Name that route by description PNW edition (#2)

Not Stuart - although I did wonder whether anybody would suggest that.

I'll respond to other guesses via this post to avoid the limit.

Not Slesse.

Not Rainier.

If, instead of writing two sentences, I had just named the 'named feature' it would have probably been a giveaway - in much the same way that, when pondering a clue for 'The Nose', the simple word 'Stovelegs' would almost certainly make it too easy.

Although the word 'valley' that I used is entirely correct, a different term is used in the actual names of these valleys - as with other similar valleys thereabouts and elsewhere; it nevertheless seems possible that at some future time this will cease to be the case as predicted events take their course.

Northeast Buttress of Slesse?

Something on Rainier maybe? DC route or Gibraltar Ledges?

The FA team approached from the East; for the second ascent the approach was from the Northeast. The latter approach is nowadays the normal one, and the 'named feature' was named for/after the second ascent team.....

.....although it might be appropriate to put 'East' and 'Northeast' in inverted commas!

It's been a while. Should I post another clue - or is everybody still away climbing for the weekend?                  

Edit. Hah! I'll take that thumbs-up as a vote for 'moving things along'.

You may recall that six pages ago there was some question - specifically from 'our Portland correspondent' - as to whether a particular 'something' did or didn't rhyme with the vehicle normally appended to the back end of a freight train. That 'something' might have symbolic relevance to this question. -

If you happen to be pondering the whole 'valley nomenclature' thing - think about the Ewing Ranch in Dallas.

Here, with one detail redacted, is the closing sentence of a congratulatory telegram - remember them? - received by the leader of the successful team in the aftermath of the first ascent. Extra points for identifying the sender.

"Our nation is proud to have witnessed within its own borders this conquest which has served to strengthen the ties between the United States and _____ and to earn the admiration of all the world."

Edit. Not Gerdine Ridge/Glacier Peak - although 'glacier' is the word used in the names of the various 'valleys' from which my route was/is approached that one of my clues was addressing, with climate change/global warming being the 'predicted events' that might lead to such valleys no longer being glaciers.

Garrett; you might have misunderstood my secondary question about the telegram. If Gerdine Ridge had been correct then Sam Strom might have been the recipient of the telegram - but I was asking who the sender was. [Although obviously, knowing who received it will help with identifying the route.]

Edit. Not Snowpatch. Have you worked out yet the potential symbolic nature of something that might or might not, depending upon opinion, rhyme with 'caboose'?

Brian; the working of your moose theory is almost right, but the answer is wrong. Canada's symbolic 'national animal' is the beaver - but the moose is a symbolic regional animal elsewhere.

Gerdine Ridge (Disappointment Cleaver) on Glacier Peak? 

and Sam Strom is from Norway? 

Ah I see now re: sender of telegram v. sender of route ;)  

Snowpatch route? 

Edit: I was thinking moose = Canada

Aha! The Cassin Ridge! 

Moose - Alaska

Ricardo Cassin took E fork of the Kahiltna, the Japanese team took the NE fork which is now the standard approach. 

Sender of the telegram was JFK who was 6 months into his presidency and would have been the ties between the United States and Italy? 

Garrett for the win! You seem to have most of the angles covered. Yes; JFK. The Ewing Ranch was of course South Fork - 'fork' being the word I was hinting at. Excellent! Over to you.

Ignatius, you sure have some really enthralling clues that motivate me to dig deep. 

Perhaps a bit more pedestrian: 

Two iconoclasts, undeniable pioneers who were so unbelievably talented. Interestingly most gravitate to the cover version put out by the one who died way too young over the original by a Nobel prize laureate from the Upper Midwest. 

I don't think I've got my head around the clue yet so this is very much a long shot with bits that don't fit: Stanford Route on Mount Butters. FA team included Harlin - presumably John Harlin II, who died young; just to confuse matters it also included Hemming - presumably Gary, who also died young. The other two were Herbert DeStaebler, Nobel laureate, born in St Louis [is that Upper Midwest?], of whom I was unaware - and Henry Kendall, Nobel laureate, of whom I'm very aware, who sent my search in this direction. No idea what the 'cover version' might be, or how it might fit in - most likely because this is probably the wrong answer.

All along the watchtower?

BrianO!

Jimi Hendrix and Bob Dylan 

Oh I was definitely thinking of the one on N Howser in the Bugaboos in BC. 

At the Fins in Idaho? Because....

Otherwise it was a great clue Garrett! :) 

(or are we accepting Idaho routes in this thread again? - i can never keep it straight!)

Idaho is definitely in bounds. Reference the multitude of City of Rocks routes a couple pages back. 

Come on Idaho is as much NW as Spokane and La Grande is. And it borders all but Alaska.

Haha - ok, fair play. Back to BrianO.

Oh, I was thinking the one on N Howser...I didn't realize there was one at city of rocks... But if you have a good clue, you can go PortlandRob. I honestly prefer guessing.

Hah! Now I understand the clue. Brian's answer was much better than mine; quite apart from the small matter of being correct, it also had the right number of people in it - which always helps. My 'more Nobel laureates than you can shake a stick at' approach clearly didn't work!