Mt Adams Wilderness,  Gifford Pinchot National Forest,  Aug 18, 2003 - Aug 19, 2003     page 4 / 9

Many of the other climbers had suggested beginning our ascent early the next day. One even suggested 5:00 AM. We set our alarm for 4:30. We hit the sack early. The evening cooled off well, but the wind picked up in the middle of the night. I didn't sleep very well that night. This was quite frustrating, since I had gotten a poor night of sleep the previous night as well.

4:30 AM arrived much too soon. We ate a quick oatmeal breakfast and hit the trail right at 5:00AM. There was just enough light to see the trail without the use of flashlights. We followed the trail up to 8200 feet, at which point we were on the first large snowfield. We continued to the Lunch Counter at 9000 feet and took a short break. I was tiring rapidly and wondered how I could climb another 3200 feet. We went to nearly 10,000 feet and stopped again. I had mentioned my lack of energy at our earlier stop, but it was apparent now that I was not going to reach the summit on this climb. I ate a bit, though my stomach was somewhat upset.