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 climbing mount adams - mazama glacier route july 21, 2002 sorry, but this page will load very slowly on dial-up!
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click photo to enlarge 11,276-foot Mount Adams from Trout Lake, WA. click photo to enlarge  A beautiful waterfall near Bird Creek Meadows. click photo to enlarge  Matt in front of Mt Adams during the approach hike. click photo to enlarge  The team crosses a large snowfield on the hike. click photo to enlarge  A waterfall near Sunrise Camp and Hellroaring. click photo to enlarge  The team reaches Sunrise Camp at 8,300 feet. click photo to enlarge  Matt poses in front of Klickitat Glacier. click photo to enlarge  The bundled up Rich Konopka at 11,700 feet. click photo to enlarge  Reaching the sulfur mining shack at the Summit. click photo to enlarge  The 304th and PMR teams pose on the Summit. click photo to enlarge  14,410-foot Mount Rainier towers to the North. click photo to enlarge  The Pinnacle, at 12,049 feet juts out 1/2 mile away. click photo to enlarge  A parade of climbers ascend the South Side route. |
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 (including the Mazama Glacier route) 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 Mazama Glacier route on Mount Adams is quite possibly the most beautiful climb available on the mountain. From the Bird Creek Meadows area, the hike follows a lush, green trail past several waterfalls and a small lake. The only thing that makes the hike tough is the massive swarms of mosquitoes near the lake! View the climbing route! After hiking through several wildflower meadows and viewpoints, the trail begins to reach the snow. Soon after this, the trail meets the Hellroaring Overlook, which is a cliff side viewpoint of the Hellroaring River valley and Meadows. From there, climbers see just how far they still have to go. Mount Adams still seems a world away! The route crosses then passes the timberline, moving over multiple snow fields and rocky moraines. This makes passage somewhat risky, as one misstep can cause a sprained ankle or nasty fall. There are several water stops along the way, which is nice, because the route is exposed and allows the sun to beat down upon you. Eventually, you reach the Sunrise Camp at 9,300 feet, where there are many camping areas on a plateau along a glacial stream. This is the base camp for the actual climb. The climb moves up through the seracs and crevasses of Mazama Glacier, which can be treacherous at certain times of the year. Just past the large crevasses in the middle of the glacier, the route moves up a steep pitch toward Piker's Peak and its 11,657-foot resting area. The final 4/10 mile climb to the summit covers a large, flat area and a steeper hill to the top. The summit is actually an old sulfur mining shack that is partially buried in the snow! The Climb: Our 9-person climbing party assembled in Hood River, Oregon, for an early morning breakfast on Saturday, July 20. Besides myself, the party consisted of fellow Portland Mountain Rescue member Steve Rollins, friends Lee Trent and Doug Pierson, four members of the Air Force Reserve 304th Rescue Squadron and one of the pararescue jumper's wives. We drove out to Trout Lake, Washington, and then on to the Bird Lake trailhead in the Yakima Indian Reservation. The trail took us through the beautiful meadows and lush vegetation of the Bird Creek Meadows area and past several waterfalls. I was also eaten alive by mosquitoes! After losing the trail a few times, we reached the Hellroaring Overlook and saw the remaining distance to our base camp. The next few hours were laborious and we stopped several times to filter stream water and eat. The day was very hot and it was tough to hike over the slick snow and unstable rocks with our 60 pound packs. In the late afternoon, we made it to Sunrise Camp at 8,300 feet and set up our base camp. The views of the Klickitat and Mazama Glaciers were stunning!! After a tough night sleeping at altitude, we got going about 3:30 in the morning under ink black skies. The nearly full moon had set sometime after midnight and we only had our headlamps for guidance. This caused a problem with route finding, as we ended up crossing the Mazama Glacier at the wrong spot and missed the proper pitch to Piker's Peak. We instead hit the South Side route at about 10,500 feet, increasing our route by about an extra mile. :( Once the sun rose about 5:15 in the morning, we began the 1,000-foot slog up the South Side standard route to Piker's Peak. The teams began to break up here, as the first 5 climbers moved very quickly and the other 4 team members were significantly slower. I had become dehydrated and a bit dizzy, so I was in the second group. The wife of the one PJ had to stop around 11,000 feet and the three of us went on further. As it turned out, myself and one of the PJ's reached the summit last, about 30-45 minutes after the rest of the climbers. We all posed for photos and quickly left the area around the mining shack. I managed to take in a few of the beautiful views of Mount Rainier, though St. Helens and Hood were slightly obscured by haze and smoke from forest fires. The descent was generally uneventful, though my water filter clogged - this did not help my state of dehydration. However, we all made it back to Bird Creek safely and vowed to do this climb next year. Everyone agreed that this climb was much better than the standard South Side route. I wholeheartedly agree. I hope you enjoy the photos. -- Matt |
click photo to enlarge Doug, Matt and Lee at the Bird Creek trailhead. click photo to enlarge  The view of Mount Hood along the hiking trail. click photo to enlarge  The view of Mount Adams from Hellroaring Overlook. click photo to enlarge  The climbing team takes a break along the way. click photo to enlarge  The team reaches the base of Mazama Glacier. click photo to enlarge  An incredible view of Klickitat Glacier. click photo to enlarge  The South Side route from Piker's Peak at 11,657 ft. click photo to enlarge  The hill leading to the True Summit towers ahead. click photo to enlarge  Lee Trent and Matt on the 12,276-foot Summit. click photo to enlarge  Doug Pierson and Matt on the Mount Adams Summit. click photo to enlarge  The view of 8,364-foot Mount St Helens. click photo to enlarge  Lee Trent glissades down from the Summit. click photo to enlarge  A large crevasse on Mazama Glacier. |