The Sierra Club's Ascent of Mt. Rainier. 3 



the wind. It was then shortly after 6 o'clock, and as the 

 sun disappeared behind the rocks the snow became quite 

 hard and crisp — evidence that the frost had already sec 

 in. Against the cold we were prepared, for we had been 

 informed that this would be the severest of our hardships 

 during the climb. But as it grew colder and colder I 

 began to think with some misgiving of my ten-pound 

 sleeping-bag, which consisted merely of an eiderdown 

 quilt covered with denim and a thin oil-silk water-proof 

 bag. This misgiving proved groundless, however, for I 

 slept away the night perfectly warm in my sequestered 

 nook. Judging by the cheerful countenances seen the 

 next morning, the rest of the party also suffered no 

 hardship. 



At supper-time, while waiting for hot soup, tea, and 

 beans, — a truly sumptuous meal to be cooked on a 

 Khotal stove* and served amid such surroundings, — we 

 had ample time to enjoy the magnificent view. The eye 

 was first attracted by three snow-peaks standing out 

 clearly in the distance, with the sunset glow illuminating 

 them in a most wonderful way. There was Hood, a 

 mountain of perfect conical form, flanked on either side 

 by St. Helens and Adams. Almost at our very feet 

 lay the Tatoosh Range, the scene of our conquest a few 

 days before. How utterly insignificant it now looked! 

 Our eyes unconsciously wandered back to the three im- 

 posing peaks, and a sense of exhilaration took possession 

 of us as we reflected that we were about to conquer a 

 greater than any of these. 



With the moon still high in the heavens, we rose, 

 breakfasted, and, as dawn slowly appeared, began the 

 ascent. From now on it was hard work. The climbing 

 of Rainier is not a holiday jaunt. As far as Gibraltar 

 Rock it was a constant alternation between rock and 



* It should interest mountaineers generally to know that two small single- 

 burner Khotal oil-stoves, weighing only seven pounds each, an improvement on 

 the Primus stove, cooked for the sixty-two people in camp that night a supper of 

 soup, tea, and canned pork and beans, and breakfast the next morning, with a 

 total consumption of less than one-half gallon of kerosene oil. 



