Mt. Rainier Climb - Part I - Carolyn Power Tells All

================================================================

Since many of you have been following the recent Mt. Rainier climb by eight women raising funds for breast cancer research, I thought you might like a first-hand tale of the climb. Carolyn Power, the person who started the the SSA/Y2K climb for breast cancer research tells you what it was like in her own words. I begin a series with this first article.

Jerri Brooker: The day you set out on the climb, what were your thoughts?

Carolyn Power: August 19th seemed to come really quick to me. Even though we had trained for over one year, it seemed like the day came up right behind us. It was now time to put all we had learned and trained for in action. My heart was in my stomach and my brain was in my heart. I have read many books on mountaineering and knew what the risks were.

However, on the 19th my biggest and most powerful thought was that the seven of us would be on the summit by the 20th. I was ready and all the risk I feared left. I was also so proud to see my teammates eager and ready for the challenge as well as being so proud of them for being the reason I, too, was there. All I kept saying to myself was, "One step at a time, Carolyn, just one step at a time."

JB: How did the weather affect your climb?

CP: The weather on the 19th was bad. As we prepared for our journey at the Guide House it was raining and a wee bit foggy. I knew that beyond Paradise it was going to be horrible. We had left Paradise on many occasions when the weather was about the same. I worried about my teammates and other members of the summit attempt.

As we left Paradise and reached Pebble Creek it started to sleet and wet snow was coming down. This hampered the trek up because we were also carrying 35-pound packs which we were not accustomed to wearing - they got so wet the weight felt even heavier on my shoulders and back.

Go To Page: 1 2