911

The Liberty Ridge climbing teams have worked their way off the mountain today (actually, one team is still at Thumb Rock, but OK). As it turns out, two separate teams called 911 this week requesting help and/or information. One team became lost between Liberty Cap and Columbia Crest; the other team was pinned down below Liberty Cap at 13,700 feet (soooo close). FYI, these locations have claimed and threatened the lives of other climbers before, always during bad weather.

In both cases, whiteout and snowfall impeded the teams' progress. This event shouldn't pass without comment. It's very consuming to address emergency 911 and personal calls from family members on issues that, in all respects, could have been avoided or dealt with differently.

Incidents like this occur (particularly on Liberty Ridge) when climbers plan for 2/3/4 day ascents (i.e. light/fast) and then get caught in unsettled weather. It's not as though the climbers weren't technically skilled enough to ascend the route. It was obvious, however, that they became concerned when climbing wasn't the issue and sitting out a prolonged weather event was. Logistics, skills and weather are a hard equation to balance when planning trips. One simple way to provide backup is to carry extra fuel. Extra fuel can ensure water and warmth. As I told one man's wife this week, no one has died of starvation on Mount Rainier, yet plenty have been stressed out by running out of water/fuel. As a good example to follow, one team weathered 9 days of stormy conditions a few years ago. Could you?

Another important point is to NOT MOVE when you're lost or uncertain of your location. If you haven't been caught in a whiteout before, trust me when I say that movement is nearly impossible during such weather. And BTW, finding you is even more challenging. Therefore, calling rescue personnel with GPS coordinates isn't going to work unless you want to make sure we find your tent/equipment/etc after it's all said and done (hint, hint). Also, asking for "directions" isn't really possible either; if you don't know where you are, neither do we. GPS's are a great invention, but they can't guide you on a mountain in a whiteout. The terrain and crevasses are just too much to safely negotiate.

I realize that this information may seem obvious, but it's amazing how many smart and capable people get caught in this situation and then call for help. Also remember that when you call 911, you are really calling for help. When you're climbing Mt. Rainier, or Mt. Baker, or Denali or any other big mountain, do everything you can to be prepared for bad weather that will totally limit your progress. That's part of the climbing game. Climbing isn't always about gear, fitness, skill, aesthetic, it's also about fortitude and your ability to deal when the weather really sets in, which is what happened this week on Rainier. These teams didn't have an emergency, they were just STUCK. Furthermore, rescuers and helicopters are not going to pluck you off in such an event.

OK, enough soap box. The Washington Trails Association is doing more than their fair share to help the Glacier Basin Trail. And the Steven's Canyon Road will reopen much earlier than anticipated (June 22) barring any major catastrophes. Did I just say "major catastrophes"???...

Climbing and skiing, and advice on cell phone use

If you haven't noticed, few posts means lots of work and activity here at Mount Rainier. The weather has remained stellar over much of the past week and things have been busy. During this period, climbers and skiers have been tackling the mountain from all directions. Of particular interest are new and extensive reports for Liberty Ridge, Ptarmigan Ridge and the Fuhrer Finger (photos included).

It seems that a few people are just itching to be rescued or call 911. We've had a number of "alarms" or "callouts" over the past few weeks, thankfully nothing has been serious! That said, one callout is in progress and involves a 2 person team pinned down in a whiteout on Liberty Ridge near 13,700 feet. We suspect that they will be fine, as they are well prepared for 2 more days on the mountain. As a reminder, if you carry a cell phone, make SURE you call 911 during an incident or emergency, not your family members.

On the other hand, two separate teams had somewhat serious accidents but self-rescued. Neither of those teams used a cell phone to alert friends. One incident involved the skier who fell 300 feet on the Emmons Glacier last weekend. A more recent event involved a 2 person team on the Kautz Glacier. One member dislocated his shoulder while descending (balled up crampons). As a reminder, we're still working on that streak of NO NEW MAJOR RESCUES since 2005. We hope to continue this trend...

First photo is by Josh Farris near 12k on Ptarmigan Ridge; the second is of a climber on Liberty Ridge by Dmitry Shapvalov.

Perfect Weather for climbing and skiing

Breaking with tradition, as oddly happened also in 2005, there was reasonable weather on the upper mountain over Memorial Day weekend. The normal Pacific NW tradition calls for drippy rain and snowfall. So with the good weather came a whole bunch of skiers and climbers.

At Camp Schurman, the skiers took over. After all was said and done, there were more successful skiers than climbers! Here is an all women's team that ripped down from the summit on Monday afternoon. They reported excellent climbing conditions, and relatively icy ski conditions... But that wasn't a problem for them. On the other hand, I witnessed another skier tumble and fall roughly 200-300 vertical feet near 12,600 feet. It took his teammates a few hours to collect his equipment and get him back to Camp Schurman. He wasn't hurt too badly, but it was awful to watch it play out through the telescope. YIKES!

On an important administrative note, here is a heads up to those who don't think they need to register. There are intensity patrols happening in the backcountry and they are checking to make sure that all teams have permits. This weekend, a few parties were turned around and some were cited for failure to register for a climb. Make sure you get your permit and climbing pass before taking off. If you need help, give us a call 360-569-2211 ext 6009.