the remains of the campground (now river bed). They were trying to make things happen for the road to Longmire, but the job seemed large because the road was entirely gone.

The sound of silence approaches, as soon the generators will be turned off for the evening.

Because summer has arrived in the Netherlands

Finally! So I bought one of my favourite drink, Martini Rose sparkling wine to celebrate a bit. Really good when served chilled. I discovered this wine 2 years ago.

And I have been eating my favourite seafood salads in outdoor terraces during lunch. Yummy. I can eat this for days and I will not complain.

Ah, one must always seek the good life huh. But I hope the warm and dry weather stays???

The season is underway... sort of

Hello again winter fanatics. Hope everyone had a great spring, summer and fall. My faithful climbing partner/girlfriend Larua and I have been out dry tool training and scoping things out for the upcoming winter season. Great News... We think we've found the largest concentration of moderate ice climbs in Western PA. As the weather gets better (worsens) we'll be able to tell you more. It could be home to over 20+ WI3 to WI4 routes. We've also been eyeing up some new mixed lines that are begging to be climbed. It should be a good year full of new routes. We've been getting our workout on as much as possible. Laura has come out swinging! getting early season clean ascents of routes most local "dudes" won't even try. The start of things freezing is (hopefully) a few short weeks away. The woods and cliffs are dripping plenty and all the water looks promising for an incredible year. We didn't rock climb a whole lot this summer, but we did keep our tools veryactive during the winter "off" season April-November dry tooling as much as possible.



I figure there is no reason to bore everyone with long tales of my off season activities, so I'll sum it up in a few sentences. I spent the spring and summer running... Mostly trails, but also some pavement running with a few races thrown in for good measure. I managed to do quite well across the disciplines. My true love of running is long distance in the woods for many hours at a time. Below is a photo that Laura took during a HOT summer run. She had it set on our computers wallpaper for most of the season. It shows me in all my glory during a run on the Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail. I usually spend 5 days a week training on this 70 mile point to point trail. Its a short distance from our house to the trail which makes training convenient. On the trail I've adopted the name "woodz ninja" although below I look more like "Salt Pig Sweat Hog" It definately keeps me in shape for winter climbing. Laura spent the majority of the off season hiking a lot and volunteering at Powdermill Nature Reserve in Rector, PA. She helped in the bird banding lab.

Around mile 50 or 60 in 90° humid summer

weatherat one of our "Mobile Aid Stations"

The other hobby I enjoy is hawk watching. Unfamiliar with it? It's more like the counting, study and observing of migrating raptors for scientific purpose. In particular I've been interested in the migration habits and paths of the Golden Eagle through the central Appalachian chain. Every year in mid September I slow climbing "training" and start hawk watching for a few months. This upcoming spring season I am starting the first official hawk watch in Western MD. If you have any interest or would like to learn more check out my blog for the Cumberland Gap Hawk Watch. It'll explain a great deal. If you have any questions please get in touch. As climbers we spend a great deal of time in raptor territory and being able to identify and understand these amazing birds soaring around the crags is well... pretty awesome!



Another recent project I helped with involved former PA ice climber Rob "Griz" Ginieczki author of the 2006 climbing guide titledIce Climbing Pennsylvania. Much has changed in PA climbing since 2006 and it was time for an update. Griz approached me to help with the Southwestern PA section. Personally I can say quite a bit has been added to the SWPA section and should help everyone climb even more ice in our region. The book is in print right now and should be out in time for this season. I'll keep you posted as to when they are available. Great job Griz! Keep the PA ice community stoked and getting after it!





Stay tuned as the winter progresses and the climbing starts to happen. I'll be posting regularly again keeping ya'll updated on the happenings around here. Train on! -Tim

The Gold Country

The Gold Country, originally uploaded by ParsecTraveller.

Yesterday we went on a day trip to the foothills of Yosemite National Park. I had heard that there were some wildflowers out....

...there were.

Hillsides and mountains were covered in sheets of California poppies and popcorn flowers. Some of the mountainsides were literally completely orange with only the occasional tree to break the flowers. It was a truly incredible day.

I took this photo on a very steep hillside in the Merced River canyon near Briceburg.

More Glove Love: Convertible Mittens

With the arrival of colder temperatures, my crochet cycling gloves were no longer cutting it. The Co-Habitant came to the rescue with a welcome gift: convertible mittens in a luxuriously soft wool. I love these things!

The convertible mittens are basically fingerless gloves, with extra "mitten flaps" above the knuckles. The flaps can be unbuttoned and folded over the fingers to create mittens. The thumb is full-fingered. The Co-Habitant bought these at the Banana Republic outlet store. They were available in this heathery beige colour, and also in black. Apparently many mainstream apparel manufacturers now sell versions of these.

Aside from being clever and cute, these convertible mittens have several features that make them particularly suitable for cycling. Having the tips of the fingers exposed allows for optimal shifting, braking, and other machinations (such as camera clicks) that do not work so well when the finger tips are covered. The mitten mode makes them versatile as on/off the bike gloves. The 100% wool is great for warmth and moisture-wicking, and is not slippery on the handlebar grips.

An additional benefit, is that these gloves are extra long, which is excellent for protecting cyclists' wrists when they get exposed to the cold air due to the stretching of the arms to reach the handlebars. All those jackets, coats and sweaters with sleeves not long enough for cycling can be supplemented with long gloves like these.

Convertible mittens in action. For those of you who knit, this might make a fun and worthwhile project (see instructions in pdf). Just make sure to use a soft 100% wool yarn (or wool and silk blend) and not an acrylic blend, and to make them extra long.

Birthday Buddies

Today is my sister's birthday. Teresa Jane Wiseman Ratcliff Plybon would have been 55 years old today. Born in 1954, she passed away not quite two years ago. The picture, above, of Terry and Grandma was taken in early summer, 1955.

My Dad was born in 1924, on January 29th. He passed away on December 18, 1995. The picture below was taken during the 1990 reunion of the 11th Airborne.

Birthdays seem to run in pairs in my immediate family. One of my nephews was born on my Mom's birthday in May (he was her first grandchild). One of my nieces and I were born in February, a few days (and, obviously, years) apart. My older brother and one of his sons, as well an uncle (by marriage) were born within three days of each other in March. His twin boys were born on the last day of March.

Another nephew was born just a day after my younger brother, during the first week of July. My brother's birthday was the one that we all celebrated when we were young, with a party and everything! After all, it was in the summer and close to the 4th. A great excuse for a family get-together. His son was born the last week of June. His daughter was born in September as was my other niece.

The 44th Regiment at Shiloh :: The Photo

This is the second of two photographs from the display at the visitor center at Shiloh National Battlefield.

The caption for this photo reads “The men of the 44th Indiana Infantry Regiment display their arms and accoutrements before the battle.” Written in the lower right corner is “Comy H 44 Ind”

The close-ups below begin from the left hand side of the above photograph. There is some overlap in the close-ups so some men will appear on more than one of the pictures.

The Estate of Dederick Hoffman :: Widow's Allowance

Dederick/Detrick Hoffman and his wife Susannah are my 5th great-grandparents. Descent is through their son John who married Catherine Coy and their daughter Susannah who married John D. Berlin.









Estate of Dederick Hoffman (Packet 805) Columbiana County, Ohio

FHL film 2032459 accessed June 8, ..

A Schedule of the provisions and other property allowed to Susannah Hoffman Widow of Detrich Hoffman late of Salem Township Columbiana County Deceased for her Support for one year by us the Subscribers duly appointed appraisersers to the Estate of the Sd Deceased to wit:

one lot of meat, one hog, a Small lot of Kitchen furniture, one Cow, twenty Bushels of wheat, five Dollars in money, eight Bushels of oats, three lbs of Wool, one bushel and a half of Salt, a lot of Soap, twenty lbs of Sugar, two twiled bags

We the Subscribers do certify that the foregoing is a correct Schedule of property allowed to the above named Widow given under our hands this 12th day of May 1826.

George Urick, John Yoder, Andrew Altman } Appraisers

Badlands :: An Incredible Landscape

Wednesday, August 24th - - Badlands National Park is comprised of the North and South Units consisting of 244,000 acres. The South Unit was added in 1976 and is managed by the Oglala Lakota Nation. It contains many sites sacred to the Oglala Lakota people as well as a great quantity of unexploded ordnance – the area was used as an aerial bombing range during the Second World War. The South Unit is largely undeveloped with few roads or trails; it is primarily a protected natural area.



The North Unit, sandwiched between Highway 44 and Interstate 90, is the one that the vast majority of visitors see, myself included. The main route through this section is the Loop Road.





I entered the Park on the northwest end, from Wall on route 240. After exploring the Sage Creek area (where I was engulfed by a herd of bison) I returned to the Loop Road and continued eastward.





The Pinnacles Overlook area.













The Ancient Hunters Overlook. This is where evidence has been found that the Ancient Ones stampeded herds of bison over the edge of the cliff and butchered the fallen animals.





Yellow Mounds Overlook.

The yellow and red layers in the formations are fossilized soils, called paleosols. Fossil root traces, burrows, and animal bones found within the soils provide scientists with evidence of environmental and climatic changes that occurred in the badlands over time.







Driving through the Conata Basin.



The Conata Basin. See the car on the road in the lower left corner?



Homestead Overlook.

According to a sign posted at the overlook:

Homesteaders poured into the Badlands when the Milwaukee Railroad completed track through the White River Valley in 1907. Most of the homesteads turned out to be “Starvation Claims” and were abandoned or sold. Starved-out homesteaders moved on to build towns and cities, or to seek another homestead in a land less harsh. Today the ranches of this valley are measured in thousands of acres, and heavy equipment does most of the work once done by callused hands. Even so, unpredictable drought and economic crisis test ranchers today as severely as they tested homesteaders yesterday.

Fossil Trail.



Exiting the park through Cedar Pass.