Mt. Hood, Round 2

A couple weeks ago, an email went our to my climbing club asking if anyone wanted to climb Mt. Hood. I was free that weekend, but I wasn't about to jump on to a climb if the weather was going to be bad. I had no desire to repeat my previous experience with the mountain. As the week went on, the forecast continued to look favorable, so I accepted Gabe's prodding to see what the mountain was like in good conditions with him. In addition, two students from this year's climb school would join us for their first full climb of Hood. While summiting a mountain once doesn't make you a guide, Gabe and I certainly have the experience, route knowledge, and technical skills necessary to help novice climbers make it to the top of Hood.

The four of us left the climbers' parking lot around 12.30 am, pretty close to our planned departure time. The parking lot was packed and there was practically a conga line of head lamps dancing up the mountain. In good weather, climbers flock to the second most climbed glaciated peak in the world.

Our spirits were high, though, and we made good time on the long slog up the Palmer Snowfield. We cruised by several other climbing parties and before we knew it, were at the top of the Palmer. The hike we'd normally dreaded had seemed like a breeze this time around. Gabe and I both remarked that it had been our most pleasant hike to the top of Palmer (a gain of 2,500 feet over two miles).

At the top of Palmer, we strapped on our crampons and began the ascent toward the technical portion of the mountain. Here, the going was a bit slower, as a steady, cold wind blew across the mountain. One of our new-comers was struggling, partially from exhaustion (he had climbed Mt. St. Helens a day earlier) and partially due to poor caloric management. He didn't have enough food and water easily accessible. We worried he might have to turn around, but with a few sugary snacks and encouragement from the rest of us, he made it to the Devil's Kitchen, the start of the technical portion of the climb. 

We rested and refueled in a small windbreak that previous climbers had built, glad to get out of the wind, but eager to start moving again to keep our muscles warm. It was just after sunrise that we began our trek up the Hogsback. Perfect timing. In stark contrast to our last experience on Hood, this time a highway of boot prints led us straight up the Hogsback. Though we had to pass a couple of slow moving rope teams*, we made good time up the Hogsback. At the peak of the Hogsback, Gabe looked back at me, pointed at the Pearly Gates (a slightly more technically challenging and quicker route to the summit) and asked what I thought. It's a route that I have wanted to climb for a while and looked perfect today. After a few minutes of debate, we opted for the standard Old Chutes route to accommodate our less experienced climbers.

As we traveled along the Hogsback, I marveled at the beauty of the surrounding mountain (you are litteraly walking through the cauldron of a once active volcano) and the perfect sunrise.

(click on the panoramas for a larger view)

The well traveled path and well cut boot steps made for easy traveling along the traverse below and up the Old Chutes. Here's the rest of my team ahead of me, climbing up the Hogsback. The small dots on the left of the photo are other climbers making their way up to the Old Chutes.


Today, our biggest challenge was ice fall. Chunks of ice ranging from golf ball to soccer ball size came bouncing down the slopes. I was hit by a few smaller pieces, which stung sharply. Being hit by a medium or large chunk would have knocked you off your feet. I developed a meticulous rhythm on the traverse: plant ice axe, step, step, look up for ice fall. Plant, step, step, look up. This continued for the next hour, until we gained the relative safety of the summit ridge.

Looking down the North Headwall after gaining the summit ridge, my ice axe sticking all the way through the thin snow ridge (my feet were firmly planted on solid snow).

Again in stark contrast to my previous Hood climb, the treacherous catwalk had been reduced to a relatively wide, stable walkway with ample sturdy snow to support a solid ice axe placement. This time, I walked easily across it, even pausing to take pictures.

Here's Matt, one of the new climb school students, demonstrating good self belay while walking across the catwalk.


Despite the dozens of other climbers that we had passed (some on their way up the mountain, others on their way down), our group of four had the summit to ourselves for near ten minutes, unheard of on a beautiful day on Mt. Hood. While we waited for someone to come along and take a group photo, we basked in the warming sun and took in incredible views, ranging from Mt. Rainier to the north, all the way to the Three Sisters to the south.

I'm on the far right in this picture.

Only a few clouds below us. Mt. Adams in the distance.


After a brief rest and a quick bite, we began an uneventful descent of the mountain. With the great visibility, Gabe and I could see how we'd made out navigational error on our last descent and could clearly see the cliffs that swallow stray climbers.

Here's a shot of the whole crater I took on our descent. Pretty much sums up the great weather and climb we had.


Our car-to-car trip time was just under nine hours and we'd helped two beginning climbers on their first summit of Hood. By 11 am, we were at a local bar, eating a couple thousand delicious calories, enjoying cold beverages, and basking in our success.

I got a lot of great photos from this trip. To see the rest, check flickr.