Mountaineering Trip Report
7-21-08
Mount Rainier National Park, Washington.
Pictures from Mount Rainier prior to start of route
Pictures from Mount Rainier, Day 1 - 7-21-08
Pictures from Mount Rainier, Day 2 - 7-22-08
Pictures from Mount Rainier, Day 3 - 7-23-08
Pictures from Mount Rainier, Day 4 - 7-24-08
Pictures from Mount Rainier, Day 5 - 7-25-08
Quick Facts
Mount Rainier National Park, Washington.
July 21, 2008 thru July 25, 2008.
5 days, 7 people. 15.6 miles
Day 1 Paradise Lodge to Camp Muir
4.3 miles, 8.25 hours
Day 2 Camp Muir to Ingraham Flats
1.0 miles, 3.55 hours
Day 3 Explore around Ingraham Flats
0.7 miles, 2.15 hours
Day 4 Ingraham Flats to Columbia Crest and back
4.3 miles, 14.0 hours
Day 5 Ingraham Flats to Paradise Lodge
5.3 miles, 3.1 hours
Points of interest along the way
Paradise Lodge
Muir Snow Field
Camp Muir
Cowlitz Glacier
Cathedral Gap
Ingraham Flats
Disappointment Cleaver
Rainier Crater
Columbia Crest
General comments
This trip will be one for the life memory book for
me.
I only knew 2 of the other 6 people on the trip
prior to going. Turns out it was one of those groups of people where
everyone clicks and enjoys hanging out together.
This was the first time I have traveled on snow.
With the good weather I enjoyed it a lot. I can see how it would become
extremely miserable if it were very windy or if there were appreciable
amounts of precipitation (snow or rain).
Getting to see, look into, travel next to, and step
over large crevasses in person was a lot different than seeing them in
pictures and movies. Some of them appeared to be bottomless while
others were only 20 feet deep.
Another aspect I liked about snow camping was being
able to build what you need. You want a bench to sit on? Build It.
Want a counter area for the stoves and food prep? Build It. Want an
elevated spot to set your back pack? Build It. Want a pit in front of
your tent to make putting boots on easier? Build It. I think you get
the idea.
Being on the top of a snow covered active volcano
was another great aspect of this trip. We were able to get down between
the crater walls and the melted snow in the crater. We went about 15 or
20 feet down and found that it just kept going. All the while there was
steam blowing past us which made it feel more like a sauna.
The crater itself seemed like a moon crater. As I
walked across from one side to the other all I could see was the crater
like shape of the area, white snow and some exposed rock around the
edges. I have obviously never been to the moon but this is as close as
I could imagine to being in a moon crater.
Maps
Overview map of the entire route.
Click for the High Resolution version of the map.
Right click and select "Save Picture As" to save the high res version.
Map zoomed to cover the section from Paradise Lodge to Camp Muir.
Click for the High Resolution version of the map.
Right click and select "Save Picture As" to save the high res version.
Map zoomed to cover the section from Camp Muir to Columbia Crest.
Click for the High Resolution version of the map.
Right click and select "Save Picture As" to save the high res version.
GPS Waypoint Information
Paradise Lodge - - - - tParadiseLodge
N46 47.195 W121 44.073 (WGS 84):
Elev. 5,421 ft.
Paradise Lodge.
Pebble Creek - - - - sPebbleCrick
N46 48.344 W121 43.732 (WGS 84):
Pebble Creek (crick for the southern boys). We filtered
water here.
Camp Muir - - - - lCampMuir
N46 50.114 W121 43.927 (WGS 84):
Elev. 10,005 ft.
Camp Muir.
Cathedral Gap - - - - wCathedralGap
N46 50.549 W121 43.738 (WGS 84):
Cathedral Gap. Rock area after crossing the Cowlitz Glacier
after Camp Muir.
Ingraham Flats - - - - lIngrahamFlats
N46 50.692 W121 44.074 (WGS 84):
Elev. 11071 ft.
Ingraham Flats Camp area.
Disappointment Cleaver - - - - wDisapntCleavr
N46 50.922 W121 44.339 (WGS 84):
Disappointment Cleaver.
East Side of the Rainier Crater - - - - sRanierCrtrEst
N46 51.054 W121 45.340 (WGS 84):
East Side of the Rainier Crater on the Disappointment Cleaver
Route.
Rainier Log Book - - - - wRainierLogBk
N46 51.212 W121 45.563 (WGS 84):
Log book for Columbia Crest on Mount Rainier.
Columbia Crest - - - - pColumbiaCrest
N46 51.176 W121 45.628 (WGS 84):
Elev. 14,410 ft.
Columbia Crest.
Details prior to start of route
Ron, Dan and I flew from Las Vegas to Seattle Saturday
morning. We got car rentals, and waited for everyone else
to show up. When the whole group was together we ate at
IHOP then headed to REI and Feathered Friends to do a little
gear shopping. Then we headed toward Rainier National Park.
We were unable to find camping arrangements in the area.
When we stopped by cabin rental and restaurant place (forgot
the name of it) we were greeted by Jeff. He told us we
could set up camp in the meadow next to their restaurant.
He wanted us to buy dinner and breakfast there which we did
and found it worthwhile.
We got up Sunday morning, ate breakfast then went to
Whittaker Mountaineering to get some souvenirs and set up
rentals for those of us that wanted to rent boots, crampons
etc.
When we got back to the meadow we started sorting out gear
and weighing our packs. Near the end of the gear sorting
session, Ron asked me to get his stove out and get it
working so we knew it was ok for the trip. I set it down in
the grass and went through the preheating process which
creates a large flame. Some of the fuel dripped from the
stove to the grass and soon caught fire as well. I grabbed
the stove and started saying “this isn’t good”. While
keeping the stove elevated I tried stomping the area of
grass that was on fire. I kept my voice low but kept
telling Ron to help me put this out. All the while I was
trying not to draw the attention of the people that worked
at the cabin rental place. They were all sitting on the
other side of the parking lot relaxing. We got everything
under control quickly and got a god laugh out of it later.
Later Sunday we drove to Rainier National Park, got the
permits taken care of and checked into the Paradise Lodge.
They informed us they had lost water supply to the lodge and
that it might stay that way. We decided to check in and
wait it out since there was no other place to go. The water
came back on part way through the night so we were given
half off the room rate when we checked out the following
morning.
Details from Day 1
Pictures from Mount Rainier, Day 1 - 7-21-08
Monday 7-21-08
Start at Paradise Lodge
End at Camp Muir
4.3 miles, 8.25 hours
We got up and ate breakfast at the lodge then got our packs
ready for the trail. We started our journey at 8:50am. Very
shortly into the hike I found I was burning up. I tried to
unzip the sides of my pants to allow cool air in and sweat to
evaporate quicker. I soon found out the pants I had on needed
the side zipper to keep them up. So I took them off and
traveled in my long underwear.
We stopped at about the 2 mile point at Pebble Creek (Crick for
the southern boys in our group) and filtered some water. We
took about an hour break at some rocks on the Muir Snow Field
from 1 – 2pm. While there we ate and waited for everyone to
catch up and regroup.
While on the way up the final portions of the Muir Snow field I
daydreamed about the whole area sliding in an avalanche. There
were no rocks nearby, no trees, no dirt, no high or low spots,
just wide open snow going up a steep slope. If the area would
have started to slide in an avalanche I imagined how helpless I
would feel. Even though this area was pretty safe, the daydream
was a humbling experience.
We reached Camp Muir at 5:06pm and started setting up camp. We
found some spots that were already dug fairly flat by people
previously there. We finished digging things the way we wanted
it with our shovels.
Once camp was set up we set up the stoves and started melting
water from the snow. It takes a lot longer than I had imagined
melting snow for drinking water. It took a couple hours to get
enough for 4 of us and to heat water for cooking meals and
drinking hot beverages.
It had been relatively cloud free all day but as it started
getting dark the clouds started to form. Below us! I had seen
pictures on of people camping at Camp Muir and Ingraham Flats
with clouds below them. I was happy to be seeing clouds start
forming below us. I got a few pictures then went to bed since
the sun was setting.
I knew I was in trouble with sunburn then because my skin felt
as though it had been in the sun for a couple days already. Sun
block did not seem to be enough protection.
Details from Day 2
Pictures from Mount Rainier, Day 2 - 7-22-08
Tuesday 7-22-08
Start at Camp Muir
Travel along the Cowlitz Glacier
Go up over Cathedral Gap
End at Ingraham Flats
1.0 miles, 3.55 hours
We got up when we felt like it and took our time
getting ready to go. We did not have a set
schedule since we only had about a mile to go
that day to Ingraham Flats. We ate breakfast
and packed up camp then started setting up the
ropes for our travel to Ingraham Flats.
Before heading out Dan and Ronnie gave us the
rules of traveling while roped up. I was also
given the chance to walk around in my crampons a
bit to get used to what they would and would not
do for grip.
We left Camp Muir at 12:07pm and started across
the Cowlitz Glacier toward Cathedral Gap. The
route was well traveled and easy to follow with
little elevation gain or loss. We went by our
first crevasse shortly after leaving Camp Muir.
When we got to the other side of the Cowlitz
Glacier we needed started up the rock trail to
Cathedral Gap. Crampons suck on dirt and rock!
When we got to the high point of the trail on
Cathedral gap we took a break for a snack and
pictures.
After starting out again we soon found ourselves
back on snow and could see the Ingraham Flats
camp area was close. As we got close to
Ingraham Flats we were greeted with more
crevasses, much larger and intimidating
looking. As we got close to the flats we heard
a loud pop of the ice in the distance. The
route looked intimidating since I had never been
close to crevasses before. These things were
large enough to swallow you up with no trace.
When we got to the flats at 3:45pm we found
spots that had been dug out a little for tents.
We finished digging them out to fit our needs.
I felt energetic that evening and decided to
build / dig a kitchen area. I was able to dig a
nice area for the stoves, some benches by the
tent, and more seating and shelves in the
kitchen area as well as a walk way from the tent
to the kitchen.
We spent the rest of the evening resting,
melting snow and eating. When the sun went down
I was amazed at how fast the temperature
dropped. It felt like an instant 15°F
temperature drop. Everyone went for warmer
clothes immediately. At 6:30pm it was 29°F. I
was also delighted to see thick clouds setting
in below us.
Details from Day 3
Pictures from Mount Rainier, Day 3 - 7-23-08
Wednesday 7-23-08
Start at Ingraham Flats
Explored the area around Ingraham
Flats
End at Ingraham Flats
0.7 miles, 2.15 hours
We got up when we felt like it again since there
was no set schedule. We were making this a rest
and goof off day. It was very scenic waking up
to heavy cloud cover below us and clear skies
above.
From camp we could see Disappointment Cleaver
and the route over it toward the summit. It
looked so steep it was intimidating. It
appeared that if you slipped at any point you
would not be able to stop yourself from sliding
all the way down the cleaver.
While sitting around camp, Joel needed to doctor
a sun blister on his right calf. His pants were
pulled up over his boots on day 1, which exposed
a small part of his leg to the sun all day. He
popped the blister and squirted fluid about 1.5
feet and could have gone a lot further if he
squeezed more.
About noon, Dan, Ronnie and I went to explore
the Ingraham Flats area for a couple hours and
possibly climb down in a crevasse. This was an
eye opening experience as to just how big some
of these things are. It is one thing to see it
on TV or in a photo. But getting right up to
the edge of these and looking over the edge is a
whole new ball game. We walked around the area
and explored the part of the trail where we were
told someone had fallen in the previous day.
When we found the spot we marked out an
alternate route to follow on our summit day.
After traveling over one crevasse and getting
into some deep soft stuff we decided to turn
back for camp and cal it a day. We never went
into a crevasse but I am hoping to get the
chance some day.
After returning to camp we ate and relaxed while
melting water for the next day. We napped when
we could and went to bed early since we were
getting up at 11pm to get ready for summit day.
Details from Day 4
Pictures from Mount Rainier, Day 4 - 7-24-08
Thursday 7-24-08
Start at Ingraham Flats
Traveled across the Ingraham
Glacier
Traveled up over Disappointment
Cleaver
Stop at the east rim of the Rainier
Crater
Stop at the Rainier Log Book
Stop at Columbia Crest
Reverse route and end at Ingraham
Flats
4.3 miles, 14.0 hours
the first 1.8 miles had an elevation gain of over 3,000 feet.
We got up at 11pm to a 20°F morning. I did not
want to get out of bed! I pulled more of my
clothes into the sleeping bag with me to warm
them up then laid there another 15 minutes.
After getting up we got our gear ready, ate a
hot meal, put on the harnesses and crampons then
roped up for our summit. We started our journey
at 1:36am. We were divided into 2 teams. Dan,
Joel, Ron and I were on the green rope and
called ourselves the green team. The purple
rope was manned by Ronnie, Billy and Mitch.
The first few minutes were cold but we quickly
warmed up as we started walking. It was nice to
have the alternate route marked from the day
before. The crevasse was not easily noticed in
the dark.
The travel was relatively easy until we reached
the bottom of Disappointment Cleaver. Most of
the cleaver was not snow covered and was
difficult to walk on with crampons. We
shortened up the rope to travel on the cleaver
to keep from dragging it on the rocks.
When we got to the top of the cleaver we stopped
for a short break to drink and eat a snack.
While there Billy threw up 3 times. He had been
throwing up the day before but was determined to
get to the top.
Our green team started out first from the break
on the cleaver. Shortly after, the sky started
to lighten up and we were able to see what we
were hiking in. The slope seemed almost endless
as we looked up it. The slope was covered in
sun cups that had been melted so deep they
created deep jagged edged spikes covering the
slope. I felt like I was visiting a world I
didn’t belong in. it was cold and looked
nothing like any where I had ever been.
When we started seeing crevasses and huge ice
blocks around us it started taking on an arctic
feel. We stopped multiple times to look into
some of the crevasses. Some were only a few
feet deep and others we were unable to see the
bottom of as they got dark and narrow.
Each time someone needed to stop we would call
out “Green Stop”. Then to start again we would
call out “Green Go”. It became fun to yell out
“Green Go”! We added to it by putting on our
best Mexican accents.
We came to a point where a few crevasses came
together and created a little crevasse maze for
us to navigate. We backed up to cross one to
the right then over another to a large flat area
where we took a break. We were surrounded by
crevasses here. One of them created a huge
cornice above us with large icicles hanging from
it. We were going to wait for the purple team
(the Southern Boys) to catch up but ultimately
decided to keep going.
As we left the flat area we needed to step over
another small crevasse then go up a steep
section about 40 feet long and only 3 feet
wide. On each side of the steep section was a
crevasse that dropped down over 40 feet.
After the crevasses we traveled up more of the
steep seemingly endless slope. As we got closer
to the top we started seeing patches of rocks
along the way. I was feeling good and wanted to
start going up the route fast but needed to keep
my pace slow so I would not burn out or push
those that were not wanting to go that fast.
We reached the top of the slope at about
8:15am. We were happy to have made the crater
in less than 7 hours. We had just climbed over
3,000 feet in 1.8 miles. We were not at
Columbia Crest yet but could see it across the
crater. The crater was over a quarter mile
across and covered in snow. We decided to wait
a while to see if the Southern Boys were going
to make it up.
While waiting Dan and I went over to one of the
steam vents along the edge of the crater to have
a look inside. We climbed down in about 15 feet
and fond it kept going down. We could see at
least another 50 feet down from a ledge we were
on. All the while we were had steam blowing
past us from the caverns below. After hearing
it was an active volcano with steam vents I
wanted to check one out. It was rewarding to
actually see the steam rather than just know it
was an active volcano because someone said so.
We later talked to one of the guides who told us
you can go down about 400 feet in those openings
and end up on the other side of the crater if
you know which way to go. He also told us there
is a plane under there. It crashed while trying
to rescue others off the mountain. The plane
eventually melted through the snow and ended up
at the bottom of the crater.
We finally decided to start across the crater
without the Southern Boys. Walking across the
crater felt like the closest I will ever get to
being on the moon. The crater was over a
quarter mile wide and when we were in it all you
could see was the white concave surface we were
walking on and some rocks on the upper portions
of the edges. There was little to no wind so
the only thing we heard were our footsteps as we
walked across.
We first stopped at the log book (not located at
the actual peak “Columbia Crest”) to sign in.
Then we traveled along the rim to Columbia
Crest. From the crest it looked like the
highest point was the one to the south of us.
Dan and I went over to check it out. When we
got there it looked like Columbia Crest was
higher. Our altimeters confirmed the point to
the south was about 20 feet lower.
While we were on the crest we could see the
Southern Boys coming across the crater and were
happy to see they made it. It was great to have
all 7 of us make it to the peak. Once they got
joined us we took pictures and talked about it
being cool to all be there. Then we started
back across the crater to start our journey back
down.
The green team went first and started down from
the eastern edge of the crater at 12:10pm. The
time spent around the crater and the peak was
great since we had the rare treat of great
weather on the top. We had clear skies, no wind
and about 62°F for the 4 plus hours we were up
there.
On the way back across the crevasse maze section
we took a slightly different route. Rather than
travel down the steep slope with crevasses on
both sides we used the ladder some of the guides
had put up across one of the crevasses. It had
wood on it so it was like walking 2 planks side
by side. While taking a break in the large flat
area with icicles over head I had to throw a
snow ball at some to watch them fall.
The “Green Go” team was back to camp at 3:36pm.
Joel was wiped out and immediately retired to
his tent for the night. We started boiling
water and filling water containers then heating
water to drink. We also melted as much snow as
the pots would handle to leave for the purple
team when they returned.
As time went by we were worried about the other
team. We could see tem moving slowly down the
cleaver at much less than a snail’s pace. They
finally returned at about 6:30pm. Mitch was in
bad shape. The cough he had earlier in the day
had worsened and he looked and sounded bad. He
went to his tent right away as well to rest. We
were all worried about him.
Latter he told Ronnie he was not feeling good at
all. We decided it would be a good idea to call
for help. Ronnie used his cell phone to contact
rangers to ask for guidance. We were told they
were sending rangers up to assess the
situation. About 45 minutes later a ranger came
up with an oxygen bottle and started checking
Mitch. A few minutes later another ranger came
up and helped out. After relaying the info over
the radio to EMTs they were told Mitch needed to
come down. They confirmed what we thinking.
Mitch had a case of HAPE (high altitude
pulmonary edema).
The rangers got him ready to travel and asked
Ronnie to go back to Camp Muir with him. We
would then need to haul the remainder of their
gear back with us to Camp Muir where Ronnie
could then help with the load as well. Mitch
may have had HAPE but he was still able to
summit and can still say he got off the mountain
on his own 2 feet. He had to walk himself back
down with the rangers. They had him roped up,
traveled slow and watched him carefully but he
still traveled under his own power. They put
the oxygen bottle in his back pack so he could
use it while hiking. Mitch told us later it ran
out about half way back but did help a lot.
We all went to bed wondering if Mitch was ok.
Details from Day 5
Pictures from Mount Rainier, Day 5 - 7-25-08
Friday 7-25-08
Start at Ingraham Flats
Stopped at Camp Muir
Ended at Paradise Lodge
5.3 miles, 3.1 hours
We got up ate breakfast, packed up camp and
figured out how to divide Ronnie and Mitch’s
gear among us to haul out. Billy volunteered to
haul out the blue bags which made the rest of us
happy we were not going to have to do it.
We left camp at about 10:50am and started for
Camp Muir. The route back to Camp Muir was
fairly safe so we traveled un roped. The rocks
on Cathedral Gap still sucked while wearing
crampons.
We got to Camp Muir at noon and were greeted by
Ronnie and Mitch getting ready to leave with the
rangers. We loaded some of the extra gear we
were carrying into Ronnie’s pack, took off our
crampons and started down for Paradise Lodge at
12:20pm
We all felt our packs were just as heavy as when
we started the trip. We lost some food and
stove fuel but gained stuff from Mitch’s pack
since he was traveling light because of his
condition. Mine still weighed about 70 pounds
which included everything.
On the way down I decided to slide down some of
the areas where people had made troughs to slide
in. A lot of it was slushy and not worth the
effort but other portions more than made up for
the work. I was able to get up decent speed for
quite a way on a few of these. That took a lot
of effort out of that part of the hike but also
added a lot of fun too.
I got back to the lodge just before 4pm where a
couple people were already waiting for us. We
hung out in the parking lot by the trucks to get
our stuff in order while we waited for the rest
of the group to get there.
After everyone was there we got our rooms
rented, took showers then ate in the restaurant
at the lodge. From there we said our good byes
since we all had different departure times the
following day.
Pictures from Mount Rainier prior to start of route
Pictures from Mount Rainier, Day 1 - 7-21-08
Pictures from Mount Rainier, Day 2 - 7-22-08
Pictures from Mount Rainier, Day 3 - 7-23-08
Pictures from Mount Rainier, Day 4 - 7-24-08
Pictures from Mount Rainier, Day 5 - 7-25-08
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