Category: volcanoes

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.

Mt Saint Helens trip report and photos

Ah, no harm done — this time.

Our information page – Mt. Saint Helens – besthike

UPDATE: Mount Rainier National Park is not issuing permits for the entire length of the Wonderland Trail in 2007. Only sections. Check the website: WTA.org

Wonderland Trail, Mt. Ranier, Washington, is one of the best hikes in the world.

However, it’s taken a lot of storm damage over the past winter. Not all trails will be open for 2008, I believe.

On the other hand, this adds interest and challenge to an already unbelievable hike.

I would like to do the wonderland trail 9-12 days. preferably have other married woman like myself. husband doesn’t like to hike.

The responder should be a strong hiker. (lot of ground to cover but would be life altering experience.) I plan to do the hike in august 24-sept 2 if you think you can do this e-mail me

sgiglenda @ yahoo.com

Wonderland Trail – besthike information page

bridge photo – Washington Trails Association

El Misti (5827m / 19,117 ft), in Peru is perhaps the easiest way to hike HIGH anywhere in the world. We think.

I did it solo myself in 2005.

It looks so tempting from the hotel roof in Arequipa.

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But it’s not always that easy, as Eu-Jin Goh from California found on his adventure.

We signed up for a trip to El Misti with Zarate Expediciones. It cost more than the other agencies but we were quite keen to go on the trip with Carlos Zarate (84 years old at the time) who discovered a number of Inca sacrifices at the top of volcanoes near Arequipa.

… Carlos was full of information about his climbs in the area, he would frequently point at something and tell us that he found x number of mummies and Inca artifacts x number of years ago. In fact, our trip was his 384th summit of El Misti!

For a walkup, El Misti was physically strenuous for several reasons:

1) we were barely acclimitized for those heights after spending two nights at 2000 meters (Arequipa) and one night at 3600 meters (Chivay), and no real physical exertion at those altitudes.

2) This period was the second day of my 12 day bout with food poisoning and a bad cold that plagued me through the trip.

3) The trailhead was at 3415 m (11,204 ft) and the summit was at 5827 m (19,117 ft), translating to an elevation gain of almost 8,000 ft to be covered over two days.

4) There’s no water on the mountain and we had to carry 12 liters for both of us for 2 days.

5) I forgot to pack my energy drinks to Peru, which would have been quite helpful since I couldn’t eat any solid food. On hindsight, I think a better choice for acclimitization is Chachani because, although higher, it is an easier climb since from trailhead to summit is only 1000 meters over 2 days.

When we reached the crater rim, it started to snow, and Serene and I hurried to make the summit before the weather broke completely. We ended up descending at the start of a snowstorm that plastered the upper part of the mountain with snow that was visible from Arequipa the next day.

El Misti (5827m / 19,117 ft), Peru – Eu-Jin Goh photos

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Details on how to organize a trip there for yourself on our Misti information page.

If you opt for Zarate Expeditions and/or climb Chachani instead, know that not everyone is happy.