Mount Hood, Oregon

Elevation 11,239 feet

Summit Date: June 23, 2000

Via the traditional, Hogsback (south side) Route, we climbed from 6,000 feet to base camp at 9,000 feet.

Thursday, June 22, 2000 Timberline Lodge (6,000 feet)

We spent the night before our two day summit-bid at the Hood River Inn (our room had a beautiful view of the Mountain), and enjoyed a pre-hike, tasty, non-dehydrated dinner at the Mount Hood Brewery. The next morning at 7:00 a.m., on June 22, we woke early to a very sunny day, and met our guide and one other member of our four person climbing group at the Timberline Lodge. After a warning from our guide that the warm weather would make the snow very soft, and that the possibility existed that we might not summit, we set out from the lodge (6,000 feet) at approximately 9:00 a.m. Under the heavy load of our packs we hiked up the snowfield along the East edge of the ski area to the same level of the Silcox Hut (6,950 feet). The sun keep us warm as we ascending to the Palmer Glacier (8,540 feet), and then to an area just below Crater Rock called the Triangle Moraine (9,000 feet). Here we setup our camp by digging out a snow platform and setting up our 5-man "North Face Himalayan Hotel" tent. Then, as part of our program with Timberline Mountain Guides we went through a 2 1/2 snow skills course. While we learned how to short-rope, glisade, self-arrest, we could hear more than a few rocks falling from the Steel Cliff to the east [just the day before two climbers were hit by rocks and radioed for help, 75 miles away two kids heard their SOS and the climbers were rescued by helicopter]. Yes you must take this mountain seriously. We ate a great dinner of pasta and fresh salmon and went to sleep around 8:00 p.m.

Note: At this point we decided not to summit. This is a tough decision to make, but we took several things into consideration including: skill compatibility within the group, our own skills with being roped up and self-arrest (using an ice ax), some general fear of the steep Hog Back, and the bergschrund--a huge crevasse. We had to make the decision here, and could not present a risk to the group by continuing on, only to stop and risk exposure or danger.

Friday, June 23, 2000 Triangle Moraine (9,000 feet)

At 2:00 a.m. we watched as our guide and new climbing friend set off for the summit, along with the common traffic jam of other mountaineers ascending. A beautiful red/orange horizon brought us into day at around 5:00 a.m. as we watched climbers approach the bergschrund. At approx. 7:00 a.m. our companions returned having been the second group on the summit that day. Mel and I had packed most of our gear, and left the North Face tent for the next group coming up that day. After collecting the remainder of our belongings we hiked and glisaded (sliding using an ice ax as a rutter) down the mountain. We spent the night at Timberline Lodge and enjoyed the beautiful view of Hood and the crisp clean mountain air.

8 miles round trip

2 day summit climb

5,300 feet elevation gain

No USGS benchmark

Lt. William Robert Broughton, a member of Captain George Vancouver's British expedition to the Northwest, sighted and named Mt. Hood in honor of Rear Admiral Samuel Hood. [Rear Admiral Hood signed the original instructions for Captain Vancouver's voyage.]

Mt. Hood is located approximately 50 miles ESE of Portland in the Mount Hood Wilderness of Mount Hood National Forest.