Skiing Mt. Hood Illumination Saddle

A couple Friday’s ago, I was staring out of the window at clear blue skies in Portland. There had been clear skies all week, and I was dreaming of spending a sunny winter day in the mountains. Avalanche conditions and weather reports looked good, so we quickly made plans to ski from Illumination Saddle the following morning.

Lea, Jadon and I left Portland around 5:30am to beat the usual ski traffic and got to the parking lot just in time to catch a beautiful sunrise. It was slow going up hill, as I broke in my new mountaineering boots and they skinned up. I’ve been learning to ski this year, but my skills aren’t quite there yet, so I carried my snowboard on my back.

The day couldn’t have been better, the skies were clear and the wind was light. It was nice enough to hang out at the top of Illumination Saddle for a while and enjoy the high of the incredible day.

Next time we get a weather window like this we’ll probably try for a summit attempt on Mt. Hood.

Early morning smiles

Preparing as the sun rises

And we’re off

Prior tracks in the morning light

It ain’t easy

Taking a break

Looking ahead to Illumination Rock (to the left). It looks deceptively close

And back towards Mt. Jefferson

Jadon getting used to his new setup

and admiring the view

It’s really just a slow hike at this point

Taking a moment to enjoy it all

Photoshoot time

Jadon

Lea

Me

The summit gets bigger, but it doesn’t seem closer as we ascend

Lots of cool ice formations line the ridges as we get higher

About in line with Illumination Rock

Checking out more cool ice formations, as Lea and Jadon continue on above

Other skiers descend from the saddle

Jadon traverses towards the saddle

Getting closer…

And we’re here!

We took a long rest at the saddle, and took in the views. It was so bright on the mountain that sunglasses seemed to have little effect. Between the sun, altitude and exhaustion, Lea spent a couple minutes searching for her sunglasses only to find she was already wearing them.

From the far side

Lea trying to keep out of the sun

Celebration time!

Posing in front of the ice formations

Jadon and I

First time using my new crampons and mountaineering boots.

After a transition, we’re ready to ski

The first couple hundred meters were great skiing…the rest a bit varied and icy.

On our way down

Obligatory beers at the end

Written by Mike Guida who enjoys prolonged outdoor adventures and building stuff with software. Follow him on Twitter