Receiving the training materials and itinerary from the guided service, I quickly realized I need to get in shape and start training. I sought out several training hikes around Colorado and as they repeatedly told me, "be in the best shape of your life." As the climb neared, I packed up my gear and headed out to the state of Washington to attempt a summit bid of Mt. Rainier, the highest glaciated volcano in the continental United States. Upon arriving in Seattle, I excitedly raced to Ashford, Washington, the base town of Mt. Rainer and home to RMI Guides, the guided service I enlisted. Upon an overview of the agenda for the next three days and a meticulous inspection of our gear, we headed out for a full day of mountain school. Lead by the two head guides, the team learned all the needed skills to safely summit Rainier and survive the next to days on the mountain. After a day of education and practice, we retreated back to base camp to make final preparations for our summit bid. 

 

The following day our team headed out for Camp Muir, our mid-mountain resting point for the evening at 10K feet. With our packs loaded with gear and after a six hour climb and an elevation gain of 4,600 feet, we reached our destination. After settling in to the bunk house, our guide went over what we could expect the following day and the responsibilities of each climber. At 11:30 pm we awoke to the howling wind to make final gear adjustments, get roped up and begin the journey we had all trained and waited for. We began our climb in the pitch black only guided by our headlamp and the assistance being roped together, we slowly began to climb and climb. At this point, I begin to examine my physical conditioning and question their mental toughness. Due to the inherent dangers of mountaineering, our team could only stop and break in designated locations along the trail to avoid ice falls, avalanche areas and crevasses. These breaks were few and far between, typically ranging from an hour to an hour and a half before being able to rest and hydrate. While it would have been easy to want to rest longer, the guides kept them short to ensure ample time to ascend and descend safely. With the sun beginning to rise over the Spokane valley, fatigue from the long stretches, steep pitches and short breaks, we began to feel the effects of howling winds on the exposed volcano. With wind gusts toping out at over 80 miles and hour, we were constantly reminded to stay mentally focused and physically strong.

 

With the summit in sight, we pushed on, braving the adverse wind conditions and the pressure and responsibility of being on a roped line to find out we were in the midst of an emergency situation, a gentlemen on our team became snow blind and needed assistance to safely descend from the summit of Mt. Rainier. After splitting up his equipment among the reminding guides, he was escorted down to Camp Muir for further medical treatment. The remainder of the team slowly descended with a smile, evaluating the remarkable beauty surrounding us and commenting on the snow bridged, crevasse laced route we traversed in the dark of night. After arriving back at Camp Muir we joined the fellow teammates to gather our belongings and continue the descent to the parking lot where our shuttle waited. In all, we started the climb with 17 clients and six guides and summated with 10 clients and three guides. It was an incredible trip and one I won’t soon forget. Mt. Rainier proved to be the ultimate introduction into mountaineering and has whet my appetite for further adventure in the snow capped mountains. This winter I plan to take more classes and build upon the skills learned at mountain school and during the climb so that I can fully appreciate the Colorado Rockies year-round and train for future summit bids around the world. For SportZu.tv, I’m Patrick Woods and I hope to see you in the mountains soon.