Climbing Mount Rainier definitely a 'rainier' experience

By Steve McGrath

March 23, 2005 | The sound of rain. I had grown up listening to that sound and loved the nights when it would lull me to sleep. This time it was different though, there was no comfort in the sound, I wanted to see the stars without the interference of the clouds. I wanted good weather. It wasn't to be, though.

My friends and I had been dreaming of this trip for years and had spent even more time trying to plan and prepare for it. Considered one of the more technically challenging mountains in the Lower 48 states, Mt. Rainier has attracted millions of visitors over the past century.

Of those millions, few have dared try to climb the slopes and even fewer have successfully made it to the top. Its large mass looms over the Pacific Northwest and can been seen from a hundred miles away on a rare clear day. The sheer size of the mountain compared to its lower surroundings has the large mass creating its own weather.

The odds seemed stacked against us making it to the top but that was part of the reason why we were there, others said we couldn't do it. We knew it was possible.

The sounds of rain intensify on the "honeymoon hideaway" roof that we are staying in just outside Mount Rainier National Park. The "hideaway" was the only place left that night, so there we were. Three testosterone-driven guys hell-bent on making the climb of our young lives. The rain wasn't so much the worry, we were staying at 5,000 feet above sea level and our plans were to stay the next night on the mountain at 11,000 ft. The change in altitude meant fresh snow where we were headed. There was no sense in staying up all night and worrying about it.

Three a.m. brought the annoying sound of the alarm arousing us from our slumber and signaling it was time to do what we had planned for so long. Wait, there was no sound of rain on the roof, ha, the short night had done the trick. One glimpse into the dark pre-dawn sky showed there were still clouds and that the storm had in-fact not left but merely just taken a break. The decision had already been made that we would go for it anyway. The next hour was a blur of slurping down food and schlepping our packs loaded down with more stuff than any human should be allowed to carry. Done at last! The skies were becoming light and we drove up the mountain to a place called Paradise. I am sure that place may be just that on a nice summer day but it was snowing when we got there, far from my ideas of paradise. This was what all of the hours of reaching out and touching someone had been spent trying to prepare for. Yet I still felt unprepared.

The soft inner liner crammed inside of a hard plastic outer shell felt nothing like the salesperson at the store told me about these boots. They were anything but my Adidas running shoes! No time to worry about it though, the days plans called for 5 miles and over 6,000 ft. in elevation gain. A hefty day considering the load that we were carrying. The day wore on and the snow turned to liquid. We marched on to the pitter-patter of the rain on our Gore-Tex jackets.

Few people know a mountain like a guide, I am fortunate to have gotten information from a couple. Advice and anecdotes always take a backseat to Mother Nature as former guide Jason Livingston pointed out. It certainly was true in our case. Derek Doman took heart in knowing that not all who set out for the top made the peak. When asked what prompted him to climb the mountain, his answer was simple, "why not?"

There have been around 10,000 people each year that have tried to climb the peak and I am sure that they all do it for different reasons. Whatever the reason, it is a mountain that stands alone in more than one way. The experience is one that will never be forgotten; just remember your rain jacket!

Oh and by the way to answer your question, no, we did not make it to the top. The same pitter-patter that started with us was also ended our summit bid. As you can tell, the experience was in the preparation and although the summit did elude us this time, the trip was not a failure, merely an incentive to try it again next year.

For more information on climbing Mt. Rainier check out these links:
NPS Mt. Rainier Climbing Information Page
Summitpost Mt. Rainier Climbing Page
Cascade Climbers Mt. Rainier Chat Forum
NPS 2004 Mt. Rainier Climbing Report/Statistics

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