Two beginners on Rainier unguided

“Two beginners on Rainier unguided” are rescued.

Logan Hugmeyer wrote:

Not the DC but last summer some guys got stuck on the liberty ridge due to bad weather out of nowhere. 4 days I think. Couldn't be rescued either due to the storm. Had it not let up they would have died and everybody would have been completely helpless. Calling for a rescue and getting one are not the same. 

https://www.nps.gov/mora/learn/news/liberty-ridge-sar-6-6-2019.htm

Four climbers, 3 days. Would not say it was bad weather out of no where though. More like normal mountain weather, started out clear and calm but the wind and clouds came in. Sometimes last for a few hours sometimes longer with intermittent clammer and clearer spells. Been in several while on top.

Logan Hugmeyer wrote:

Not the DC but last summer some guys got stuck on the liberty ridge due to bad weather out of nowhere.

There was a definite weather window that weekend, and there are some other lessons to be learned from that incident about adhering to turn-around times and not getting caught by the "the only way down is up" mentality.

Some similar themes in this accident report: publications.americanalpine…

Jeremy Bentham wrote:
See how much nicer that sounds?

I know!  that 'myself' thing is out of hand these days.  Anyway, I rookied up Rainier with my rookie brother.  The ranger gave us a strict interview but let us go anyway.  It was spectacular!

Steve

Well, not to derail the thread too much but since we're talking about LR...

Regarding the unfortunate gentleman that died that week (not the New Yorkers that got stuck, glad they're ok) from rockfall - I think it was something that came off the formation above Thumb Rock.

Does anyone have details of what happened? Where exactly was he camped? Something that might have been avoided by site selection or digging in? Was it crowded forcing him out of the usual sites? Just absolutely abysmal luck?

Not asking to question a dead man's decision making. Just want to know if there's something to learn. LR is on my bucket list like many people, but I've never gotten a weather window I was comfortable with during my Cascades trips.

when i was there, the park service wanded the crevasses.  do they still do that?  

I attempted Liberty Ridge that weekend, and I think I was one day behind the party in question and so missed out on the "fun." The forecast called for a slightly blustery but manageable day which ended up being gale force. Certainly the best weather there had been in several weekends on the mountain. In the mountains the windspeed being 20-30 mph higher than forecast is super common, and it can, to put it bluntly, fuck your shit up if you don't have much of a margin to begin with with gear/experience/supplies/energy.

In our case, we woke up at Curtis Ridge to howling wind with spindrift ripping off of the upper mountain and decided to enjoy the view and then head down. At 7000' it was shout at your partner despite them being only 5 feet away windy. The upper mountain must have been a nightmare. Those guys are all lucky to be alive.

As for the Thumb Rock accident a few days earlier, from what I've gathered there was little anyone could do, as the rocks came through the whole camp. It's just not a safe place and with warmer temps from climate change loosening things up, it probably won't get any safer. The safest way to climb the route is probably to skip the camp and do the whole ridge in a day, but that requires more fitness and acclimatization than most people can muster, and invites a different sort of crisis high on the mountain. Had my partner and I not bailed, we would have stayed at Thumb Rock, but we wouldn't have been too happy about it.

Adam Stackhouse wrote: when i was there, the park service wanded the crevasses.  do they still do that?  

The Park Service does no such thing – all route creation and maintenance is done by the three concessioner guiding companies (RMI, AAI, IMG), which  I have noted will not be working on Rainier at least through June but seems more likely not until August, if at all. At this point, it is not clear whether there will be a climbing ranger presence on the mountain either. Another big consideration: the guiding companies are the primary rescue service on the mountain (the climbing rangers not as much) and they may not be there, even if the public is, so even more reason for climbers to take the DC route seriously if venturing up there this season if allowed.

Dylan Colon wrote: 
As for the Thumb Rock accident a few days earlier, from what I've gathered there was little anyone could do, as the rocks came through the whole camp. It's just not a safe place and with warmer temps from climate change loosening things up, it probably won't get any safer. The safest way to climb the route is probably to skip the camp and do the whole ridge in a day, but that requires more fitness and acclimatization than most people can muster, and invites a different sort of crisis high on the mountain. Had my partner and I not bailed, we would have stayed at Thumb Rock, but we wouldn't have been too happy about it.

The Thumb Rock accident was not due to warms temps and climate change. The Thumb Rock is a conglomerated pile of shit. For that matter the whole damn mountain is a conglomerated pile of shit. That is the nature of a volcano. Shit comes whizzing down ad nauseum. Here is a picture from 30 years ago sitting by the rock. That accident was just plain damn bad luck.

Devin Bishop wrote:

Another big consideration: the guiding companies are the primary rescue service on the mountain (the climbing rangers are not a primary rescue resource).

Since when?? The NPS Climbing rangers are the primary resource on the mountain. The guides may often get to people in need on the DC simply because that is were they are 99% of the time. But for the rest of hill the NPS are out and on scene.

Allen Sanderson wrote:

Since when?? The NPS Climbing rangers are the primary resource on the mountain. The guides may often get to people in need on the DC simply because that is were they are 99% of the time. But for the rest of hill the NPS are out and on scene.

Guides from all three guiding companies are required to sign a non-negotiable contract to be first responders on Rainier under the Park's direction — this has been the case for more than a decade. Park personnel and climbing rangers take the operational lead during rescues, but guides are conscripted to work rescues even if they're not already involved. This is not just on the DC corridor but on all aspects of the mountain that see the bulk of traffic — Emmons, Kautz, etc. It is part of their concession with the NPS to work on the mountain. The guiding companies and the Park conduct rescue training operations together each year to further this effort. The climbing rangers primarily take care of the big picture: educating and overseeing the general public on the mountain, climbing the mountain and providing updates on route conditions, being point-of-contact for rescue operations. The guides do all of the route work (route finding, flagging, ladders) and provide man-power in rescue situations.It's a team effort is all I'm saying, and now that guides will not be up on the mountain the resources for route safety and rescue are significantly reduced, even if the rangers may be present this summer.

Thanks for that as your initial post gives a different impression. The NPS is the primary rescue resource and the guides help work the rescues. It has been that way for a long time.