brianstowell
McNeil Point, Mount Hood, Oregon
My buddy Tom and I tempted fate yesterday. We tried to conquer the Sandy Glacier Ice Caves up on Mount Hood. The hike is intense. 9 miles round trip, with ~2500' in elevation gain. And 3/4 of that was covered in snow and ice. We bailed on the ice caves with only 1/4 mile left to go. Side hilling the final approach on 45° slopes that looked like ice rinks didn't exactly inspire confidence. I 100% believe that if it weren't for the single pair of microspikes that we shared for the 2nd half of our hike, that we would absolutely not have made it off the mountain. If you even think about attempting this hike: do your research, heed the warnings, and bring appropriate gear.
We still had a great day exploring Hood in this unseasonable weather. Maybe we'll try again in the future.
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McNeil Point, Mount Hood, Oregon
My buddy Tom and I tempted fate yesterday. We tried to conquer the Sandy Glacier Ice Caves up on Mount Hood. The hike is intense. 9 miles round trip, with ~2500' in elevation gain. And 3/4 of that was covered in snow and ice. We bailed on the ice caves with only 1/4 mile left to go. Side hilling the final approach on 45° slopes that looked like ice rinks didn't exactly inspire confidence. I 100% believe that if it weren't for the single pair of microspikes that we shared for the 2nd half of our hike, that we would absolutely not have made it off the mountain. If you even think about attempting this hike: do your research, heed the warnings, and bring appropriate gear.
We still had a great day exploring Hood in this unseasonable weather. Maybe we'll try again in the future.
Follow:
Instagram: @brianstowell
Tumblr: @brianstowell
Facebook: /brianstowellphoto
500px: /brianstowell