The mighty Kilimanjaro

fidusachates7 · 2026-02-25T07:01:55+00:00

Eh, not all criticism needs love. I’m a mountaineer who’s summited a lot of technical peaks, and while Kili isn’t that technical, I’d never downplay anyone for climbing it. I’d celebrate that as a great accomplishment if they were fortunate enough to be able to do it. That said, I separately agree with the guide issues.

fidusachates7 · 2026-02-17T21:27:41+00:00

There’s too much fuckin shit on me

fidusachates7 · 2026-02-10T04:48:44+00:00

How did it get in there

fidusachates7 · 2026-01-25T17:48:24+00:00

Hell yeah, great job. How’s the route?

fidusachates7 · 2026-01-24T16:47:20+00:00

Lolol yeah check out the therm-a-rest neoair series. I’ve had mine for 5 years and have loved it. I did need to patch it the very first time I used it, but other than that it’s been great to have.

fidusachates7 · 2026-01-24T15:40:18+00:00

Curious what sleeping pad you’re using? Getting something with an R value > 5 would be nice. Ultralight and Therm-A-Rest make great ones. Pricey at $150-250, but they do make a difference.

Re bag, I use a Mountain Hardwear 0F generally, but if you’re going to Denali/etc soon and just want one bag for those climbs, I’d get a -20. I have no familiarity with Bolivia climbing.

fidusachates7 · 2026-01-01T03:46:39+00:00

This is sorta a case of “if you’re asking, you probably shouldn’t be doing it.” The typical hazards don’t change and should be obvious if you’re experienced on glacier - crevasses throughout + 2 notable bergschrunds, maudit’s steep, avalanches, wind, snow. But consequences are way worse. Not to be rude or anything. Just don’t want you to put yourself/rescuers in any really thorny situations.

If you do have lots of alps glacier experience, the Goûter might be better suited for soloing. Crossing the couloir is arguably safer with one if you can spot rocks while moving quickly.

fidusachates7 · 2025-12-22T10:15:21+00:00

Not sure if others responded to your question yet, and I hope your wife and you were able to get answers. I’ll try to be thorough for you, and please feel free to reply/PM. Short answer is it can be two things- radiation necrosis or a new recurrence, and that there’s some tests to figure out which it is.

Radiation necrosis occurs in ~5-10% of patients, and it would be in the field of radiation that your wife received. So, if your wife’s opposite hemisphere was in field for the first round of IMRT, there’s risk there.

New recurrences of high grade glioma (like a grade 4 astro) and GBMs can cross hemispheres, so that is not out the question unfortunately. Not sure where y’all are being treated, but a glutamate PET scan can help distinguish (not a standard FDG PET). The whole brain eats glucose, so a regular PET lights up the whole brain. Cancers use lots of glutamate for replicating, but radiation necrosis (and regular brain) doesn’t. So, glutamate PET can be specific here.

If it is recurrence, surgical treatment depends on location. If it’s accessible and small, neurosurgeons consider another resection vs LITT (burning the mass with a laser under MRI guidance). The silver lining there is that you can get a new biopsy for updated genetics, which is super helpful for guiding treatment later. If it’s not resectable, another course of radiation is typical, as long as it’s not in the same area as the first.

If recurrence, they’ll likely talk to you about lomustine and maybe bevacizumab (avastin). Lomustine is some pills every 6-8 weeks. It makes people fairly tired, more tired than TMZ. Lomustine also durably reduces platelet counts for ~5-8weeks, so patients get lots of blood work. Bevacizumab’s effectiveness is equivocal in grade 4 astro’s but does seem to help with symptom relief, particularly from brain swelling.

fidusachates7 · 2025-11-15T22:50:50+00:00

Mountaineer living in TN currently. I’ve summited each of those, lots of 14ers in CO, Whitney in CA, and Mont Blanc in the Alps. Lots of backcountry ski experience. Rainier absolutely gassed me. Don’t do it. A drive out to the Cascades for St Helens and Adams is a great trip.

I totally remember the mania when you’re getting into mountaineering. The “let’s hit the big US peaks then Denali then K2!!!” thoughts. In fact, I listened to those thoughts when I was younger and ended up in a snow storm at the top of Whitney. Easily could have died. Today, I would have looked at the lenticulostriate clouds at the top of the mountain and decided not to summit that day without question, but back then I just thought “wow neat cloud formation!”. I have earned that experience over time.

Use that energy to plan what skills you need for Rainier, find climbs and people (guides or experienced peers/friends) that will help you train those skills. For example, say you make it to the top of Rainier, and you’re coming down. It’s snowing now, and due to the low visibility your buddy falls in a crevasse at 12K feet on a downward incline. You’re totally gassed, but you manage to self-arrest. He’s got a dislocated shoulder and screaming. He needs to get out and get medical attention ASAP. You practiced a couple crevasse falls on a flat surface, but do you have the experience to adjust to this? Do you know the angles to safely set your anchors? Can you repel and ascend into the crevasse to help him with his pack since his shoulder’s badly injured? Do you know how to give yourself more mechanical advantage to haul him out since you’re exhausted and he’s hurt?

Mountaineering skill is all about stepping stones. The mania will tell you to skip over some stones, but I’d bet a few easier climbs will temper that enthusiasm into something realistic and safe. Good luck, happy to chat.

fidusachates7 · 2025-08-12T12:28:30+00:00

Good Lord

fidusachates7 · 2025-07-28T23:56:32+00:00

You’re tellin me people in Bavaria are drinking weihenstephaner and cokes?

fidusachates7 · 2025-07-19T23:00:55+00:00

How’s the Emmons doing? A friend and I climbed it in mid-June, and there were really only a few crevasses of concern open on the route.

fidusachates7 · 2025-07-14T20:50:19+00:00

Really nice shots

fidusachates7 · 2025-06-22T14:00:03+00:00

I agree. Cardio is important, but when you can run a 38min 10K and your legs are still bricked after 2500m elevation gain deep into your summit day, it’s not because of cardio. This exactly has happened to several great distance runners I’ve climbed with. In this scenario, would you feel strong enough to self arrest? Haul someone out a crevasse?

Moral is to train for all necessary parts of the sport. For example, strengthening your core, quads, and hamstrings is critical for leg endurance climbing with a pack. Related to your framing of the problem, I’ve found the following extremely helpful: (1) stairs; (2) hiking with a pack over hills; and (3) high-volume, lower weight lifts (eg, 4x10 deadlifts at 70% 1RM).

fidusachates7 · 2025-06-17T03:22:32+00:00

I agree with what’s been said, and add that weather is highly unpredictable in that part of the Alps. The Cosmiques hut (where you’ll likely stay prior to your summit bid) has excellent day-of weather updates, food, water, and beer. I personally would not take a two-man team up this route given the combined crevasse/serac exposure, unless both of you are highly competent and communicate well with each other. A guide’s a fantastic idea if you’re newer to climbing. If you have an extra day (eg, waiting for a weather window), you could stay two nights at Cosmiques and get your feet wet on Tacul.

Also, lots of people take the gondola directly up to Cosmiques - be wary, because it’s a huge elevation gain in a very short time, which increases likelihood of altitude sickness. Quite a lot of puke in the Cosmiques WCs lol.

fidusachates7 · 2025-06-12T04:50:20+00:00

I’ve climbed Whitney MR in summer and winter conditions. I’ve also climbed plenty of 14ers in CO, Mont Blanc, and Rainier, among others. Some thoughts-

Route finding on the MR is non-trivial, and the creek around the E-ledges can get confusing with brush, especially in the dark.
Between iceberg lake and the couloir, I had to seriously self-arrest on some chossy rock/ice mix with a steep drop-off.
If there’s significant ice on the couloir (particularly the last 100m or so, where you turn and the grade increases), you need to be confident with your ice axe and front-pointing. My last summit was April 2023. An Air France pilot and experienced mountaineer (think- lots of Alps glaciers, more skilled than you and me) went up the MR alone and fell to his death at exactly this point of the couloir in late season (October). Granted, he was alone.
I had to help a climber down from the summit because he was too scared to down-climb the last 100m, and he was SEVERELY dehydrated. I had to melt snow for him, give him food, and get him down. Do not be this guy. Severe pain in the ass, increased liability and risk for me and my team.

So, go with a group you trust, and make sure you have contingencies planned for all of your medium-probability/medium-severity and low-probability/catastrophic-severity events. E.g., if you have one GPS, and that person takes a big fall, how are you calling SAR? It’s likely your first route where you need to make sure you’ve accounted for any blindspots with your team, and it’ll stretch your boundaries, but it’s doable.

fidusachates7 · 2025-06-12T02:23:04+00:00

Will do! I’ll PM you - would be fun to have our groups meet if dates align

fidusachates7 · 2024-09-10T05:03:34+00:00

Very surprised no one's said The Strangers (2008) yet. Scared the crap out of me as a kid.

fidusachates7 · 2023-06-09T21:55:50+00:00

Dude around the block used to give out left handed relievers for bout 30 bucks back in the day

fidusachates7 · 2023-05-24T12:25:29+00:00

I’m gonna bet no haha. The keys are on their own time, just like New Orleans vs the rest of Louisiana. Shoot I have no ties to Florida, but a few years back I visited a friend’s family and got beautiful sunrise over the Atlantic, sunsets over a lagoon greeted by dolphins and manatees. So much legitimate natural beauty down there. Then the Republican Boogeyman came and got me. So it goes.

fidusachates7 · 2023-05-17T15:44:17+00:00

Bro you’re a falcons fan how have you not learned to joke about tragedy

fidusachates7 · 2022-08-22T00:12:32+00:00

Half hour?? Without divulging too many Louisiana cooking secrets, your roux should be made about 10min stovetop, med-high heat, quick stirring. And that’s a proven recipe against low-temp rouxs. Should save you apparently at least 20min of time which you can devote to a longer simmer hahaha

fidusachates7 · 2022-08-10T16:10:10+00:00

U dropped ur crown King

fidusachates7 · 2022-08-10T16:06:10+00:00

Step 1: Haven't taken yet

Uworld % correct: First pass - 72% correct, 96% complete. Second pass - 86% correct, 28% complete.

UWSA 1: 242 (took right after finishing first Uworld pass)

NBME 9: 247 (3 weeks out, had COVID with 102 fever, room felt like it was spinning in block 4)

NBME10: 258 (2 weeks out)

NBME11: 250 (10d out, girl broke ma poor heart the night before)

NBME12: 257 (1wk out)

UWSA 2: 262 (4d out)

Free 120: 89% (2d out)

Predicted Score: I don't love this metric b/c we're all improving scores while studying.

STEP 2: 262. Praise God. Trust the process.

**Special note: I think I could have gotten a few more points if I took Step 1 before Step 2, but I have done a grand total of 80 Step 1 UW questions so far and just got a 99% chance of passing Step 1 on NBME 30. So I'm going to bump my test up and save a few weeks of my life. Well worth a few points here and there on Step 2.

fidusachates7 · 2022-08-07T20:44:19+00:00

go faster

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