The first few weeks of good weather in a Pacific Northwest spring marks the beginning of alpine climbing season. Near the end of March, I went up Mt. Hood with three other climbers from my climbing club. Little did I know it, but this climb would be the seedling for bigger future climbs. Two of the climbers, Adrian and Peter were training for a Denali expedition in June. The third, Noel, is a newer climber, looking to get into bigger routes.
We climbed the on the South side of Mt. Hood, opting for the Old Chute route, the same one I'd already climbed twice. It was cold, but we had good weather and good snow conditions, so the climb went well. Since it was my first climb of the season, I had a little bit of trouble with the altitude around the Devil's Kitchen and Hogsback, just generally feeling "off". By the time we got to the summit, though, I was feeling well again.
Heading up toward the Old Chute.
Noel, Adrian, and Me just before reaching the summit (in the background).
Left to right: Peter, Adrian, Noel descending the Old Chute.
From this climb, I got an invite on the Denali expedition from Peter and Adrian. Though a Denali expedition is on my bucket list, I couldn't work out the 30+ days off of work I would need. Peter also ended up inviting me on a Mt. Rainier climb, another mountain high on my list. Peter is a very experienced alpine mountaineer and has climbed Rainier several times, so he would be an ideal leader for my first climb on Rainier.
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