what route on hood in current conditions?

[tuckercunningham]

howdy CCers. i'm in the northwest for a few weeks and hoping to get some climbing done on hood. obviously not the best time of year, but it's what i've got. i'm hoping somebody has suggestions on which routes are holding together the best. has any recent snowfall accumulated up there to improve climbing conditions? anything still holding contiguous snow/ice to near the summit? what routes should i be looking at to avoid rockfall? is being up on a ridge (from my reading, maybe cathedral ridge?) helpful to avoid rockfall in gullies, or is the rock fairly broken up there as well?

 

i'm a n00b cascade climber, but experienced in the sierra. 5th class rock and moderate ice routes are in play if they're in shape.

 

oh yeah, there's a hood conditions thread, but it's a flamewar so i avoided it =) thanks for help/suggestions.

[pcg]

Conditions are terrible right now. On Wednesday I tried to climb up to the top of Snowdome (red circle in photo, which was taken Wednesday) on the NE side to do some skiing, but was forced to turn back at 10 AM by rock coming down onto the bottom of Elliot Glacier. From my vantage point it looked like new snow above about 9500', but it is all turning to water fast. IMO it is impossible to summit safely via any route at the present time and to attempt to do so would be foolish.

 

If you can cross Elliot Glacier and get to the bottom of Snowdome before the sun gets high then I think you'd be relatively safe on Snowdome itself, but not beyond. The problem is getting there and then getting back, which forces you to cross Elliot Glacier. Like I said, it was a shooting gallery by 10 AM.

 

If you wanted to just do some hiking/scrambling sans crampons/axe and not try to summit you could head up Vista Ridge on the N side to the top of Barrett Spur and be safe from rockfall. That is also a nice place to sit back in the sun and watch and listen to the mountain slowly falling apart.

 

Edited October 2, 2010 by pcg

[MJaso]

Here are a few pics from a conditioning hike I went on yesterday. IMO it looks pretty sketch on the north side.

 

A view of Tie in rock

 

Eliot Glacier

 

Cooper Spur Route

 

Another Eliot Glacier picture

[ivan]

good time of year for ice cragging on the elliot glacier though, as the pix show

[KirkW]

is being up on a ridge (from my reading, maybe cathedral ridge?) helpful to avoid rockfall in gullies, or is the rock fairly broken up there as well?

 

 

I hear Yokum Ridge is the shit this time of year...of course I've never been up there myself but it's a ridge so it should be free of rock fall.

 

Good luck.

 

http://cascadeclimbers.com/trip-reports/alpine/mt-hood-oregon-yocum-ridge-3-19-2010-4797/

[pcg]

I hear Yokum Ridge is the shit this time of year...but it's a ridge so it should be free of rock fall.

http://cascadeclimbers.com/trip-reports/alpine/mt-hood-oregon-yocum-ridge-3-19-2010-4797/

 

...until you touch it. While it is a ridge, that pile of rock is highly unstable until it becomes marginally so when somewhat glued together by ice and snow. Trying to climb on Yocum Ridge right now would be kind of like playing "pick up sticks".

Edited October 4, 2010 by pcg

[wayne]

It is possible to do cathedral ridge this time of year. Crampons for the queens chair.

[KirkW]

I hear Yokum Ridge is the shit this time of year...but it's a ridge so it should be free of rock fall.

http://cascadeclimbers.com/trip-reports/alpine/mt-hood-oregon-yocum-ridge-3-19-2010-4797/

 

...until you touch it. While it is a ridge, that pile of rock is highly unstable until it becomes marginally so when somewhat glued together by ice and snow. Trying to climb on Yocum Ridge right now would be kind of like playing "pick up sticks".

 

Sorry I didn't use the little sarcasm smiley.

[PaulO]

 

Yokum 9/6 near end of hiking trail