Emmons Glacier (Mt. Rainier)A trip with some friends from church to the summit of Mt. Rainier via the Emmons Glacier Route. Our group of nine men were finally checked in at the Ranger Station and gathered together at the White River Campground and trail head. We were nervous and excited as we joked and teased each other during which we made the final preparations and decisions regarding what we would carry or leave behind. It would be three days until we return -- hopefully with happy stiories to tell. Six months prior to this, we began the preparation and training specifcally for this day. Five of us have been to the top before, while for the others, this would be a new experience. On the first day, once we hoisted the heavy packs, and began moving up the trail we all settled into the routine of day. The first three miles were along a "trail" -- which at this time was intermittently covered in snow. There were a few clearings along the way which offered us peek-a-boo view of the mountain. Some of these clearings are drainage areas into which the snows at higher elevations of the Burroughs Mountains cascade, knocking down scores of large trees. Fortunately, the avalanche activity ceased for the time we passed through these regions. Instead, we had to thread our way up and over the fallen debris. With large awkward packs, this was no easy ask. At one point, on the way back to the cars after summiting, Corby decided he would try to go around one of the obstructions and ended up in an area totally blocked and impassable. Fighting through, he somehow slipped and became caught in the thick bushes, upside down, and unable to extract himself! Larry came to the rescue and helped him remove his pack which allowed him to get out! After three miles, we were out of the cover of the trees and into the full strength of the sun. By this time we were all getting hungry and looked for a place in the shade to take an extended break. I suggested that everyone eat well and maintain their water consumption. Also, Corby and a couple others were having 'hot spots' on their feet. When we looked at them, blisters were beginning to form as a result of the moleskin incorrectly applied to the heels and ankles. So we took this opportunity to apply treatment to them. Lunch over, we headed for the Inter Glacier where, for the next 2-1/2 hours, we ascended from 5600 feet to 9000 feet. The sky was clear, the winds calm and the sun unrelenting. Chris and I were well ahead of the group as we all followed the steps as if climbing a very long staircase. At a few points, I called back to the group (using our 2-way radios) and suggested that they might want to get out their ice axes for safety. We continued up this long glacier field until we arrived at a ridgeline over-looking the crevassed Emmons Glacier and Mt. Tahoma. From here, Chris and I waited for the rest of the group. We could see the crevasse we will climb past once we down climb the ridge and then get onto the glacier. We can also see the campsite that we will be using -- actually we saw a few tents huddled alone and dwarfed by the immense size of the mountain. Once everyone caught up we got some rest and changed into warmer clothing. At this point we pulled out the climbing gear because we needed to be roped up to cross the glacier. It's one of those rules "always rope up when crossing a glacier". So, by 6:30 PM, we arrived into Camp Schurman and began preparing platforms in the snow for bivys and the tents. Once this was done, the job of melting snow for water to re-hydrate and also for our dinner meals. We had a few problems with stoves at this time. My butane stove would have worked fine if I purchased the proper type of cylinder fuel. It was fortunate that Carl had a similar style stove that could use the fuel I brought. And another white gas stove never worked correctly. This is one reason I try to be redundant on several things such as stoves. We should have acquired another snow shovel, as we only had two for the entire group. By the time we finished with the duties of camp, and were fed and sated, the sun was beginning to cast long shadows as it hid behind Curtis Ridge. This time of year, even at 11 PM, the sky still wasn't totally dark. By the time the problems of malfunctioning stoves were fixed, and dinners were completed, most of the guys were feeling pretty good - tired - but good. Some of the issues we dealt with were blisters, not eating enough while hiking to this point, or not drinking enough water. It was a learning lesson, that wasn't fully learned, as we find out later on. Garth had the most serious problem, with a very sharp pain in the groin area as he lifted his foot to kick steps as we ascended up the Inter Glacier. We prayed, had him stretch, relax and do whatever he could to ease the pain. At least we had a day to allow the pain to subside. Night time comes in quickly and the temperatures drop rapidly. Stars begin to occupy the sky as the deep blue of night sweeps in from the east. An occasional shooting star screams across the sky soon is out of sight. With the exertion of the day, sleep comes to us sweetly and we soon forget that we are 10,000 feet up and sleeping on a snowfield. For sleeping arrangements, the team occupied three tents and 3 bivys. Chris, Jesse and Jon were in bivys. The tent pairings were: Larry and Carl, Kirk and me, and Corby and Garth. Everyone was asleep in short order, though most of us had relatively fitful slumbers, waking often to stretch, go to the bathroom, or just look outside into the sky and see stars that otherwise would be obscured by the pollution haze. Morning came to us in a lazy manner, with each of us getting up whenever we wanted to. Stoves fired up and everyone ate breakfast, which mainly consisted of oatmeal, cider, tea or coffee. Also, we continued to melt snow throughout the morning to ensure everyone had plenty of water to drink, as this is perhaps the most important thing they can do. Today will be a rest day and the only order of business is to move our camp 300 feet higher onto Emmons Flats. Apparently, the camping zone of Camp Schurman was full for the next day and was already reserved. Our 'reservation' was actually for the Flats for both nights, but a small population allowed us to stay lower. The only drawback was that we had to break camp, pack up and set up camp again. This wasn't so bad, because on this rest day, it at least gave everyone something to do. |
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