Mt Hood. Round 2. February 2013
Mt Hood draws an interesting crowd. It’s something I’ve been told several times, and witnessed more times than I can possibly count. Three ski areas operate through the winter, one of which provides year round snowboarding and skiing. Snow sliders aren’t the only ones to frequent the volcano. Scenic tour people ride the lift in the summer to take in the epic views. Climbers come from all over the world to stand on the summit of Mt Hood; so many, in fact, that it is the second most frequently climbed mountain on the planet after Mt. Fuji.
If you’ve never been to a ski area, and you wandered up to Meadows or Timberline, you might think the “interesting crowd” I am referring to wears slouchy beanies, mustaches of every style, and neon colors that put the 80’s to shame. I’m not. Those styles are something I see everyday as people stroll past my office window, en route to the lift line. The people I speak of are the ones climbing the mountain… and there isn’t anything particularly interesting about them until you encounter them at an elevation above 9000 feet.
This time up Hood, I was climbing with Peter and Pat. From the base of the climb to the Hogsback, we encountered a few groups of really awesome people who were stoked to be climbing a mountain. At the Hogsback is where we starting seeing the wild array of other people on the volcano… and I’m not being judgmental, this is strictly observation. There were hesitant couples walking down the Hogsback. One lady was looking uneasy and her man climbing partner appeared to be very unhappy. This was either because he was also uncomfortable or worried that a break-up conversation would follow a successful down climb. Two snowboarders were visible from the top of the Hogsback. They were traversing with axes out, skittering over firm patches and yelling to me that it is, indeed, very steep and icy. Steep is a relative term so I didn’t argue. Icy it wasn’t because the traverse cruised through knee deep wind deposited snow. I just said, “Ok, thanks.”
Next up were people being guided, which was obvious by each climber being tied into their guide during the down climb. Good for them, they climbed a volcano and it was probably something they’ve been dreaming about from their office desk for weeks, months, years, who knows. Hell yeah, way to get out and after it. At the top we encountered two skiers who were very nice guys. Unfortunately they side-slipped all the wonderful snow out of the skier's left side of the Old Chute, leaving behind a firm, funky base. So it goes.
Peter found a nice little chute to send and he killed it. At the bottom he stood next to two tele-skiers who were posted up at the base of the Old Chute and having a hell of a time. The man on telemark skis made a few turns down a firm sliver of snow. It was loud and chattery, and didn’t look awesome. Peter traversed 25 feet right made beautiful turns down to Crater Rock through wind deposited snow. The two skier dudes, Pat and I all hooted down at Peter who looked like he was having a fantastic time. This was all happening while tele-ski pair were standing awkwardly, fully puckered, and the guy was yelling up at the lady, “it’s all icy and bad. Very bad. You better boot down.” They were, clearly, not avid tele-skiers. Jesus Christ people. Be a little observant. Peter slayed beautiful snow right next to where they were standing. It's time to look around and find a better line. Better yet, learn how to tele ski in the ski area. Not at 11,000 feet near the top of a volcano; without anyone to get your asses out of trouble when you encounter it, because you surely will. Pat and I decided it was best to leave these shenanigans behind and promptly got the hell out of there, spraying soft snow left and right while rocking ear to ear grins.
The entire line from the top of Old Chute to the bottom of the West Crater was phenomenal, wind deposited snow. I felt bad for the people who skittered down firm surfaces, unaware of the awesome times just feet away. The two skier dudes we met up top made a slightly terrifying speed descent, with only one crash while sipping down to the bottom. It didn’t appear to cause any injury so we cruised on past, marveling at the array of skills on the volcano that day and wondering how we didn’t see any tragic mishaps.
So that's the climbing and riding of Mt Hood for the second time via the south side. Next time, I'm going up something rowdy in an attempt to avoid crowds: Leuthold or Cooper Spur sound like suitable options. Anyone want to join?
If you’ve never been to a ski area, and you wandered up to Meadows or Timberline, you might think the “interesting crowd” I am referring to wears slouchy beanies, mustaches of every style, and neon colors that put the 80’s to shame. I’m not. Those styles are something I see everyday as people stroll past my office window, en route to the lift line. The people I speak of are the ones climbing the mountain… and there isn’t anything particularly interesting about them until you encounter them at an elevation above 9000 feet.
This time up Hood, I was climbing with Peter and Pat. From the base of the climb to the Hogsback, we encountered a few groups of really awesome people who were stoked to be climbing a mountain. At the Hogsback is where we starting seeing the wild array of other people on the volcano… and I’m not being judgmental, this is strictly observation. There were hesitant couples walking down the Hogsback. One lady was looking uneasy and her man climbing partner appeared to be very unhappy. This was either because he was also uncomfortable or worried that a break-up conversation would follow a successful down climb. Two snowboarders were visible from the top of the Hogsback. They were traversing with axes out, skittering over firm patches and yelling to me that it is, indeed, very steep and icy. Steep is a relative term so I didn’t argue. Icy it wasn’t because the traverse cruised through knee deep wind deposited snow. I just said, “Ok, thanks.”
Next up were people being guided, which was obvious by each climber being tied into their guide during the down climb. Good for them, they climbed a volcano and it was probably something they’ve been dreaming about from their office desk for weeks, months, years, who knows. Hell yeah, way to get out and after it. At the top we encountered two skiers who were very nice guys. Unfortunately they side-slipped all the wonderful snow out of the skier's left side of the Old Chute, leaving behind a firm, funky base. So it goes.
Peter found a nice little chute to send and he killed it. At the bottom he stood next to two tele-skiers who were posted up at the base of the Old Chute and having a hell of a time. The man on telemark skis made a few turns down a firm sliver of snow. It was loud and chattery, and didn’t look awesome. Peter traversed 25 feet right made beautiful turns down to Crater Rock through wind deposited snow. The two skier dudes, Pat and I all hooted down at Peter who looked like he was having a fantastic time. This was all happening while tele-ski pair were standing awkwardly, fully puckered, and the guy was yelling up at the lady, “it’s all icy and bad. Very bad. You better boot down.” They were, clearly, not avid tele-skiers. Jesus Christ people. Be a little observant. Peter slayed beautiful snow right next to where they were standing. It's time to look around and find a better line. Better yet, learn how to tele ski in the ski area. Not at 11,000 feet near the top of a volcano; without anyone to get your asses out of trouble when you encounter it, because you surely will. Pat and I decided it was best to leave these shenanigans behind and promptly got the hell out of there, spraying soft snow left and right while rocking ear to ear grins.
The entire line from the top of Old Chute to the bottom of the West Crater was phenomenal, wind deposited snow. I felt bad for the people who skittered down firm surfaces, unaware of the awesome times just feet away. The two skier dudes we met up top made a slightly terrifying speed descent, with only one crash while sipping down to the bottom. It didn’t appear to cause any injury so we cruised on past, marveling at the array of skills on the volcano that day and wondering how we didn’t see any tragic mishaps.
So that's the climbing and riding of Mt Hood for the second time via the south side. Next time, I'm going up something rowdy in an attempt to avoid crowds: Leuthold or Cooper Spur sound like suitable options. Anyone want to join?
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