Camping in a BLIZZARD at 10,000 ft on Mount Rainier
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- čas přidán 12. 09. 2024
- Before heading off to the Bolivian Andes, I spent a night on Mt. Rainier in a blizzard. By the time I reached Camp Muir (10,200 ft./3100 m), the wind gusts had reached ~50 mph and were relentlessly driving freezing rain into my face. Suffering altitude sickness from about 8 pm on, the night was a blur of pounding headache, sleep apnea, and howling winds. I woke up to a tent full of fine powder and frozen shoes. As I broke down my tent and got ready to descend, my feet were so cold I thought I was going to get frostbite.
It was awesome.
#mtrainier #mountrainier #blizzard #snowstorm #hypothermia
DISCLAIMER:
The purpose of this trip was to test out the ultralight gear that I was taking on my 2 week hike through the Cordillera Real in the Bolivian Andes (vids coming soon), which varied between 14,000 - 17,000 feet in altitude. I needed to see what issues I ran into in extreme conditions at moderate altitude in case I needed to change anything during my trip. When hiking or climbing in these conditions, I recommend heavier, warmer gear including a 4-season tent, plastic boots, and an appropriately rated sleeping bag.
ALTITUDE SICKNESS:
www.webmd.com/...
wwwnc.cdc.gov/....
GEAR LIST:
Backpack: Hyperlite Mountain Gear 3400 Windrider
Tent: Zpacks Duplex
Sleeping Bag: Marmot Helium (regular)
Sleeping Pad: NeoAir UberLite (regular, wide)
Sleeping Clothes: REI Co-op Silk Long Underwear (crew top and bottom)
Sleeping Socks: REI fleece socks (discontinued)
Stove: BRS-3000T
Cup: Snow Peak Titanium Mug, 450 ml
Poles: Black Diamond Distance Carbon FLZ Trekking Poles
Shoes: Hoka Speegoat
Socks (inner): Injinji Trail Midweight Mini-Crew
Socks (outer): REI smartwool mountaineering socks
Camp/Hut Sandals: Target flip flops
Cap: Outdoor Research Sun Runner Cap
Balaclava: Seirus Balaclava
Beanie: REI Co-op Polartec Fleece Beanie
Sunglasses: Cebe glacier glasses (discontinued)
Rain Jacket: Timmermade DCF rain jacket (custom made)
Rain Pants: Timmermade DCF rain paints (custom made)
Fleece Shirt 1: Decathlon Quechua MH100, size S
Fleece Shirt 2: Decathlon Quechua MH100, size M
Fleece Vest: Decathlon Quechua MH120
Down Vest: Feathered Friends 900 fill down vest
Gloves: Seirus Soundtouch Xtreme
Mitts: REI Gauntlet GTX Mittens
Stuff/Dry Sack: Hyperlite med, large, and xlarge stuff sacks
Water filter: Katadyn BeFree
Water blatter: Platypus Platy Water Bottle - 70 fl. oz.
Headlamp: Petzl Actik Core (rechargeable)
Power Banks: Anker PowerCore 10000, GoalZero Flip 12
PLB: Garmin InReach Mini
Watch: Garmin Instinct Solar GPS Watch
Photography and GPS:
Camera: iPhone 12 mini
Camera case: LifeProof Fre'
Tripod: Joby GripTight ONE GP Stand
Drone: Mavic Mini 2 (flymore combo)
Apps: Gaia GPS
Restaurant:
Copper Creek Inn: coppercreekinn...
Man, that looked hazardous. I've had altitude sickness before (which eventually turned into pulmonary edema) so I empathize, friend.
Wow, I’m very sorry to hear that, but I’m really glad you were able to recover! Altitude sickness is no joke.
Please invest in the correct type of tent and clothing before going on your next mountain adventure.
Hi Ed,
I've definitely been getting this comment a lot. I do have a 4 season expedition tent, as well as a -40F bag.
But the purpose of this trip was not to be comfortable. Instead, it was to test out the ultralight gear that I was taking on my 2 week hike through the Cordillera Real in the Bolivian Andes (vids coming soon) that I took at the end of June, which varied between 14,000 - 17,000 feet in altitude. I needed to see what issues I ran into in extreme conditions at moderate altitude in case I needed to change anything during my trip. During my Andes hike, I found it was all adequate, and in the end the real difficulty was navigation: a lot of cross-country and poorly defined llama trails!
My heavens ! What were you thinking? Thank your lucky stars you made it out alright.
Life is either a daring adventure…or it is nothing at all. 😉
My first time at Muir was cold as hell. I thought I was going to get hypothermia. I slept out on the glacier in my MHW Kiva tent. The only thing that saved my ass was throwing a Nalgene bottle filled with hot water into the end of my sleeping bag. My body was starting to shut down, but the bottle keeping my feet warm and heating the inside of the bag gave my body a chance to catch up with the liquids I drank and the food I had to force down. I have been up there plenty of times since and always enjoy my time up there. The last time I was there I was with a buddy and we built a 6' wall to keep the tent from getting buffeted by the wind all night. Camp Muir is a special place to camp for sure.
Awesome story! Some friends and I tried to climb Rainier in 24 hrs via Emmons a few years ago and we had to use this very tent as an emergency shelter. None of us had sleeping bags, so we just spooned and shivered all night. That was the coldest I’d ever been. 🥶
@@MiguelGomezMountainRunner The night I was super cold, there were two guys who slept out on the glacier in individual tents. They decided to leave their sleeping pads down at the vehicle, the one guy bailed in the middle of the night and snuck a spot in the public shelter, his buddy endured laying on the snow all night and was hypothermic the next morning. I was making breakfast when I saw this guy who was walking around shivering and looking for his buddy.
Stupid stuff goes on all the time on Rainier. I am amazed how many people die on the Muir Snowfield.
I climbed MaunaKea in the middle of the night when we were in Hawaii, the pounding headache you were talking about here was exactly how I felt coming from sea level and up to almost 14,000 ft. The last mile on the road kicked my ass as my head was pounding with each step.
🤯
Obviously the wrong tent for these conditions. You didn't need to risk your life to find that out.
Honestly, I didn't really feel that close to death ;) I needed to test this single-wall ultralight tent in harsh conditions before heading off to South America. This was not the first time I'd used that tent in harsh conditions, nor the first time I've been in a storm on Rainier...I've been in much worse conditions with less equipment.
Ur tent is a next to the lake and campfire tent not a mountain tent. You shouldn't have any snow inside ur tent or moisture! Not at that elevation. Hope u invest in a good tent before ur next trip
I wish you’d told me that before I took it in the Alps, the Pyrenees, and the Andes! 😂
Wow, those were some tough conditions. I wonder what month you did this trip. Regarding your headache, etc. (technically “acute mountain sickness”) my guess is that you got dehydrated. The 10K ft. altitude alone shouldn’t be that bad. Hope your trip to Bolivia goes well!
Hey Bruce! This was in early June, and a nice storm had blown in. I wanted to test my gear and my techniques before heading off to Bolivia, where I'd be hiking ~17,000 ft. I took that trip in late June, so I'll be posting the vids soon.
In fact, going from sea level to ~8000 ft in a day can bring on altitude sickness. Everyone reacts differently to altitude, as well as dehydration. I've been both many times. ;)
www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/altitude-sickness
wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/yellowbook/2020/noninfectious-health-risks/high-altitude-travel-and-altitude-illness#:~:text=Acute%20Mountain%20Sickness,-AMS%20is%20the&text=Symptoms%20are%20similar%20to%20those,or%20after%20the%20first%20night.
@@Boats_N_Hoez that’s where we all start! 🤙
You broke one of the key rules - you can never let the wind get inside your tent like this. You have to seal off the flysheet completely from the outside. Practice in a safe environment first :-)
You should never completely seal off airflow to your tent, otherwise you could suffocate. All good 4 season tents have some ability let air through near the top with vents so that the base of the fly can reach the ground and be covered with snow. However, I needed to test this single-wall ultralight tent in harsh conditions before heading off to South America. I piled up snow over most of the fly, but I couldn't fully seal the doors on the vestibules, and that's where the snow got in. But I had to let airflow in for oxygen. Also, this was not the first time I'd used that tent in harsh conditions, nor the first time I've been in a storm on Rainier...I've been in much worse conditions with less equipment.
@@MiguelGomezMountainRunner you think you could have sealed the tent off such that you used up the available oxygen? There will also be some air leaking in, but what you had was excessive :-) Snow wall is a good idea also.
That's a tough trip, but you survived, that climb to Camp Muir is tough, in any conditions. When I did it back in 2005, I had simualar issues. Many have died in that Snowfield in and around Camp Muir in whiteout conditions . . . . just goggle it!
Yes, it's a very dangerous hike, especially in whiteout conditions. What often happens is that on the way down, people get disoriented and then head downslope onto the Nisqually glacier when they then fall into a crevasse, never to be seen again. When that glacier recedes more, we'll probably find a lot of human remains. :(
Nice shout-out to Feathered Friends... I've shopped there many times.
Indeed, I’ve always been happy with their gear. 👌
Great video! Fun to put yourself against the elements! When were you up on the mountain?
Thanks Andrew, glad you enjoyed it! This was in early June, the weekend before heading to Bolivia.
Great video! better camera angles and sound and i believe this video could be top trending :) Video awesome to watch btw good video idea!
Thanks Masked! I was really dissatisfied with the sound quality, too. I think my video editing software has a bug in its export settings. I may change tools pretty soon.
@@MiguelGomezMountainRunner I love the way you talk to the camera and how you update everything in good intervals. Your ideas are also awesome, thumbnail was interesting i heard colours, reactions and stuff like that can help the viewer get intruiged to click on the video. The overall video is about, telling a story. Which you basically nailed. Thumnail you could improve a little on, and if you get the sound quiality fixed, then i think you will skyrock also putting music in like to create drama or hit peoples emotions is also very effective either way. I still enjoyed the video very much! and the thumnail was good, since it catched my eye first :)
Things like camping outside is pretty interesting to watch and i think its trendy goodluck with your channel, i believe in you :D
Thanks so much @Masked Millenial , I appreciate the feedback! Detailed feedback helps me improve my videos. 👍
Just curious, what do you think would make the thumbnail better? I’m always looking for fresh ideas.
That's a wild adventure. Next time during the windy sections 2:00, 11:00 etc drop the audio down a lot and put text on the screen, can barely make out what you are saying.
It was pretty nuts 😂. Yea, the audio was not very good in this video.
When did you do this adventure to Muir? I was there the last week of July and it was so hot that the ice bridges past cathedral rocks were melting!
This was at the beginning of June, and I left for Bolivia a week later (vids out soon). I got back in early July, and then we had a couple weeks of really hot weather here in the NW. So yea, it doesn't surprise me that a lot of Rainier's snow had melted off.
When I saw you get to the parking lot. All I could think of is turn on the heater
It was cold! 🥶😂
@@MiguelGomezMountainRunner I know. Your crazy. Great video
I got a headache coming down from camp mirror
Yea, man, it’s a tough hike! 🤙
Step up your gear. A four season tent maybe.. if you can't pack a FEW pounds have fun being cold and uncomfortable.
Hi Haywood,
I've definitely been getting this comment a lot. I do have a 4 season expedition tent, as well as a -40F bag.
But the purpose of this trip was not to be comfortable. Instead, it was to test out the ultralight gear that I was taking on my 2 week hike through the Cordillera Real in the Bolivian Andes (vids coming soon) that I took at the end of June, which varied between 14,000 - 17,000 feet in altitude. I needed to see what issues I ran into in extreme conditions at moderate altitude in case I needed to change anything during my trip. During my Andes hike, I found it was all adequate, and in the end the real difficulty was navigation: a lot of cross-country and poorly defined llama trails!
Hmmm, I would have slept like a baby in all that wind & I would have been ok with snow against the tent, it shelters you a bit from the wind & keeps you warmer = if your sleeping bag keeps out water well. I'm not sure if you put your shoes in your sleeping bag with you but that helps in the morning. Ahhh, Bruce said it, I think you lost a lot more water content than you realized & needed to take in a lot over time to let it soak back in, plus salt content & possibly your headache would have subsided.
Shoes inside the sleeping bag is an interesting idea, maybe with a plastic bag.
I was definitely dehydrated, but not too bad. If you want to see me really dehydrated, watch this video:
A BLISTER on my ***HOLE (White River 50 Mile ULTRAMARATHON)
czcams.com/video/U7Rx42NlcI0/video.html
Climbing ALONE on Rainier! Plastic bags on your feet! Which climbing school did you go to? This wasn't brave. This was reckless.
I realize that for most people hiking to Camp Muir seems scary, but it's not a technical climb at all, it's just a hike that I've done dozens of times in all types of weather. I could have brought heavier equipment better suited to the cold, stormy weather, but as stated in the video and the description, the purpose of this trip was to test out the ultralight gear I was going to use while traversing the Cordillera Real in the Bolivian Andes. It was cold, but certainly not the coldest I've been.
As for climbing training, 20 years ago I went through the Seattle Mountaineers Basic, Intermediate, and Aid & Big Wall climbing course, and since then I've done 1000's of miles of hiking and technical climbing in the north cascades and throughout the world. So again, this experience was nothing out of the ordinary, just another hike. The main discomfort was the altitude sickness, but again nothing compared to what I experienced in the Bolivian Andes.
Ok - got it. Thanks. Clearly you have the knowledge and experience, and you understand the risks. Way outside my comfort zone though.@@MiguelGomezMountainRunner