Mt. Hood July 14 or 15

[shadowfax27]

I am road-tripping to San Francisco from the Seattle area and would love to climb Mt. Hood on the way down. I expect to arrive at Mt. Hood on the afternoon of Friday July 13th, camp overnight and attempt the summit the following morning (given safe conditions). I am a little leery about going solo, so it would be great to get at least one person to come along for safety's sake.

While I've read about mountaineering (freedom of the hills) and have great spirit, I don't have any formal training in ice climbing or glacier travel. I've done lots of hiking on a variety of terrain over the years, but nothing technical on ice. I've done the hike up to Camp Muir on Rainier, some summits at Yosemite in California and the Superstitions, McDowell and White Tank ranges in Arizona (most of it solo). I have basic orienteering and map-reading skills, but have rarely had the opportunity to use them in the field.

 

Given my limited experience on ice and snow, I'm planning on taking one of the "hiker's routes" to the summit, or one that doesn't require much technical skill (hogsback, maybe west crater rim?). Ideally I am looking for a partner (or partners) who wouldn't mind someone with my limited experience and know the route or are confident about finding and staying with it. I would also be up for skiing/snowboarding the descent.

 

I've got hiking/camping gear for short 2-3 day trips: typical stuff and the 10 essentials. I've also got basic gear for snowfield travel: ice axe, crampons, head-lamp, proper sun-glasses. All in all, I just love the outdoors and want to be as safe as possible, so if you're interested, send me a message!