Climbed Black Kaweah this weekend, but did not find the famous register. Spent about half an hour looking, but only found a piece of a sea shell where one would expect a register. Did the treasure disappear or it is me being useless? I'm damn sure I was at the right place: marked route, all features described in TRs, right GPS location and altitude.

How much snow did you encounter?

iHartMK wrote:How much snow did you encounter?

There is snow on the ground all the way from Glacier Pass to the Spring Lake; basically no snow up to Black Rock Pass, then again all snow all the way to Big Arroyo crossing. On the mountain itself there is nothing up to about 11k, then everything is covered. It helped a lot on the climb: I just put crampons on and flew up to the beginning of the ramp from one chute to another. Inside the main chute there is some snow too, but it can be avoided. Trail to Big Arroyo crossing though is bitch to find, because it's all covered.

artirm,

Congrats on getting to the top.

Registers all over The Sierra have been disappearing for several years.

I speculate their demise has been hastened with the advent of the internet, allowing the bastards that take them to find out where to go next from all the posts about them to boards like this one.

I hope it is still up there.

I also hope you will remove this thread asap.

thanks.

Thanks for the reply!

El Cuervo wrote:artirm,

Congrats on getting to the top.

Registers all over The Sierra have been disappearing for several years.

I speculate their demise has been hastened with the advent of the internet, allowing the bastards that take them to find out where to go next from all the posts about them to boards like this one.

I hope it is still up there.

I also hope you will remove this thread asap.

thanks.

Deleting this thread based on pure speculation? I think that is pure nonsense; one could rationalize deleting all trip reports and mountain routes based on such thinking. If someone is getting off on removing registers from mountain peaks, I'd speculate the likes of this thread will do nothing to encourage their already demented persuasion. Come on... really?

The register was there last Sept. 10, and reported missing on ~ July 10 and July 14.
If anyone has seen it between those dates, please let me know.

Thanks,
Harry

http://summitregister.org

With more and more people accessing peaks, the chances of random mishaps are increasing. I've seen people leave a summit, forgetting to close the register (that they just signed), and/or forgetting to put the container back in the protective cairn. I watched a guy nearly drop the Muir register over a cliff. Another nasty habit on the rise: people put excess food or other smelly items (like sunscreen) inside the container. Animals may then knock the registers all over the place, trying to get inside.

Some get removed for archival; I've come across registers that contain xeroxed copies of the original signatures.

What a shame! Most of us who have been up there recently probably have photographed it to some degree. Rick Kent has every page photographed up to 2006 when he climbed Black K in a day. Shall we share our photographs of it here. It's the least we can do to restore it's memory and significance.
http://www.summitpost.org/view_object.php?object_id=729727&confirm_post=7


I was on Red K on July 14. The cylinder/container for red is still there, but the note pad for signing is gone. Some joker left a game in there from a Cracker Jack's box in there! I left a scrap of paper in there for signing but it will probably fill out soon. While I was on Red, I saw Vern Clevenger and his son on Black. Very cool experience to see two little needles walking on Black K's summit. Vern is the one that alerted me about the missing reg.

It had not dawned on me these registers have value in their archival nature. Not being one to visit these registers had me in the dark, I suppose. But it got me to thinking it might be valid for the park service to archive these irreplaceable documents and replace them with copies. Is that already going on at some level?

Though only a couple days past what Harry mentioned the register was still there when I was up there last year on Sept 12. About 8 pages (both sides) were added since I was last there in 2006. If anyone has any newer photos of the register past Sept 12 let me know. If the register doesn't turn up I believe I can provide a mostly complete photocopy of the historic register that can be returned to the summit.