Fast forward three years, and the same scene is playing out in the parking lot, but this time, it’s us with all the noisy metal hardware and Liberty Ridge is our destination.

Doug Grose and I arrived at the White River Campground only a few days after the road was finally opened. We had been anticipating this climb for months, and were very excited to finally be underway. The sun was out and the skies were blue – a rare sight this year. We hiked through Glacier Basin and on up to St. Elmo Pass. We dropped down onto the Winthrop Glacier, and roped up to cross what few crevasses there were. After the Winthrop, it was over the base of Curtis Ridge, and down onto the Carbon Glacier.

The Carbon Glacier is often heavily crevassed, but in this year of heavy snow, most of the crevasses weren’t open yet, and we had little trouble navigating. We gained the base of Liberty Ridge via a short, steep snow chute, and we were on our way.

By this time however, fatigue was setting in, the air was getting thinner, and we were moving slower and slower. Our pace was hampered even more when we started using running protection. This involves the leader pounding in an anchor and threading the rope through it. When the follower arrives at the anchor, he calls out, and the leader places another. Eventually, the follower has collected all of the anchors, and he must leapfrog to become the new leader. In this way, we were always anchored to the snow in at least one spot. We would use this technique for the next vertical mile.

As dusk settled over the mountain, our high camp at Thumb Rock was only a short distance away, but it took us forever to get there. I was seriously bonked, even though we had been careful to take frequent breaks for food and water. We finally arrived at 10:00 PM, after 15 hours of hiking. There were two parties already there: one was holed up in a snow cave, while the other had pitched a tent. There was just enough room to place our tent, but it was practically touching the other guys. Oh well, sorry.

The following morning, we were immediately presented with a tough pitch of mixed rock and ice. Doug led it cautiously and placed our first ice screw. Our heavy backpacks, the steep slope, and the thin air all worked together to slow us to a snail’s pace. We protected the route well. Some pitches required all the gear we had: 4 pickets, 2 flukes, and 3 ice screws.

The weather was good except, that is, for the summit. The top of the mountain was consumed in boiling clouds. It looked like high winds and poor visibility were waiting for us at the top. A large boulder crashed down from the Black Pyramid, as we approached it, and I kept a wary eye out for more falling debris as I passed beneath the crumbling cliff.

I found myself thinking about my precarious position. Standing on the tips of my frontpoints, I could look between my boots to the Carbon Glacier 6000 feet below.

Above 13,000 feet, we climbed into the clouds. Fatigue was really beginning to take its toll, and we were nodding off as we stopped to belay eachother. I frequently splashed snow on my face to stay awake. Finally, we arrived at the bergschrund: the last real obstacle before the top. It wasn’t wide, but it was icy. I led up past the schrund and onto the ice. As I struggled to place a screw, I found myself thinking about my precarious position. Standing on the tips of my frontpoints, I could look between my boots to the Carbon Glacier 6000 feet below. A slip here would send me hurtling back over the bergschrund. After falling about 60 feet, I would hit my first picket. Would it hold? I wasn’t sure. A 60′ fall could very well pull it out, then it would be up to Doug to catch me with his belay, but he’s half-asleep. If he should get pulled of his stance, then our last hope would be his two anchors – they would have to hold both of us. At last, the pitch was complete. Doug followed and disappeared into the clouds above me. The slope finally relented and, together, we trudged the last few steps to Liberty Cap. A short distance down from the Cap, we found a flat spot to put the tent, and we wasted no time in setting things up. We were exhausted after 12 hours of climbing. As night fell, we each made a phone call to our kids.

Both of us slept well, and we awoke to bright sunshine. What a blessing! We packed up and hiked over to Columbia Crest for some pictures before making our descent. The snow was awfully soft by the time we hit Camp Schurman, and we were a couple of zombies by the time we finally slogged back into the parking lot.

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