My trip to 11,245' and back

What were you doing at 1:15 a.m. Monday? I was in the Timberline Lodge parking lot, starting my Mount Hood climb!
We went to bed about 6 p.m. Sunday and got up about 10:45 p.m. It was very strange - the porch and living room lights, which are on timers, were still on. And we watched the 11 p.m. news while eating our Cheerios - as if it was the morning news!

We left the house at 11:30 p.m. and were parked, dressed, permitted and ready to go about 1:15 a.m.
It was incredibly warm, way above freezing, as we made our way from 6,000 feet to 11,245. Our goal was to climb about 1,000 feet per hour - a reasonable, steady pace.

The sky started to lighten shortly before 5 a.m. Looking west at Illumination Rock, the lights of Portland in the background:
Crater Rock with the summit behind:
A short time later, Mount Jefferson and the three sisters to the south:
Once it started, the light came quickly. I-Rock behind us:
Looking back down at Timberline. Those lights on the left side are the snow cats that serenaded us the entire morning:
Summit looks clear:
Not anymore. That's the Old Chute, which we climb right below the summit:
Almost to the chute:
My turn in the chute. It was very steep:
A very, very brief view from the otherwise-completely-socked-in summit:
Cool sun cups on the traverse to the true summit:
WE MADE IT!!
If I'm honest, I have to admit that it was incredibly disappointing to have no view. With the whiteout, I didn't even know which way I was looking.

The way up was great. I felt strong and confident. I made it up without any major problems. But then I got really freaked out thinking of down climbing the icy chute. Thankfully, Brad was eager to belay me down with a rope to ease my anxiety. And thanks to a great Chemeketans group right in front of us who let us use their pickets (anchors) already in place to save time!

Looking back down at Crater Rock:
Grabbing a quick snack at the bottom of the Hogs Back... happy to be back on "solid ground":
Traversing around Crater Rock... the nice Chemeketans:
We took our time heading down, finding some fun glissade tracks in which to slide.

But the temperature rose quickly, and we started to bake. The soft snow on the climbers' trail was like walking on mashed potatoes, and that got old very quickly.
We arrived back at the car safe and sound. After showers, snacks and a nap, Mom and Dad treated us to a Roundtable pizza - talk about hitting the spot!

The experience was really good, and I'm so glad I was finally able to summit the mountain that I look at every day. It was very hard, physically, mentally and emotionally. That was good for me, too. I honestly panicked and didn't think I could come off the top. Luckily, I had no choice, so I dug deep and got it done. WOOHOO!

Now I'm going to sleep ;)