Week 8 Matt Dooley SWS Mountain Guides

7-12-11
Today the bathroom is complete and ready to be used to its full potential! I finished installing all of the small detail work like the shower controls and various knobs.

7-14-11
packed bags and duffel's for trip preparation for a trip I will be going on with Crit tomorrow. New tents arrived today from BD. Squall "E" & "F" put guide lines on and labeled body, fly, and stuff sack accordingly. Grocery store run to make food for trip. Today was the first time I was fully able to see how everything will effect a trip, and it will be my trip with Crit. Detailed prep work for food and to make sure we calculate the correct amount of fuel to bring up is crucial. Fuel is a big catch 22, if you don't bring enough you will not be able to melt snow down for water and cook food, if you bring too much well you just have to carry extra weight, and no one like extra weight! Mountain guides are ounce counters. The saying goes ounces leads to pounds when it comes to shaving undesired weight off the pack.

7-15-11
meet clients at office to go over packing and do a pack check of what the appropriate clothing should be. Climb to 50/50. (9,600 feet) 50/50 being about the halfway point to summit. Camp on snow. Melt water, Now is the time i am glad i spent the detailed prep work for the trip for food. Tonight's meal mountain style burritos chosen by myself. The meal was a success! clients really enjoyed it. put clients in bed early, talk with Crit about the upcoming summit day.

7-16-11
On Shasta, ice axe/crampon clinic. easy day.

7-17-11
breakfast. melt water. Crampon/ice axe clinic with other various knowledge from Crit with a question and answer period. dinner and bed time to summit tomorrow. clients are reasonably self sufficient but shouting time like we have 2 minutes till we are rolling is a great tool.7-16-11
wake up 2:00 am/ get moving on breakfast melt water for ascent. get moving and going at 3:15am with headlamps up the mountain. make it to Helen at 4am. Crit short ropes clients in to him. i decide to 'free ranger' it for the day. clients don't have this option. make red banks just after sun up (12,600 feet). continue up short hill to misery hill, than summit hill. On top of summit at 10:15-10:30am. take a few pictures and get the hell off to a sheltered area. winds today are a consistent 50ish+ miles per hour gusts. I am thankful for good gear, but face, and hands are almost numb even with good gear. part of being a mountain guide. Now the descent... Back at office at around 4:30pm. long day but this is typical of a summit day.

Crit has taught me a lot of great things on this trip. It takes someone who does this day in and day out to teach me the newbie all of the hidden tricks of the trade. Dealing with clients is the hardest part for me. the hard skills like climbing and crampon technique i feel i have down well enough, the soft skills is a learning process i need to improve on.

7-18-11
back at the office. Prep JH Ranch trip with Tim Peterson. 33 kids will be going up the mountain tomorrow, this is a crazy group to deal with. I will be back on the mountain tomorrow this time for a two day trip.