Great trip report and photos on the Shot from the Hip blog.
Mt. Saint Helens is the famous volcano close to Portland, Oregon.
• 11.6mi (18.7km) return
• 4565ft (1,392m) elevation gain
• summit at 8365ft (2,550m)
• 7-12 hours
Ignoring good advice from Rangers, two hikers raced up the mountain without ice axes or crampons. Then got lost and separated on the descent.
I’d like to smugly denounce them. But, instead, I relate.
In June I too would expect to be able to get up and down without heavy mountaineering gear.
Theirs were mistakes easy to make.
first trail marker on the scree
The guys did get to the top quickly and enjoyed fantastic views.
Mount Adams as seen from the summit.
On the way down the blue sunny skies we had at the summit quickly disappeared into a fog of clouds.
Hmm… Where are those markers? …
At one point, the boulders got bigger and more difficult to navigate. We then took a route that we thought would be an easier path. We had walked down the wrong side, but we did not know it. This side was definitely different. As we got farther down, we realized that it would be more and more difficult to go back.
At one point Eric and I got separated as we could no longer navigate the rocks and had to try to go through the snow. He slid down a ways and from his vantage point, he saw the weather station and realized we were on the wrong side.
Since we did not have crampons and ice axes, continuing to slide would not have been a good idea. So we decided to climb back up. …
To make things worse it started snowing. Not just the soft fluffy stuff dropping from the skies, but the heavy kind that pelts you with stings as it flies horizontal. Something we did not need. If I had slipped, the drop would have been quite disastrous, and the snow only made matters worse. Eventually, by the grace of God I made it up to the top, but Eric was nowhere to be found. I called out his name and no answer.
… Eventually Eric found his way up. This little adventure added about an hour to our trip.
Ah, no harm done — this time.
Our information page – Mt. Saint Helens – besthike
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