IBEXtrax.com - Cascade Mountains of Washington State Mount Rainier Park

27 Mount Rainier Finally

4 July 1975

I was up for The Puma. I was up mentally because it would be my third try. I was up physically because I was running two miles a day, and I quit smoking. Jim called and filled me in on his attempt the week before. He said that the weather was so bad that they needed a safety line from the shelter to the out house. No climbers went above Camp Muir.

Jim picked me up early Friday morning, so we could arrive at Paradise before the Ranger Station opened at eight o'clock. We wanted to be first in line for a first come first serve reservation at Camp Muir. It was overcast as we left Juanita, but we drove through the clouds while climbing to Paradise. I noticed that the Stevens Canyon Road was open. We beat the ranger to the station, and we were first in line to fill out the IBM cards. The parking lot was a bustle of climbers. I applied Clown White to my face before I left the car.

Just below Panorama Point we met the sales manager for Jan Sport. Jim talked with him about expedition support for a Karakoram climb. A chilling wind at Pebble Creek cut short my rest stop. Jim pulled ahead and lengthened his lead as we started up the Paradise Snowfields. I settled for my own easy pace. At Little Siberia Jim easily talked me into giving up my seven pound MSR tent. He said that he wanted to carry it to get more exercise. I tried to follow Jim's tracks, but lost them as he pulled away. The Hut Girl from Mount Rainier Inc passed me like I was standing still.

When I came into view of Camp Muir, I knew not to get my hopes too high. The distance looks deceivingly close across the Paradise Snowfields, but I knew it was still two miles away. Near Camp Muir I was becoming very exhausted. After arriving at Camp Muir I set up the tent. I was not acclimatizing fast enough for the 10,000 foot gain in the past eight hours. I thought I had Acute Mountain Sickness. I laid in the tent and practiced deep breathing. Jim Koched a Leek and macaroni monster that played havoc with my upset stomach. It was slow progress, forcing down the cold macaroni. I slept well and the night was calm.

A little after midnight Camp Muir comes alive. The MRI guided party, all forty of them, eat a quick breakfast and are strung across the Cowlitz Glacier by 1:00 AM. The other thirty climbers, comprised of private parties, leave about the same time or a little after.

Jim and I slept in. We ate breakfast while watching the headlamps disappear around Cathedral Rocks. We tied into the rope and left the tent about three o'clock. I had acclimatized during the night, and I felt good as we followed the track across the Cowlitz Glacier. All the previous climbers had mulched the track with their crampons. So, we traveled along the sand-like surface without the bothersome straps and points associated with crampons. I was easily winded as we climbed the dirt up to the notch in Cathedral Rocks.

We followed the rib where I noticed a long aluminum ladder that was apparently used to bridge late season crevasses. As we climbed the rolling slopes of the Ingraham Glacier we passed an occupied camp. The trail swung right and wove through huge crevasses. On the lower Disappointment Cleaver there was an exposed ramp that demanded a little concentration. The eastern sky began to lighten up as we reached the crest of Disappointment Cleaver. Our pace slowed and we stopped as we caught up with the seemingly endless string of climbers above us .

We took a break, strapped on crampons, and nibbled on Kendal Mint Cake. After the rest, we passed a group of young climbers and then Jim picked up the pace. My second wind came on strong and then we sprinted past many rope teams. Above Disappointment Cleaver, where the track became narrow, we started passing the guide parties. The guides were shouting out instructions: "Breath deep. Keep moving. Make your own track If you want to pass. There is a hole mountain here." "I'm not leading", I said, succumbing to his game.

We rested with an Army group at 13,200 feet, and I was quickly chilled by the light wind. After the rest Jim made a rush for the crater rim. I pushed myself hard to keep the rope from going taunt. As we neared the crater rim, Jim started pulling me. I pulled him to a stop and tried to catch my breath. I coughed up some speckled flem. I soon discoverer that I couldn't catch my breath, and that stopping only induced an extremely violent headache. I signaled to Jim to continue and we quickly reached the crater rim.

As we unroped on the edge of the crater, my head was pounding. Forced breathing seemed to relieve the headache. I easily cross the moat and dropped to the crater floor. A light snow was blowing across the crater floor. In an air-sucking stupor I staggered across the crater toward Columbia Crest. The last small climb to the highest clump of snow was switchbacks and rest step. I stood on the summit and looked around. The day was clear, but I didn't see any details. From the top of Mount Rainier you are so far above the other peaks of the cascade range that you can not see their profile. The summits of the cascade crest blend in with the lowlands of the Puget sound basin.

On the large rounded mound of the craters southeast crest, there was a group of climbers trying to decide which spot was the highest. I turned south and faced into a lightly blowing wind. With my mouth wide open, I found that I didn't have to force my breathing. I went over to the register box and waited in line before I signed-in. Jim appeared and we sat on the pumice and ate fresh nectarines. It was eight AM. I noticed that the other people around me were not affected by the rarified air. An airplane flew by, and an Army chopper made a half dozen passes. The Army group held up a large flag across the crater from us.

I moved back across the crater, going slow and sucking air. While Jim and I re-roped, I told him about my acute mountain sickness. He over reacted and said, "Do you think you can make it down?" I answered yes, but I thought that I should go first in case I slipped. One of the MRI guides was going down the line of climbers congratulating and shaking hands of his patrons. He didn't notice the mistake until after he shook my hand.

We headed down and quickly we had a clogging crampon problem. We decided to take the crampons off and Jim tied them to his pack. We plunged down together, being careful at the icy spots. I backed down in one spot. A single slip built my confidence with a self arrest. By the time we reach the top of Disappointment Cleaver my breathing had calmed down and my headache was gone. I used a standing glissade to descend the cleaver. We were going fast. The weather was beautiful all day. Down on the Ingraham Glacier, it was hot and without a breath of wind. After I led through the crevasses, I had to stop and remove my parka. I hurried across the rock sprinkled Cowlitz Glacier with a watchful eye for rockfall.

We were the first party to reach Camp Muir, and it was like a ghost town. At the tent I discovered that I was missing one of my crampons. I lounged on a comfortable rock and watched the rope teams arrive. I asked about my missing crampon. One climber said, "Yea, I think one of the guides picked It up." As I waited I watched the guide parties arrive. When each rope team arrived the hut girl would carry down a drink far the guide. One of the last guides had my crampon, and I thanked him for picking it up. I considered not telling Jim that I recovered the crampon to see if he would go up to look for it. Jim uncovered the scheme before I could try it on him.

The high camp ranger wanted to know if we were going to use our reservation for the night. We decided to give up our spot. We slowly broke camp and lingered for a while before starting down. We skated down the slightly formed sun cups on the Paradise Snowfield. Jim tried a seat glissade, but the slope was not steep enough. Below Pebble Creek we started to meet the tourists. It was easy to brag. Above Panorama Point we picked up the trail of big orange wands and then followed them down the Skyline Trail into Edith Creek Basin.

The Paradise parking lot was crowded with people who were celebrating the fourth of July. The tradition of removing the grease paint from my face in the restroom was faithfully accomplished. We checked in with the ranger and then walked down to the visitors Center. We ordered chili dogs from an oriental that Jim knew from his two previous visits. While we ate in the crowded cafeteria I felt self conscious yet proud as people acknowledged my sun burnt face.

We drove down through Stevens Canyon and stopped along the road at a waterfall for drinks. The route continued out through Ohanapecosh and then climbed over Cayuse Pass. Jim talked of his trekking in North Africa. As we dropped in to the White River drainage the view of the Puma was impressive. The awesome size of the mountain was truly revealed. From the headwaters of the White River, up the massive Emmons Glacier, and culminating at Columbia Crest. We stopped for beer at Silverton, and the store was like an oven. At Enumclaw we ate the Colonel's Chicken. Jim was going out of state to teach an Outward Bound class, so he said he would look me up in August when he returned. I drove on from Enumclaw while Jim read the paper.

	This site created and maintained by THE IBEX - Page last revised: