Two climbers reported reaching the summit of Mount Rainier last week! Considering the access difficulties (flood damage, closures, unpredictable weather, mountain conditions) making the summit was quite an achievement. What happened? The pair started at the Nisqually entrance, hiked the main road to the Westside Road, climbed the Tahoma Creek drainage, and summitted via the Tahoma Glacier. Despite the accesss afforded to others, these independent climbers proved that no amount of flood damage was going to deter them. This duo is rewarded with the first reported summit of 2007! Hats off to them; I hope they share their report and photos.
A May 1st opening is being tossed around as a rather definitive opening date these days. At least the NPS Director Mary Bomar thinks so. Only in hushed whispers do people talk about potential delays. Those threats revolve around unexpected floods during the interim. Let's hope for a mellow and cold April.
