Where I come from...: Mt. Adams

Friday, November 25, 2011

Mt. Adams

Skipping ahead a bit, we were soon on our way to spend a week in Oregon in mid-June. Prior to that, on Memorial Day weekend, we had run the Pocatello 50 mile, a beautiful race that once again was affected by weather. Race day conditions were much better than in 2010 when the race was cancelled due to heavy snow and 50mph+ winds on the peaks that produced blizzard-like conditions and forced many runners inadvertently and sometimes dangerously off course (One group of lost runners that chose to stay together found themselves running through a bull pasture. One of them was wearing a bright red jacket.) Although this year's race did contain alot of snow, it was in the form of a still-lingering, record-setting snowpack from the prior winter that prevented access to the last big loop up and over 8,500ft Scout Mountain. The course was altered and we even got in a few extra miles.

The beginning of June also marked my biggest push of ascents up Snow King, regularly logging 2 or 3 ascents/day and once even 4.

But then, finally, we were headed west to Oregon stopping to climb Mt. Adams before rolling into our home base in Portland.

This is as far as we could we drive on the road up the the standard TH at Cold Springs on the south side of the mountain. Again, lingering winter snow was the culprit, but we would have a nice 4-5 miles extra to get warmed up the next morning before getting onto the actual peak.

These were going to be great conditions for skinning. Even better conditions for a beer.

Just above the Cold Springs TH which was still buried under 6 feet of snow.

Looking south across the Columbia River at Mt. Hood in Oregon and the setting moon.

Our shadow to the west with Mt. St. Helens in the distance.

There had better be a good reason for there to be snowmobile tracks all the way to the summit. As this was a wilderness area, these machines are not allowed anywhere on the mountain.