B737 FLC; ON ALT RESTR LAS IDALE SID; INITIATES GPWS ESCAPE MANEUVER APPROX 18 MI SW OF LAS IN IFR CONDITIONS.

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WE DEPARTED LAS RWY 25 ON THE IDALE DEP. TKOF WAS NORMAL; WE CLBED THROUGH 400 FT. LNAV WAS ENGAGED. THROUGH 4000 FT MSL; WE WERE CLRED DIRECT IDALE AND WE CLBED TO 8000 FT. WE WERE GIVEN A TFC ALERT FOR TFC OVERHEAD. WE WERE IN IMC CONDITIONS AT 7000 MSL; BUT I WAS ABLE TO OBSERVE THE OVERHEAD TFC AS IT PASSED ABOVE. WE WERE CLRED DIRECT SHEAD INTXN AT 8000 FT IN IMC CONDITIONS. WE REMAINED THERE FOR SEVERAL MINS AND I REMEMBER THINKING ABOUT 8000 FT BEING A LITTLE LOW FOR THE AREA WE WERE IN; AND I WAS MENTALLY TRYING TO RECALL THE XING DISTANCES AND ALTS FOR THE SKEBR ARR; BECAUSE 8000 FT SEEMED LOW FOR OUR POS. IT WAS LESS THAN 20 SECONDS LATER; WE GOT THE 'TERRAIN; TERRAIN; PULL UP' WARNING AND WE WERE IN SOLID IMC. THE CAPT IMMEDIATELY DISCONNECTED THE AUTOPLT AND PITCHED TO 20 DEGS UP; WHILE ADDING FULL PWR; AND WE BEGAN CLBING. THROUGH 10300 FT; THE CTLR GAVE US A CLB TO FL180 AND A TURN TO 180 DEGS. WHILE STILL RAPIDLY CLBING; I INFORMED THE CTLR WE RECEIVED A TERRAIN WARNING. CTLR'S VOICE WAS 'NERVOUS; APOLOGETIC' AND REPLIED 'RIGHT; THAT'S WHY I GAVE YOU THAT HDG' OR SOMETHING SIMILAR. I THEN REPLIED 'WE ARE IMC;' AND HE AGAIN SAID SOMETHING TO THE EFFECT OF 'THAT'S WHY I TURNED YOU...'. THE CAPT AND I WERE BOTH A LITTLE SHAKEN BY THE EVENT; BUT WE BOTH NOTICED THAT THE WARNING HAD STOPPED VERY QUICKLY AFTER OUR CLB HAD BEGUN. AFTER A FREQUENCY CHANGE; THE NEXT CTLR ADVISED US TO CONTACT LAS TRACON UPON ARR AT DEST.