The end of a 3 volcano summer
Yesterday I summited Mt. St. Helens with some good friends. Due to a tragic ipod accident, we had but a single song to listen to for the entire drive down and the hike — the DRM licenses files all blew up, so the only thing I had left was the one song I had in mp3 format to ensure it survived for Corrie and Mason’s wedding dance. I’m glad it was a song about timelessness and repetition, because I think having a hiking anthem about novelty playing on repeat for hours would have been a jarring. If you’re looking for some light-weight high-quality speakers, I strongly recommend LG’s MSP-100 as the best mountaineering speakers yet.
A loving reminder that if you’re climbing up to 8,300′ elevation, you should bring extra warm dry clothes, even if it’s summer. Pack clothes as if you’re going snowboarding. We ended up sopping wet in a cloud and I got concerned about hypothermia after we had put on all the gear we brought and were still cold. Cotton kills. Bringing cotten clothes are fine and comfy and pretty, but don’t rely on them to keep you warm. Roger that, we all know this, but it’s serious.
Arguably the summer here in Washington ended about a week ago — it’s pretty gray right now. But by the rules we’ve got a few days left. So along with Mt. Adams (12,281′) and Mt. Rainier (14,411′), now Mt. St. Helens (8,364′) becomes the third volcano I summited this summer. I’m pretty happy about that.