Pinnacles:  Hippo Stomp, Melvin, Pweeter   1/26/92

With perfect weather (sun, calm, ~65) and no crowds, Joel and I had a good
day.  We warmed up by hiking up Condor Gulch; Joel led Hippo Stomp 5.10b *,
a 120' waterchute which hasn't had much traffic.  Decent route, but the
bushwhacking approach and hike will deter many.  Next, on to Discovery
Wall where Joel led Melvin 5.11a **.  Melvin cranks big jugs on an
overhanging wall left of Between a Rock and a Hard Place past 4 bolts.
There's a long reach/lunge above the third bolt, which caused Joel to hang
when he didn't set it up right, but he went back again and got it pinkpoint
(w/ quickdraws in place).  Then Joel redpointed Pweeter 5.11a * (a bulging
rib), and I fell lunging, when I didn't seek a good knob hidden under the
quickdraw(?).  On to The Verdict 5.11a/b ** (w/ direct start, rated 5.11c
in the guide), which Joel redpointed for the first time; I was marginal
following it, but feeling like I'm getting back into shape.  Joel then TRed
Pistol Whipped 5.10d/5.11a; I couldn't do the crux, so I finished with
another 1/2 lap on The Verdict.  Jim came by and casually climbed up and
down The Verdict; then we peskered him for beta/ratings on the East Side
5.12s:  hardest - Forty Days of Rain (recently got harder when a flake
broke, widening the fist jam); easiest - Trial (5.12c in guide, but really
only 5.11), ....  Joel was looking incredibly solid, especially since he
hasn't been on real rock since mid-December.  My finger feels near normal
and I'm close to being back in shape.  On the drive home, we carefully
maintained radio silence so that Joel could experience the Superbowl on
tape delay (OK, we couldn't ignore the spectacle entirely...).

In "armchair climbing" news, I prepared a 26-page draft of a guide to
Index Town Wall, and sent it to 10 Seattle climbers last week.  I've
already gotten a very positive response from one climber (coauthor of
the '85 guide and a leading activist) -- he's circulating the draft
and sending me corrections and new material.  This started as sort of
a crazy winter project, but it is looking very real now.