EISPIRATEN

Went up Baldy Friday with Dima Kogan and Lara Schoen via the Ski Hut and bowl. This was the first time Lara and I had hiked with Dima, although I had a connection to Dima through a friend, Matt Kraai, who, like Dima, is an open source software enthusiast.

Since it's important to start the day off right when going to the mountains, I'm happy to report that, government shutdown notwithstanding, the bathroom on the road between Baldy Village and Icehouse was open.

There started to be snow at around the elevation of the Ski Hut, which was where we put on crampons. San Antonio Creek is flowing strongly. The south-facing right side of the bowl was in pretty ratty condition, only about 50% snow-covered, although we did see about 8 people go up on that side over the course of the day. We went over to the east-facing left side of the bowl, where there was solid snow coverage. We practiced self-arrest there for a while, and had a fair amount of rock come cruising down through our area. We then went up the left side of the bowl, which had excellent, firm snow conditions ca. 8 am.

We continued to the summit and admired two adorable black labs. Lara claims to like both cats and dogs, which to me is sort of like saying that you like both #MeToo and Harvey Weinstein, but OK, if she says so.

Came back down by the same route. The snow in the bowl was only slightly softer on the way down. Temps all day were quite warm. I spent most of the day wearing just a cotton tee shirt, and both Lara and I got sunburned faces despite applying sunscreen and wearing hats.

Would micros be enough to summit Baldy on a warm day?

BrianK wrote:

> Would micros be enough to summit Baldy on a warm day?

It depends on the route and the conditions. If you're doing the Ski Hut Trail, then you would want to go up through the trees where the trail goes up the left side of the bowl, and people often do that without even having microspikes. I assume that's the route that the dog selected yesterday, although I didn't ask him. You need to avoid going to the area soon after a big snowstorm, because there is usually avalanche activity in the bowl then. I wouldn't try to go up the bowl itself without an ice ax, crampons, and a helmet. The helmet is both in case you fall and can't self-arrest and in case of rock fall, which there is a lot of when snow is melting off. There also tends to be a lot of human-induced rock fall on weekends.

I don't know if it matters that much if it's a warm day. Generally it's cold in the morning and warm later. People normally try to ascend as early as possible, because it's actually easier to make progress without postholing when the snow is firm/icy. Micros won't grip in slushy snow.

The Devil's Backbone route is one that a lot of people have accidents on in winter. I definitely wouldn't attempt it without an ice ax and self-arrest skills. I heard that just last week someone slid 1000' down from the backbone before she self-arrested. I'm sure she'd be dead without the ax.

Microspikes are mostly good for a little ice. I wore some last year going through the tree section mentioned, but the soft snow really clogs them up quickly. I would have been better off using crampons for that section, although the micros were nice on the last half mile ascent to the summit.

To me, the purposes of microspikes are:

(a) They let you move efficiently in mixed conditions where booting it would force you to move more cautiously and crampons would be a pain.

(b) They work great for low-angle ice, especially on roads and in parking lots.

(c) If you can't afford crampons and crampon-compatible boots, micros are super cheap.

Both crampons and micros will ball in soft, wet snow conditions, and the only real reason to wear them in those conditions is because you might hit icy patches.

In general, I think people focus too much on what's on their feet and not enough on what's in their hands. A mountaineering ice ax is a wonderful multi-purpose tool, it's cheap, and it only takes a little bit of practice to learn to use it for self-arrest.

Lara sent me some pics she took that show the snow conditions in the bowl.

Left side, where we went up:

Middle/right:

I'm looking to get a boot/crampon combo that will allow me to do a bowl ascent of Baldy. I've gotten a lot of different advice for what is actually necessary.

Is something like the Lowa Renegade GTX enough? It has some flex, but the 12 point steel crampons I'm looking at (Grivel G12) would have a flexible bar attached.

Or would I need something more like the Scarpa Charmoz?

I would be using strap-on or ideally semi-auto/hybrid crampons -- I'm not looking for a B3 boot with both heel and toe welts.

Thoughts on Baldy bowl footwear? What works and what doesn't?

davidwiese wrote: I'm looking to get a boot/crampon combo that will allow me to do a bowl ascent of Baldy. I've gotten a lot of different advice for what is actually necessary.

Is something like the Lowa Renegade GTX enough? It has some flex, but the 12 point steel crampons I'm looking at (Grivel G12) would have a flexible bar attached.

Or would I need something more like the Scarpa Charmoz?

I would be using strap-on or ideally semi-auto/hybrid crampons -- I'm not looking for a B3 boot with both heel and toe welts.

Thoughts on Baldy bowl footwear? What works and what doesn't?

I like Yaktrax myself. They have a whole line of add-ons for your boots. Baldy Bowl can be kind of dangerous without them.

https://yaktrax.implus.com/

I don't think I would take yaktrax or even microspikes up the bowl (although I did use microspikes with trail runners up the Mt. Whitney chute while the 99 switchbacks were still covered in snow and ice).

I already have an ice axe and helmet... just need to step up my boot and crampon game I think?

davidwiese wrote: I'm looking to get a boot/crampon combo that will allow me to do a bowl ascent of Baldy. I've gotten a lot of different advice for what is actually necessary.

It looks like you're familiar with the B2, C3, etc. terminology. I use B2 boots and C2 crampons, i.e., there is a heel bale and a toe strap. These have worked fine for me, even for a little easy ice climbing on top-rope. I could be wrong, but the Lowa Renegade GTX looks like a B1 boot, while the Grivel G12's, which are the same thing I use, are a C2 crampon, so they wouldn't be compatible.

The problem I've seen with C1 crampons (heel and toe straps) is that they tend to come off at inopportune times. You also want a boot that's stiff enough so that you can front-point when necessary.

The boots tend to be a lot more expensive than the crampons, and it can also be very hard to find mountaineering boots that will be comfortable enough for the shape and size of your foot. The heavier and stiffer the boot gets, the more problems you tend to have with an imperfect fit. My suggestion would be to go to REI, try on B2 or B3 boots, and see what feels like it might work. Then try them for a day in the mountains, and if they end up giving you blisters, return them and try a different size or brand. You can experiment with lacing them up more or less. Sometimes I don't lace them up very high if I'm just hiking or walking around camp, but then if I'm going to climb something a little steeper, I lace them up higher so I get more support. You may also want to see if they keep your feet dry enough. Some lighter boots are designed to be more breathable, but your feet will end up wet after a day in the snow.

Make sure to get proper self-arrest training and practice. That's actually a lot more critical than what you put on your feet.

Have fun!