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5/31/2017 0 Comments ​Rainier: The climb, Part 2It was windy and the flapping of the tent kept me awake most of the night. It was a relief when Solveig woke us up at midnight. Finally, summit day has arrived and I could not be more excited, yet nervous at the same time. In 1 hour, we were all roped up, crampons on and ready to go. We started the same route we took the day prior, but this time it was in the middle of the night. Seeing all the headlamps forming a line on the Cowlitz Glacier was completely surreal. I had a big smile on my face since I knew the route was easy and that I could relax and enjoy the moment. After 1hr20’, we took our first break at the Flats. This is where several clients decided to stop their attempt. It’s never an easy decision but knowing your limits and making the best and safest choice for your own good is remarkable. Then, we resumed our climb on a direct route up the Ingraham Glacier. The usual route turns right to the Disappointment Cleaver but Brent told us that the risk of icefall or rocks was too great. A team of guides from RMI prepped our route the day before and told us that it was safer to go the more direct way. After Jess gave me a “warning” during this 2nd section, we arrived at the upper part of the Disappointment Cleaver at about 12,300 feet and we took our second break. It was around 3:30am. This section was very steep and I started to feel the altitude. I was last on my rope team and had to constantly monitor the distance between Barton, the teammate in front of me, and I. It was not a smooth walk and I was out of breath every time I had to increase the pace. However, I recovered quickly and was reassured. Out of the eight remaining clients, one decided to turn around. Before starting up again, Brent and Solveig told us that from now on, we had to be fully committed to summiting because it would be too complicated to turn around later on, as we did not have enough guides to babysit us on our way down. The 3rd section was not very steep and we were climbing very well. We started to see some crevasses along the way. At first, there were small but as we climbed up, they started to get bigger and bigger. At some point, I found myself crossing a crevasse on a small ladder. They weren’t like the big ladders on the Khumbu Icefall on Everest, but it was still pretty cool. The sun gradually rose and gave us a completely different view of our surroundings. A sunrise while climbing up a mountain glacier is a truly majestic experience. That single moment was one of the best of the entire climb, except for maybe the summit. Soon after, we stopped for our last break before the summit push. It was 5am and we were at the “High Break” at 13,500 feet. Brent and Solveig told us the day before that the last section would again be very steep but shorter than the previous ones. We were all psyched up about getting to the top. The sun was shining, the wind was minimal, and we were less than 900 vertical feet from the summit, all still going strong. Well, Mount Rainier had other plans for us.
As we were slowly ascending through a maze of crevasses and closing in on the crater of Rainier, I heard someone yell: “falling!” I saw one of the clients, just 3 spots ahead of me, being pulled forward very rapidly. He then stopped abruptly on the ground. Everyone just froze in place, anxious to hear from Solveig. After a few minutes, she told us that Brent, our lead guide, just broke through the snow over a crevasse and fell in about 10 feet. Eight climbers from another group had just crossed this snow bridge without any problems. He was apparently uninjured and Solveig has already started the process of rescuing him. It took her a good 30 to 45 minutes to get him out of the crevasse. During the rescue, the others and I were wondering if Brent was unhurt and what would happen next. “Was the climb over?” we all thought. We were amazed when, finally free from the crevasse, he told us with a big smile on his face to get ready for the summit. What a tough guide he is! We later learned that, in his 31 years of climbing, and after 518 summits of Mount Rainier, 2 Everest attempt (1 summit) and 23 Denali summits, among other climbs, he has never once fallen in a crevasse. We were all joking that if it had been us in the crevasse, we would have had to change our underwear, whereas for Brent it was like business as usual. We resumed our climb, relieved that it would just be a good story to tell, and hoping that it would be our first and last problem on the mountain. However, during our forced stop, the clouds built up near the top and the temperature dropped. It was not completely whiteout conditions but it became more challenging and uncertain. We were only now 30 minutes from the crater so I was confident that we would all make it. We had to take a small detour to avoid the now open crevasse and we all managed it like seasoned pros despite being in the steepest section of the entire climb. Finally, at 7am we entered the summit crater of Mount Rainier! We all cheered, high-fived and bear-hugged each other to celebrate our summit as much as to release the stress accumulated over the last 6 hours. Personally, it was an incredible and emotional moment. I had a tracking GPS device with me during the climb, where I had set up a message that could be sent via satellite to my wife and children. As soon as we entered the crater, I hit the button and I knew that they would receive the “summit message” within minutes. Somehow, they were with me on the summit, and it made this moment even more special. After getting some snacks and drink, we got ourselves ready for the descent. All the guides told us throughout this journey that getting to the top is only the half of the climb. Most accidents happen during the descent and that we should never become complacent or relax until we’re done with this dangerous part of the climb. We had no idea how right they would be....
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5/25/2017 0 Comments Rainier: The climb, Part 1“Patrick! You don’t want to tumble here”, says Jess, one of our guides, probably sensing that my footing was not great. It’s 3am on our summit day and we’ve already been climbing for 2 hours. The night is clear, thanks to a full moon, and windy but not overly cold. We are in the middle of the Ingraham glacier at about 12,000 feet in elevation, following a switchback pattern to ease the 45-degree slope of the headwall. I then looked down and realized that a misstep here could have very serious consequences, not only for me but for the 2 other members on my rope team. Welcome to Mount Rainier!
Two days earlier, we started the approach climb from Paradise (5,400 feet) to Camp Muir (10,080 feet), a 4,680 feet escalation that does not require any crampons or technical expertise. I was very excited to finally start my “climbing career”, but also anxious to see if I would like it and/or if I would be capable of getting to the summit. The first hour went by quickly but then we approached a somewhat steep slope on the Panorama face that leads to Panorama Point at 7,100 feet. I felt uneasy with the deep snow and the steepness of the face, in addition to a 40-pound backpack. Throughout this entire section, I was wondering if I was biting off more than I could chew. I breathed a sigh of relief when we arrived on top and took our first break. The view was absolutely incredible, which helped me relax a bit. After our 15-minute break, we started back up but this time on a gentler slope. I felt strong and confident as I could easily follow our guide Solveig’s pace and the other eight young clients in the group. Then, after a 6-hour approach and a final section up the Muir snowfield, we arrived at Camp Muir. There were several stone structures at either end of the saddle, one for the guides and clients and one for the public. These were very rustic accommodations, to say the least, but you can’t beat the view. From Camp Muir, you can see Mount Adams, Mount St. Helens, Mount Hood and the Tatoosh Range. I almost had to pinch myself to make sure it wasn’t a dream. But soon after, reality set in as the guides told us to rehydrate and eat plenty in order to get ready for the summit day. During our approach climb, Solveig asked us how we felt and if we wanted to go for the summit the next day. All nine of us replied, “Hell yeah!” Not only would the weather be perfect for a summit bid, but it would also decrease our total climb by two days, as we would go back and stay in Camp Muir directly after our summit attempt. We would then climb back down to Paradise on the last day. However, the other groups of nine clients were much more tired than us, and Brent, the leading guide, after checking the weather, decided to give them (and us) one rest day so that they have a better chance for the summit. Unfortunately, I don’t think there were enough guides to make two different summit attempts. If something went wrong, you would want to have a lot of manpower and dividing the guides into two groups would have been risky. I was a little disappointed but understood the reasoning. After the summit talk, we ate some more and prepared for the night. We were 18 people crammed in a bunkhouse, so you can imagine how interesting the night was. The next morning, we went up to the first section of the upper climb, as a practice run. We put crampons on, roped up and traversed the Cowlitz Glacier, climbed the Cathedral Gap and stopped at the Flats on the Ingraham Glacier at 11,200 feet. It was a gorgeous morning, sunny with no wind. It took us only a little more than an hour, and I felt good physically. As we were eating snacks and hanging out before going back to Camp Muir, I kept finding myself feeling amazed by the expansive view we had on this glorious day and couldn’t quite believe where I was, especially being a complete novice just 4 days ago. We were back at Camp Muir for lunch without any problems. In the afternoon, another client and I decided to move from the bunkhouse to a tent that was available to us. I wanted to have the full climbing experience, plus I probably wouldn’t sleep much anyway on the (short!) night before our summit attempt. Around 5pm, Brent and Solveig gave us the details of the summit climb and the route we would take. We were all listening carefully because, despite all of us being rookies, now we knew what was ahead of us and how serious of a mountain Mount Rainier really is. Several clients decided against doing the summit bid and others said they would try and see how they felt at the Ingraham Flats. Only nine or ten of us were fully committed to the climb. That evening, we went to bed around 5:30pm, anxiously awaiting the following day.... I arrived in Ashford WA last Friday, where most of the big names in mountaineering climbing have their headquarters. I have signed up with RMI Expeditions who was founded in 1969 by the twins Whittaker, Lou and Jim. Jim became the first American climber to summit Mt Everest in 1963. This year will be their 49th year running climbing seminar up to Mount Rainier. Most of the best American climbers in history have worked or still work at RMI as guides. So I knew that I would be in good company during this adventure and I would learn a lot from all the guides.
The next morning, I drove up to Paradise, our “launch site” for the climb. At the entrance of the National Park, there was no snow at all but as I approached Paradise, it started snowing heavily at times and there were big snow banks on each side of the road. Finally, the weather cleared and I arrived at the visitor center parking lot with literally walls of snow left and right. I couldn’t believe it but the mountains were so beautiful. I tried to see Rainier but it was a little cloudy. I started to climb up a little bit just to get my legs back and also to test my mountain boots. And after about 30’, I finally could see the top of Mount Rainier. Wow! It’s a massive mountain and completely covered with snow and ice from bottom to top. It will definitely be a full climbing experience. In the afternoon, I picked up all my rentals gear for the climb, and we had our orientation. Eighteen clients, mostly neophytes, have signed up for this 1st climb of the season, separated in 2 groups. As you can expect, we all come from different horizons and background but all the members seem to be fit and well prepared for the climb. You don’t improvise this kind of adventure. Our leading guide is Brent Okita, who has 516 summits of Rainier and the guide for my group is Solveig Waterfall who has 120 summits of Rainier. So they have accumulated a tremendous amount of expertise on this mountain and they are not shy of sharing it with us. Today was our first real day on the mountain, learning all the basic mountaineering safety and techniques that will help us get to the top. We put crampons on and went up and down the mountain, using different footing techniques depending on the steepness of the slope. We learned how to self arrest with an ice ax, whether solo or on a rope team. We also travelled up and down the mountain as a rope team. There are a lot of small details that you need to remember and obviously we don’t have yet the muscle memory or the experience to safely climb on our own. But that was a very good approach to what we will expect come the real climb. Monday will be the real start of the climb. We will drive up to Paradise from Ashford around 8:15am and will begin the climb up to Camp Muir at 10,080 feet around 9:30am. The plan is to get there around 4pm. It is a 4,700 feet elevation but it will not require putting crampons on or using ice ax. The weather is supposed to be like today, very sunny and not too cold. Upon our arrival at Camp Muir, we rest, rehydrate and put some calories in immediately. Then we have a summit day meeting. Originally, the 5 days program has a rest day in-between going up to Camp Muir and the summit day, in order to rest and relax before the summit bid. However, Tuesday will be again sunny with a perfect weather, whereas Wednesday might get cloudy and the weather will start to deteriorate for the rest of the week. Because of that, there is a good chance that Tuesday will be indeed our summit day. We’d wake up around midnight, put crampons on and several layers of clothes to get ready to start climbing around 1am, then hopefully tag the summit around 7-8am and finally climb back down to Camp Muir. There, we’d stay for the rest of the day chilling and then we'd climb back down to Paradise on Wednesday morning. That is what most clients, myself included, want to do, but ultimately Brent and Solveig will decide our summit day Monday evening after checking one last time the weather forecast and the fitness of our team after our climb up to Muir. If you want to follow my/our progress, please go to the Live Tracking page and see if/when my little dot is moving. You will know exactly where we are on the mountain and when we are going for the summit. It’s about to start…. |
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