Mount Hood, Oregon on 7/23/2005

[Guinness]

I arrived at Timberline Lodge around 2:00 pm Thursday (7/21) with hopes of attempting a solo summit bid that same evening. However, the weatherman did not agree as he scheduled thunderstorms to start that same evening. I decided to wait it out since the storms were only scheduled to be there for 12 hours. That evening I stayed in a local campground and listened to some fierce thunder and rain pounding on my tent.

Friday the weather cleared up and I tried to get some sleep before my midnight alarm clock goes off. By 1:00 am I was off toward the summit. The first leg of the trip is a one-mile hike to the Silcox Hut. From there you head east of the ski area. I walked the edge of the ski slopes until I reached the top at 8,500’. The snow pack was considerably down from my experience on previous trips. Pictures of this can be found here.

The Palmer Glacier had a very large crevasse near 9,500 that forced me to climb onto the scree and rock outcroppings to circumnavigate. I crossed over to clear the crevasse and continued toward Crater Rock. The sulfur smell was quite noticeable even at 9’800, much more than previous years.

Moving around Crater Rock was done on a 35° - 45° slope. To my right, the glacier dropped off 200 to 500 feet. The Hogsback was still well formed, but very steep this time. The boot path on the Hogsback lead up to a wide Bergschrund that had a crevasse just below it. The path departed the hogsback and moved parallel and below the Bergschrund and above the crevasse to clear the Bergschrund on the right side.

From this point through the Pearly Gates was a test of mettle. The slope increased to 55° - 70° consisting of snow and ice. There was a set of kicked-in steps from previous climbers. However, these steps are weakened every afternoon when the sun hits and then freezes every night. You could hear the ice crystals break under your foot on every step. A couple of times I could feel only the front points take hold.

Soon I was on top, which now had some exposed rock and great views! It was 7:00 am, 6 hours and 5’000 foot ascent after my start. I did not want to stay long because the Pearly Gates was still in the shadows that meant the footing would still be solid. I knew that once the sun starts to hit the slope, it would soften into mash potatoes and I would not feel safe descending. The route back down was so steep; climbers would go down backward to kick-in steps. It was slow going down this way, but safer. Should you slip, there was the Bergshrund and crevasse to welcome you and if you missed them, there was almost a thousand feet of uncaring slope.

With the heat of the day starting to hit, rocks were being thrown down at you. On three occasions I watched rocks as big as a baseball go flying by me making a loud whining noise. One was less than 2 feet from me while I hung there precipitously on the steepest part of the slope. Back on the Hogsback I felt safe again. The hike back down was uneventful, but the sun was now burning down on you and it was hot!

It was a great trip and very satisfying going solo. Next week it is off to Mount Rainier and maybe Mount Hood again!

 

[poison ivy]

Awesome! Good luck with Rainier... I'm looking forward to reading about it when you all return!

-Ivy

 

[HikerBob]

Fantastic trip report and pics!

I am quite envious. My cr#ppy lungs might mean I never get to do such a trip, but I'll get out there some day even if it's just to get VFTB

There is a great web site dedicated to atmospheric optical effects and your 'Mt Hood shadow' pics reminded me of it. I have a link to it on my web site but HERE is the section on mountain shadows.

The interesting thing is that all mountains cast a triangular shadow regardless of their shape. The link explains all and shows a similar shot from Rainier.

Adding my hopes for a safe and successful VFTT expedition.

Bob

 

[sapblatt]

Nice

Great report and pics...and again, good luck and best wishes on Rainier!

 

[Puma concolor]

Nice report, Guinness. I'm curious as to what factored into your decision to go solo on Hood. Of the five "difficult" HPs, I've more or less decided to go with guides on Rainier and McKinley when the time comes. Hood, Gannett and Granite could be guided, solo or with partners. I've heard that some of the guide services on Hood aren't too good, often doing more harm than good ... too much slack line, not enough experience etc. etc. Basically, I think I'd like to solo it but I don't want to do anything dumb.

Oh yeah ... and good luck on Rainier!

 

[Guinness]

Hi Mark,

Since I have been on Mount Hood twice before, I felt very comfortable going it solo. Next week will be my forth trip up Mount Rainier. I have definite plans to go there again next year, maybe with one other person, if not I'll try to get permission to go solo.

I know it is a decision that some will not find "wise" but if you know and trust your abilities and instincts, then going solo has many advantages.

I do plan on Denali in the next couple of years. On that trip I hope to hook up with some others to form a 2, 3 or 4 man rope team. I did talk to RMI about a trip there just this past weekend when I visited them. I would go solo, and in fact many do, but I would have some reservation without being there before.

 

[Puma concolor]

Thanks Guinness. Clearly your ability level is a notch or two above mine if you're even thinking about soloing Rainier. Nice web site, by the way.

 

[giggy]

hey boss,

fantastic report - my hat is off to you

you mentioned that that the last 300 feet was 50-70 degree ice - that angle for 300 feet is a somewhat decent pitch at that altitude IMHO.

that is about the angle I would (personally) certainly consider a belay - not saying I would do it due to time issues as I would have to see the ice/snow and make a call - but bells would be going off in my head.

just curoius - were any other parties doing this?? or were most just sloggin up it.

can't wait for this damn week to end!!

 

[Guinness]

Hi Guy,

I was concerned about the descend down the Pearly Gates, not going up. That is why I pushed to ensure I came down while it was still in the shadows. Some bells did go off in my head also, but I have faith and I take this climbing stuff pretty seriously.

There were many individuals and groups heading up that day. There were six ahead of me and dozens after. Some groups unroped before they started up that final section, which does make sense to me. Under those conditions if the top or middle person slips, they will zip the entire rope team down. I thought the iced conditions on the slope would prevent a good self-arrest. I could not sink my ice axe handle into the surface no more than 6 inches. Even the pick bounced off a couple of times, and I use a heavy axe.

That happened last year when one person slipped, which took down his rope team. They crashed into another and both ended up in the Bergchrund with a couple of deaths. Then the help arrived and they crashed a helicopter into the mountain.

I guess you must make a judgement call when you get there. If we head over there next week, the conditions may have changed. There is a lot of melt-off happening right now. We may get to the Hogsback and no further.

 

[giggy]

I was thinking along the lines of running belay or something. setting some type of pro -

sounds like it wasn't worth it though.

 

[ajtiv]

Wow great trip Guiness. You really know how to make people envious.
You are deffinitely taking your climbing up a notch. There are some really good pictures you got I love the one with the shadow of Hood in the horizon. Have a great time on Rainier and be safe and have fun.
The frequent flyer miles are just adding up
Al

 

[Peakbagr]

When we climbed Hood, we went with a local guide. We too climbed thru the night and summited at 7am via the "gates" for a fantastic sunrise. Mt Hood cast a looooong pryamidal shaped shadow to what looked like the horizon. Because of the falling rock hazard, we didn't descend thru the gates, we came around and back to the glacier underneath Crater Rock. Unfortunately, we were exposed to a barrage of rock fall over a 100 yd area that we moved thru very quickly, with missles whizzing by all around us. A very memorable climb.
What we learned afterward was that the guide service that usually guides the mountain won't take clients beyond a certain date in the summer due to the rockfall danger.

 

[yam]

great report and pics.

hey how do you like your black diamond tent?

 

[TMax]

I do plan on Denali in the next couple of years. On that trip I hope to hook up with some others to form a 2, 3 or 4 man rope team.

2, 3 or 4 MAN rope team??? Do you realize you're limiting your options there by 52%... I happen to know some pretty good woman rope team members

P.S. Great report...how cool are you? I can only hope I'm half as cool next week!

 

[alpinista]

Great TR! I love seeing trip reports/pix from folks' experiences that are outside our "normal" territory of the northeast. Best of luck on Rainier!

 

[Guinness]

Yam,

The BD tent I bought is based on the Bibler I-Tent (which I also have). It is a smaller 2-person tent, and suitable for most needs. What I like most about it is the packed size. The tent is in a case about 6" x 9" and that is not compressed! With a weight of 3 pounds I think this will quickly become my favorite for back country trips.

Even in the heat, the tent did not seem too hot due to the new rear window that has been added. Good cross ventilation. I'll use it up on Rainier next week, which will give it a real test.