Going to school to climb mountains

Heya,

So as I've been educating myself about mountaineering through books, magazines, websites, etc, I've come to realize there's a lot to know! Duh right? And the more I learn the more I realize how much I don't know. I suppose that's the way it is with any new subject that someone attempts to learn though. Thinking about this dilemma I finally decided that it would be in my best interest to expand my knowledge and gain some much needed hands on experience. So I decided to sign up for a beginner mountaineering course.

Although the West Face of Shasta which I will be doing for my Summit for Someone climb is not a super technical climb it will require some skills. Shasta Mountain Guides, the guide service that I will be climbing with for my Summit for Someone climb at the end of June would definitely have provided me the instruction I needed to get to the summit and down with them safely. However, by taking a course I feel that I will end up with the knowledge and skills to go up other more technical mountains as part of a team in the future.

With that being said, my next decision was who to learn from? After much research and thought I finally decided to go with American Alpine Institute (AAI). Specifically their Alpinism 1 - Introduction to Mountaineering course. AAI has been around for 40 years and is highly respected for their climbing courses and guiding services. They had the right course for the right price at the right time, so I pulled the trigger and signed up for their May 15th session which will take place around Bellingham, WA. The course that I am taking has a focus on the following skills:                                    

• Selection and use of personal equipment
• Selection and use of ropes, knots, and harnesses
• Selection and use of rock, snow, and ice anchors for belays and intermediate protection
• Belaying techniques on rock, snow, and ice
• Free climbing techniques on low and high angle rock, snow, and ice
• Principles of glacier travel and route finding
• Self-arrest; rappelling, and prusiking
• The concept and application of the self-belay
• Individual and team crevasse rescue techniques

Wow! That's a lot of stuff right? Like what the heck is prusiking? Well the class takes place over six days in the northern Cascades where I will find that out. There is plenty of snow and ice up there which makes it a perfect place to learn. The really cool part is that on the last day of the course if the weather is good we get to make a summit attempt on Mt. Baker, the third highest mountain in WA.

This brings me to my next hurdle. Along with signing up for the course, AAI sends you a list of "required equipment". Now as of the start of this whole Summit for Someone venture back in December of 2015 I had absolutely no mountaineering gear. I had a few odds and ends from hiking, and some winter clothing laying around, but nothing very substantial. It turns out mountaineering gear is expensive! Who knew? Good thing I drove dog sled tours all winter. So after months of research and with the deadline of my course coming up on May 15th I have started purchasing some of the essential equipment that I am going to need. I have worked quite a bit with Nomad Ventures in California and they have been awesome with sharing all of their knowledge with me. Thanks guys! I still have a few things to pick up, and when I have my complete set of equipment I will make sure to let all of you know what I have decided on in another blog post.

Until then thanks for reading and I hope you continue to follow along. And remember I'm still raising money for Big City Mountaineers with my climb of Mt. Shasta at the end of June. You can donate through the widget on the right side of my blog by clicking the Donate Now button. Or if you are viewing the mobile version of my blog then you can go to my Crowdrise Page and donate from there. I'm 24% of the way to my goal of $3,600. Less than two months left! We are getting there! Thanks to everyone who has already donated. It means a lot to me and to the kids who it will benefit.

Until next time,

Jake
Jake' Shasta Climb Facebook Page

"It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves."

-Sir Edmund Hillary

Shasta-Trinity National Forest

Here's a short video giving a description of the beautiful area around where I will be climbing.

What are you doing again?

Hey Guys, For those of you just finding this blog, here is who I am and what I'm doing:

My name is Jake Lange. I’m a 27 year old outdoor lover. I was very fortunate to be introduced to the outdoors at a young age through the Boy Scouts of America where I earned the rank of Eagle Scout. Since then I have been very active in the outdoors most recently completing a 2,650 mile hike of the Pacific Crest Trail in 2015. I have now decided to push myself father mentally and physically by learning the sport of mountaineering. For one of my first climbs I have planned a June 2016 summit attempt of Mt. Shasta, a 14,179 foot peak in northern California.  Along with going for the summit I plan to raise money for an organization called Big City Mountaineers. Big City Mountaineers is an amazing group that takes inner city children who wouldn’t otherwise have the chance into the outdoors. I feel that raising money through this climb is a great way to give back for all the great opportunities I have had in the outdoors.

The climb will take place over three days from June 23^rd to the 25^th of 2016.  I plan to go up the West Face route of Shasta with Shasta Mountain Guides. The West Face route of Mt. Shasta is less traveled and more remote than some of the other routes to the summit. The climb will start at 6,800 feet from the trail head parking lot and take about three days. We will make base camp in Hidden Valley after traversing a few snowfields and talus. Base camp will be at 9,200 feet. From Base camp we will head straight up the west face chute which is covered in snowfields and has a 40-45 degree slope for about 300 feet. We will follow the gully to the right and continue up to Fang Rock at about 12,500 feet. We will then climb to the saddle at 13,300 feet. From there we will follow a ridge and cross Whitney Glacier. This will take us to the top of Misery Hill where we will head for the summit via the summit plateau. We will hopefully reach the summit at 14,179 feet and then begin the descent. 

If you feel the same as I do about this cause or if you just want to see me try to climb a mountain, then I would like to ask you to consider making a donation towards my goal of $3,600 to go to Big City Mountaineers. I am paying my own guide fee up the mountain as well as acquiring my own gear. This means that all the money raised goes directly to the Summit for Someone event and Big City Mountaineers. I currently am accepting donations online through a Crowdrise account under the name of Jake’s Shasta Climb. You can also click on the Donate Now widget on the right side of this blog. In addition to the blog I am documenting the climb through Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Feel free to check it out:

Facebook: Jake's Summit for Someone

Instagram: Jake_lange (check it out on the right side of the blog)

Twitter: @jakelange1

Also check out Big City Mountaineers to see what an awesome organization they are.

Thanks and stayed tuned for more,
Jake

"The Wonderful things in life are the things you do, not the things you have."
-Reinhold Messner

What do I need to climb a mountain?

While my climb of Mt. Shasta in June isn’t the hardest climb out there, it will require some extra gear besides what you would take on a regular hike through the woods. Some of you reading this probably already know a bit about these main pieces of gear, but for those of you who don’t here’s the basics.

Ice axe: This is probably one of the most recognizable pieces of equipment used by mountaineers. Depending on what type of climbing you are doing the ice axe can take on many different shapes. For my Mt. Shasta climb I will be using an ice axe with a long handle that has a long pointed pick on one end and a flat adze on the other. It will also have a leash attached to it that will go around my wrist in case I was to drop it. I will use the axe mostly to stabilize myself like a sort of cane as a climb up and down the mountain. The ice axe is also used to perform a technique called a self-arrest, where if I was to fall I would be able to stop myself from sliding down the mountain. These are just a few of the many uses of an ice axe.

Boots: Mountaineering boots are designed differently than a hiking boot. They are made of leather or plastic and are much stiffer than a regular boot. This stiffness allows a climber to kick into the snow slope so you can get a solid step in as you climb up and down. The sole of the boot is also compatible with a crampon which I will describe below.

Crampons: These come in a pair, one for each boot. They attach to the bottom and have either 10 or 12 sharp points that grip the snow and ice as you climb. Again depending on what type of climbing you are doing crampons come in many different forms.

Helmet: This piece of equipment is one that you might not think of until you get out onto the mountain and look up, but it is one thing that you don’t want to forget. The helmet is designed to protect you from falling ice and rock that may be knocked down from climbers above you or just from the natural freezing and thawing that is occurring on the mountain. They are different from a bike or ski helmet in that they are designed to take impact from above.

These are just a few of the pieces of equipment required on a climb up a mountain. Depending on where you are climbing and what the conditions are there are countless other pieces of gear that you may need. Stay tuned for more info on my upcoming climb. Two months to the summit!

Jake

“Getting to the top is optional. Getting down is mandatory.”

-Ed Viesturs

Hey guys! Check out the update from Canyonlands National Park.

                                                Learn more here: Summit for Someone