NEW PA alpine route at Sunday School Crag

Tom Thomas engulfed in PA alpine sending this new line

Tom Thomas, Andy Shriner and myself decided to go out climbing. As per my last post conditions looked fickle at most SWPA ice areas. I didn't check Sunday School figuring its usually one of the first to come in. Neither Tom nor Andy have been to Sunday School making it agood choice as a first stop towards getting some climbing done. We had a fourth lined up for the day, but he bailed at the last minute making us an uneven 3 man team... Not the best way to go out when conditions have been so limited and everyone wants to climb as much as possible. We made the adventurous hike into the ice. It's fairly steep going and... well to make this readable, I'll just call it "alpine" in style.

Tom and Andy approaching our destination

Those that have been here know exactly what I'm talking about. After our approach, we stood before the ice laden walls. A little boney, but definitely climbable. In the recent years though, boney has become the standard, thus making todays conditions "in" I guess? Either way Tom was amped up and anxious as a high strung cat to start clawing at the walls. Understandably so having climbed here for 15+ years. How can't one get excited with all the various options of ice between chossy, usually protectable, rock sections. Its alpine climbing heaven (in an easily accessible, miniature form ;) I always find the climbing reminiscent of The Black Dike in NH. Not nearly as long, but harder, similar pitches in abundance and concentration. Tom racked up an arsenal of screws, gear and pins while Andy flaked the rope and set up to give Tom a belay. It was at that instant that I realized the predicament of having 3 climbers. Tom and Andy were paired up to have a go at a surely fun line. The reality that our ice climbing has been ultra limited and I could be picking a plum as well. It really bummed me out to say the least. I WANTED to be climbing too. May sound like a childish thing to some, if so, I guess our passions for ice climbing differ. Its pretty high on my list of fun things in the world... Here's one of a handful of days being wasted all because of a backed out partner. It made me realize how valuable my wonderful "better half" Laura really is. I can't stress how much of a trooper she is. I just wish she could've been there. We make such a great climbing team and having her there is priceless! So cutting my losses on climbing and being totally bummed about being partnerless. I decided to take advantage of the great climbing talent and work on some photograpic opportunities I seldom get. I started hiking and worked my way up around to the return of an adjacent cliff to click off some shots from different angles, hopefully documenting a first ascent.

From a distance, Andy is in blue at the base of the climb

The route looked awesome and Tom did a great job leading it for a first visit to Sunday School. He described the opening rock section to be quirky as do most other climbers. I found it took a few seasons to learn to read this odd style of climbing. The rock isn't as friendly as other local rock for hooking, etc. Slopers are the norm with some odd fractures here and there for a "thank god" moment every so often.

Tom enjoying the opening moves

Either way after a quick introduction he was into the business and working up through the rock to a steep snowfield which appeared to be in good condition.

Snow covered choss

The snow led to the base of a vertical ice section that offered some reasonable ice screws and three dimensional climbing around thin columns.

some ice...

Then more ice...

The ice ended at a steep rock cleft that offered up a piton placement before another snow ledge. Another section of ice was above, but extremely poorly bonded.

The rock cleft finish

Tom wisely opted to end the route at the base of this ice. He built an ice screw anchor and Andy followed the line in fine style. He seemed to be enjoying himself the whole way up, pulling his first "legit" pin and getting some V-thread practice in lean conditions. I snapped quite a few photos of all the action. Here's my photo highlight recap of the guys in action on this new unamed line at Sunday School Crag. Congrats go out to Tom and Andy on the great new addition.




Here's Andy in action seconding...

Sunday School partial crag overview

Andy starting up the ice

Tom belaying below the delaminating upper section

Crazy Angle, could be rotated 90 right?

Andy Shriner enjoying a wonderful day in PA

My artistic attempt

Street food in Berlin: ‘Frische Brezel’ on a bike

Frische brezels (translation: fresh pretzels) are typical street marvels in the city centres of Germany. It is very popular in the country, in German-speaking countries, as well as in the USA (brought by German speaking immigrants).

America, standing true to its capitalistic nature, found a way to mass produced the pretzels. My first encounter of a pretzel was of course back in the Philippines. We have those American-style mass produced, thin, hard and tiny pretzels coated in dark chocolate—the Jack n’Jill chocolate pretzel.

As seen in my pictures below, the real pretzel is actually a bread. I call it a designer bread with the pretzel loop design and it is soft and big. It’s so big that one piece could be my whole lunch already. It also has many varieties.

What’s nice with this street brezel vendor is that he carries a kerosene stove with him to heat up the pretzels. Yum!

Brezel vendor on a bike spotted near the Reichstag.

EUR 2,50 each and you can have them warm.

Natural and with grated cheese. I would go for natural...

First vs Second Winter of Cycling

With my second winter of cycling drawing to an end, I am thinking about the differences between this year's and last year's experiences. I am certainly a better cyclist this time around, and I've also gone through a great deal of trial and error as far as what works and what does not. Here are some notes comparing this winter to the last:



Choosing the right bike for winter

Before last winter began, it seemed that everyone around me was saying that I needed a "winter bike" - a "beater" type mountain bike. I considered it, but ultimately stuck with my Pashley and it worked perfectly well - as did my vintage Gazelle this winter. After my two winters' worth of experience in the snow and salt, I would say that my ideal "winter bike" is one with a chaincase, an internally geared hub, drum brakes, and stable handling. After seeing others struggle with frozen and rusted derailleurs, I would not ride a derailleur bike for transportation in the winter. After getting snow stuck under the calipers on one of my bikes and being unable to stop while going downhill, I will also never ride a rim brakes-only bike in winter.



Road conditions

Last year the amount of snow we had was typical for Boston: It snowed regularly, but not overwhelmingly, and the roads were mostly kept clear by the plows. My classic upright bike with its regular tires was just fine under those conditions, and I did not feel the need for studded tires. This winter, I admit it: Had I gotten studded tires from the start, life would have been easier. But who could have predicted that we would have one crazy blizzard after another this time around? It's too late now, but next winter I might buy studded tires and keep them around just in case.



Temperature control

Last winter this was a huge problem for me - my biggest problem in fact. I just could not get the layering right and would constantly feel either too hot or too cold. This winter I embraced wool, and these problems disappeared. I am converted to such an extent, that I have now sold or given away most of my non-wool clothing, and wear a combination of stuff I've knitted myself and stuff I've bought from technical wool brands like Icebreaker, I/O Bio, Ibex and Smartwool (I plan to write a comparative review of different items from these brands soon).



Recreational cycling

Last winter, I hung up my "sporty bike" (at the time my vintage mixte) in early November and did not retrieve it again until April. This winter I rode recreationally all through November and part of December, and managed to go on a couple of winter rides even after it began to snow. I also got a trainer and began to "cycle" indoors when it became apparent that this winter would me much worse than the last.



Adjusting expectations

If you live in an area with harsh winters, the simple fact is that you will likely cycle less during the winter season - no mater how tough you are. Though mentally I was aware of that last winter, I was not prepared for it emotionally and found myself in a constant state of frustration as a result. Despite this winter being much worse than the last one, I knew what to expect this time around and it was much easier to take. I still cycle for transportation, but my traveling radius has decreased. I also walk a lot, take public transportation, and spend more time working on projects indoors. That's just how it's going to beuntil (I expect) mid-March or so, and I have adjusted my expectations accordingly.



I know that many of my readers took up transportation cycling around the same time as I did, and are now going through their second winter as well. Have you noticed any differences? lessons learned that you could share with others? And for those who have been cycling for longer, does it get easier with each winter, or are there ups and downs depending on the year?

How will climate change affect our National Parks?

The topic of climate change took exceptional relevance here at Mount Rainier after the floods and wind in November of 2006 caused significant damage throughout the park(check out the Mt. Rainier N.P. report documenting the flood's damage), forcing our gates to close. This was not the first storm that hit this park hard, nor will it be the last. There is a high likelihood that future storms will cause similar damage (if not worse) and climate change will have as-of-yet even greater undetermined impacts on the park's resources. The result of this event and uncertainty brings into question the ability of the federal government to sustain long term access to places such as Mount Rainier from an economic and ecological standpoint. Obviously, this issue has implications for us all - recreationalists, admirers, climbers, skiiers, and just anyone living in a town near the park.

How will climate change affect Mount Rainier National Park? Well, this is the question that many are beginning to ask. You can be a part of this discussion on Wednesday, September 3, along with a panel of experts in climate change, outdoor recreation, economics, wildlife and roads and trail construction (among others). The evening's event, co-hosted by the Washington Parks and Forests Coalition, is titled, "The Way In: The Future of Access to Northwest National Parks". Panelists will focus on global climate change and how it will affect our national parks, especially Olympic, Mount Rainier, and North Cascades National Parks. This panel discussion is free and open to the public.

This event is co-hosted by the organizations from the Washington Parks and Forests Coalition, which include National Parks Conservation Association, Washington Trails Association, and the Student Conservation Association. For more information, contact David Graves at dgraves@npca.org or 206.903.1444 x25.

My picks for Queen’s Day in Utrecht

Sunday night and feeling a bit lethargic (in other words, lazy), we agreed not to head off to the Koninginnenacht (Queen’s Night) festivities in Utrecht. But this morning, we managed to move our bums and joined Utrecht for Koninginnedag (Queen’s Day, 30 April). This is a yearly nationwide event in celebration of the Queen’s birthday here in the Netherlands.

So what’s in store during this day? Street party, live music, stage shows, lots of drinking, dressing up in orange, spontaneous street acts and selling junk, well anything really.

Here’s my picks for Queen’s Day in Utrecht:

Little Miss Dutch Maid in the prairie.

Selling junk.

Like in most cities in the Netherlands during Queen's Day, there are designated areas and streets that one can sell their (used) wares. And well, some even offer blind date matching services.

Selling manicure services as well.

Dyed orange hair and a Netherlands flag boa are popular outfits for the day.

It was the first time in many years that it didn't rain during Queen's Day. 20C! These macho tattooed guys are definitely enjoying the day.

Street games - you hit the button and the girl in bikini goes down the tub of water.

'Zin in een vluggertje?' literally means 'Want a quickie (sex)?' but this one means a quickie chess game =)

I know, I know... I am almost 42 (in a few weeks) and I should not be wearing outfits like this. Just trying to be trendy for a day since I have no orange to wear. I don't think I will wear something like this next year.

I love this umbrella and I found a cocktail stall! Finally mojitos!

This man is just so cool. Orange bra is it.

Doing the rumba. Cuba here I come (in 2 weeks!).

Hollow Man has gone orange.

Boating is popular during Queen's Day. Unlike in Utrecht, in Amsterdam it gets hectic on the canals (read: boat traffic).

Best in channelling 'Oranje' and 'Nederland'.

'Hi, I am Miss Netherlands and we have lots of tulips!'

Best in creativity: Orange eyelashes for the win!

Live music of course. They are in every corner. Can you imagine the noise blaring from every corner, I mean everywhere? I am so getting old.

This man is brave enough to wear a (orange) ribbon on his head.

More boating fun on Utrecht's Oudegracht.

We didn’t stay long in Utrecht. Like I always say in this blog—we are getting old.

We don’t appreciate large crowds anymore. The noise is unbearable. It was nice for the first few hours though but after that I just want to escape and be back in the comforts of home. If you are young and reading this, you’ll understand when you get to our age.

I hope you enjoyed the pictures!

Visit Period: April