What happened to all of the winter climbers?

This winter has delivered some rather amazing weather and snow conditions. As we've noted, Mount Rainier has seen its fair share of extended snowstorms and extreme avalanche conditions. But lately, that trend hasn’t been the case. Over the past few weeks, the mountain has largely been blessed with beautiful days and clear nights. Swarms of visitors have been making the most of these sunny skies, warmer temps and rather calm weather. Ski and snowshoe trails lace the Paradise area and virtually every prominent vista has a few down-hill tracks below them.

Even the boot and ski track up to Camp Muir has been pretty deep on recent weekends. But what’s noticeable is the lack of boot and ski tracks venturing beyond Camp Muir. With only a few weeks left in March and the remaining days of winter rapidly slipping away, we’re wondering "What happened to all of winter climbers?"

During the last "normal" winter '05-'06 (loosely defined as Dec 1 March 31) 185 climbers attempted the summit on Mount Rainier. This winter ('07-'08) our climbing attendance has precipitously dropped to a lowly 42 attempts! One wonders, is this a trend? After reviewing the past six years (with the exception of last winter when the primary road was entirely closed), the next lowest attendance was '03-'04 when only 104 climbers attempted to summit. That number is more than double what we're seeing this year. So what gives?

Of the 42 climbers this winter, only 6 have been successful (a 14.3% success rate). That success rate falls within the historic average during the same time range (Dec 1 – March 30). The winter high on Mount Rainier was 23.3% during the '06-'07 season (oddly enough when the road was closed) and the low was 1.6% in '05-'06.

The big story, however, is the notable drop in the number of climbers attempting the summit. This data backs up the anecdotal observations of those who frequent the Park. They say that people are just not coming in as large numbers as they used to. With the exception of a few busy weekends this winter, the park has not seen the overall visitation that is normally expected.

Taking into account this season’s well publicized avalanche concerns, this is somewhat understandable. Let’s face it, December 2007 and most of 2008 have been a tough year for positive Rainier press… The winter started with one avalanche fatality and was promptly followed by numerous road closures and other warnings about how high and extreme avalanche conditions were. Certainly, the media picked up the tempo. There was plenty of coverage in every major newspaper including even the New York Times.

At the main visitor centers, the most common questions received relate to the weather and avalanche conditions. Many people are calling to check if "the Mountain" is even ‘OPEN’. YES, "the Mountain" is "OPEN" and by all accounts "the Mountain" is looking pretty darn good on these recent clear days.

So, here are those climbers stats for the past few winters. These cover December 1 - March 31. By the way, we normally consider winter attempts from Dec 21 to March 20 (or whatever the exact "winter" season is).

2007-2008 - 42 climbers - 6 summited
2006-2007 - 17 climbers - 4 summited
2005-2006 - 185 climbers - 3 summited
2004-2005 - 208 climbers - 32 summited
2003-2004 - 104 climbers - 4 summited
2002-2003 - 230 climbers - 36 summited
2001-2002 - 137 climbers - 14 summited

As a reminder, the uphill gate at Longmire closes nightly at 5:30 pm. The downhill gate closes the road at 7:00 pm. Generally, the Longmire gate re-opens every morning after the road has been cleared of snow. Sometimes that's as early as 8 am, but during storms, it can be as late as noon! Call the NPS general information line at (360) 569-2211 and select #1 for road and weather conditions. If you’re coming up to climb, check out the registration page too. Keep in mind that there is NO self registration this winter.

Thanks to Monica Magari for her help with crafting much of this post! Photo of Eben Reckord heading towards the upper Nisqually Icefall by Ben Kurdt.

Itchin...

Man it's getting cold in here. I can feel my spine cringing with anticipation of the new season. Goosebumps have formed all over the outside my body, and glee is bubbling up from inside. We're there, we're there, we're there!I'm looking upon this season with great anticipation and sullenness at the same time. I made so much headway with "Jello" last season. I climbed more than I ever climbed

Get to Know Your Guide: An interview with Richard Riquelme

Every week, we take the reader into the inspiring and ever-changing life of an American Alpine Institute guide. Every AAI guide is very experienced in alpine and rock climbing, and all have received professional training in advanced guiding techniques and rescue. Collectively they have one of the highest levels of wilderness first aid, avalanche, and Leave No Trace training among the world's international guide services. For profiles on all AAI guides, please click here.

This week, we interview Richard Riquelme.

Age: 38
Hometown: Chillan, Chile
Recent trips and expeditions with AAI: Ecuador High Altitude Expedition, Backcountry Skiing in North Cascades

A Guide's Life
How were you introduced to mountaineering?
I was 15 years old when my father took my family to the Chillan's Hot Springs Ski Resort, which is located in the Andean mountain range two hours from our home. We climbed a little mountain all the way to the summit at about 8400', though my mom and sister didn't make it. I really enjoyed it and after that I started going camping, and climbed some minor peaks - mostly in the Andes under 10,000' - with a friend who knew about knots and gear because he was a boy scout. Then when I was in college, I started taking courses in rock and ice climbing and mountaineering, and joined the mountain club at my university. All of the sudden, I was guiding professionally at the age of 24!

How do you stay in shape and what are your favorite training activities?
I don't have any secret training regimen, but I do walk as much as I can every day, and I do a lot of hiking, backpacking, climbing, and skiing. Fortunately, my work keeps me in shape.

Who is the most inspiring person in your climbing life?
Reinhold Messner and Wolfgang Gullich.

What are your other interests besides climbing?
I enjoy technical reading about avalanche research, new gear and climbing techniques, and human history (like the Mayan Calendar), as well as all sorts of other sports. But spending time drinking beers with friends is my favorite one (he laughs).

Where is your favorite place to travel?
My favorite place is this beautiful planet where we live, and for travel - anywhere on the planet is good for me. I like exploring new areas, whatever the geography.

On the Technical Side
Describe your climbing style.
I go clean and free as much as I can, minimizing my impact where and whenever I can.

What has been your most technically difficult climb?
My most difficult climb was the variation of the direct west face route to the south arete of Toqllaraju (19,797') in the Cordillera Blanca in Peru . It was incredible because it was about 18 hours round trip, and we ran out of water. Also, the visibility was very bad because there was a blizzard with heavy snow, high winds, and cold temperatures. The hardest part was to locate camp in the dark, while it was snowing, but we eventually found the tent in the middle of the night at 17,400'. We were dead with exhaustion from this glacier descent in the dark!

What is your biggest strength as a climber? Biggest weakness?
My biggest strength is my mental status, and my biggest weakness, I would say, is the lack of specific training of group muscles for rock climbing.

A Guide on Guiding
Is there anything you know now that you'd wish you'd known when you were just beginning to climb?
Yes, why I did not start climbing and skiing earlier.

When you guide, what piece of advice do you find you give most often to climbers?
I tell others to be easy on themselves, because a lot of people ask too much of themselves. And when a beginner starts, the over-acheivement approach doesn't let them see the potential joy one can get if they just don't push too much.

What qualities do you think are most important in a guide?
Passion, Patience, and Mental Peace

Name a few guide"turn-ons" (for example, what makes a good climber on one of your expeditions?).
My top ones are self-sufficiency, common sense, and the willingness to leave the comfort zone to learn and experience new ideas. It is important to see life from someone else's perspective.

Describe a memorable even that has occurred while guiding for AAI.
Every time after I teach some skill or technique, I like it when the climber does it like they have known how to do it for years.

What are your must-haves (e.g. favorite foods, equipment)?
I really like light and tasty foods like couscous and mash potatoes (which can be done in no time), and also a pouch or two of tuna fish in red or yellow curry - depending on how much you like spicy food, MMM-m!
As for gear, light is right and lighter is righter. A food dryer is great if you really want to make meals on your own, a Jetboil stove (they work really well from mid-spring to mid-fall), a Grivel Evolution Ice Axe, and an AirTech G-12 pair of crampons, and for expeditions I like the Denali Intuition liners for my plastic boots.

Describe your achievement of which you are the most proud.
I am proud that I am more open to learn from people like you and me, rather than just from "experts in the field."

Any closing comments on what you're looking forward to in the next year?
Well, I'm excited about all the studies I've been doing on avalanches the last few months. I teach avalanche courses and backcountry skiing, as well as guiding the peaks, and I am psyched about teaching more avalanche courses next December. This spring, my wife and I are going to Chile in April to visit my family for two weeks. Its been four years and I have two new nephews I haven't met. And this summer, I am happy to be going back to Alaska and to be guiding Denali, the great one, before returning to the North Cascades for some awesome alpine climbing. It's going to be a great year! Oh yeah!

2008-09 Catalog Release: Update your AAI mailing address!

AAI's 2008-09 catalog is coming soon! We are very excited about the new programs, photos, and staff biographies in this issue, and we look forward to the release.

Most importantly, we want to make sure we can get a copy to you. Please take a moment to update your mailing information (and to refresh your currency on our mailing list). It will only take a minute - just follow this link.

Two Summits Just Reached: Cayambe and Whitney

In the Andes of Ecuador and the Sierra Nevada of California, two important summits were reached last week.

Guide Aidan Loehr and climber Julius Gawlas (shown in photo) summited Mt. Whitney (14,494'). An early season climb, the route involved a technical snow ascent. Julius Gawlas photo.

In California, the Sierra experienced a little bit of a winter heat wave over the last few days, creating soft snows at lower elevations and a lot of work in breaking trail. AAI guide Aidan Loehr called in this morning to report that his team came off the mountain yesterday after summiting 14,494-foot Whitney late on Wednesday.

The team found they could drive to within five miles of Whitney Portal. In many years you can get a couple of miles closer. There was so much snow even down low that they used snowshoes on the entire approach. On Wednesday, the third day of their trip, they moved camp from Lower Boy Scout Lake to Upper Boy Scout Lake, arriving there at about 10:30am. With weather conditions calm and sunny, they decided to make a summit attempt that afternoon, rather than waiting until the next morning which was their original plan.

Camp at Upper Boy Scout Lake (11,300'). Julius Gawlas photo.

Aidan and climber Julius Gawlas (Cupertino, CA) left camp at about 12:30pm, and Aidan reported, “there was no broken trail, so for the first part of the climb, we had our work cut out for us. It was brutal trail breaking in the soft snow for the first part, but we got into great conditions a little higher on the route.” Climbing the Mountaineers Route, they found soft snow in the lower half of the first gulley, but “beautiful, hard now in the upper half, all the way up to the notch.” Aidan said, “From there we moved into the west facing upper gulleys with the first 100 feet on 3rd and 4th class rock, and the final 300 feet on just excellent 50-degree hard packed snow. It was great cramponing and just soft enough that we could kick a little bit of a toe in to make a little step. That made it very comfortable and fun climbing. The final 50-100 vertical feet to the summit was a walk on wind-blown rock in gorgeous weather. We reached the summit at about 5:30, just before sunset, and we had really gorgeous red skies off to the west. Usually we’re summiting early in the day on these climbs, so this was fun to have different lighting the whole way. We had an easy descent and were back in camp by 8:30 with big appetites. It was a great day.”

Climber Julius Gawlas of Cupertino, CA resting in front of the East Face of Mt. Whitney. Julius Gawlas photo.