I just returned home from a successful trip to the summit of Mt. Rainier (14,410 feet)! The adrenaline is still pumping! What a thrilling accomplishment! It was made all the more rewarding by the fact that I was doing this for a great cause and with wonderful people.

I’ve never seen anything more beautiful than the views from our climb. We were not often in the position to take pictures, due to the concentration required, but the scenes below us were absolutely breathtaking. (I’ll be posting some of my pictures on my website today. http://heatherclimbs2003.pledgepage.org). We began by hiking to Camp Muir (above 10,000 feet) on Friday. We left Camp Muir at 2 AM Saturday to a sky full of stars and an almost full moon. We were able to watch the slow progression of the sunrise as we climbed. We could see the Cascade Range in all directions, with Mt. Adams, Mt. Hood, and Mt. St. Helen’s standing above the “crowd.”

The weather was clear but incredibly windy. Until we actually made the summit, we didn’t know whether we were going to be turned around by the guides. There were certainly sections that were made very tricky by gusts of wind. I was actually blown off my feet at one point by a gust that my rope leader thought was about 50 miles per hour! It was a great thing that I was roped to someone with quick reflexes.

With all of my preparation, the wind was something I wasn’t ready for. I was so excited to find that all of my training paid off. Physically, I was very ready for the climb. Mentally, I’d prepared myself for the crevasses and walking on rocks with crampons (metal spikes that attach to the bottoms of your boots – imagine walking around on 10 sharp points), but I hadn’t prepared myself for being blown around. At one point, I had to really think about whether I wanted to keep going. I was already above 13,000 feet, and knew I was with the best climbers on the mountain. It was the lead guides’ 70th summit yesterday. I decided I hadn’t come that far to turn around, and if Brenda decided it was safe to go on, I trusted that she was right. I’m so glad I did! I mark this among my biggest accomplishments.

Thank you so much to all of you who helped me to get there! I couldn’t have done it without your generous donations and ongoing encouragement. I’ll be sending out pictures, postcards, and a more detailed account of the trip to donors soon.

I want to extend special thanks to the Tracyton Elementary School staff for outstanding contributions to my fundraising, Jan for an AWESOME climb care package, to Jesse for lending me gear, and to my amazing cheerleader, Sandra! Sandra spent the two days before my climb with me hiking around Mt. Rainier, helping in anyway possible, and preparing all of the food for my journey (with little notes on all of the bags). She shocked me and everyone else on the van full of climbers when she jumped on board just before we left to lead everyone in a S-U-M-M-I-T cheer. Classic! She also met me at Camp Muir on my climb back down with a congratulations banner, dessert, and a backpack of wonderful cards and letters from well-wishers. WOW!

Last, but definitely not least, I’ve set a personal goal of raising $200 more for the American Lung Association. That will bring my total to $4000. The money supports great programs to improve the quality of many lives. One of the things it supports is a camp for children with asthma that teaches them how to manage their health while enjoying active lives. If anyone was interested in donating, but just never got around to it, it’s not too late! I promise I’ll stop asking now!