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Mountain Montage
United States
Приєднався 8 січ 2020
Mountain Montage is a channel dedicated to making awesome videos from mountain adventures. The goal is to create informative but also entertaining videos while highlighting the journey as well as the raw beauty of the mountains. If you enjoy this content Please Subscribe!
Mt Washington to Ellinor Ridge Traverse Attempt
In July we set out for the Olympics to climb Mt Washington, and attempt to traverse over to Ellinor. We wanted to spice things up further, by attempting the ridge traverse variation, which stays high on the rocky spine between the two mountains. There were limited trip reports or beta on this variation so that left us with a good amount of unknowns.
The climb up to Mt Washington was very steep and while there was a "trail" most of the way, we often found ourselves off route, and this made the climb longer and more challenging, but also a fun adventure! The summit of Washington gave us some epic panoramic views. From there we back tracked off the summit block and then gained the ridge at the feature known as "The Wedge" (in the video I called this "the fin") This was one of the most fun parts of the ridge with good rock and relatively easy class 4 climbing but intense exposure. From the top of The Wedge, things got more tricky and the rock quality became very poor. We roped up and carefully picked our way through a difficult and time consuming down climbing traverse using what we could for terrain belays to mitigate the risk from the serious exposure and terrible rock. After several "pitches" of this, we put the rope away and scrambled up and down pinnacles along the spine of the ridge with varying rock quality and difficulty from class 3 up to low 5th. Eventually we reached a point where we could not stay on the ridge and had to drop down some very loose class 4. At this point we decided to build a rappel anchor and bail off the ridge. Knowing this may be a reality, we were prepared for this. From there we decided to drop down to gain the standard Washington - Ellinor Traverse route far below. The terrain was still difficult and slow going. By the time we reached the normal route it was nearly sunset, so rather then going back up Ellinor to regain the trail, we decided it would be best to just bushwhack in a downward traverse and regain the trail. This was a terrible idea! Although it was only about 3 miles, the forest was insanely steep and thick with cliff bands running all throughout. The going was miserably difficult and slow, especially in the dark. After many hours and most of our light sources dying, we decided it would be best to hunker down for the night and wait for the light of dawn. We never were able to traverse across to regain the trail and so we end up just dropping straight down until we hit the road, then walked up to the trailhead. overall it took us more then 6 hours of moving time to go about 3 miles. It was awful!
Its hard for me to recommend this variation due to the very poor rock quality, but if it is something you want to attempt, plan more time then you think you will need!
The climb up to Mt Washington was very steep and while there was a "trail" most of the way, we often found ourselves off route, and this made the climb longer and more challenging, but also a fun adventure! The summit of Washington gave us some epic panoramic views. From there we back tracked off the summit block and then gained the ridge at the feature known as "The Wedge" (in the video I called this "the fin") This was one of the most fun parts of the ridge with good rock and relatively easy class 4 climbing but intense exposure. From the top of The Wedge, things got more tricky and the rock quality became very poor. We roped up and carefully picked our way through a difficult and time consuming down climbing traverse using what we could for terrain belays to mitigate the risk from the serious exposure and terrible rock. After several "pitches" of this, we put the rope away and scrambled up and down pinnacles along the spine of the ridge with varying rock quality and difficulty from class 3 up to low 5th. Eventually we reached a point where we could not stay on the ridge and had to drop down some very loose class 4. At this point we decided to build a rappel anchor and bail off the ridge. Knowing this may be a reality, we were prepared for this. From there we decided to drop down to gain the standard Washington - Ellinor Traverse route far below. The terrain was still difficult and slow going. By the time we reached the normal route it was nearly sunset, so rather then going back up Ellinor to regain the trail, we decided it would be best to just bushwhack in a downward traverse and regain the trail. This was a terrible idea! Although it was only about 3 miles, the forest was insanely steep and thick with cliff bands running all throughout. The going was miserably difficult and slow, especially in the dark. After many hours and most of our light sources dying, we decided it would be best to hunker down for the night and wait for the light of dawn. We never were able to traverse across to regain the trail and so we end up just dropping straight down until we hit the road, then walked up to the trailhead. overall it took us more then 6 hours of moving time to go about 3 miles. It was awful!
Its hard for me to recommend this variation due to the very poor rock quality, but if it is something you want to attempt, plan more time then you think you will need!
Переглядів: 779
Відео
Mount Hood Summit: Old Chute Route (4K)
Переглядів 5782 місяці тому
In late June, we climbed the standard, south side route of Mt Hood, up Old Chute. It was a stunningly beautiful night with the milky way shining bright and even a faint aurora glowing pink behind the mountain. Snow conditions were excellent for taking up some first time climbers. Most people were opting for the One O'clock variation as the Cat Walk was getting pretty spicy, but we sent it anywa...
Mount Thielsen: Climbing the NW Arete (5.7)
Переглядів 1,1 тис.3 місяці тому
We found epic exposure on the North west Arete of Thielsen! I've been wanting to try this route for some time now! For my birthday, we set out to give it a shot. With a difficulty rating of 5.7, this would be one of my hardest alpine leads to date. The route did not disappoint! With over 1500 ft of air below your feet, the climbing was engaging and intense. I highly recommend this route for exp...
Eagle Creek: Hiking to Tunnel Falls (4K)
Переглядів 2623 місяці тому
This video highlights the awe-inspiring beauty of the first 6 miles of the Eagle Creek Trail as far as Tunnel Falls. This was our first big hike after Christian blow out her knee skiing. It was a great spring time (April) rainy day hike. The wildflowers were coming out and the waterfalls (too many to count) were flowing strong! We saw lots of wildlife, including an American mink and piebald dee...
Climbing the West Ridge of Mount Stuart: Enduring the coldest night of our lives! (4K)
Переглядів 1,4 тис.10 місяців тому
The Saying: "Route finding is the crux" Is no joke! I have long sought the wild and rugged adventure that Mount Stuart and the West Ridge has to offer. After breaking my ankle in the spring, I thought that this dream would have to wait another season. However, with my recovery going quicker then expected, we decided to go for it! We may have slightly underestimated the beast that this mountain ...
Climbing The Castle
Переглядів 55410 місяців тому
The Castle is one of the more technical climbs in the Tatoosh range. This fun scramble boast good rock and epic views! With Mount Rainier dominating the skyline and taunting us with her immense beauty. This climb was short and to the point. We ended up opting to free solo both up and down. It was mostly class 4 with maybe a few low 5th class moves.
Summiting Pinnacle Peak: Catching the Northern Lights and soaking up the beauty in the Tatoosh!
Переглядів 924Рік тому
With the Northern Lights in the Forecast we headed to Mount Rainier National Park to get into the mountains. Having recently badly broken my ankle I was only about 7 weeks into my Rehab, so we choose to set out sights on Pinnacle Peak. This mountain maximized our overall climbing experience for a relatively low distance and elevation gain. We also dragged our oldest daughter along for her first...
Ranking Oregon's Ten Hardest Peaks (4K)
Переглядів 9 тис.Рік тому
In this video we rank the top ten hardest peaks in the Oregon Cascades, in order of relative difficulty including information on what it takes to climb each peak. (please note that this list is just my own personal opinion) The goal of this video is to inspire and inform fellow climbers on what it takes to climb these beautiful mountains. Links for full videos are listed below for more details ...
Ingalls peak South Ridge: My First Alpine Trad Lead
Переглядів 1,1 тис.Рік тому
On October 1st, we found ourselves on the classic South Ridge of Ingalls Peak in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. This was an excellent climb for our first alpine trad lead. We opted for the 5.6 crack variation. Since this climb is so awesome, it tends to be very busy. We went late in the afternoon hoping to avoid the crowds, but we still had to wait on several parties coming down. We ended up summ...
Paulina Falls: Ice climbing in Oregon
Переглядів 551Рік тому
In early March we took advantage of the cold snap to ice climb the frozen falls. The ice was variable and slightly overhanging in spots. (WI4) We opted to top rope the climb.
Mt Hood: Climbing Leuthold Couloir (4K)
Переглядів 4,1 тис.Рік тому
On February 10th, we set out from Timberline Lodge, heading up to camp at Illumination Saddle. We enjoyed a typical epic sunset above the clouds. Scott Joined us in the night and we set out the next morning down the very steep and icy back side of the saddle onto the Reid Glacier. Crossing some deep snow we made it to the base of the couloir. Conditions were overall very nice. A bit cold in the...
Mount Washington Summit: FREE SOLO (Almost...)
Переглядів 1,6 тис.2 роки тому
Mount Washington Summit: FREE SOLO (Almost...)
Three Fingered Jack: Oregon's Buggiest Summit
Переглядів 1,1 тис.2 роки тому
Three Fingered Jack: Oregon's Buggiest Summit
Mount Shuksan: Fisher Chimneys (4K)
Переглядів 3,9 тис.2 роки тому
Mount Shuksan: Fisher Chimneys (4K)
Mt Hood Summit: Devil's Kitchen Headwall, Variation 2 / Wy'East (4K)
Переглядів 1,6 тис.2 роки тому
Mt Hood Summit: Devil's Kitchen Headwall, Variation 2 / Wy'East (4K)
Crater Lake: 5 Days of Raw Beauty and Pain
Переглядів 1,3 тис.2 роки тому
Crater Lake: 5 Days of Raw Beauty and Pain
Paulina Peak: Summit, Hot springs and Ice Climbing!
Переглядів 7222 роки тому
Paulina Peak: Summit, Hot springs and Ice Climbing!
MT Hood Summit: Boy Scout Chute (4K)
Переглядів 1,6 тис.2 роки тому
MT Hood Summit: Boy Scout Chute (4K)
Mt Jefferson summit: The South Ridge (4K)
Переглядів 6 тис.3 роки тому
Mt Jefferson summit: The South Ridge (4K)
Mt Hood Summit: cooper spur in July
Переглядів 2,6 тис.3 роки тому
Mt Hood Summit: cooper spur in July
Mt Hood Summit: Reid Headwall (Left Variation)
Переглядів 1,2 тис.3 роки тому
Mt Hood Summit: Reid Headwall (Left Variation)
Broken Top: Attempting One O'clock Couloir (March)
Переглядів 1,1 тис.3 роки тому
Broken Top: Attempting One O'clock Couloir (March)
Mt Hood Summit: Pearly Gates Right (Epic Proposal!)
Переглядів 5 тис.3 роки тому
Mt Hood Summit: Pearly Gates Right (Epic Proposal!)
Great video! Took this exact route over the more exposed northeast side.
Keep it up you guys!! I really appreciate the opportunity to live vicariously. The older I get the more scared of heights I am.
Good job man! it doesn't look easy even in such a cool video! 🔥 how long did you climb up and down back?
@@michaelsiversky Thanks! I think it was about 7-8 hrs round trip, going fast and light, jogging a bit.
What month?
@@2ddw late September
Appreciate that you show the not-quite-successes in addition to the summits. A lot of people don't realize that struggling, mitigating, and decision-making is 99% of a climb.
Thanks! And yes, I totally agree!
I love you guys. I dont comment on any posts but three years ago i watched a video of y'all climbing hood and then I made the summit a week later and have been l hooked ever since. Thank you for sharing your videos.
@@DurhamRosser thanks for tuning in and helping us grow this channel! I love hearing stories about how these videos have inspired others to get out and find the beauty and adventure that these mountains have to offer. Well keep them coming!
That young lady is awesome I would go climbing with her any day.
@@garymcgee1874 Yes! she is incredible on so many levels!
4:30. “and as usual, this got spicier than we expected.” That seems to describe most of your trips, from what I’ve seen.
@@johngo6283 haha, yea. Some lessons we learn the hard way, others we may never learn. But that's part of the adventure!
This looked so hard. After this one and Mount Stuart, I am glad that you have not quit mountains. Every time I suffer hard on a peak, I I always wonder why I didn't take up golf. Ha Ha. Great video.
@@jaredempey5706 haha yes. Parts of this were very Type 3. In the moment they were awful and I never want to experience that again, but looking back, they were valuable learning experiences and they also help keep us humble, which is very important in the mountains! While climbs like this do make me think hard about why we do what we do, they also give a unique perspective on life and on what is important. Thanks for tuning in!
Great video. How long is the rappel off of the summit? Also, is there more than one permanent rappel station?
@@jaredempey5706thanks! We ended up doing 4 separate rappels with a 60m rope. For the most part there were numerous rap stations, we also did some down climbing on some of the easier scrambling sections. Overall the summit block is around 800 ft.
@@MountainMontage thanks. Great advice as always
At 4:38…. Do you consider that the summit? I’d be happy to just make it to that spot I don’t have your rock climbing skills!
good video guys, I'll be banging out some of these this weekend
To anyone watching this who is a beginning climber… Please bring a proper ice axe and not a stick you found on the trail. Signed, guy who has climbed this peak 7 times.
@@johngo6283 That's probably good advice. Although, personally I would highly discourage anyone who calls them selves a beginner to start with a mountain like this. In this specific situation an ice axe would have been worthless, as the snow was fresh with nothing underneath and had no consolidation. What we needed (and forgot) was trekking poles! But I improvised with that stick.
Dude, that looked savage. I always come to your videos for researching mountains I want to climb, and I always come away impressed with your videography and awesome attitude.
@@doesstuffoutside haha, it was! Thanks for turning in. As much as I love climbing, I also love making these videos. It's a form of creative expression for me and each video I feel like I learn a little more and get a little better.
Excellent as always. Very insightful. I've done about half of these and felt your assessments were right on. There is, though, a less exposed route through the cliff bands on Broken Top.
@@Steviepinhead yes, I've heard this, but when I attempted the first time I couldn't figure out that route and have always gone through same way since. Although next time I want to climb straight up the nose (I believe it's 5.4 or something)
@@MountainMontage Somewhere, I made a sketch of the little chimney through the cliff band. Maybe for a friend who was contemplating the route. Not that you guys need it, but it looks like you are now leading less-experienced others (as in your recent Hood Old Chute video), so it might be something to tuck into your back pocket. I'll see if I can locate my sketch.
Really impressive, thanks for sharing! All that crumbly rock just makes me shiver. The closest I ever came to the summit of Three Finger Jack was flying in my stepfather's Cessna. He was a daredevil, and I remember coming close enough to see individual rocks. Quite an interesting spot up there. I know I'll never stand there in person, but it's fun to be able to experience these spots vicariously through your recordings.
MRNP allows tents on the meadows?
@@lauraallen4769 Its in the cross country zone, and there isn't really any established camp sites in that areas. You are just supposed to be on dirt or rock, which our tents were (in between the Heather)
Did you have to get a wilderness camping permit for that spot?
@@Off_the_beaten_path yes, you do and you can only get it In person the day of or day before.
Great video. Nice job guys. Now I have to go back to Rainier a third time to do this route. Did DC last year and Emmons this past June.
@@MrCbrehaut it's a nice step up from the other easier routes in terms of technical difficulty. But it's a good one!
Great video. When was this? I summited June 13 of this year after 4 attempts. Congratulations to you!
@@laracomer5493 nice work! This was on June 28th
Hell yes you two!!!! Looks amazing!
Great work. I really enjoyed the survey and summaries.
Good informative video. This is shows that you don't have to look like an athlete, and can be a bit chubby, but if you got what it takes mentally (relative lack of fear of heights, route founding, familiarity with equipment...), you can do a lot. I know if sounds like a backhanded compliment, but really it can be inspirational for a lot of people.
Dude, I've been up this mountain the easy way twice, but this looks sick. Thanks for the views.
@@doesstuffoutsideyea it's a fun mountain, but this route definitely adds some spice!
What was the date of the hike and climb?
June 1st
@@MountainMontage Thanks! That's just before 8" of snow fell on the Cascades...
Appears easy from far. But it is really tricky while climbing
Love these and thanks for sharing as always!
This is awesome! Excited to give this a go possibly this summer! Nice work 🤙
@@huntervoris7779 It was a very fun climb!
Nice video. Looks like a fun route. A point of clarification though, I have read that the final spire is between 80 and 120 feet. What length of rope have you used to safely rapell to the bottom of the spire?
@@jaredempey5706 I've only rappelled it with a 60m rope, which is good. I believe a 50m should work on the standard route to get to the ledge.
I was just binge watching a bunch of your videos today, and bam the first mountain climbing video youve uploaded in 6 months just comes out! What day did you climb this? I made it up in the last week of june
@@BearPlane747 Haha thanks for tuning in! We had a bit of a recovery period, but we are back at it now. Stay tuned for more soon!
@@BearPlane747 This climb was June 1st
Never Again! Your comment at the end of the video was telling. Your endurance and composure while rock climbing loose rock was amazing. I would go up South Sister 10 times before I would go up North Sister!
@@danieldbattin thanks! Yes, this mountain is not a walk in the park by any means!
Best wedding ever!!!!
That looks sick. Great work.
Nice video! I'm curious, do you encounter any wild animals while exploring these beautiful, isolated places? I'm from India, and most places here are filled with people.
Yes, it is not unusual to encounter elk, bears, cougars, rattlesnakes, even wolves. There is also a variety of little critters like chipmunks, birds and squirrels.
This is a great video guys. Thanks so much for putting it together.
Got to hike tunnel falls a few weeks ago and stayed at the lake overnight. Looks like you two got all types of weather Oregon has to offer!
Thanks for the great Father's Day video. Here's wishing you and yours many happy days on the trail
Eagle creek trail is beautiful. Camped at Wy'East camp last season, need to make another trip.
It really is! I want to plan a more in-depth backpacking/exploration trip at some point.
Ha i was thinking about doing this video and this recommendation came up.
Haha nice, what do you think about my order of difficulty ranking? Obviously it's subject to some opinions
The video was obviously great with your climbing expertise. I would go 5 Washington, 4 hood, 3 three finger jack.
Great video. How would you say Mount Washington climbing compares in difficulty to Broken Top? Both on Summitpost say low class 5, but all ratings are subjective to personal perception.
Yes, I would say that Washington is a step above Broken Top for sure. Broken top has about 15 ft of 5.0 whereas Washington is about 200-300 ft of 4th and low 5th with a crux of 5.3. typically it is pitched out in 2-3 pitches. But most importantly, you want to stay on route on mt Washington or the rock quality becomes atrociously bad and the climbing could be much harder. Check out my video on Ranking Oregon's top 10 peaks for some good information comparing these two climbs and several others!
Probably the best Rainier video I’ve seen…well done!!
Thanks!
Thanks for sharing! Great shooting and edit.
Thanks!
We climbed this route on 4/1/2024. The ice and formations in the chute varied quite a bit from two years ago when you climbed it but it was still a cool variation!
Nice work! And yes, Ive heard about quite a variety of conditions up in there before. I climbed it after a longer dry spell in January, which I think helped clear a lot of the loose crap out. It's a fun route.
What was the date of your climb?
This was in early May 2020
I think the order in which you placed these mountains is spot on. I've climbed numbers 5 through 10. On Three Fingered Jack I did the crawl (unroped) but decided not to try the final climb to the summit. Numbers 1 through 4 are above my risk tolerance.
Yea, those last 4 are all very crumbly. Even being very careful there are a lot more objective hazards with rock fall.
This is all a big nope fest for me, but fun to watch.
Haha yea, that mountain is no joke!
Twin peaks in the wallowas should definitely be in this list . Also illumination rock(subpeak) might be the hardest in all of Oregon
Yea, for simplistically I just focused on the major cascade peaks. Also I have not personally done much in the Wallowas yet, but I hope to peak bag out there and make some videos at some point! And Illumination rock is certainly on my "someday" goals, but it is pretty rarely climbed.
2:35 whats in the sky? Looks white.
I believe that is the moon
WOW!
Gorgeous exposure mate! For a relatively short volcano, it sure has character. For the chute where you roped, how did you protect? I'm guessing there aren't bolts up there...
Yea it's a pretty cool little mountain! One of my favorites. For the chimney I just soloed the lead and clipped into the rap station for a top rope for the rest of the team. But It can be protected with small cams with a crack on the right side of the chimney.
Sweet! Thanks@@MountainMontage Hope to get there as soon as the snow and ice is gone.