Alpine Climbing ...and Hypothermia I took this photo while climbing Chimney Rock in the Washington ...

Alpine Climbing ...and Hypothermia

I took this photo while climbing Chimney Rock in the Washington Cascades. I was about to climb an overhanging crack that goes more than 100 feet vertical. My climbing partners below were bringing up the forth climber and setting anchors to get ready for the push to the summit. Just two of us made it to the top because we ran out of day light. One the way back down I spent the night with the others shivering from the cold on a relatively warm July night. We all sat on a small rock ledge.  The mountains are just colder than the lowlands and I was shivering severely by the sleepless morning.

Being the most experienced I was the last one down. It was my job to make sure the others got down safely and to take apart the anchor systems to a minimal and then to descend .  I continually questioned my judgement while I was shaking uncontrollably and tried to not let the hypodermic circumstances get the best of me. I was able to descend the ropes even while my body, arms and hands could not stop shaking. As soon as I started to move and with the sun rise I was able to warm up and get back to normal. In 30 minutes or so I felt normal again.

Because I have gotten cold and hypodermic before it is one of my worst fears in the mountains. Okay fall and die or fall and get beat up then die are possibilities. But to freeze to death is the main thing I try to avoid in the mountains mostly because I have gotten very cold on several trips including winter outings as a Boy Scout.
*****************************
Hero Shot on a key ledge system
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/23794421

The Summit ...big enough to sleep on.
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/18635791

****************************
Congratulations, You made it this far! For those who have been here, you already know this selection well. If this is your first time, I put together several slide shows using Panoramio(Google) while climbing.

Array of photos ...  (Use arrow keys)
http://www.panoramio.com/photo_explorer#view=list&position=252&with_photo_id=94974345&order=date_desc&user=2707898

The Ptarmigan Traverse, Washington Cascade Mountains.(Including photos of this trip) (Use arrow keys)
http://www.panoramio.com/user/2707898/slideshow?tag=Ptarmigan%20Traverse%20Slide%20Show

North Ridge of Mt Stuart Slideshow (Use arrow keys);
http://www.panoramio.com/user/2707898/slideshow?tag=Stuart%20Slide%20Show

Some Personal Favorites (Use arrow keys)
http://www.panoramio.com/user/2707898/slideshow?tag=Personal%20Favorite%20Slide%20Show

Slide show of Nameless Lakes, Un-mapped Lakes and Others;
http://www.panoramio.com/user/2707898/slideshow?tag=Tarn%20Slide%20Show (Use arrow keys)

Climbing on Eldorado, a Summit surrounded by an Ice Cap
http://www.panoramio.com/user/2707898/slideshow?tag=Eldorado%20Trip%20Slide%20Show (Use arrow keys)

Mt Daniel Area (Use arrow keys)
http://www.panoramio.com/user/2707898/slideshow?tag=Mt%20Daniel%20and%20Dip%20Top%20Slide%20Show

Mt Olympus slide show
http://www.panoramio.com/user/2707898/slideshow?tag=Mt%20Olympus%20Slide%20Show

Lake Lyman Area Slide Show
http://www.panoramio.com/user/2707898/slideshow?tag=Lyman%20Lake%20Slide%20Show

Goat Slideshow
http://www.panoramio.com/user/2707898/slideshow?tag=Goat%20Slide%20Show (Use arrow keys)

Thanks for taking the time to look. Your comments are always welcome! - Randy
*****************************
#landscapephotography +Landscape Photography +Margaret Tompkins +Kevin Rowe +Toshi Nakamura +Tony Phillips +Jeff Beddow +Chicago Photography Tours & Workshops +Krzysztof Hanusiak +Dennis Hoffbuhr +Dave Gaylord +Doug Hagadorn +Eric Drumm +RJ Wilner
*****************************
#breakfastclub +Breakfast Club +Gemma Costa +Rob Heron
*****************************
#stunningmoment +Stunning Moment by +Alycia Tsai
*****************************
#hqsplandscape +HQSP Landscape curated by +Michael Garza +Leo Schubert +David D +Mike Hankey +Peter Marbaise +Hans-Juergen Werner +Shannan Crow
*****************************
#promotephotography +Promote Photography +Nikola Nikolski +Naghmeh Khadembashi +Milena Ilieva
*****************************
#PhotoManiaUSA is curated by +David Pilasky, +Marjolein Schat, +Kris Rowlands & +Dorma Wiggin
*****************************
+Dana. k +Michael Russell +Mountain Monday
*****************************
#cascades #cascademountains #climbing #randylikestoclimb #climbingjunkie #alpine #alpineclimbing #climbingjunkiestory