July 21-22 - Almost Camp Muir

July 21-22 - Camp Muir
On Thursday, Ron Brothers, Robert Smith and myself, Roger Matthews, arrived at Paradise about 10:30am. We were more or less ready to go up the mountain at 11am, but were dismayed by a bit of a rain downpour.  We all were optimistic, at least in varying degrees, and so we donned our ponchos etc, and headed up the snowy trail.  It was cold and wet and windy, but we hoped the weather would break eventually and give us a good outing.

(Note: you can click on the photos for a larger version.)

Ron Brothers looks a lot more "professional" than me, the guide :).

We stopped at the first steep slope, and Ron Brothers learned the four ways of arresting a fall on snow with an ice ax. Then we had lunch, and were on our way.

Here are Ron Brothers and Robert Smith on the trail

Part way up, we ran into a marmot, which Roger entertained with a variety of whistling tunes, while Ron and Robert were wishing he would shut up because they were teetering on a snow cliff and wanted to move on.

Here's the Marmot, whistling back at me

It was a very hard long slog up to our base camp at about 7,700'.  We camped on an isolated patch of snow on a ridge above the main trail. We went past an interesting small crevasse on the way, probably from having veered a bit onto the Cowlitz Glacier. But it seemed safe enough.

A small crevasse on  the Cowlitz Glacier

Looking upwards on the trail, gorgeous. Ron, Robert and I climbed

the snow slope behind them as soon as I was done taking photos.

Here's Robert Smith working his way up a snow slope. There were LOTS of them.

 It took us a while to flatten a snow platform, and pitch our tents, but we finally got them up.  

I couldn't help but laugh, they looked like the Wicked Witch of the East, who got flattened by 

Dorothy's house.  Both of these guys look like they got flattened by the tents,

as BOTH of them have only their legs sticking out from under their tents!

Then I started up the stove, and melted snow for dinners. We had our freeze dried dinners and we all appreciated the hot food and hot tea.

This was our "kitchen". The big boulder shield the stove from the wind,

and we had dinner and breakfast cooked here.

A little Chipmunk was eyeing our dinner.

Then off to bed where I think only Ron had a fairly good nights sleep. Robert and I froze ourselves a bit before we finally donned every bit of clothing we had inside our sleeping bags. It was cold and the wind blew from 20 to 40 mph until late in the night.  The tents had an ice coating on the inside. And the snow under us froze into a solid flat surface that I just couldn't get to sleep on. I think Robert and I dozed a bit, but mostly it was a miserable night.  We could hear Ron "sleeping" in the next tent, so we knew he got more sleep than we did.

The next morning dawned bright and clear, and the skies just got clearer all day, though some clouds were always present, and sometimes we got bathed in a bit of fog, but mostly it was clear, sunny and spectacularly beautiful.

View from Base Camp in the morning!  Wow!

The same picture, with some labels

A waterfall above the Nisqually Glacier, far across the valley

Our gamble with the cold and rainy day previously has paid off with a gorgeous second day.  We had hot oatmeal for breakfast, packed light packs, and headed off for Camp Muir at 10,000'.

 Robert Smith  taking a much needed break to rest and take in the incredible views

And Ron Brothers also taking a rest and drinking in the views

We climbed strenously for quite a few hours, but we finally threw in the towel at Anvil Rock at 9,000'.  We were tired from not the best night's sleep.  We got so spectacular photos of the bergschrund, a large crevasse, at the base of Anvil Rock where the Cowlitz Glacier pulls away from the rock.  And Little Tahoma loomed large in the background.

 The Bergschrund below Anvil Rock

A closeup of the Bergschrund

Robert Smith and Ron Brothers next to the Bergschrund

From the same location, looking downhill

Then we took off for Paradise, picking up our tents on the way down.

Robert got some good shots of a  marmot and a fox, and Ron got stuck for 10 minutes in a snowbank. I asked if he wanted help and he said he didn't, so I just took some humiliating photos of him to chuckle over as he was still stuck.

But he eventually got loose, we got the tents backed, and we glissaded and plunge stepped spritely down the mountain and got to the parking lot about 7:30pm.

Ron Brothers starting a long glissade, with Anvil Rock in the background

 Ron getting a little sideways on his glissade, but having a ball

A Cascade Fox we spotted on the way down. 

The fox is focussed intently on something under the snow!

 We were extremely glad to see the roofs of the lodges at Paradise!

Then a dinner at Brunos, we were eatin' in Eatonville, and then for a long dark drive home.

July 12th - Tiger Mountain

Tuesday, July 12th - Tiger Mountain

Robert called and suggested we do Granite Mountain again. After Mt Rainier and ice ax arrest practice, he was now ready to cross the steep snow tongue in the avalanche chute.  But on the way, it started to rain, and we decided to play pool for a while in our Community Center.  Around 11am, it cleared up, so we headed out for lunch and a shorter hike up Tiger Mountain.

We went to the parasail field on Hobart Road. Parasailing folks hike up a 1700' elevation gain 2-mile one way trail, and launch themselves off the summit at Poo Poo Point.  It is not uncommon on a hot summer day to have a dozen or more parasailers, floating over Poo Poo Point on Tiger Mountain. But today was rainy, so no parasailers.

It was a steep trail, and I as always was struggling to keep up with Robert.  But we made it to the top and enjoyed a beautiful if somewhat soggy view out over Issaquah and Lake Sammamish.  It took us an hour and a half to go up, and the same amount of time to go down.

Robert continues his concerned and solicitous, "Are you sure ready for Mt Adams yet, you seeemed to have a lot of trouble with this wimpy trail", line of questioning. I appreciate his concern, but I know from experience that Mt Si is the really separator of men-from-boys on climbing Mt Adams, and a few weeks ago, we knocked in Mt Si in acceptable manner (3-1/2 hours up, 2-1/2 hours down), so reassure him I can do it, albeit slower than when I was younger.

Here's a topographical map of our trail.

Here is Robert putting on Moleskin prior to our hike up Tiger Mountain

Here is a Paragliding sign at the trailhead


You can see a windsock at the far end, and a bit of Tiger Mountain.

An hour and a half later, here we are approaching the summit, a large grassy field

Here are a mother and daughter looking out over all creation from the parasail launch site

Robert is striding out across the launch Astroturf towards the launch dropoff.

Robert and I are attempting to fly, but it takes a parasail, fluttering hands won't do the job. You can see Issaquah and Lake Sammamish (just above my head) in the background. You can see a corner of the green astroturf on the lower right corner of the photo, where the parasailers launch off this dropoff.

Here is a funny sign about "No launching from here while horses are present".

Well, after lunch, we reenter the dark forest to descend the mountain

Here's Robert trekking on down, about half way down. This was a rare fairly level spot. Most of the trail is steep, though a good trail.

Finally back to the comforts of civilization, where we have cars and soft dry seats.

July 5th - Camp Muir @ Mt Rainier

Tuesday, July 5th - Camp Muir @ Mt Rainier

I had been waiting with a lot of excitement for a chance at Camp Muir, or more realistically, Anvil Rock.  But with 7 hours of effort, which did include stops for ice ax arrest practice and a number of visits with interesting people, we didn't even reach Pebble Creek, which marks the start of the Muir Snowfield. But we were close, oh so close. :).

But my main goal for the day was to introduce Robert to snow climbing, to give him ice ax arrest practice, and to see how he liked it.  I think it is fair to say, that Robert is a quick study, mastered ice ax arrest practice quickly, and was a real trouper in snow climbing.  My biggest problem all day was just keeping up with him.  And he discovered that sitting glissades are a great way to come down. In fact, descending in snow, generally is just easier and quicker than on dirt and rock trails.  We descended in 1 hour and 45 minutes, from an elevation of about 7,200' to 5,600', the parking lot at Paradise.

We had some stunning views of Mt Rainier, and great views of Mt Adams, Mt St Helens and Mt Hood in the distance.  Mt Adams looks as big as it is....huge :).  And of course, Mt Rainier is the granddaddy of mountains in the lower 48 states.

One of the more interesting things to happen on the ascent was when Robert took a photo of a lady glissading down a slope.  He offered to email it to her, and heard an accent. When she said it was Estonian, Robert immediately began conversing with her in fluent Russian for the next 10 minutes.  Turns out that Robert studied Russian for years (in addition to Spanish and Latin), and had even visited Russia.  The things you learn about your friends on a hike...I never knew any of this about Robert :).

Here are some pictures from the day, which was  glorious from start to finish.  After we got back to the parking lot, we headed out for an interesting Nepalese dinner at the Wild Berry restaurant, just outside the park, and we finally got  home at 11:30pm that night.

You can see Robert's version of this hike on his blog:  The Inca Diaries.

Robert at my house in Maple Valley, ready to head for Mt Rainier.  This is July 5th, and we were entertained past midnight the night before on the 4th, with wonderful earbusting fireworks that gloriously burst into the air long past midnight. Gotta love the fourth :).

Robert by Van Trump Creek on the way to Paradise

Here's Robert Smith, planking on a rock wall overlooking glorious Mt Rainier.  "Planking" is a current craze, where people lay out flat in all sorts of places all over the world.  My most serious attempts at planking recently have involved a lot of photoshopping :).

Next, Robert was paying homage to a goddess of the Mountain, near as I can tell.

As good a way to start a hike as any :).   That is the Paradise Guide Building in the background, and our trailhead up the snow is on the left, with quite a few people on it.

Here we are part way up the mountain. The alpine skiers descending towards us have summitted Mt Rainier earlier in the day, and are on their way back to Paradise.

Robert and I a ways up the Mountain, about ready to do some ice ax arrest

The composting toilet at 7,000' is nestled under a gigantic boulder, and made of rock, with the quaintest door. It was really a work of art wrought of stone.

Here's Robert at 7,000' with the Tatoosh Range and Mt St Helens in the background.

 

Here I am with Mt Adams in the background, over the Tatoosh Range

 Here's what Mt Adams looks like over the Tatoosh Range from Panorama Point on Mt Rainier - Stunning! On the left is the steep north side of Mt Adams. Our route goes up the gentle south slope, partially visible on the right side.

Mt Rainier with Robert in the foreground, at 7,200', about as high as we went today.

Here I am resting. Robert told me it was the sorriest "planking" he'd ever seen, but what he didn't know was that I was "reprising" my photo from 2004, where I was nearby, resting similarly. See my 2004 photo next below.

See the similarities?  Here I am resting comfortably, same boots, same gaiters, same blue foam, I think.  I had just climbed an 800' snow tongue out of the Nisqually Glacier valley  below with Melodie Wulfekuhle (who took the picture), and we both rested before heading back down over the Muir Snowfield.

 Here is Robert in one of his first real sitting glissades, zipping down like a trouper.

Here is Robert, finishing with a flourish of snow which nearly hides him...Yippee Aie Yay Robert!

Now we are glissading down about 800' from Panorama Point, a really long serious glissade.

Robert Smith is somewhere out of sight at the top.

Yippe Ay Yay Cowboy, here he comes a rip roaring down the glissade path :).

And closer at the speed of gravity :).

In perfect glissade form, Robert roars into view :).

With perfect aplomb and perfect glissade form with ice ax at the ready for emergency arrest, Robert has descended in about one minute what took us nearly an hour to go up. Now THAT is what glissading is all about :).

And so here we are, an hour and 45 minutes from the high point of our day, back at the parking lot.