Disappointment Cleaver Trip Report August, 1995 

Rhett, Ted, and I met at the Cougar Rock Campground on Saturday night. It was the first time we had met face to face. Our previous correspondence had been via e-mail and telephone. We were all a little apprehensive to undertake such a climb not knowing each other. Rhett was from Seattle, Ted from Sacramento, and I was from Reno.

Sunday we drove the remaining few miles to Paradise to begin the first leg of the trek to Muir Camp. This route has several names besides Disappointment Cleaver. The "guide route," "RMI route," or "Dog route."  We pooled our equipment and food and started off. By early afternoon we were at camp Muir claiming some spots in the hut. The word hut always brings visions of a hut in the Alps complete with hot coffee and split pea soup, but not this one. It was dank, dark, dirty, and smelly! But it was home, out of the wind and wet, and we were glad to have it. Besides it wasn't that bad after you got used to it.

We sat outside and admired the views while melting snow for water and eating dinner. We planned a 12:30am wake up and a 1:00am alpine start. It was hard to get to sleep and about the time REM set in the alarm went off. One by one the other climbers followed us out of the bags. We geared and roped up, first Ted, then me, then Rhett bringing up the rear.

It was a relief to be out of that crowded, noisy, stinky hut. The air was fresh and crisp. I felt hurried and strained to keep up. Ted set a strong pace across the almost level Cowlitz Glacier. there were few lights ahead of us but many behind. They looked eerie. The route was straight forward even in the dark. As we ascended higher we encountered more crevasses. Some only a few inches in width, others wide enough to ensure a jump, and still others that had to be skirted. The Disappointment Cleaver with its dirt and loose rock was a nice break. above the cleaver the trail wound up and around toward the summit. As you would expect the sunrise was absolutely glorious! The trail steepened and became icy. As the summit came into reach the wind began to blow fiercely. We found it hard to communicate and the ice crystals bit our exposed skin.

At his point, at nine am and the summit so close we could taste it we made the decision to turn around. Almost all the parties came to the same conclusion. The wind was just too fierce. Dejected but wise we began the descent. We enjoyed the trip down since the pressure was off of us. Taking pictures, clowning, and getting to know each other, and practicing self-arrest.

All in all the trip was not as technically difficult as I had imagined but it was more difficult physically. The weather can change at any time on Mount Rainier and become a serious issue at any time. The high winds we encountered that turned us back spoiled a clear, blue, beautiful, August day.

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