Lost hiker at Tram 4/23/2010

[KathyW]

hikerbiker: I must say I admire how prepared you were for an overnight bivy. Thanks for reminding us of what we need to carry just in case something goes wrong - especially when heading into the snow. Lightweight packs and snow climbing do not mix.

You'll love Rainier - it's such a beautiful mountain.

Kathy

[rebelyell]

Hikerbiker,

Just read your thread I am glad that you're safe and made it down without any injury. The tracks that you were following belonged to me and another 3 hikers that did this hike on Saturday. We left the museum station at around 4:30 am and made very good time. I had read the message boards last week and was aware of all the snow on the mountain; I was therefore equipped with Crampons and an ice axe and one other member of our group had an ice axe; however, the others just had micro-spikes. The micro-spikes were working well for them when we first hit the snowline but as the snow got deeper they were slipping all over the place. By this time I had my crampons on and gave my ice axe to another hiker. Also, we had totally lost the trail and turned south to follow what we assumed was the trail. One of the members of our team had done this hike twice before, although never in such deep snow, and seemed to remember switchbacks to the south. We went south for an hour (it was very slow going in the snow) when we hit a wall of rocks. At this point, we decided to turn back towards the crag not by going back down but by traversing the side of the mountain in deep snow. Being the only one with crampons, I went ahead of the party to make a trail for the others to follow. This is when I got to the snow chute which I assume is the one you went up. I did go up the snow chute for about 50 meters before deciding it was too steep and it would be impossible for the hikers without crampons. I came back down the chute and continued traversing down and up two more valleys towards the crag where we found the trail again. It took us another 30 minutes from the base of the crag to get to the valley. We made it to top around 3 pm to great relief. We were lucky to have started early and to have had some equipment. I guess the lesson learned for both of us is to be well-equipped (which you were) and to hike in a group. We are looking forward to climbing Whitney in August.

[Cy Kaicener]

Hikerbiker - Thank god you did more right things than wrong things.
The very first time I did Skyline I also went up the wrong chute and know how difficult and steep it is even with the trail snowfree. Post holing is frustrating and energy sapping. Thanks for posting your story.

[SoCalJim]

Hikerbiker: good straightforward, humble report. Helps us all to learn from others' experiences. As to the 25 lbs you carried, I tend to carry more clothing/gear rather than less. You don't expect to need it, but like the safety belt in a car, you're glad to have it when the unexpected happens.

[bluerail]

real glad it turned out good for you. I'm up there alot and it always looks different in the snow...always

[hikerbiker]

I appreciate the kind words from everyone. I live in Rancho Mirage and plan to go back to Skyline before my Mt. Rainier trip. If one of you is going up soon, maybe I can walk up with you. I plan to hike down to my cave with my 11 year old son when the snow clears. I want to make sure he learns from as many of my mistakes as possible. I know he'll make some too, but maybe he'll have a full pack when he does.

It's a pleasure to join your community.
Mike

[zippetydude]

I'm sure it will bring a chuckle from some, and a smirk from others, but here it goes.[/u]

You'll notice, there's not a lot of smirking! I liked your honest report, and I admire your candor even though it's not always flattering.

By the way, I'm guessing that you've taken some risk before, and been successful at navigating your way out of it. Competent people still get stuck sometimes.

Hope to see you on the trail out there this spring. Hope you have good luck and good fun on Ranier.

z

[bluerail]

hey hb...watch out for this zippetydude guy..he's dangerous

Hey zip...ready to play with the snakes ?

[Phil B]

Hikerbiker,

That was a very informative report, I quess most of us have had a scarey moment when you realise that your not on the right trail, its important to stay calm and be logical in those circumstances, you did a good job in having all the right equipment with you, glad you got back safe.

Phil

[zippetydude]

hey hb...watch out for this zippetydude guy..he's dangerous

Hey zip...ready to play with the snakes ?

This time of year is rough - snow at the top, snakes at the bottom!

So, where is that video of the avalanche?!

z