DAY 3: Mount Adams South Climb Route
Thursday morning started early with breakfast at 3a and a departure from my base camp in Trout Lake around 3:30. The drive would take about 45 minutes with time built in for a last-minute bathroom break along the way. My goal was to be on the trail by 4:30, just like I had done on Shasta.
As I drove toward the trailhead, the conditions already looked fantastic.
There were lots of cars at the trailhead today and plenty of people gearing up to start their adventure. I was relieved to see that I wouldn’t be all alone on the mountain, even though I would be climbing by myself. At 4:35am, I set off on my own adventure.
By 5:26, I had covered the first 2 miles, which was a nice warm-up with only 1,000 feet of elevation gain.
I wanted to pace myself, knowing full well that this climb involved twice the elevation gain of a typical day in the mountains back home.
Not long after, I caught up with a group of skiers making their way up.
The route was easy to follow once I noticed these wooden posts marking the way. There were plenty of tracks to follow as well, including fresh ones from climbers ahead of me.
The views were incredible, with Mount St. Helens to the west…
…and Mount Hood to the south.
By this point, I had passed three younger guys and a couple with a dog. I was three and a half miles up the mountain and still following tracks.
About a tenth mile later, still below Lunch Counter, the tracks I followed stayed to the right of some rocky outcroppings. When I turned to see whether those behind me would follow, they didn’t. Instead, they headed left.
I wondered if they knew something I didn’t, but stayed my course toward the waypoint I had marked for Lunch Counter. That turned out to be a great decision, as I will explain here shortly.
Lunch Counter
I took a quick break at Lunch Counter, where it was easy to see why this is such a popular camp area for climbers turning this ascent into a two-day adventure.
Four miles in, I was feeling great and making good time, with nearly three hours on the trail so far. My COROS showed an elevation gain of 3,757 feet, not far off from what my phone was tracking.
On the slope above Lunch Counter (not sure if it has a specific name), I noticed several people moving up the left-hand side, following the orange line pictured below. Watching those black specks move ever so slowly, my focus shifted to a more gradual-looking grade off to the right, shown by the red line below.
I continued to favor the right-hand side of the route, feeling compelled to find my own way. That choice paid off because once I reached Suksdorf Ridge, I was treated to views of the Klickitat Glacier and Big Muddy Creek to the east.
Those who stayed on the main route missed out.
As I neared the top of the false summit, the slope above Lunch Counter came back into view. I counted fifteen people below me, still slogging up what looked to me like a staircase. It was noticeably steeper than the “ramp” I had taken (red line). My little detour unknowingly put me well ahead of the group.
I descended the main route (orange line) and later confirmed the difference in steepness using the elevation profile below. Not that I needed the confirmation, but readers of this post might.
Summit Push
The final push from the false summit to the top is slightly less than a mile.
Roughly a third of that distance crosses a relatively flat area before the last half mile to the crater. I watched a group head straight up another staircase (orange), while I once again chose the more gradual ramp (red).
Capped in blue ice, the summit offered a clear view of Mount Rainier to the north.
I was thrilled to have reached the summit in under seven hours.
This climb covered 6.15 miles and 6,704 feet of elevation gain in just 6h 45m. That wasn’t too far off from my stats on Shasta: 5.18 miles, 7,130 feet of elevation, and a summit time of 7h 17m.
The Descent
The crater on Mount Adams isn’t anything like the ones on South Sister or even Mount Rainier, but I did walk along its eastern rim as I started my descent.
Unlike my ascent (red), I followed the steeper route (orange) for the descent.
The most intense part of the day was the glissade. The first part from the false summit was so steep and icy, I had to self-arrest twice. The snow got softer the closer I got to Lunch Counter. It was fun after that point.
The day turned out to be absolutely perfect.
Nothing like the day before. And the forecast for tomorrow wasn’t looking very good either, with an afternoon storm expected to roll in.
Final stats for the day: 12 miles, 6,773 feet, 9h 30m. (I’m not sure how my watch picked up an extra 300 feet!)
The night ended exactly as planned: shower, pizza, Olipop, hockey, bed.
DAY 4: Return Home
When I left the next morning to begin the drive home, clouds had moved in and covered the mountain.
I really lucked out with the timing of this trip.
