July 26th-27th Mount Adams Summit!!!

For Jen Z. to see what Adams is like and for everyone else to share in our amazing summit of Mount Adams. Pictures courtesy of Jen Gagne, our official photo documentarian. I also added some of my pictures (they are the really bad ones).

The Drive up to Adams at 6am

Me, Brandon, Andy C., Pavel Nosov, Mr. Chchran, Marie, and Jen Gagne

The mountain

Mount Hood from Mount Adams

Looking up past the trees to the false summit

Mount Hood from the tree line

Me ascending, check out the angle of the mountain

Mount St Helens from Mount Adams

Jen's Refridgerator, to keep our chocolate and pizza preserved

Our Campsite

The view from camp to the false summit

Pavel plays his harmonica as we watch this beautiful sunset from 10,000ft

One Word: GLORY

Jen embracing the gift God gave

The mountain's Shadow in the morning sun

Breaking camp on a cold morning

Ascending to the false summit took 4 long hours and check out the 38 degree angle on the slope.

On top of the false summit (11,500ft) looking toward the true summit

Looking southeast down on the false summit from the summit at 12,276ft!!

Looking West from the summit

Mount Rainier from Mount Adams

Looking west from Adams

The toast at the top, "nothing better than Grand Marnier on a day like today"

Jen on top of the 2nd tallest peak in Washington State

Pavel the mountain conqueror

The obligatory "Top of the Peak shot"

Jen rocking it at 12,276ft!!!

Pavel higher than he has ever been

Two Mount Adams hikes....12,281ft

Oh, and by the way I'll be doing it for the first time on the 26th and again on the 31st, that's two summits in 5 days.
I simply must make TWO HUGE apologies to anyone who reads this blog...

1) I am sorry for interrupting my recounting of adventures on the road, don't fear I will return soonish with fresh stories.
2) I am sorry for failing to use the abbreviation "Mt." whenever I refer to the great mountain known as Adams (or Klickitat by the local native tribes). However I have known good friends who have lost brothers and buddies on the dangerous mountains here in the Cascades, so I respect this peak, its two brother peaks, and its sister peak. They kill. I don't worship these peaks or anything, but I respect them.

With all that taken care of, let me tell you about the mountain, then I'll tell you about the hike, then I'll tell you about the gear and accommodations for the trip.

Elevation: 12,281 ft
2nd Biggest Volcano in Washington State
194th tallest peak in North America
Passes: Required for hiking above the Lunch Counter

Cost:
Camp sites run ~$15 a night
Food you buy yourself for Friday breakfast, the hike, and for the night after the hike ($12 a person)
Hiking pass ($10)

The Hike:
All my info about this summit comes second hand off people's blogs or from Dan from Mars Ballard, so take it with a big grain of salt.
This 13 mile round trip features a 6,704ft elevation gain across snow fields, glaciers, and barren tundra. It can be done in one day, that is not to say that the first time I try I will succeed. This is a non-technical summit requiring power-slogging (I of course mean that you just keep going and persevering). As Elliott has said in the past, "A long slog? Sounds fun, I'll slog it out any day." So anyone who wants to come with me will be in for one brutal day...or two if you're as crazy as I am.
The first 2 miles are in the trees over dry ground. The next obstacle will be a boulder field with a large amount of rapidly melting snow and ice. Every blogger has recommended reaching this field early in the day before the temperature rises too much, reducing mobility. The snow fields start after this point with a gentle grade all the way up to the Lunch Counter where many people choose to camp in the numerous wind protected campsites. The next 1.5-2 hours are steep with soft snow up to the false summit; the view is supposed to be legendary along this stretch. The effects of altitude will be brutal from the Lunch Counter on. A prolonged rest (acclimatization break) is recommended at the false summit because there is extensive cover from the continuous wind. Also drop all excess weight and pick it up on the way down. The last 600 vertical feet are the hardest part because this air is the thinnest of the whole hike. At the top, you can see hundreds of miles and the fraternal peaks. The way down is EPIC, well not as epic as my road trip, but still pretty sweet. You can glissade more that 65% of the way down including one part where you lose 2,700 ft without stopping! Reading others' experiences has led me to make two recommendations:
1) Practice Rest Stepping:
After the Lunch Counter, conserving your leg muscles and reducing your body's demand for oxygen will go a long way. Read THIS article and learn. Rest Stepping is a great method for exactly this sort of hike.
2) Altitude Sickness:
This is due to the body's reaction to lower oxygen levels above 10,000ft. Anyone who has done Muir with me knows what this feels like. According to other bloggers the best ways to combat this are to:
a) Take antioxidants like vitamin A,C, and E
b) Take a substance called Acetazolamide (Diamox) which can help prevent the effects if taken preemptively, unfortunately this substance dehydrates the user, and is dangerous if taken with Alcohol (I am skeptical about this one)
c) Take the herbal supplement Ginko Biloba

The Two Day July 25-26th Hike
We will leave Seattle at 9:00pm on Sunday July 24th and spend the night at my college friend's house in Portland. On Monday morning we will leave for Mount Adams and start our hike up to the "Lunch Counter" at about 9400ft where we will sleep and acclimatize. On Tuesday, we will hike to the 12,281ft summit and descend rapidly using our thermo sheets using the amazing ice chutes. The Plan is to be back in Seattle on Tuesday night.(6 people confirmed so far: Pavel, Jen, Eric, Andy, Andy's dad, and Me)

The One Day July 31st Hike
We will leave Seattle at 6:15pm on Friday night and head directly to Cold Springs Campground at the foot of Mount Adams. After a good night's sleep, we will ascend as far as possible, however a summit is unlikely since we will be hiking all 6700ft in a single day. We will go as far as is reasonable and safe. When we descend, fatigue is certain, so we shall camp back in Cold Springs Campground. The Plan is to return to Seattle on Sunday by about 3pm. (Two people confirmed so far: Sean and Me)

Gear:
A brand new Army Emergency Medical Kit (I will provide)
3 changes of cloths (two for camping (one for the drive) one for the hike
Sleeping bag or comforter
Tent (if you have one)
Cook Stove (if you have one)
Food for Friday morning that will top up you energy
Food for Friday night that can be cooked over fire or a camp stove
A towel for after the hike in the car
Food for the Hike, snaking is very important (I prefer baked good, trail mix, sandwiches, slices of cold pizza, etc)
Water for the hike ~2 Liters
Sun Glasses or Ski goggles with UV protection
Sun Screen SPF 30+
Ice Axes (optional)
A day backpack to carry water and food in for the 1 day option
A back packing pack for the 2 day option
A stalking cap, tuque , baclava, or hat
Gloves (for snow ball fights)
Strong boots with some water-proofing (Cramp-ons optional)
2 Large Black Garbage bags (for enjoying the long ice chutes on the snow fields)
Thermal Gear Top and bottom (Under-Armor or "long johns")
Heavy tuque hat
Thick wool socks (Maybe bring a second pair)
A scarf
Medium weight jacket (with some sort of liner & some rain resistance)

Accommodations:
We will be staying at the Cold Springs Campground (no water available) in Gifford Pinchot National Forest. I will bring a 3 man tent, cook stove, wood + white gasoline to light it, food for breakfast on Sunday before we go home, and 1 extra sleeping bag. For the Two day option, we will camp at the "Lunch Counter" at 9400ft.

Quotes from other Blogs:
"We glissaded down 2700 vertical ft to Lunch Counter. Without stopping. It took us 10 to 15 minutes to descend the slope that took us an hour and a half to climb."
-Dave & Iva's Blog
"Gorgeous views of Rainier awaited us at the summit. Barely visible under the snow were remains from a fire tower / sulphur mine that once was located at the top of Mt Adams." -Naffziger's Summit

Here is a funny story about Mount Adams:
Hall Kelley was a man from the early 1800s who became fascinated by the exploits of Lewis and Clark. He repeatedly tried to reach the Pacific Northwest overland, but due to finances and circumstance failed. He ended up heading to New Orleans and from there south to Veracruz and eventually up to Monterey. He then finally made it to the mouth of the Columbia River where he recovered from Malaria. He shipped out to Hawaii and eventually returned to Boston. In the end he showed himself to be a great organizer and leader of men and a strong influence on others who eventually came from the east and settled Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. Now that isn't the funny story. Before he set out on his long, yet successful adventure he led an organization to rename the Cascade Mountain Range to the "Presidents Range." The idea was to name all the big mountains of this range after former U.S. Presidents. He failed in renaming the range, but succeeded in renaming one mountain after a president. He received approval to rename Mount Hood after President John Adams. But due to the inaccurate maps of the day and a careless cartographer the name "Mount Adams" was placed 30 miles east of Mount St. Helens and 40 miles north of Mount Hood on the official map of the area. Fortunately, or providentially if your are a Calvinist, there was a big mountain already at the exact location! Thus Mount Adams received its name.

Mount Rainier Hike to Camp Muir

July 16th, 17th, and 18th.

The Trip:
We will leave the Seattle area in carpools on Thursday night at about 6:15pm and arrive at Cougar Rock Campground at about 9:15pm. We will then drive up to Paradise at about 8:00am and start hiking up. We will be back at paradise at about 7:00pm and drive back to the campground. Then we will enjoy s'mores, food, and fun together. I will provide a breakfast/brunch on Saturday Morning for everyone (hash browns, bacon, breakfast sausage, maybe even pancakes...) before we finally get back to Seattle by about 1:00pm.

The Hike:
We will gain about 4200 vertical feet on the way to Camp Muir, the traditional base camp for summits of this fine Volcano. The round trip is 10 miles featuring amazing views and great company (don't worry, we won't be charging up the mountain so even if you aren't in the best shape you'll make it). For the hard core, I still plan to go if the weather is disagreeable (much like the June 19th Hike up to Camp Muir. I have 5 mats for sliding down the ice shoots after we reach Camp Muir at 9,950 feet. The more cultured mountaineering folk refer to such sliding as "Glissading". But feel free to bring a garbage bag to aid in the descent

Cost:
Camp sites run $12 a night, split that between 6 people for two nights ($4 a person)
Park entry is $15 per car, split 4 ways ($3.75)
Food you buy yourself for Friday breakfast, the hike, and for the night after the hike ($12 a person)

Gear:
3 changes of cloths (two for camping (one for the drive) one for the hike
Sleeping bag or comforter
Tent (if you have one)
Cook Stove (if you have one)
Food for Friday morning that will top up you energy
Food for Friday night that can be cooked over fire or a camp stove
A towel for after the hike in the car
Food for the Hike, snaking is very important (I prefer baked good, trail mix, sandwiches, slices of cold pizza, etc)
Water for the hike ~2 Liters
Sun Glasses or Ski goggles with UV protection
Sun Screen SPF 30+
Ice Axes (optional)
A day backpack to carry water and food in
A stalking cap, tuque , baclava, or hat
Gloves (for snow ball fights)
Strong boots with some water-proofing (Cramp-ons optional)
2 Large Black Garbage bags (for enjoying the long ice chutes on the snow fields)
Thermal Gear Top and bottom (Under-Armor or "long johns")
Heavy tuque hat
Thick wool socks (Maybe bring a second pair)
A scarf
Medium weight jacket (with some sort of liner & some rain resistance)


Accommodations:
We will be staying at the Cougar Rock Campground in Mount Rainier National Park. These sites are first come first serve, so we will do our best to claim 2 or 3 (for a total capacity of 12-18 people).
I will bring a 3 man tent, cook stove, wood + white gasoline to light it, food for breakfast on Saturday before we go home, and 1 extra sleeping bag.

I hope as many people as possible make it out to this beautiful mid-summer paradise and enjoy the alpine meadows, glistening snow fields, and heart-stopping vista. After all this is my favorite place on Earth.

Pictures/Videos of my past trips to Camp Muir:
Camping at Rainier


Up to Muir

At Camp Muir


Down from Muir




Please come with me up to Rainier. Come from anywhere, if your are in New Zealand and see this then book a plane ticket, if you are in the military and have some leave then take it, if you are about to prove Fermat's Last Theorem in a newer better way then stop and follow me, if you need to go to Stockholm and receive the Nobel Peace Prize then don't get on the plane come with me. Bottom line, you know you want, you know it'll be fun, you know you will stand above at all, so Come On!

New Developments and Old Recollections

I haven't posted here in a long time and I honestly can't give a reason why. I had many more adventures after my time at the Wolf Ski Resort yet I have not put the proverbial pen to paper.
Just to get myself going, I'll recount all the events since my triumphant return to Seattle.

1. I resumed serving at Mars Hill Church both on Sunday and during the week. As of right now I am responsible for leading a 16 member team that serves communion to about 900 people every Sunday during the 7:15pm service in Ballard. I am also responsible for running the Thursday night Campus Cleanup where I lead a variable size team (as few as 8 and occasionally as many as 20) in the task of cleaning a 50,000 sqft building, so that it is all ready for weekly events. These two tasks are immensely stretching for me. I am a quiet and self-absorbed anti-social guy who is totally at home in the corner of a coffee shop. Instead God has called me to lead people in a way that glorifies Christ. I feel like I don't do this very well (or as well as I should), but for whatever reason both those teams are doing rather well. I also serve on Security at the West Seattle Campus of Mars (I dig a church that has bouncers...so that all the little kids are safe and the body is protected).

2. I built a deck and now am finishing up by laying the decking material and railings. The project passed inspection so an underpaid overworked city of Seattle building inspector thinks I did a decent job (for whatever that's worth).

3. I house sat for my grand parents and enjoyed the resumption of my road trip's near constant isolation for a mere 7 days.

4. I have been training in earnest for an upcoming Mt. Rainier Hike and a Mt. Adams Summit. 20 mile sprints in the saddle out to Alki and back (420ft to 0ft and back up). Man I remember Dave's sweet bike and am filled with an envy as I chugg along with my 21 speed mountain bike. Calisthenics have help too and I'm in great shape as I look forward to summer.

5. I have geared up by buying an ice axe, new mountaineering boots, and gaiters.

6. I have played tour guide to some Mars Hillians from Albuquerque and my Buddy Andy from Portland.

7. I have read by the pound: Anathem by Neal Stephenson, Adventures with Charley by Steinbeck, Thinking Beyond Stage One by Thomas Sowell, Doctrine by Mark Driscoll, Luke (4 times) by Luke, On the Road by Kerouac, and the 9-part series by Orson Scott Card (Ender's Game, Ender's Shadow, Shadow of the Hegemon, Shadow Puppets, Shadow of the Giant, Ender in Exile, Speaker for the Dead, Xenocide, Children of the Mind)

So I have been busy, but I feel idle. That makes me feel uneasy. I can't rest. Sabbath is not my normal state.

Ok now I've shaken off the hesitation in writing so now I'll write about what happened after the Wolf. Excuse me let me turn on Mogwai, so my mind is clear...

The Ending VLOG, Seattle

I should have posted this earlier. It is my VLOG immediately upon returning to Seattle with Joe. He accompanied me from Chicago to Seattle. I recorded this at the Hamilton Viewpoint in West Seattle; my little corner of the Emerald City (the name is not related to the Wizard of Oz, it is due to the perennial green beauty of the city it never gets depressingly dead-looking like all of the South, East, Southwest, and Midwest in Winter). We actually have evergreen trees and more rain than we know what to do with.
I love Seattle, the people and the place. Heck right now I'm sitting in the Bauhaus (the very best of Grunge Coffee shops, an old motorcycle repair shop) at the very core of Seattle in the Capitol Hill neighborhood.
Joe and I had this picture taken in downtown Seattle's Pioneer Square as soon as we finished the 3,000+ mile full conquest of I-90 (Boston to Seattle).

When I recorded this clip Seattle felt inclined to greet me with rain (of course my long lost city was so overcome with my valiant return that she needed to cry). Also in the VLOG I look pompous (I think I do), if I were you I'd chalk that up to me being punch-drunk with the joy of a distant goal reached, a goal that looked so far away and so uncertain, so as to not really be believed possible until actually seen, felt, and blogged about. One other note:
BEFORE WATCHING THIS TURN UP YOUR AUDIO SO YOU CAN HEAR ME!! (Sorry when I recorded it I thought it'd be louder)

Also this is not the last post about the road trip!! I still haven't told about DC, NYC, Boston, Harvard, Maine, Chicago, or the Northern Passage. Please stay tuned.

Wolves, small children, and insanity

I guess I'll post the trip stats even though this road trip is concluded.
Miles: 14704.8
Gallons Burned: 484.1
Caffeinated Drinks: 88
Gigabytes of Pictures: 33.5

I also feel compelled to admit one thing before I continue, I have been reading "On the Road" by Jack Kerouac for the first time so I may exhibit a certain violence/exuberance in my writing; you all have my apologies.
After catching up with my aunt and uncle and eating an amazing squash dish that kept getting better as I had it for leftovers, I slept poorly waking often to odd and unpleasant dreams.
I was determined to catch a little skiing on my road trip as it had been 20 months since my last alpine adventure involving rapid descent (rather different from my long and grueling hikes up Mt. Rainier to Camp Muir at 9,550 ft).
Zoom out to see just how awesome it really is:

View Larger Map
Anyhow I set out back up I-26 toward the Appalachian "Mountains" (Honestly these hills are often given far too much credit. They are nice for a Sunday drive but surely do not bear the one critical element that makes a mountain a mountain, namely the tendency to create widows). I await Jen or Alicia's rebutal, you see they have done something like 1,500 miles of the long Appalachian trail and they can tell of the extreme exertion required to defeat such terrain. Check out their cool story, it's the last link in my "Websites!" section.
Oh right! So I drove north but due to my lack of intel, I didn't know exactly where to go, so despite "the" stereotype I stopped and asked for directions to Sugarloaf Mountain. The oldtimer at the gas station looked at me confused. He asked if I wanted directions to skiing. I answered in the affermative, he relaxed as said why not go up to the Wolf? "It's only 15 minutes away."
Excited to be so close to powder I thanked the man and left with after purchasing a sandwich for later.
Much later I realized that Sugarloaf is actually the best skiing in Maine, not North Carolina.
So I valiantly drove north up to the Wolf. I drove a slow road into the mountains that dead ended in a resort community, back tracking I found my error and returned to the correct path. I skidded into the parking lot of a ski rental shop my parking was as follows (Notice the precision of my diagram):

The whole lot was covered in about 6 inches of snow, so I just rammed the car into the lot and let her be where she stopped. I grabbed some shorter skis (its been a little while so cut me some slack).
I managed to push my Jolly Green out of the lot with only 15 minutes work.
Once at the lifts, I paid for the really cheap lift tickets and hopped up the mountain on their one working chair lift. On my second lift ride I met a middle aged man on the lift who was an executive for some southeastern grocery store; then I met a pair of giggling stoners. The next ride was taken alone as were the next three rides.
After getting my snow legs back, I felt like a break was called for. I pulled over here and unpacked the back pack that Uncle Steve let me borrow:

I ate a fine roast beef sandwich, two Hershey bars, two wheat and cheese cracker packs, a quart of water, and some raisins all while enjoying the view.
After the next run, I joined a solo skier who was in line for the lift. His name was Tristan. He came out to ski with his mom, but she didn't want to ski so this 10 year old kid was braving the slopes alone even though this was only his second time skiing. I felt a kinship with this kid; we in our own unique ways were loners experiencing the purest form of solitude: being alone in a crowd (okay second purest form of solitude, the purest being locked away in your car for 12,404 miles to wrestle with your true self, equivalent to two weeks of solitary confinement in prison). So I hung out with Tristan. He was a great kid. I would be proud of my son if he was half the young man Tristan is at the same age. He held himself well and was fearless, he took on the steepest slopes with a thirst for speed paralleled only by my own. He wanted to push the envelope on his ability on skis and he visibly improved with each run. I never had a little brother (that I grew up with), but Tristan would be awesome as a little bro. With his mother's permission here is Tristan:

After I had sharpened my ski skills, I filmed a long clip of me skiing down from the top of Wolf Mountain to the bottom. It is the last clip in this little video project I made from my time on Wolf Mountain. Feel free to leave feedback(much love to the Go! Team who provided the music):

Next time I'll share more from Asheville...

Miles: 14636.2
Gallons Burned: 481.4
Caffeinated Drinks: 86
Gigabytes of Pictures: 33.5

Well folks I made it back safe and mildly sound. How about I tell you all some more about my time in Tennessee and North Carolina.
I drove back to Knoxville with Josh during which we tried to sing along to Muse (impossible for anyone who is not an Italian trained Castrato). Apparently Tennessee boasts the best highways in the US, but after seeing a dozen towns ending in "ville" I decided that Tennesseans are not very creative folk.
Once back we joined Josh's friends and watched some pairs figure skating in the Olympics. Josh's roommates and I discussed an Ayn Rand book called the Fountainhead (a great read for those who love a good story and architecture). The whole experience of Tenn. was great made greater by the neat folks I spent time with. Josh I look forward to seeing you whenever you get back to Seattle.
I headed East on February 17th hoping to get an early start in case the weather became an issue. Turns out the weather was great, but my intelligence was lacking (NO!! My mental acumen was not lacking...rather my information about interstate 40...okay my decisions on the 17th do provide ample evidence for my lack of intelligence :) ).
As I headed East I noticed the lack of traffic on I-40, I didn't notice the big orange sign warning about a "DETOUR". I was too pleased to drive on such an open road to think that maybe it was empty for a reason...
I came to a road block about 25 miles into the Appalachians I misread a sign and started down a dirt track. It was lightly covered in snow with only a few sparse tire tracks. The snow became more pronounced as the road's grade increased. I passed a few shacks and some free ranging chickens. Only when I lost traction on a modest uphill and started to drift backwards and rightwards into a steep ditch did the thought "hey the highway construction crews usually don't detour an interstate's traffic onto dirt roads..."
I quickly flipped the wheel left and shifted into reverse, while giving the engine gas. I got traction and swung the car violently around while shifting into drive and straightening the wheel. I headed down back down the road without "ditching" the car. I want to try that trick again in less hazardous conditions (it sounds fun), so my sudden maneuver saved me a tow truck ride and another trip to the junk yard.
I read the sign before entering the interstate and understood it to mean that an 80 mile detour to the North was recommended due to construction/rebuilding of I-40 (following an avalanche/landslide).
I, not wanting to waste an opportunity, pulled onto the shoulder of the interstate and retrieved some of my fireworks to have some fun with the many icicles along the road. Using my tire iron and some M-200s from Alabama I blew up and shattered dozens of stalactites along the deserted interstate.
After all that fun, I headed back out to I-81 and then onto I-26. Little did I know that would soon be heading back that way for some more raucous winter-tainment.
I got into Asheville North Carolina at about 3:30pm and hit up Izzy's Coffee Den:

They were a typical Seattle style indie coffee shop with loud music and a fascinating clientele. I blogged a little and after dark drove South out of town to my aunt and uncle's house in the surrounding country side.
Next time I'll tell you all of water falls, smoky nights, and apologetics...