[TR] Mt. Hood - Reid Headwall 1/31/2015

[d0zer]

Trip: Mt. Hood - Reid Headwall

 

Date: 1/31/2015

 

Trip Report:

Climbed Reid Headwall with a team of four Saturday morning. Left a crowded Timberline lot at 5:45 and geared up at Illumination saddle at 7:45. Some loose fluff on the traverse, but a nice bridge over the shrund. Generally good hard snow and ice in the steeper parts, though up higher there were some thin icy crust plates that just disintegrated upon contact. Saw a team of 2 ahead of us take a farther left path, and unsure if this was the same team of two we later saw ascending the Leuthold Couloir. Topped out at 11. Descended the old chute.

 

Lots of ice bits coming down. There were a few scary bigger blocks which came down on us. We attributed this to warm temps, and not anyone above us.

 

West side of Illumination

 

Shrund

 

Climbers on Leuthold

 

 

Gear Notes:

Venoms, helmet, pickets if you want them.

 

Approach Notes:

Shrund easily crossed via bridge

Edited February 2, 2015 by d0zer

[diepj]

Sweet! Everyone was getting at it this past weekend. We didn't see you but saw the party ahead of you crossing the Schrund shortly after 7a.

[kascadia]

What a great weekend. Quite a few years ago, we did the Leuthold and traversed on to the Reid closely above that schrund (I believe it is the same one). It was a bit of an eye popper. Going up the Leuthold, there was ice/rock fall spilling down it like a stream, really kinda odd to be able to step back and forth across it. Looks like you guys didn't have much of a snow/rockfall issue (?). Nice shots, but not enough of them!

Edited February 5, 2015 by kascadia

[diepj]

Now that I am looking at the photo of the two climber, are you sure they are on Leuthold? They were the ones we saw and they definitely started up the Reid. The basic Reid route cuts left (but not all the way into the Leuthold) once you get maybe halfway up. It is also possible to climb straight up the Reid and top out more on west crater rim.

 

When we were on the queen's chair, we didn't see any steps coming up Leuthold. I think maybre you guys just did different Reid variations. Maybe the other guys did this report?

 

http://blog.alpineinstitute.com/2015/02/route-profile-mt-hood-reid-headwall-ii.html

[Water]

diepj: kind of agree with you, I eye'd that picture and really had trouble placing those two. But I think queens chair is maybe just to the left margin out of frame, well above the hourglass--my experience has been to veer north/harder climbers left to get to the 'flat' and then go up ridge, but for continued challenge one can kind of climb the headwall bowl thing (which is what it looks like they're doing...)

 

[d0zer]

Thanks for the input. You got me thinking.

 

The webpage you linked above includes this picture, which was helpful as a reference:

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7fJZk0GXG6o/VMfjhQA8mjI/AAAAAAAAAXg/Ho5XLlGYb9Y/s1600/reid%2Bglacier%2Bheadwall.JPG

 

If these were the same 2 climbers that were ahead of us on the Reid, I remember they took a harder left somewhere around #5 of #6 in that image, while we continued more straight up. The picture I posted of them in OP above looks a lot like the orange line the linked photo. I shot my photo of the two climbers from a location somewhere around #8 or #9.

 

So if they were the same pair of climbers, they did the lower Reid, and then took a hard left into the couloir.

[bonathanjarrett]

I was with the party on the Reid and can attest to the fact that they were in the bowl indicated by the red arrow.

[diepj]

You guys are right, the orange line in the photo doesn't turn left and go direct to the Queen's chair. It does seem like they were on that line, or maybe just to the right of it in the next slot. My main curiosity is where could they have cut over hard enough to get there once they passed #2. I don't recall any escape until more like #8. It could well have been another team too. When we left T-line, there were teams signed out for both Leuthold and Reid. We left before you Dozer, so it is possible there were people ahead on both routes. Anyway it's not very important.

 

Whenever I look at that photo I think about running it straight up to the rim from 3. I just wonder how bad it would be to climb that little headwall and connect back in around 9. Maybe you'd be really treed.

[Water]

There is escape either between 3 and 5 or just above 5, as the first time I climbed Luetholds in 09 our party went up through 2 or 3 and spent time screwing around off route. Pretty sure we cut over above 5 because I kinda of remember going behind that really phallic gendarme just to the left of the #5. Popped out above the hourglass but below queens chair.

 

[ScaredSilly]

diejp if you did RH you would not be near Queen's Chair. Queen's Chair is under the horizontal part of the arrow. The tip of the arrow is really part of Leutholds and a more direct finish to the ridge. One can traverse off the Reid to get there which sounds like what that party did.

 

As for going straight up from 3 it does get done but one heads up right from 6 to the right of 7 and continues up to the right of 9. It is lots of rime ice, exposed, and not always straightforward. Good fun some folks followed me up that a couple of years ago.

 

One can also go up from 4 to West Crater Rim basically following the runnel up. Lots of variations up there to get ya all funked up.

[Couloir]

One can also go up from 4 to West Crater Rim basically following the runnel up.

 

Some even climb up to that spot and proceed to fall down the other side into the crater. Ivan?

[ivan]

anything worth climbing is worth climbing twice, no?

 

my favorite memory of that is the total lack of interest or concern on the faces of the 40 folks who witnessed it

[ivan]

first time i climbed the luetholds (in night no less) i also climbed the reid instead