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 climbing mount adams - south side route july 14, 2001 sorry, but this page will load very slowly on dial-up!
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click photo to enlarge Lee, Steve, Matt and Bill pose in front of Mt Adams. click photo to enlarge  The South Side of Mt Adams rises in the distance. click photo to enlarge  First light on the South (False) Summit at 6:00 am. click photo to enlarge  Matt and Lee pose in front of the mountain shadow. click photo to enlarge  Matt at the False Summit with True Summit in back. click photo to enlarge  Mount St. Helens as seen from the False Summit. click photo to enlarge  Lee, Steve and Matt on the summit of Mount Adams. click photo to enlarge  Steve and Lee wave from the True Summit (there's an old mining shack at left). click photo to enlarge  An incredible view of Mount Rainier from the summit. click photo to enlarge  Mount Hood and Mount Jefferson in Oregon. |
The Mountain: Mount Adams is a 12,276-foot behemoth in Washington State that lies nestled between Mount Rainier to the North and the Columbia River Gorge to the South. The mountain actually has a larger footprint than its taller sister, Mount Rainier, but it is over 2,000 feet shorter. Most people outside of the Pacific Northwest do not know about Mount Adams, as it is in a remote area with few roads and it cannot be easily seen from the nearby major cities. The mountain contains numerous glaciers, beautiful wildlife and tremendous views of the other Cascade mountains and the Columbia River Gorge. Part of the mountain actually resides in the Yakima Indian Reservation and certain routes actually require you to buy a permit from the Yakima Nation - rather than the USDA Forest Service. Mount Adams is the second tallest mountain in Washington and the third tallest mountain in the Cascade Range (behind Mount Rainier and Mount Shasta). The Route: The South Side "standard route" on Mount Adams is basically a very long hike, devoid of any technical challenges. A dirt and rock switchback trail starts from the Cold Springs parking lot at 5,600 feet and winds its way up to the snow - which could be between 7,000 feet and 8,500 feet during the Summer months. Once you lose the actual trail, there is usually a defined boot trail through the snow. View the climbing route! The route takes you slowly up to a flat camping area at 9,300 feet known as the Lunch Counter. Many people setup their camps here and attack the remaining 3,000 vertical feet the following day. From the Lunch Counter, the climb is pretty much straight up the mountain until you reach Piker's Peak (also called the False Summit or South Summit) at 11,657 feet. This is where the steep, vertical slog ends and your endurance begins to be tested. For those who were expecting to be near the summit, they are quickly disappointed to learn that the hill leading to the summit is still 4/10 of a mile away. At over 11,500 feet, the "thin air" challenges novice climbers and breaks their spirits - despite the relative ease of the route. After covering the last flat area of the climb, the route reaches the hill to the true summit. This final 1/4 mile stretch is not terribly steep - it's about 20 degrees - but the altitude does make it tough to complete the pitch to the summit. Once you get within a few hundred feet of the summit, you notice an old sulfur mining shack that is half buried in the snow. This is actually the summit of the mountain! From this point, you look out over a large, relatively flat area that, as one person said, "you can play football up there if you want." The views of Mount Rainier to the North, Mount St. Helens to the West and Mount Hood to the South are usually stunning. The Climb: On a sunny Friday afternoon, my friends Bill Bayer, Steve Rollins and Lee Trent drove to Trout Lake, Washington and on to the Cold Springs trailhead on the South portion of the mountain. We set off on the trail and made our way up the switchbacks under the blazing heat of the Summer sun. It had been a dry Winter and there was little water, much less snow, around, so the trail was choked with dust. Our goal was to make it to the Lunch Counter at 9,300 feet in order to camp for the night. After the first mile, Bill realized that his hip was giving him a great deal of pain, so we didn't get very far. After many stops, we decided to camp at the 6,700 foot mark, which would mean a long climbing day the following day. There was no water to be found around there, so we resorted to boiling snow for liquid. This would be a bad omen for the next day, as I became rather dehydrated - not a good thing for climbing over 5,500 vertical feet the next day. We awake at 3:00 to a cold morning and Lee, Steve and I left Bill at the camp about 3:30. After a few bumps in the road (like Lee accidentally cutting his ear on his ice axe during a slip), we began climbing quickly. We made it past the Lunch Counter before dark and, as the sun began to rise, we were scaling the steeper pitch to Piker's Peak. The snow was firm and rather icy, so the climb was more difficult than I had expected. However, we eventually reached the False Summit and caught up with Steve, who had dusted Lee and I on the last pitch. This trend continued over the final climb to the True Summit, as Steve made it up there about 20 minutes before Lee and I reached it. Once there, we had another climber take pictures and we all enjoyed the sights. I particularly was stunned by the closeness of massive Mount Rainier to the North. I had seen it from Mount St. Helens before, but it was somehow bigger now. All I could think about was how I would one day scale that peak as well. I just couldn't figure out how! I hope you enjoy the photos. -- Matt |
click photo to enlarge The group takes a break on some rocks along the trail. click photo to enlarge  The timberline camp site at 6,700 feet (July 13). click photo to enlarge  Mount Adams casts a shadow on the horizon. click photo to enlarge  Lee & Steve climb Suksdorf Ridge at 10,000 feet. click photo to enlarge  An army of climbers ascend to the False Summit. click photo to enlarge  Steve climbs the "sun cups" up to the True Summit. click photo to enlarge  Matt poses in front of majestic Mount Rainier. click photo to enlarge  The Pinnacle (right) and Mount St. Helens (left) as seen from the summit. click photo to enlarge  Mount Rainier and the surrounding mountains. click photo to enlarge  An action photo of Matt glissading down Mt Adams. |