In the clutches of a severe bout of Low Altitude Sickness, Jade and myself (Tim) took advantage of a serendipitous weather break to head over to Mt. Hood. After weighing our options, we decided to check out the Old Chute in early winter form. Full moon, bearable sub-freezing temps, and 0% chance of precipitation! December bodes well so far!
Departed Graymalkin/New Lagos around 11pm to arrive at Timberline around 1am. We left the parking lot at 2 am, and found the moonlight more than suitable for a sans-headlamp trip. Given the glorious weather, it was surprising that there were only 7 other climbers on the mountain, and only three others on the south side. Temps were in the 20’s at night, and a sunny, warm 32 during the day. The hard packed, squeaky snow made for easy going, and we hit the Hogsback at 7:30. Boot paths indicate that the Pearly Gates have been seeing a good amount of traffic. We opted to ditch the packs, pickets, and rope at the HB, and were met with some lovely sustained, front-pointable blank snow. Perfect snow. Yes, the Old Chute was actually fun. Seems a good bit steeper than in the spring, and again, rather fun! Got hit with some small bits of ice fall, helmets are good, except Jade did get pegged in his sore neck by a little guy. Visibility from the summit was astounding, as we were able to identify several buildings in downtown Portland with the naked eye, and got peeks of Glacier Peak to the north and Three Sisters to the south as well as everything in between.
Got back to the HB at 10:15am, and made it down to the parking lot by 11:45, thanks to some fantastic glissades via bogarting the mostly empty ski slopes.
Lovely day out!
-tim (+jade)
Resting on the Hogsback at day break before the final push.
Tim heading up the steeper-than-usual Old Chute.
Tim just after attaining the summit ridge, with the summit and two climbers in the background.
Jade on the summit ridge.
On the summit. Tim reppin PG
Downtown PDX can be seen just above the climber.
5 Comments
tim’s hat looks too small?
Most rad! I might want to come to Portland to do the Chimecketans course this summer. Do you have any recommendations for an excellent mountaineering book? Like novel or memoir style, probably? I just read “Into Thin Air”, which was good, but I’m thinking that writing in the genre gets better than that.
Fondly bois! I miss/see you (we were (§almost§) there). Clean. Filthy Clean. project grow mudra. all four directions.
\come to mt maru
Kazaaad.
DUM!! thank Gandalf that Hood did not cast our ruin upon the mountainside! unfortunately these adventurers weren’t so lucky: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/outposts/2009/12/mt-hood-climbers.html
very sad. Lasercave sends its condolences to the families.
Seconds on condolences to the climbers families. There were good climbers up there that were hit by something tragic.
Gabe – Just read “On the Ridge Between Life and Death” by David Roberts, and recommend it highly. Its a memoir and deeply intimate reflection by a fantastic mountaineer.
Also recommend:
“Kiss or Kill” by Mark Twight. Punk climbing. Nihlistic asshole brutal climber who lives to send and search for feeling.
And for other accounts of the ‘96 Everest calamity, check out the poorly written but very interesting “The Climb” by the late, great Anatoli Boukreev. Amazing climber who was inappropriately slandered in “Into Thin Air.” “Touching My Father’s Soul” is Jamling Norgay’s (son of Everest first ascentionist Tenzing Norgay) account of his first Everest Climb. Unluckily during the 96 disaster. Great book, with a welcome perspective from a resident climber.