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As a guide on Mount Rainier there are few things more satisfying than getting 8 out of 8 climbers to the summit. You guys were awesome! Yesterday all twelve of us, climbers and guides, caught a beautiful sunrise form the crater of Mount Rainier before we crossed the crater towards Columbia Crest, the highest point on the mountain.

The weather was so nice we all hung around shaking hands, taking photos, and congratulating one another on a successful summit. Many of us wondered if softshell pants were over rated.

With its distinct crater and volcanic steam vents, the summit of Mount Rainier is an incredible place. Like many summits we want to savor the moment as long as we can, to take in every detail of that strange and inspiring landscape. no matter how hard we try and how many pictures we take that moment on the summit feels too brief.

It was a pleasure climbing with you and I hope we can summit many mountains together in the future.

In a Cloud

Mount Rainier is often known for the beautiful lenticular cloud cap that often shrouds its summit. Lenticular clouds are those smooth, spaceship looking, clouds that often form on or next to the summits of big mountains. These clouds are characterized by high winds and low visibility and can become a very dangerous place to be very quickly.

Here in lies the benefit of climbing Rainier with a guide. With a great deal of experience on Rainier we can push a little further and a little harder than most of the public. And that is exactly what we did to get 7 climbers to the summit of Mount Rainier in a cloud.

While the view resembled the inside of a ping pong ball, the experience was unforgettable. thanks for a great climb!