Wednesday, May 17, 2006

Brothers and Mothers


This last weekend, Mother's Day weekend, me and seven other Mountaineers climbed the Brothers in the Olympic National Forest, Brothers Wilderness area, west of Seattle across the Puget Sound and Hood Canal. It was a spectacular weekend, blue skies and warm temps.

Three gradual miles from the trailhead we came to a popular resting point, Lower Lena Lake. Another three miles or so takes us to our base camp at around 3,500ft.

We left camp at 6 a.m. on Mother's Day with crampons and ice axes and proceeded to climb up several snow gulleys and chutes to the Brothers south summit (6,800ft) around 10 a.m.

The views were amazing albeit a bit hazy in the far distance. Behind me you see Hood Canal and the Puget Sound. In the cornice summit shot, look close to see Mt. Rainier in the background.




On the descent, we had the great pleasure of viewing a large mountain goat, meandering around the rocks eating licthen and posing for pictures.