BanjoSHOES

Thank you for the link... It is very helpful!! What time would you recommend for an Adams start with glissading?

No offense taken at all... Yes we do have experience with ice axes.. we climbed paintbrush divide last year out in the tetons which was snow covered from about 8500 and up. We don't have any xp with the crampons, but that is why we are doing Adams first. We are all experienced outdoorsmen/backpacker/hunter/cannoing/mountain biker/eagle scout/ect..... (For example my brother through hiked the AT).. we also have good sense to know when not to do something, and I have been reading up on the freedom of the hills mountaineering book too just for good measure.. unfortunately there are not a bunch of places near Detroit to practice mountaineering... Gotta start somewhere though. As for the harness I have been reading different places.. some recommend roping up and some don't .... Any thoughs on that for the south route on hood? And please elaborate why or why not.. My brother is a rock climber and we have all done rock climbing before so that aspect is not new to us, but the snow aspect is. Any recommendation or tips or suggestions ? We are all flying in to pdx and will be to mt Adams by about 4-5:30 pm Saturday depending on how things go... My plan is to get to lunch counter (is this doable? Or recommended) Then leave the next morning for a summit.. (alpine start?) I want to do the glissading so would a later start be better? Anyway from there to mt hood where we would camp at palmer glacier (again doable?) And then summit attempt on hood the next morning with another alpine start camp somewhere that night( any recommendations close to hood?) And off to the airport on the morning of the 12th

I am planning on doing a summit with my brother and 2 friends of both Mt. Adams and Mt. Hood this weekend (July 9-12). We live in the midwest so we will need to rent some equiptment. It looks like the REI on Johnson St. rents equiptment, has anyone had expierience renting from them? Are there any other good rental options (we will be flying into PDX, so something on the way to Mt. Adams or in the general area of PDX). I have on my list to rent Ice Axe Boots Crampons Some other things that are on the maybe list are helmet, showshoes, shovel, climbing harness... Would snow Shoes be worth it or is it a waste of money for those climbs (both the south routes)

Thanks so much for all the suggestions... I fell much better about going in July now. We are going to be camping (most liklet at lunch counter as suggested) the first night, and attempting to summit the second day. Depending on how many days we stay.. is there any good day hikes, or maybe alternate routes from the summit that would put us in a different camping area for a possible day 3, but ultimately bring us back to our vehicle?

Also wondering what mountaineering equiptment would be good to rent, and any good rental places in the area. We have backpacking gear taken care of, but I assume we will need ice axes, crampons, boots. What other gear is necessary for the 2 mentioned hikes? Are helmets, ropes, climbing harnesses required, or maybe something I might be overlooking? Just thought I would throw this picture of me in the Tetons..

Thanks for the reply. My brothers trail name was Little Moose and I cant remember the exact year I think it must have been around 2002, but it was from Maine to Georgia (reverse direction than most take). How is the snow usually around July 9th? I think possibly one of our errors was that we got a late start (7:30) in the morning last year in the Tetons compared to an "Alpine Start" that I keep reading about.. Does the alpine start make a huge difference with the snow consistency? You will have to forgive me for my ignorance.. I live out in Michigan and unfortunately we don't have many (any) mountains here to practice on. So from what I gather from your response is that weather conditions are not the best or are unpredictable in mid-March?

I am very interested in summiting either Mt. Adams or Mt. Hood this spring. I am fairly new to mountaineering, but not to outdoor adventure/backpacking/camping/hunting/canoeing/ect. Our only real expierience with the mountaineering aspect is last year in late June my brother and I climbed paintbrush divide last year in the Tetons and it was completely snow covered from 8500 feet on up (to 10720 feet) and ice axes were certainly required. We were both boy scouts, and my brother has through hiked the Appalachian Trail and he also does rock climbing. (Just a little background to give you an idea of our expierience level) I loved the trip despite the mushy snow (that you sank up to your hips in) and I want to do something similar again this year, but I would like to go at a time of year where the snow isn't in the process of melting away.. I have to work around my brothers busy schedule adnd so my options are either 3/17/2011 or 7/9/2011 ... I am afraid that the middle of July will be too late to go and have an enjoyable time, but what do you all think of mid March? I am expecting a 3 day trip including plane flights.. any thoughts on this? I was also debating between Mt. Hood or Mt. Adams... most likley the south route on either one.. I am sure either one would be fantastic, but is there one that you guys prefer?