cuattop Posted July 31, 2007 Share Posted July 31, 2007 Where should I climb in Southern CA to prepare for a winter climb of Mt. Rainier? I need to develop skills in all areas . I have never snow camped before. I plan on hiking with Rainier Mountaineering Inc. but yep, need to gain some skills. Any suggestions? Anyone else in LA area wanting to do the same? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cj001f Posted August 1, 2007 Share Posted August 1, 2007 to the top of a Langer's on Rye with Russian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark_Husbands Posted August 1, 2007 Share Posted August 1, 2007 Mt. Shasta. I-5 North. There is really no snow left in the Sierra at this point, but spring in the Sierra is good. You could try Dana Couloir or something like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sampdx1 Posted August 1, 2007 Share Posted August 1, 2007 From what I hear, Shasta doesn't have much snow this year. I suggest checking conditions before heading there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ericb Posted August 1, 2007 Share Posted August 1, 2007 Where should I climb in Southern CA to prepare for a winter climb of Mt. Rainier? I need to develop skills in all areas . I have never snow camped before. I plan on hiking with Rainier Mountaineering Inc. but yep, need to gain some skills. Any suggestions? Anyone else in LA area wanting to do the same? Apologize for unrequested advice, but Rainier in winter is a major undertaking, and my guess is that the odds of a weather window are pretty slim relative to say, July. I'd be hesitant to throw down ~$1,000 bucks for RMI, and another $1,000 for air-travel, gear rental etc. and be locked into a climbing window with little or no flexibility given what winters are like around here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cobra_Commander Posted August 1, 2007 Share Posted August 1, 2007 I would fill a hot tub waist-deep with cold molasses and wade around in it for about 6 hours while breathing through a straw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackY Posted August 1, 2007 Share Posted August 1, 2007 You can learn to winter camp on your trip, you are paying them to teach you these skills. However, you can increase your chances of enjoying the trip by having the right gear to stay warm. You also need to eat and hydrate to stay warm. If they are providing the food I would bring some goodies that you enjoy. A snickers bar at bed time (after a HUGE dinner of course) will help keep you warm. Bring a positive attitude and be prepared to work hard and you should enjoy the trip and learn lots. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
counterfeitfake Posted August 1, 2007 Share Posted August 1, 2007 RMI doesn't take noobs up Rainier in the winter, do they? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbconlin Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 You can learn to winter camp on your trip, you are paying them to teach you these skills. However, you can increase your chances of enjoying the trip by having the right gear to stay warm. You also need to eat and hydrate to stay warm. If they are providing the food I would bring some goodies that you enjoy. A snickers bar at bed time (after a HUGE dinner of course) will help keep you warm. Bring a positive attitude and be prepared to work hard and you should enjoy the trip and learn lots. Ditto. Add to that just be in good shape and you will enjoy it more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrd Posted August 5, 2007 Share Posted August 5, 2007 There are no places in SCA to really prepare for the winter climbing on Rainier right now; simply it's a summer time. If you going with guides you are fine anyway; you don't have to do much thinking. However, keeping in physical and mental shape is important. For this you can do backpacking of some 14rs in the Sierra, especially in bad weather conditions. Find any remains of reasonably steep snow/ice fields/glaciers and practice crampons and ice-ax (ice-tools) skills (e.g. U and/or V notch). The best way, however, is to do winter (Dec-Jan-Feb) climbing in the Sierra, for example, Mt Whitney. The bad or at least diverged weather is almost guaranteed. The best way to prepare for mountaineering is mountaineering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drederek Posted September 17, 2007 Share Posted September 17, 2007 Spend as much time above 10k as possible. RMI will herd you up Rainier like livestock so you just need to be in good shape to enjoy it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frikadeller Posted September 28, 2007 Share Posted September 28, 2007 I would fill a hot tub waist-deep with cold molasses and wade around in it for about 6 hours while breathing through a straw. Thats cold.... Cold as ice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jens Posted September 30, 2007 Share Posted September 30, 2007 It can get pretty ganrly on top in winter. My advice is to give yourself a good chunk of time so you can drink beer at the Highlander in Ashford and them jump on a high pressure window when it arrives. Bring skis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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