Trip: Mt. Hood - Somewhere on the left side of the North Face Trip Date: 11/08/2020 Trip Report:
Sunday was the best looking day so we went; the weather was a fair bit worse than predicted.
Gate is now closed but trail is in good shape and a good booter exists to tree line. Lower Elliot is pretty nasty with wind drifts over boulders. Cloud layer between 8,500 and 10,000+ made navigation difficult.
We climbed an easy mixed buttress off the glacier that ended in a gully below two easy ice steps. We thought is was L gully but now I'm not so sure. We climbed several short ice steps but mostly just perfect neve slopes to the summit ridge in two simul blocks. Above the cloud layer the wind was brutal. Summit was surprisingly calm. We down climbed the Cooper Spur in high winds with multiple dead ends and much GPS checking as the light faded. Once down on the lower spur it was easy going though still windy. It took us 16.5 hrs car-to-car.
Gear Notes: We took the whole enchilada, but there is not much opportunity to place except occasional screws. Approach Notes: TJ sno-park normal approach to N side