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We invite you to take a trip with Oregon Peak
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Happy summer from Oregon! On this sunny Summer
Solstice day it's time to plan for rejuvenating
outdoor adventures.
This is the June 2006 Oregon Peak Adventures
Newsletter. We've done some rock climbing and hiking
and are gearing-up for our first Mt. Adams climb of
the season next week.
Here are the trips and training scheduled for
June/July:
Alpine Mountaineering: Field Session - 24 June
Mt. Adams South Spur Climb: Classroom Orientation -
26 June for 28-30 June, 5-7 July, 12-14 July & 14-16
August climbs
St. Helens Monitor Ridge climb - July 7
Rock Climbing Intro: Field Session - July 8 & 9
St. Helens Monitor Ridge climb - July 21
Mt. Margaret Four-day Backpack - 21-24 July
Mt. Adams Mazama Glacier Climb - 28-30 July
We hope you can join us for your next adventure.
As
always, our intent is to send this newsletter only
to people who wish to receive it. If you don't want
it, please click the Unsubscribe link at the bottom
of this email. There you will also find a link which
allows you to send this eNews to a friend or
colleague. We invite you to take a trip with Oregon
Peak Adventures. You may sign-up by e-mailing us at
info@oregonpeakadventures.com, calling us at
(877) 965-5100, or using our
secure form.
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MT. ST.
HELENS STATUS
The low level volcanic activity continues at
Mt. St. Helens with very little change. The
new dome/fin is still growing and occasional
steam clouds are observed when the hot lava
comes in contact with the glacier in the
crater. Daily updates are available at
http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/Volcanoes/MSH/CurrentActivity/.
The Forest Service folks won't commit to a
specific date, but they still say sometime
in July as a possible opening time period
for climbing. We have reservations for
several dates and they are posted on the
website. We'll send out a special update
when we hear for sure!
If you want to do this, I would suggest
making your reservations now.
 We
have a 12 person limit per climb and I
expect they will fill up fast, so don't miss
out. If it doesn't happen, we will, of
course, return your deposit.
You can observe the crater at the
VolcanoCam.
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HIKING
The Portland area abounds with
hiking opportunities. From half-day ambles
in urban Forest Park, the Japanese Garden,
the lush Oregon Coast, or straight-up
gut-buster conditioners in the Columbia
River Gorge, it's a great opportunity to get
some exercise and see new areas. OPA makes
it exceptionally convenient to do a new
hike.
 We
pick you up, feed you, and can tailor a hike
specifically to your comfort level and
interests. We usually include some general
sightseeing stops as well.
If you have guests coming in from
out-of-town for a special event or just a
visit; we can pick them up, take them on a
great adventure, and bring them back tired
and happy.
 This
is especially good if you have to work or
have other commitments. (Or if you just
really, really need to get them out of the
house for a while.)
We have space available on a
Columbia River Gorge Waterfall scheduled
for 30 June.
So check out the
hiking pages on the OPA Website and let
us know what you would like to do.
Scheduled hikes with folks booked to go
on them are posted on the OPA Website
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MT. ADAMS CLIMBING
At 12,276 feet, Mt. Adams is the
second highest mountain in the Pacific
Northwest and a very fun place to climb and
hike.
We climb three routes: the
South Spur, the
Mazama Glacier, and the
North Ridge.
South Spur
We have four climbs
 scheduled
for the South Spur: June 28-16 (one spot
available), July 5-7 (six spots available),
July 12-14 (six spots available) and August
14-16 (five spots available). This is a
non-technical three-day climb with two
nights at the Lunch Counter (9,000'). This
is suitable for the novice climber. The
2,500' glissade back to the Lunch Counter is
outrageous!
An orientation session for all of the South
Spur climbs is offered through
PCC 6:30 - 9:00 PM, June 26.
Mazama Glacier
We have a Mazama Glacier climb scheduled for
July 28-30. Since Mazama Glacier is on Tract
D of the Yakima Indian Reservation, we can
do this three-day climb over the weekend.
This is a steeper, exceptionally scenic,
roped climb suitable for the intermediate
climber who has had the equivalent of our
Alpine Mountaineering Training Class.
North Ridge
The North route is a rocky scramble followed
by a traverse over the summit snow cap. It
is an exceptionally scenic and interesting,
if strenuous, climb suitable for the
intermediate climber. We don't have a climb
of this route scheduled, but can make
arrangements if you would like to do it.
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Introduction to Traditional Rock Climbing
In response to popular demand, we
will conduct another Introduction to
Traditional Rock Climbing course on July 8 &
9. The class is an overview of how to climb
rock outside.
The first field session is at Rocky Butte in
NE Portland on July 8, with a full day at
Horsethief Butte on the Washington side of
the Columbia River Gorge just northest of
The Dalles, OR, on July 9.
 We
cover the basics of rock climbing gear,
knots, moving on rock, belaying, rappelling,
and rock climbing technique.
You can sign-up on our
Secure page on the OPA website or call
877 965-5100 toll-free or 503 297-5100
local. Price is $200 per person which
includes instructors, transportation to
Horse Thief Butte, ropes, helmets,
harnesses, and rock climbing equipment.
We can also do just the half-day Rocky Butte
as a fun introduction to rock climbing.
 This
is a great family activity as we can
carefully structure the entire activity for
all the members of the family. Price is $50
per person ($100 minimum). If you would want
to this for a larger group please call us.
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TRIP SCHEDULE
Most of our
scheduled trips are posted on our
website. You can view the schedule by date or by
trip. The
2006 Schedule of climbs, backpacking trips, and
training activities is updated on the Website.
Please contact us if you are interested in a private
trip or would like for us to post a trip for another
date that works better for you. |
INTERNATIONAL TRIPS
Galápagos/Machu Picchu - May 2007
We now are able to accept reservations for the trip
to the Galápagos and Machu Picchu 7-26 May 2007.
Specific details are on the
OPA Website. This is a 19 day trip with stays in
Lima, Cuzco, Machu Picchu, the Galápagos and Quito.
The price is $4,815 which includes taxes and fees
and round-trip airfare from Miami. This is an
extraordinarily reasonable price for an interesting
and inclusive trip. Joe Whittington, owner of Oregon
Peak Adventures (and author of this newsletter) is
the trip leader. Overseas Adventure Travel will be
handling the local arrangements and reservations.
They are highly regarded and experienced company who
have the connections and volume to provide this trip
at an amazing price.
To reserve your spot:
Call OAT at 1-800 597-2452, press option #2
Tell the representative you want to book with the
Oregon Peak Adventures trip, Group number G7-20835.
A $500 deposit is required to hold your reservation
OAT can also make flight reservations from your
departure city to Miami if you so wish.
Nepal Trek - September/October 2006
We are still working out specific scheduling details
for a Fall trek to the Manang area in Nepal, located
north of the Annapurna Sanctuary. Here's where we
are: We plan to fly into Kathmandu around the end of
September, fly to Pokhara and then fly to Manang. We
will trek on the Annapurna Circuit from Manang to
Koto, then head north to the ancient towns of Nar
and Phu, which just opened to trekker access at the
end of 2002. We'll then retrace our route back to
Kathmandu.
Our trip leader will be my friend,
Don Messerschmidt. Don has a PhD in
Anthropology, has lived in Nepal for many years, and
is considered to be a leading American expert on
Nepal.
The total land cost, including internal flights,
lodging, porters, Kathmandu tours, and the Nar-Phu
trek, will be under $3,000 for four or more
trekkers. We will be in Nepal about 24 days.
We will post detailed information on the
International Trips page on the OPA website in a
few days. if you are interested, please let me know.
We need about four trekkers to make this trip
feasible.
The current political situation in Nepal has
dramatically improved over the past few weeks with
the Maoists declaring a cease-fire and discussing
coming into the new government. Don lives in
Kathmandu and is continuously able to evaluate what
is happening. In any event our trekking area is
remote and there is no Maoist presence there.
Want to Plan a Trip?
If you have a group of folks who would like to go on
a trip, we would be pleased to work with you to put
it together. Most trips end up consisting of a core
of friends and family with some additional
compatible people.
Often we consider going somewhere cool, but, when
confronted with planning and making the
arrangements, the idea dies and we end-up not ever
going anywhere. So where do you want to go? Send us
an
e-mail or give us a call at 877 965-5100 and we
can discuss it. |
TIPS
COMFORT IN THE BACKCOUNTRY
To get in the appropriate mood for the following,
you first might consider reading Undaunted
Courage by Stephen Ambrose about the Lewis and
Clark Expedition. The modern conveniences we have
available to us are truly amazing and we are
grateful!
Feet– About the most uncomfortable
thing you can have in the backcountry is blisters.
Wear boots that are appropriate to the load you are
carrying and the terrain you are traveling. Light
trail boots are fine for maintained smooth trails
while carrying a daypack, but a heavy pack and rough
terrain requires study boots that will support and
protect your feet. Increase mileage in steps to
break in the boots and prepare your feet. Wear thin
liner socks with a heavier wool-blend sock to help
prevent blisters. Threat any hot spots very
aggressively with tape/moleskin before they get
worse. At the end of the day, camp shoes such as
lightweight sandals, sneakers or rafting shoes,
allow you to liberate your feet in camp as well as
wade streams and still keep your boots dry.
Skin Sunburn is not fun and can cause
long-term skin problems. Use a heavy duty sunscreen
that blocks as much of the sun's rays as possible.
There's been some controversy about the
effectiveness of sunscreen, but two products that
work for me are Aloe Gater SPF 40, and Anthelios "S"
SPF 30 made by La Roche-Posay. The Anthelios
products contain Mexoryl which blocks both UV A & B.
Unfortunately, it is not available for sale in the
US. I order mine from Canada through
feelbest.com. Remember, no matter what you use,
it only works if you actually put it on and keep
reapplying it as necessary.
Besides sunburn, mosquito bites are definitely
uncomfortable to the skin. Most of the time we are
higher than the annoying little critters can fly,
but when you are in their territory they can really
drive you crazy. There are many products available
and you need to find one that works and doesn't
irritate your skin. I use the REI "Jungle Juice 100"
which is 95% Deet. It truly works, but it should be
applied sparingly. Keep it in a heavy duty sealed
bag, since it will melt your plastic items if it
gets on them. It is a primary cause of having to
replace compasses. Having Hydrocortizone ointment
will relieve the itching bites.
Back – A Crazy Creek Style Chair is a foam
pad with stays and straps that provides insulation
and back support. It is perfect for sitting around
bragging about the climb, eating dinner, or reading
a book (another good thing to bring). Thermarest
sleeping pads combine an air mattress with a foam
pad. Very comfortable and warm and many
configurations are available.
Fluids – Drink often and well. A Personal
Hydration System such as a "Camelback" style water
bladder with a drink tube (be careful not to poke
holes in it) or a water bottle attached to your pack
strap enables you to drink without having to take
off your pack. Take it in the tent with you so you
can drink when you're thirsty during the night
Ears – Besides protecting them with
sunscreen, having an MP3 player provides a very
pleasant interlude while snuggled in your sleeping
bag just before you go to sleep. My iPod Nano rocks!
Additional equipment recommendations can be found on
the OPA
website. |
INTERESTED IN SETTING UP AN OUTING?
Please give us a call if you are interested in
setting up an outing for your work group or family.
We handle all the arrangements including
transportation and food at a reasonable price. If
you are coming to Portland for a conference or
convention, we would be delighted to set-up outings
for your attendees. Just let us know when. |
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