Muir Snowfield and Camp Muir

Muir Snowfield and Camp Muir on May 21 2006

There is great coverage all the way up. Most people are still using the winter trail up to Pan Point. Beyond that the trail is very well wanded all the way to muir. There has been a lot of traffic on it and there is a great boot pack all the way to Muir. Even though it is pretty soft if people stay in the boot track they only end up post-holing in a few places. The skiing on the snowfield is excellent right now. Yesterday we got a dusting of snow and had perfect corn underneath that above 8500'. Today all of that froze and the snow was rock hard down to about 8500', but below that it was a wonderful 3" of soft wet snow on top of a frozen base so it was fun fast skiing. The chute down onto the Nisqually was stellar and fairly easy to traverse back up to the main trails at the glacier vista overlook (we did not have to put our skins back on). There are also two really fun kickers just below glacier vista :)

All in all its in pretty darn good shape for skiing. I would say folks don't need crampons unless they plan to travel really early or really late in the day. Skis or a board will make it lots of fun and I don't think snowshoes are that helpful since the boot pack is so well traveled.

The Camp Muir Public Shelter was significantly refurbished in 2005. The new interior design increases the usable space markedly. The bunks are organized to accommodate more people, as is the storage and cooking space. So far, the comments have been very positive; in particular, many expressed appreciation of the increased lighting.

If you plan to stay in the public shelter, please keep it clean! Always secure the door when leaving, as a small crack will fill the hut with snow during storms. Never leave anything (food, gas, and gear.) Also, overnight travelers should consider brining own shelter in case they’re unable to make it to Camp Muir. At this time, the public shelter and toilet are accessible.

Please do your part to keep the mountain clean. Petrified feces and toilet paper flags strewn along the climbing routes and crusted on rocks near bivi sites are unsightly and unsanitary. Remember that everyone on the mountain melts snow for drinking water. All parties are required to pack their solid human waste off the mountain when not using the toilets at Camp Muir and Camp Schurman. Blue bags are available with climbing permits. Blue bags may be deposited in the large black barrels at Camp Muir or at Paradise. The barrel at Paradise is located in the restroom tunnel next to the men’s room.

Scarpa Phantom Alpine Boots

Check out the complete reviews of both the Phantom Guide and Phantom 6000 posted on the blog in April '10 (Guide) August '10 (6000).

April update.....late this month before we'll see the Phantom Guide...late August before we'll see the 6000.

http://coldthistle.blogspot.com//04/scarpa-phantom-guide-vs-la-sportiva.html

Last issue of R&I has a good write up by DR on the new Scarpa single boot, Phantom Guide. They look and feel even better in person. The newest Phantom 6000 dbl isn't on the web page last I checked. So thought some might want to see it as well.

The two boots in the new Phantom series so far are REALLY low profile and lwt boots. Hopefully I'll be using a pair of the dbls shortly and can give more feedback and a detailed review and comparison to my Sportiva Baruntse (incredible boot btw) and the Spantik.

My take from playing with them @ the OR show is they will be as big a jump in mtn boots technology as the Sportiva Batura and Spantik were a couple of years ago. Crampon fit might be a bit of an issue though with the extremely low profile toe and soles. But the same will make them climb really well I suspect. We'll have to wait and see. The boots should be out to retailers in a month or so. Check Amazon and Backcountry on delivery dates if you are interested. Plenty of time I am hoping for the spring Alaska season. Amazing just how good the gear is getting!

The last generation Scarpa Phantom Lt had already won the enviable reputation of being a more durable boot than the Batura on the long Chamonix mixed routes. I am hoping they continue to live up to their reputation with the newest boots.

Feb 5 update:

Going to be March before we see any of the new boots in the US. In a size 42 the Guide weights 1# 15oz, the 6000 is 2# 3oz. Sizing is better in these boots compared to the older model Scarpas. Instead of a full size smaller they are running a Euro 1/2 smaller than American sizing.

The Guide will be imported in a full 1/2 size run. SADLY.....Scarpa USA has again decided to bring the Phantom 6000 in only in full sizes. Bummer that one as I really need a 45.5 to get the best advantage from the boot. Better I guess than Sportiva who only makes full size shells on their dbl boots. At least I could buy a true 45.5 if I am in Europe or possibly Canada.


Phantom Guide, single boot with attached super gaiter.










New Phantom 6000, looks to be one of the lowest profile and lowest volume dbl boots on the market. I suspect it will be a big hit for some of us.. For my own use I have thought what was really needed was a bit less volume than the newest huge dbls and all the current technology to come up with a boot that was warm enough for most winter stuff and would still climb very well.

I suspect the 6000 has answered some of that request.


The new Scarpa 6000 dbl boot

Spring Calm over Wauswaugoning Bay and the Susie Islands

I get to drive by this view every day on my way to and from work. This is what it looked like yesterday evening on the way home.

Toroweap

I do believe that I've just had what I will consider to be the best experience of this trip. From a photographic standpoint, the conditions were a little "too" perfect (a more interesting sky would have been nice for the sunset/sunrise photos), but the experience overall was one that I will never forget. I must admit that the Grand Canyon and the southwest in general at one time held no interest at all for me. Well... now that I have been to this part of the country a number of times, my feelings have changed and I've really come to love it in the southwest.





I had first heard of Toroweap while browsing the website of Marc Adamus, one of my favorite photographers. On his website he has an image titled "Flaming Canyon" that, more than anything else, was my sole inspiration for wanting to visit Toroweap. (To see Marc's image, click here: http://www.marcadamus.com/photo.php?id=63&gallery=canyon). Toroweap is part of Grand Canyon National Park, but resides on the north rim, and not the tourist over-run south rim. Toroweap is easily one of the least visited areas of Grand Canyon National Park. While the area is vehicle-accessible, you must drive down 60 miles of dirt road, the last 10 miles of which are VERY rough. I made it just fine in my Honda Element with all-terrain tires, but a passenger car certainly would never make it.





Toroweap is a Paiute term meaning "dry or barren valley". The views from Toroweap Overlook are 3,ooo feet above the Colorado River and take your breath away. Due to the remote nature of the Toroweap area (it takes a minimum of 2.5 to 3 hours to drive the road one-way) I decided to spend the night at the Toroweap campground, a lovely little 9-site (FREE!) campground that is one mile from the canyon rim. This would also enable me to shoot a sunset and a sunrise at the location. To my surprise the campground was about half-full, and I saw a half-dozen other vehicles along the last few miles of the road.





Everyone knew that this was a quiet place, however, and once the sun went down it was hard to tell there was anyone else camping there. None of the usual campground noise.... just pure, un-filtered silence. I was in heaven. Being that Toroweap is so far from any signs of civilization, the sky that night over the campground was one of the most amazing that I've ever seen. The stars seemed close enough to reach up and pluck them out of the sky. Surprisingly, none of the other campers were interested in the comings and goings of the sun. As such, as I shot the sunset and the sunrise, I was completely alone on the canyon rim. What a lovely place!

(Below: 1 hour, 30 minute star exposure, taken directly over my campsite)

Leavenworth Givler's Dome ..

Adam and I discussed an outing, but I had to be back in town in time for my class. So cragging was an obvious choice. I wanted to do something that involved placing gear and not just clipping bolts, so I convinced Adam to head to Leavenworth. Being that it is November we didn't get an early start, as it is usually a little too cold in the mornings to make climbing not fun. When we arrived in the Icicle, the temp was around 36° and clouds/fog were keeping us from direct sunlight.

November morning in the Icicle

Our plan was to hike up to Givler's Dome to climb Givler's Crack. This extra 45 minutes of hiking would give us more time for the day to warm up. Within ten minutes or so we were above the fog and receiving the warmth of the sun. We got off route a few times on the way up and had to scramble a bit to get back on track, but eventually made it to the base.

Since Adam was not up to leading the route, I would lead both pitches. And for whatever reason, the first pitch scares me. Perhaps because I flailed on it the first time I climbed the route. I've climbed it twice since then with no problems though. I placed a nut high and started up. I found the hands difficult as I had placed the piece where it interfered where I wanted to put them. I down climbed to the ground and restarted. After a few moves, I placed a second piece which then interfered with further hands. But I was able to move past it and continue. I finished the pitch feeling like it was the worst I had ever climbed it.

I brought Adam up and he had to hang on the rope to remove my stuck #4 from down low. He then climbed the second half of the pitch not using much crack technique for his hands. He arrived at the belay stating the first section wasn't as hard as I made it look.

Adam on the first pitch

We exchanged gear, and I was off leading the next pitch. I don't recall how I previously climbed it, but this time I wanted to try and keep my feet in the crack as much as possible. This proved a bit uncomfortable, but I persevered. Instead of going all the way to the top, I set up an intermediate belay once the angle eased, so I could see Adam climb. Unfortunately, the best spot for a comfortable belay did not offer a good view of the pitch, and I only got pics of him on the last portion of the pitch.

Adam on the second pitch

When Adam arrived at the belay, he kept going to the top finishing with the easy section to the boulder. We quickly hiked down to our packs. We took a lunch break and basked in the sun before heading to another destination, Rare Earth.

Adam finishing the route

For the second time this year, the Rare Earth crag has eluded me. Adam and I hiked around trying to find it, but wasted all of our time. Even consulting the newer guide book was unhelpful as it shows the crag to be down and right of Mastodon Roof. Turns out it is really down and left of it. After almost two hours of scrambling, hiking and bushwhacking, we found it but not with enough time to complete it and get back to Seattle. So we made note of where it was at, and hiked out.

It was great to be out on such a beautiful November day. It was a bummer that we only climbed one route. And even though we pitched it out to three pitches, it really is only two. I think we'll have a better idea of how to find Rare Earth the next time as well. I think this trip satisfied my urge to get out and rock climb, and perhaps my next trip this year will be to climb snow or ice.

Kirby Hall from Gretton

About 4 miles there and back - to the road entrance on Kirby Lane



Kirby Hall in afternoon sunCamera-shy peacock

Forbidden East West Traverse ..

EPIC!
Part I
"The Summit"

The original plan was to climb Forbidden Peak as an east to west traverse so that we could climb the west ridge and avoid the late season difficulties associated with it. We got a late start in Washington Pass and packed up slowly and did some sight seeing. We ate lunch in Marblemount and finally got under way. As soon as we were hiking the Boston Basin bushwhack, I mean trail, we knew what we were getting into. It turns out we were both fairly tired from climbing South Early Winter Spire the day before and we were feeling it.

Sorting gear for Forbidden (photo by Steve Machuga)
On the way in we passed Josh and Matt who were coming down from a climb of the Direct East Ridge. We chatted a bit and got beta for the descent of the East Ledges. It was probably there that I made the decision in my head that we would probably only do the east ridge and then descend the ledges although I may not have expressed it to Steve at that time. After chatting a bit we continued on and discussed the option of descending the ledges. After some difficult water crossings in the basin, we were finally in the upper basin and setting up camp three hours after we left the car.

We pumped some water from a nice stream, and made dinner. We prepped for the next day and decided on a wake up time of 5:30am. (Josh and Matt had told us they left camp at 5:30.) We had a bit of difficulty getting to sleep because we kept thinking we were hearing female voices. This may have been true as another tent was there in the morning (About 100m downhill from our location) that wasn't there when we went to bed.

Just before the alarm went off there was some rock/ice fall on the mountain. I jumped up to make sure we were not in danger. My commotion woke Steve up and he promptly went back to sleep. I hadn't been sleeping well and mulled about in my sleeping bag for the next 15 minutes until the alarm went off. Once the alarms went off, Steve and I decided to rest in another 15 minutes or so before actually getting out of the tent. [Can you already count the many signs of an epic?] We ate breakfast, used the toilet and left camp at 6:30am.

We had good information from Josh and Matt about the problem they had on the approach and made quick time up the slabs to the snow and eventually the gully. We arrived at the notch at the base of the route around 8:30 or so. In keeping with the epic theme, we dawdled at the base for some time (including Steve needing another "bathroom break" before starting the route.) During our delay we made the decision not to down climb the west ridge. We knew we were both tired and we weren't moving that fast coming up from camp.

We eventually started climbing at 10am and I took the first lead. The first bits were 3rd class and then it got somewhat harder where I had to negotiate a few small gendarmes. Since good protection was scarce, I looked for a viable anchor location after I had about half the rope out. I wound up slightly off the crest of the ridge on the south side and was probably slightly off route. Steve made his way over to me and then slowly made about leading the next pitch.

Steve had to regain the ridge crest first and then make his way up the first significant gendarme on the ridge. This section is listed at 5.7 in the guides and that would probably be correct. It was slow going as route finding was not obvious, but more so because protection was difficult. Once finding an suitable anchor location, Steve brought me up. Two hours had passed since we started climbing and I knew that we were in for a long day. Being the optimist, I thought our speed would improve now that we got a feel for the climbing and we were back on route. So we continued on.

Following the second pitch (photo by Steve Machuga)

I led a short exposed pitch along the ridge crest with easy climbing before I got to and area that looked like it may be difficult to find an anchor in. So I went with the option I had present. (Which still felt pretty desperate to me.) I brought Steve over and we discussed the next pitch. We were a short distance from the next major gendarme which can be bypassed on the north side of the ridge. Steve led off around some minor obstacles before taking a path of least resistance on the north side of the ridge. After using up all the rope, I began to simul climb behind him as we both wound up north of the ridge proper. We continued to climb on the north side for some distance on loose dirty ledges until Steve hit a spot where he could build a reliable belay. He then belayed me to his location.

I started out on the second leg of this traverse over a rib and onto more slab like terrain heading for the notch between the last two gendarmes. It seemed we were a bit low and as I headed back up, the terrain was better for climbing and protecting. I could see I wouldn't make it to the notch in one rope, so when Steve told me I had used half the rope, I built a suitable anchor. He then led off to the notch on a full rope length and brought me up. Having looked at the rap on top of the last gendarme, I can say I am glad we decided to bypass it. (Scary overhanging rappel off a rock horn.)

Climbing up to the notch (photo by Steve Machuga)

Anchor options weren't great at the notch, and it took Steve a long while to build an anchor using a few pieces and a few natural options. This was the crux overhanging 5.8 step. I had already told him he was leading it, so we switched positions and he headed out. The step looked scary and Steve had a hard time believing it went the way it did. He tried to scope out other alternatives to it, but then faced the fact that it did go up that steeply. Steve confidently led up the steep face and began to look for a suitable belay anchor. (I told him it better be solid before starting the pitch.) He went a bit further before he built an anchor. I climbed the steep section which was pretty wild, but easier than it looked. Although it had a very funky move where you had to stand on a wobbly block in order to make a move. After reaching the belay, I was off again.

Topping out on the 5.8 (photo by Steve Machuga)
I led out a bit on what is supposed to be 5.2 terrain to the summit. It was mostly on the crest and upon approaching a minor step, with a sling on top, I set up a belay. (I mistook that to be the summit, but was unsure.) I brought Steve up to my location and he led out for the summit.

My last lead up the East Ridge (photo by Steve Machuga)
He reached the summit and set up and anchor to belay me up. I joined him at the summit around 7pm. Clouds were blowing up out of Boston Basin and blowing down the north side of the mountain. There was the smell of smoke. (We presumed the clouds were related to forest fires.) The wind was cold and we snapped a few pics before rapidly going about the rappels...

Summit shot (photo by Steve Machuga)
My photos are here.

Oxendon and Kelmarsh tunnels

The two tunnels on Brampton Valley way. Oxendon tunnel 418metres long and Kelmarsh tunnel 480metres long. Both have air shafts that give a circle of light on the ground. Walking through them is a very earie feeling and very dark inside...

Light and toasty,.. The Lowa Mountain Expert boot review

Putting the Lowa Mountain Expert to the test

Over the years I've tried many boots, starting with leathers, upgrading to plastics then moving back into leather during the lightweight leather craze of the late 90's and now well into the 2000's. Lightweight leather boots now seem to be the choice of most new climbers. During the Early 2000's the boots of my choice were the LaSportiva Trangos of various models, and the Sportiva Nepals of various models. One common thing I noticed about all the boots were that my feet always seemed to be cold. In after manymiserablefrozen toe days (even with toe heaters) I decided it was time to change. Was it possible that my LaSportiva boots had a death grip on my toes that was keeping them from being warm and cozy? I didn't want to think it possible, but had to try. Since I mostly climbed in the Sportiva Trango's I figured I'd do some research and see what I could find that closely matched that boot. I had good luck with the Lowa Civetta Exteme plastics years ago and thought why not see what Lowa had to offer in a mixed climbing boot. I checked their lineup and ordered up a pair of the Ice Expert GTX boots. The Ice Expert GTX (currently unavailable) was a Silver and Green leather and hybrid boot sporting an ankle gasket similar to the Trangos. First point is that the Lowas are less expensive. Reatil of about $350.00 compared to the $400.00 of the La Sportiva. The insulation used in the Lowa boots is 200g of Primaloft and a kick ass radiant footbed. I ordered both a US men's size 11.5 and 12. After trying them on I decided to go with the 12 which was a 1/2 size upgrade from my "normal" street shoe size. First thing I noticed when I pulled them on was how much WIDER the toe area is in the Lowa boots. Much more wiggle room then the cramped Sportiva. I was very pleased with the fit out of the box. My only problem was that I had a little heel lift. I ended up placing a partial memory foam footbed liner under the heel to take up the space and solve the problem. I used these boots for 2 seasons often questioning as to whether I should've went with the 11.5. I think being gun shy of having tight boots again prompted the 1/2 size upgrade. After 2 seasons of heavy use the only issues were with a broken lace lock which was easily remedied with some Gorilla Glue and ripped velcro on the ankle gasket. Despite these minor issues, I was very satisfied with the boots and my warm toes. Who could believe that the tight toebox was the cause of so many days of cold toes.



Moving ahead... This season Laura wanted to get a pair of lighter boots. She was wearing women's LaSportiva Nepal EVO's. Hearing me praise my Lowa's so many times I convinced her to try the Lowa women's Mountain Expert GTX which is the replacement boot for my beloved Ice Expert GTX. right out of the box she praised the fit. She too was having problems with cold feet in her Nepal EVO's She's climbed in her new Lowa's a dozen days so far this season and is amazed how much warmer her toes are after the switch.



After checking out Laura's NEW boots, I am fairly certain that its basically the same boot as the Ice Expert without the ankle gasket and with a cool new tongue stud to keep it in the center of your ankle. Which was great to see. I thought the gasket wasn't of the best design and was often irritated by the tongue sliding around to the outside of my foot. I REALLY liked the design of her new boots. After careful thought and questioning my previous 1/2 size upgrade, I decided I NEEDED some. I again ordered 11.5 and 12. After we picked them up from Fred's, I went straight for the 11.5. Bingo this was it. Perfect fit. I've been climbing in them a couple weeks now and have been very pleased with the fit and performance so far. Virtually the same as the Ice Expert with improvements.

• No gasket


• Lace locks redesigned into a less breakable design


• The tongue stud gizmo

Ice Expert GTX and the Mountain Expert GTX, very similar

Lowa's tongue stud keeps the tongue centered, works great!

So if you're looking for a high quality, light weight, ice/mixed climbing boot, don't overlook the seldom seen Lowa Mountain Expert GTX. Its a top performer that offers great ankle mobility, approaches well, stiff enough for pure ice and still light enough to throw above your head like a pretzel if the urge arises. I'd also like to add that for additional warmth on cold days Laura and I both use shake and bake style toe heaters to boost the boots cold weather performance.





Since were talking feet, I thought it also be good to discuss that I currently use Petzl Darts and Darwin crampons on these boots with the Leverlock heel spur rears (with the spurs mostly chopped) I've found this rear provides a much more solid fit than the standard quick adjust heel piece. This combo provides a more snug fit with minimal crampon movement and is lighter weight on the Lowas. I usually get several fronts worth of use out of the heels and its cheaper to pay $130.00 for dart or dartwin fronts for use on old rears, than to pay full price for new crampons. See the photos below

Modified heel spurs, still functional but less to catch the rope and

invert you in a fall.Plus the bolt to linking bar system makes a perfectly

flat platform foryour boots heel to sit on (less crampon heel

movement on your boot)

Old rears, new fronts = $130.00 new darts

NOTE: I have no affiliation with Lowa boots. I get nothing in return for writing this review. I just thought I'd pass on a little learned knowledge that might be useful to other folks with wide toes looking for a warm mixed boot! Hope this helps someone.





I'dalso like to say your welcome to all who've benefited from my expensive boot experiments and purchased my like new, ill fitting boots, for next to nothing. Happy climbing!

Jefferson OH to Celina OH

Last night we had Rene and Mira over for dinner and then we played Mexican Train with them. We have to get this game down before we head to Alaska with the other champion players. We had so much fun with them. It was hard saying goodbye to them, but we at least know we are very likely to see them again unlike many of the people we meet along the way.



Today we left Thousand Trails in Jefferson to head to Kozy Kamper in Celina, Ohio. We had a very short travel day and it was also a smooth one. We are excited to explore a new part of Ohio, and this one is on what was at one time the largest man made lake in America.



Still living the life in Ohio!

3 days of shenanigans

Laura and I planned to go ice climbing with my buddy Matt Johns from Kentucky, Joel Torretti and his buddy Josh Hurst from Maine. Yeah you read right, he came here from Maine. After a start consisting of breakfast at Valley Dairy, shopping for - drill bits, a six pack, twice forgotten pants, non-alcoholic drinks, snacks and probably more. We've learned that buying a sixer around 9:00 am is harder to do than you think... Oh yeah I almost forgot it was raining. Not the best weather for ICE climbing, or is it? Well Matt had to stay in Kentucky so we sadly were Mattless. It ended up being Laura, Joel, Josh and I. After our morning shenanigans, we decided to drive to Meadow Run in Ohiopyle to check out the Upper Meadow amphitheater for potential mixed lines. The rains stopped by the time we arrived in Ohiopyle. Upon pulling into the parking lot we saw the quantity of ice along the Lower Meadow cliff band and decided it was clearly time to climb and check out the Upper later in the day. We spent the morning cranking the mixed lines and even added an alternate left var. to Captain Caveman that traverses left more under the roof before pulling the lip around the last hanging curtain. Slightly longer and harder than Captain Caveman. All kinds of shenanigans going on there. Fun stuff... short and pumpy. Laura busted herself up falling on Anger Management (which some asshole stole the draws off of) so she stayed to climb Hemlock with me and following the advice of Dr. Torretti, decided to head home to heal for tomorrow and Sunday. The 3 of us stayed and climbed a couple more lines and decided to walk to Upper Meadow to eye the amphitheater while we still had a couple of hrs. of light. What can I say... Its steep, burly, has free hangers and pillars galore. Its impressive to see. We explored around looking at potential lines out the steep cave. We decided to work on a line that starts on some ice in the back of the cave and heads up through several overlaps to the free hanging curtain at the lip. Burly, but by no means the most difficult line there. Joel rigged a line from the top while Josh started up the ice and got the first bolt in. I put him on belay as he worked up, go into position and placed the 2nd. He came down and I was up. I went up on lead to the high point and continued up into position and located where to put the 3rd. I didn't get more than a 1/2 inch when the drill was doing no good. The battery was dead. I lowered the drill and proceeded to get myself stuck for a while. After much effort, I was back to the ground. We cleaned up and walked out as it was getting dark. Good ice, good laughs, good fun. 1 down 2 to go. Can't wait to see what tomorrow brings... Enjoy the photos!

How a Grocery Store Won Me Back

There is a grocery store nearby that I've always neglected despite its proximity. They did not have a great selection of foods. They often sold stuff that was spoiled or expired. At thethe checkout, the cashiers would argue with me when I declined plastic bags. And the bike parking outside was iffy. This store is so close I could easily walk to it, butcarrying bags of groceries is just easier on a bike. And since I did food shopping by bike anyway, I figured I might as well shop at the stores I preferred, even if it meant riding further.




I suspect that other residents of our neighbourhood felt similarly, because about half a year ago the nearby store began to aggressively reinvent itself. They cleaned up, reorganised their merchandise, added an organic foods section. They expanded their selection ofproduce. The quality control is much improved. They now sell reusable shopping bags and don't argue when customers decline plastic.




But best of all, they allow me to roll my Brompton inside and use it as a shopping cart. No questions or comments, other than the occasional "Look, it's a bike and shopping cart in one!" Considering that othershops have thrown me out even when I've walked in with the bike fully folded, the permissive attitude of this store came as a pleasant surprise. Walking in with a small-wheel shopper is really no different from pushing a huge shopping cart; they get it. Now I shop there almost exclusively. Not only have they improved their store, but they've made shopping by bike a breeze.




While those of us who ride small wheel shoppers are in the minority, many cyclists report that their shopping preferences are guided by the store's bike-friendlieness. This can refer to a number of things, from adequate bike parking, to the parking lot being safe to navigate, to the location itself being reachable via a bike-friendly route. Do these considerations play a role in where you do your grocery shopping?

A New Acquaintance... and a New Career?

Today I would like to share with you that I have officially become a Bicycle Photographer. As you can imagine, this translates to a life of fame and glamour - and will finally enable me to quit my dayjob and live as a full-time artiste. Okay, perhaps I am getting just a little ahead of myself. But I have recently been asked to photograph someone's bicycle collection, and I am excited to be working on this project.

A.T. (aka "somervillain") is a vintage bicycle lover who lives in the Boston area. He is an occasional commentator on this blog and a member of bikeforums. Based on the photos of my own bicycles that he has seen me post, A.T. invited me to document his and his wife's vintage collection. So far we have only done one photo session, and I post a few of the images here.

The star of these photos is A.T.'s 1950s Raleigh DL-1 Roadster - the same bicycle as the Co-Habitant's Rodney, but older and with a full chaincase, as well as dynamo-powered lighting (front and rear!).

I must say that this DL-1 is in better condition than any other I have seen, particularly the chrome parts. When I first saw this bike from a distance, my thought was that it must be a modern replica. Of course up close all the signs of wear and age are visible, but its condition is none the less terrific.

Those who like vintage Raleigh 3-speeds know how rare it is to actually have that dynamo headlight attached to the "Heron" mount and working!

Here is a close-up of the headlight, handlebars and rod levers. The roses are distracting here (roses in November?), but it's the best close-up I have of this area.

Incredibly clean and shiny rod brakes.

Front dynamo hub.

Dynamo-powered tail light mounted on the left seat stay. What a pleasure to photograph all this stuff!

Rear Sturmey Archer hub. Notice how clean it is! A.T. did all of the work on this bicycle himself, including assembling this hub - remarkable!

Vintage Brooks B66 saddle, NOS Roadster saddlebag, rear rack.

Here is the entire bicycle again, from the non-chaindrive side. I should explain that I can't take digital photography seriously (as opposed to film photography), and therefore own no professional digital equipment. These photos were all taken with my tiny point-and-shoot camera. I could have done a much better job with proper equipment. Any suggestions? But there I go, getting ahead of myself again.

A few have already asked me about the location in these photos. All I can say, is that it is my secret magical bike photography spot, and the same "nice" neighborhood discussed in this post. It is ridiculously scenic and resembles England, which is why I thought the vintage Raleigh would look especially at home against this backdrop. I hope you enjoyed the photos of this magnificent bicycle and thank you A.T. for the permission to post these. Additional pictures of this bicycle can be viewed here.

If you have questions about this Raleigh DL-1, please contact the knowledgeable and friendly somervillain.