Northwest:

--Monika Johnson, who died last week on a mountain peak near Snoqualmie Pass when a shelf of snow broke off beneath her feet, was not only an awesome backcountry skier and mountaineer, friends and family said, she was a generous, thoughtful friend and co-worker.  To read more, click here.

--Some members of the Squamish climbing community are at odds over what to do with the via ferrata to the South Summit of The Chief. The via ferrata was installed a few years ago and has become popular with climbers and hikers in the area. Some climbers however, now believe that via ferrata should be removed as it was may have been built with substandard materials.  To read more, click here.

Sierra:

--If you can't climb Half Dome, you can hike it...if you have a permit. Permits are available by reservation starting March 1, 2011 for climbing the cables in May and June, 2011. Reservations for the permits can be made online at http://www.recreation.gov or by calling 1-877-444-6777.

--Fitzgerald's Casino in Reno, NV is attempting to cater not just to gamblers, but to climbers as well. In attempt to attract the local college kids, they plan on building a 168 foot wall, which would be the tallest in the world. Too bad it won't be open 24-hours like the rest of Nevada casinos.

Desert Southwest:

-- Solar panel systems could one day cover 80 percent of the land in the Riverside East zone, between Joshua Tree National Park and the city of Blythe in the southern California desert.  Sources within the solar industry say a spike in solar installations in the region could potentially bring 11,000 permanent jobs to the state's ravaged labor market and pump $424 million into the local economy. To read more, click here.

Himalaya:

--Simone Moro, Denis Urubko and Cory Richards completed the first winter 8000-meter ascent of Gasherbrum II on February 2nd.  Gasherbrum II (26,361') is located in the remote Karakoram Range in of northwest Pakistan and ranks as the world's thirteenth highest mountain. To read more, click here.

Notes from All Over:

--A Scottish climber falls 1,000 feet and survives. Apparently, he lost his footing just as he was contemplating the use of an ice axe and crampons, right below the summit of the tallest peak in Scotland and Great Britain, Ben Nevis. Ironically, the only thing keeping him alive was the terrain -- the slope was a series of small ledges with soft snowy ledges continually breaking his fall. To read more, click here.

 --The town of Bethel, Maine, has created a tower to demonstrate ice climbing.  Warm temperatures have delayed the monolith's arrival of at or near the 140-foot-tall mark, but it continues to grow in height and girth.  To read more, click here.

--A 32-year-old backcountry skier broke his left femur after being caught and mostly buried in an avalanche he triggered Sunday in the Bridger Mountains north of Bozeman.  It was less than three hours between the time 911 was called and the helicopter landed at the hospital delivering the patient.  The skier was treated for his injuries along with hypothermia.  To read more, click here.

 --Christine Feret is trying to become the first woman to succeed climbing Denali in winter.  Feret and her partner, Russian climber Artur Testov, tried last winter to summit Denali but after 19 days on the mountain and 12 days stuck in a snow cave due to blizzards, they turned back.  Talkeetna Air Taxi flew the two up to Kahiltna basecamp on Friday and TAT owner Paul Rodrick reports they had good weather so far and made it to the bottom of Ski Hill at 8,500 feet, as of Monday. To read more, click here and here.

--Would you carry a guitar up Mount Kilimanjaro to raise money to bring cancer treatment to Tanzania?  Two dozen trekkers climbed to 19,341 feet on Mount Kilimanjaro with Love Hope Strength as they fight cancer with the power of rock n' roll.  To read more, click here.

--Sheriff’s deputies arrested pioneer backcountry skier Roland Fleck on Saturday at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, and ski patrollers tobogganed him off the mountain in handcuffs after he refused to stop skiing uphill.  Fleck, 78, a longtime Jackson, WY, doctor, fitness buff and one of the original investors in Teton Village, was arrested on misdemeanor charges of criminal trespassing, interference with an officer, unsafe skiing and theft of services.  READ MORE!

Manufacturer Recalls and Equipment Issues:

--Backcountry Access (BCA), the North American manufacturer of avalanche safety equipment, has just announced a recall of its latest beacon, the Tracker2. BCA representatives say they have isolated certain issues that could cause a potential malfunction in the T2 units.  To read more, click here.

--The United States Consumer Products Safety Commission announced a voluntary recall of 3,500 Avalung backpacks due to a suffocation hazard.  The backpacks, imported from China by Black Diamond Equipment, include air intake tubing that can crack at cold temperatures.  To read more, click here.

--Totem Cams sold prior to December 31st 2010 are being recalled.  The color anodizing of the cams gives them a surface hardness that may affect their holding power in certain areas of polished limestone and when the cams still retain their layer of anodizing on the area in contact with the rock.  To read more, click here and here.

--There have been some problems with Petzl ice tools.  The adjustment system of the GRIPREST (the lower hand rest at the bottom of the handle) on the 2010 NOMIC (U21 2) and ERGO (U22) in some cases may not stay fixed in the desired size position.  This issue concerns NOMIC and ERGO ice tools with serial numbers between 10208 and 10329 and all GRIPREST (U21 GR2) accessory parts. It does not concern the new QUARKs or the older versions of the NOMICs, QUARKs and QUARK ERGOs.  To read more, click here.