This was the most amazing thing I have ever seen. I knew there would be a great view and I was excited for the challenge and the sense of accomplishment, but that was nothing compared to what it is actually like. I think I expected some element of what I call the "Mona Lisa Effect". The Mona Lisa is something that everyone in western society has seen many times. I found, at the age of 13 when I saw it, that it was a bit disappointing. The disappointment came from being told how exciting it would be to see it "in person" and not just a photo. The problem is, when you see it, it looks EXACTLY like a photo. There's crowds of people and it's in a dim room and it feels extremely anticlimatic. I've decided this is one reason I like hiking. You see amazing things, but it's different every time and never looks like a photo. Also, the photos never do it justice (even though you have to keep taking them) but there really is something about what you experienced that a photo never captures. I think it's the element of experience, it's not just seeing something with your eyes, like the difference between looking at the water and being in a boat. I thought this might be different, having seen SO many photos of the crater and seeing it from the other side (and obviously I was not going to go in it to have a better experience!).It wasn't just the ever changing view and landscape throughout the climb (and descent as the weather had changed), or just the incredible view of three cascade volcanoes (Hood, Adams and Rainier) that could be clearly seen (although that was amazing!), or the great people to climb with, or the ever increasing sense looking down of "seriously, did I really climb up that far??", it was the crater and experience of being on the volcano itself.
The edge of the crater rim (well, not the VERY edge, just CLOSE to the edge) was not just a great view of a volcano. It wasn't like being at the edge of a cliff, it was like being at the edge of a giant mouth. Although the volcano is not very active at the moment, it still felt very much alive. Multiple landslides sprung down the inside of the crater while we watched, and several new steam vents opened and closed in various places. In addition, the lava dome has a continuous vent of steam, a constant rumbling sound and a noticeable sulphur smell. Incredible.
Foggy forest on the way up
Getting onto the rocks
Fall colors starting to show at 5000'
Regular snacks are important
The accurately named Point 5994 according to my map, which came in and out of the fog on the way up
Korie, Frank and Annie coming up the rocks...rocks...rocks!
Getting closer to the top...snowfields alongside us
Getting above the clouds
Annie and Frank walk on the moon
The moon is at a pretty steep angle
Just a few more feet to the top!
Looking down at others making the last push (this part really, really sucked by the way!)
360 degree view at the top...starting with the South: Mt Hood
And East: Mt Adams
And Northeast: Mt Rainier (and Spirit Lake in the foreground)
And Northwest: towards Seattle
And West
Layers of exposed mountain in the crater (with landslides)
We made it!
Korie's magazine cover photo
Korie and I with the crater, Spirit Lake and Mt Rainier
Inside the crater...
By the time we headed down, the clouds on our side of the mountain had mostly cleared, giving us a great view (that we didn't see on the way up) as we made our way down.
