Mt. Hood Climb 20-May-2013
June 28th, 2013 | 
Author: Photos from my first Mazamas climb, Mount Hood.
I top out on the summit plateau.
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- Climb leader Amy (who was also one of my BCEP instructors) and Assistant Leader Mike confer at the Climber’s Registration at Timberline Lodge at midnight. We start the climb at this time to reach the summit around sunrise, while the snow is still firm and chances for rockfall are minimized
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- climbing in the dark near the start
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- At the Hogsback, the ridge below the summit where the really steep stuff starts. We stow hiking poles here, and get out the ice axes and crampons
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- Mike on the Hogsback with the moon in the background
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- Sunrise from the Hogsback around 4 am
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- One great privilege of being on the top of a Cascade volcano at sunrise is seeing the great triangular shadow that the mountain throws across the landscape below
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- The team on the final part of the ascent up the “Old Chute”
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- On the summit plateau with climb leaders Amy and Mike. Mout Jefferson is in the distance. The sun hadn’t risen very far yet, so it was still very cold (in the 20’s).
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- On the summit; it was warmer now
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- group of climbers on the summit
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- Our climb team on the summit
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- On the descent. Yes, the Old Chute is very steep. If you slip and fall, you better know how to use your ice axe to self-arrest
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- Back down at the parking lot
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- When we got back to the trailhead, the boyfriend of one of the climbers on our team was waiting there, standing on the snow in a dark suit, waiting to propose to her. She accepted (and the crowd that had gathered in the parking lot cheered wildly). After drinking a couple of glasses of champagne, they passed the bottle around to the rest of the team. Best End of Climb Ever!
Gear for a Mount Hood climb
Clothing for a climb
Footwear – I’m the first one in the family to get fancy Italian leather boots 🙂 , and crampons
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