Mountain of the Week - Mt Adams (WA)

June 21st, 2007 Wade

Much is known of this mountains bigger brother, Rainier. And all of us know his little brothers, Mt Hood and Mt St Helens. But most people not from the Washington/Oregon area couldn’t tell you anything of Mt Adams. Lewis and Clark “discovered” it, but thought it was St Helens. It seems that all of Mt Adams neighbors have much more notoriety than him. This is a shame because Mt Adams is a beautiful volcano that dominates it’s landscape and contains some great climbing and great views. I climbed to the summit a few years back via the South Spur. This is considered a non-technical route, but you must have an ice axe and crampons and know how to use them in order to cross the glaciers. There are a few steep pitches so know your self arrest moves. A volcano pass is required by the National Forest services and special permission is required on many of the routes in the Yakima reservation. A fun way to descend the South Spur is to glissade back down the glacier to the lunch counter. The lunch counter is a relatively flat area used as a camp for many people.

Mount Adams (12,276 ft - 3,742 m)

From Wikipedia - Mount Adams is a stratovolcano in the Cascade Range and the second-highest mountain in the state of Washington, USA. Adams is a member in the Cascade Volcanic Belt and is located in a remote wilderness approximately 35 miles (56 km) east of Mount St. Helens. The Mount Adams Wilderness comprises the upper and western part of the volcano’s cone. The eastern side of the mountain is part of the Yakama Nation.

Air travelers flying the busy routes above the area sometimes confuse Mt. Adams with nearby Mt. Rainier, which has a similar flat-topped shape. Adams’ asymmetrical and broad body rises a mile and a half (2.4 km) above the Cascade crest and its nearly flat summit looks as if the volcano was decapitated (which it in fact has not been). The Pacific Crest Trail traverses the west flank of the mountain.

Entry Filed under: General, Mountain of the Week